ASW-G-01 Gundam Bael

The ASW-G-01 Gundam Bael (ガンダムバエル) is a mobile suit from the second season of Mobile Suit Gundam IRON-BLOODED ORPHANS television series. It was originally piloted by Agnika Kaieru, and 300 years later by McGillis Fareed.

Design & Development
During the Calamity War 300 year ago, a quarter of the human population were lost due to the fighting with the mobile armors, which had been developed for the efficient extermination of human beings. To stop these mobile armors, the Alaya-Vijnana System which establishes compatibility between a person and a machine was employed. During this process, 72 Gundam Frames were produced, and they came to be perceived as special due to the outstanding military achievement of Agnika Kaieru who piloted Gundam Frame No.1, the Gundam Bael.

Gundam Bael was a key mobile suit in ending the war and a symbol of the Gjallarhorn. Thus, Agnika and Gundam Bael were deified in those times. Gundam Bael's main armament consisted only of two swords, and this is proof that Agnika Kaieru was fully compatible with the mobile suit via the Alaya-Vijnana System. For Agnika, who realized superhuman reactions, no other armament was better than these unbreakable swords. Agnika passed away as the Gundam Bael went to sleep, and it was believed his soul resides within the Gundam. The Gundam Bael was stored in the Gjallarhorn's headquarter, Vingolf, until it was awakened by McGillis Fareed. During the long interval, the Gundam Bael remains unchanged, so its frame structure as well as armaments are as they were when Agnika was the pilot. The emblem on its left shoulder is a symbol of the Gjallarhorn at the time of establishment.

Armaments

 * Bael Sword
 * Stored on the blade holder mounted on the rear skirt armor, the pair of Bael Swords are forged from the rare metal used for the mobile suit's frame. The swords symbolized the strength of Agnika Kaieru who needed no other armament.


 * Electromagnetic Cannon
 * One Electromagnetic Cannon is built into each thruster wings, for a total of two such weapons. They are fired from the top aperture on the side of the wings.

Equipment

 * Blade Holder
 * Located on the rear skirt armor, the holders of the Bael Swords employ moving arms to minimize the time needed to draw the swords.


 * Thruster Wing
 * A pair of booster equipped wings are mounted on the back of Gundam Bael, they allow it to fly over the battlefields.


 * Alaya-Vijnana System
 * An organic device system, it is a type of man-machine interface developed during the Calamity War to maximize the abilities of mobile suit. The system consisted of two parts, one part is installed in the mobile suit, and the other part (informally referred to as "Whiskers") is implanted into the pilot’s spine (usually at a young age as the implant only fuse with growing children). Thanks to this system, the pilot can be connected to the mobile suit's computer and directly process mobile suit data. It also allows the pilot (including inexperienced ones) to operate the mobile suit for combat without reading the instruction manual. The implant in the pilot also enhances spatial awareness.

Calamity War
The Gundam Bael was the first of the 72 Gundam Frames created by Gjallarhorn near the end of the Calamity War 300 years ago to counter the threat of the powerful mobile armors such as Hashmal.

P.D. 325
Since the end of the Calamity War, Bael was kept in a basement hangar located at Gjallarhorn's Earth Headquarters. After resting there for 300 years, it was reactivated by McGillis during his coup d'etat.

Epilogue
Years after McGillis' failed coup, Gundam Bael was placed back in the basement hangar of Gjallarhorn's Earth HQ, repaired without its cockpit.

Trivia

 * Bael is the first demon of the Ars Goetia. He is the head of the infernal powers. Bael is first king of Hell with estates in the east. He has three heads: a toad, a man, and a cat. He also speaks in a raucous, but well formed voice, and commands 66 legions of demons under his rule.
 * Gundam Bael is currently the only Gundam Frame whose namesake holds the title of 'King'.
 * An image similar to the sigil of the demon, Bael, can be seen on the console upon activation.
 * As with Barbatos, it can be assumed that all Gundam Frames have sigils on their consoles upon activation, corresponding to the seal of the demon after whom the Gundam is named. A similar seal for Kimaris is also shown in its vacant hangar at Gjallarhorn's headquarters, reinforcing the likelihood of this being the case.
 * Gundam Bael's flying pose in episode 43 is similar to PF-78-3A Gundam Amazing Red Warrior's "advent" pose during the latter's debut. Coincidentally, the pilot of both machines are deemed by fans to be 'Char Clones'.