RX-78GP04G Gundam "Gerbera"

The RX-78GP04G Gundam "Gerbera" is a prototype general-purpose high-speed assault mobile suit and the fourth of four mobile suits in the Gundam Development Project, appearing in Mobile Suit Gundam: Encounters In Space and Mobile Suit Gundam Gihren's Greed. The RX-78GP04G Gundam "Gerbera" would eventually be developed into the AGX-04 Gerbera Tetra.

Technology & Combat Characteristics
The RX-78GP04G Gundam "Gerbera" was intended to be built specifically for high-speed assault. Its major feature was a pair of "stürm booster" thrusters that could be equipped to the shoulders to increase the unit's top speed and range. However, the Federation came to the realization that both the RX-78GP04G and the RX-78GP01-Fb Gundam Full Burnern "Zephyranthes" would essentially be filling the same role due to their high-performance designs. Even the overall, the RX-78GP01-Fb (multipurpose and greatly upgraded with Full Burnern system) has a little better than RX-78GP04G (general purpose and assault type). Because of this, the Federation cancelled development of the RX-78GP04G, beside for the sake of saving funds and resources, leaving Anaheim Electronics with a half-completed RX-78GP04G prototype. Those ill-fates made the RX-78GP04G never truly exist.

Armaments

 * Beam Saber
 * The beam saber produces high-energy Minovsky particles to form a blade-shaped I-field filled with superheated plasma that creates a deadly cutting blade. The termination of the I-field along a solid contact surface allows the plasma to eat away at the offending material until the I-field reestablishes itself, allowing the weapon to "cut" through almost any target. Likewise, as the beam saber's I-field enclosure repels plasma, it not only keeps the blade's plasma in but also keeps plasma from another blade out allowing one beam saber to be used to block another. The Gerbera is equipped with 2 beam sabers that were stored on recharge racks on the backpack.


 * Long Beam Rifle
 * A specialized high-power beam rifle designed specifically for the Gerbera, it features an advanced firing control system integrated in to the weapon. The particle beam fired from this beam rifle can penetrate almost any armor that has not been treated with specific counter-measures. Sensors built into the rifle provide interface between the weapon and the Gerbera's camera sensor.


 * Jitte
 * A Beam Jitte is attached to the Gerbera's Beam Rifle. Essentially a bayonet, it is designed to catch enemy beam sabers, allowing the pilot to quickly counter when there is no time to draw out his main beam saber, or used when the Gerbera is in a tight situation when it lost its beam sabers.


 * Shield
 * A basic optional arm-mounted defense armament for many Federation mobile suits. The shield is a thick sheet of armor designed to take severe punishment that would normally destroy a mobile suit. Since the introduction of beam weaponry, shields have been treated with an anti-beam coating allowing it to withstand several beam shots before the coating wears off. Typically physical shields can only take so much damage before they succumb to the pressure and break. A shield can be equipped to either arm of the Gerbera in order to increase defense against both beam and physical attacks.

Special Equipment & Features

 * "Stürm Boosters"
 * The "Stürm Boosters" are devices similar to booster pods which are attached to back of the Gerbera and are fitted with high-performance thrusters for propulsion purposes. The Stürm Boosters also provides Gundam "Gerbera" with a pair of back-mounted external propellant tanks which substantially increase the amount of fuel this MS can carry, thus increasing the mobile suits operational flight time. When the fuel is depleted, the tanks can be ejected to decrease mass.

History
According to the MG model manual and MS encyclopedia, one of the tactics that Zeon used to great success against the Federation in the One Year War was high speed strikes with mobile suits. Federation forces had little time to react before being attacked by mobile suit squadrons. So, it was not surprising that the Federation sought to develop high speed assault mobile suits of its own. It was about at this time that the Delaz Fleet approached the division of Anaheim Electronics created from the Zeonic Company, which was still filled with Zeon loyalists. They then acquired the half-completed prototype of RX-78GP04G and revised the design, transforming it into the AGX-04 Gerbera Tetra assault mobile suit. Some say that the branch of the Earth Federation which later developed into Titans cancelled the development in order to provide in secret this mobile suit to the spy Cima Garahau. Although highly possible, no actual record could be traced to support this argument.

Variants

 * AGX-04 Gerbera Tetra

Notes & Trivia

 * In Gihren's Greed, there's a choice where the developers can abort or finish the development of the GP04G. When finished, the suit possesses high mobility and strength.
 * The GP04G makes a brief appearance near the end of Gundam Evolve 4 as it is being observed by Anaheim Electronics employees before being closed off as illegal data.
 * The GP04G also makes an appearance as an unlockable unit in the video game Mobile Suit Gundam: Encounters in Space, and is unlocked after the player achieves S-Rank on all White Base and Thoroughbred missions.
 * "Gerbera" refers to the genus of the sunflower plant, which is named after German botanist Traugott Gerber.