RGC-80 GM Cannon

The RGC-80 GM Cannon is a mass-produced artillery mobile suit, and is a variant of the RGM-79 GM. The unit is featured in the original design series Mobile Suit Variations and in the anime series Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam.

Technology & Combat Characteristics
With the failure of the RGC-80-1 GM Cannon Test Type, the Earth Federation designers took the gathered data and developed the RGC-80 GM Cannon, correcting the problems encountered in the predecessor model.

Deemed successful and put into production in late UC 0079, the topweight balance and recoil problems suffered by the Test Type were addressed by mounting only one 240mm rocket-assisted projectile cannon and adding heavier armor to the hip skirt as well as the legs. The GM Cannon still possesses 60% parts commonality with the RGM-79 GM and could also carry the same hand weapons and shields as its general-purpose sibling.

Armaments

 * 240mm Cannon
 * Mounted over the right shoulder was a mid-range fire support artillery cannon. The cannon is clip fed, with a spare clip mounted on the rear waist armor.


 * 60mm Vulcan Gun
 * A standard armament of the mobile suits that are descended from the Earth Federation Forces's RX series. These head mounted shell firing weapons have a high-rate of fire, but have little power and are generally ineffective against mobile suits; however, the vulcan gun can damage lightly armored areas such as the sensors. These weapons are ideal for shooting down small, fast moving, lightly armored targets such as missiles or small vehicles.


 * BR-M-79C-1 Beam Spray Gun
 * The Beam Spray Gun was essentially the Gundam's beam rifle in a smaller weaker form. The beam spray gun has a smaller focusing coil which results in a less powerful, and a more scattered shot. As a result of this the beam spray gun is less effective at long range, but is better at close range due to a more spread out shot, similar to a shotgun effect. While the beam spray gun is less powerful than the beam rifle, it has been shown to be able to penetrate the armor of a Rick Dom - one of the most heavily armored mobile suits of the One Year War.


 * NF GMG-Type.37/100mm Machine Gun
 * The standard armament for Federation mobile suit ground forces, the Type 37 is an open-bolt, gas-operated, magazine-fed, mobile suit handheld machine gun. It fires a 100×450 millimeter round at a rate of 500 rounds per minute and is loaded with a 20-round box magazine. Features include a folding stock and swivel forward hand grip. Maximum effective range of 1.5 kilometers.


 * BLASH HB-L-03/N-STD Hyper Bazooka
 * Similar to the Zaku's bazooka, the Hyper Bazooka was a heavy weapon used by the GM. Technically a large rocket launcher it could fire several 380mm missiles to attack targets at long range. No mass-production MS's armor is able to stop this weapon. While very powerful, it has a slow rate of fire and a fairly little amount of ammunition. Often used to take out slow, heavily armored targets.


 * BOWA·BR-S-85-C2 Beam Rifle
 * The standard ranged armament of the many mobile suits is the beam rifle. The particle beam fired from a beam rifle can penetrate almost any armor that has not been treated with specific counter-measures. The beam rifle has a power rating of 1.9 MW and is powered by a rechargeable energy cap.


 * FADEGEL RGM-M-Sh-003 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 GM Cannon in order to increase defense against both beam and physical attacks.


 * RGM*S-Sh-WF/S-00109 Shield
 * Beside the standard model, the GM Cannon is capable of mounting on either of its forearms a smaller RGM*S-Sh-WF/S-00109 Shield. It is capable of deflecting most incoming ballistic projectiles and some explosive warheads. Mount latch and joint/pivot mount position retracted for protection or extended for slashing or punching attacks. Can be thrust into the ground and used as an elevated weapon firing position. Features include top carrying handle and shield claw.

History
Initially only six RGC-80 GM Cannons would be produced and fielded. These six GM Cannons would serve as part of the Earth Federation Forces's campaign to retake the North American continent. By the time the Earth Federation Forces had recaptured California Base from the Principality of Zeon forces on North America's Pacific Coast, the GM Cannons had proven themselves on the field of combat and the unit was approved for mass-production. Forty-four additional GM Cannons would be constructed and distributed to various Earth Federation Forces battalions around the Earth to assist in driving the Zeon Military Force back out into space. Some units would be sent to Africa, while one was assigned to ace pilot Lydo Wolf and painted in his trademark black custom colors, and others were used by famous teams such as the White Dingos.

The RGC-80 GM Cannon would continue to see active service even after the One Year War and into the Gryps Conflict in UC 0087.

Variants

 * RGC-80S GM Cannon Space Assault Type