The Apsalus III is a fictional mobile armor that appeared in Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team. A Gunpla version of it also appeared in Gundam Build Fighters built and piloted by Tatsuzo.
Technology & Combat Characteristics
The Apsalus III would be the culmination of all of the test data of the previous two Apsalus units and it was over twice the size of the original two units. To compensate for balance problems in flight the Apsalus III mounted two Minovsky Craft Systems, one on each side of its body located on spider-like legs that could be lowered away from the main body to anchor the unit in place when firing close to the ground. Also, to overcome the problem of insufficient energy the Apsalus III mounted three Rick Dom II generators instead of one.
Also unlike the previous models, the beam weaponry of the Apsalus could be manipulated at the beam-level, enabling the beam to be redirected shortly outside of the barrel as the user wished, allowing a wide range of attack without needing to move the Apsalus.
Armaments
- Mega Particle Cannon
- The final model of the Apsalus has a particle cannon that like the previous Apsalus II, is capable of superheating earth and causing an explosion on impact. The particle cannon is able to project a thin beam just outside the barrel for a free range of motion without having to move the cannon itself. At full output, the charging process has the beam energy being shaped like an hour-glass before firing.
- Leader
- Tatsuzo's Apsalus III is also armed with Adzam-type Leaders.
Special Equipment & Features
- Minovsky Craft System
- Since it is made up of charged particles, the I-field is unable to penetrate metal, water, the Earth's surface, or other electrically conductive materials and can be shaped simply by trapping it in an electromagnetic field. Thus, at low altitudes it is possible to generate an I-field cushion between the underside of a vessel and the ground, yielding a gravity-countering buoyancy. This principle is used in the creation of the Minovsky Craft System, which allowed a spaceship or heavy ground vehicle to fly / hover on Earth. The Apsalus III is one of the few Zeon mobile weapons in One Year War which features the Minovsky Craft System for aerial navigation under the Earth atmosphere.
- I-Field
- Tatsuzo's custom Gunpla is equipped with an I-Field that deflects beam-based attacks.
- Gas Dispenser
- Tatsuzo's Apsalus III can release a gas that makes the enemy Gunpla's armor brittle.
History
After the Apsalus II was lost Ginias Sahalin began work on the final version of the Apsalus Project, the Apsalus III. However, not long after the Principality of Zeon lost Operation Odessa the Apsalus Project was ordered to be halted. Ginias Sahalin, driven by a mad determination to see his project completed, demanded the work on the Apsalus to continue despite the orders that Zeon prepare moving all of their available resources and supplies to space, and he went so far as to murder anyone who he felt stood in his way.
However the Apsalus III was never able to carry out its intended purpose. The massive mobile armor was destroyed in the skies over the Zeonic mountain base where it was designed and built when the base was discovered and sieged by the Earth Federation Forces.
Gallery
_front_c.jpg "(APSARAS III) front c.jpg (375 KB)")
_back.jpg "(APSARAS III) back.jpg (350 KB)")
Notes and Trivia
- The Apsalus III's Minovsky Craft System legs may be an homage to the alien Fighting Machines (a.k.a. "Tripods") of H. G. Wells' novel The War of the Worlds.
Reference
External Links
