The ZGMF-X10A Freedom Gundam (aka Freedom, X10A) is a mobile suit introduced in the anime Mobile Suit Gundam SEED and featured in the sequel series Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny. It is piloted by Kira Yamato.
Technology & Combat Characteristics[]
One of ZAFT's ZGMF-X series of Gundam units built in C.E. 71 using technology derived from the four captured Earth Alliance's Gundams, the Freedom Gundam has Phase Shift Armor and its armaments include CIWS guns, beam sabers, shield, plasma beam cannons, railguns, and a beam rifle. When the latter three weapons are used simultaneously, the Freedom is said to be in 'Full Burst Mode'. The suit has full flight capabilities in the atmosphere and the rear-mounted wings can be deployed in "High Mobility Aerial Tactics (HiMAT) Mode" to enhance its mobility in the atmosphere or in space. It also has an advanced targeting system, the Multi Lock-On System, that allows it to target and fire at multiple enemy units simultaneously. Due to its capabilities and loadout, the suit has a reputation as a specialized 'Mobile Suit Killer', but its high performance resulted in a complicated control system that demands extremely fast reaction speed and spatial awareness from its pilot.[1]
When needed, the Freedom can dock with a support unit, the METEOR unit, for heavier firepower and greater speed. The Freedom has virtually unlimited combat endurance as it is equipped with a Neutron Jammer Canceller and powered by a nuclear reactor. Kira describes the suit as having over four times the power of the GAT-X105 Strike Gundam.[2] However, what this exactly means is unclear. The Freedom Gundam is meant to operate alongside the ZGMF-X09A Justice Gundam, and they are often based on the warship FFMH-Y101 Eternal, which is designed specifically to maintain and support them. Even in C.E. 73, the suit is still considered by some people, such as Shinn Asuka, as the most powerful mobile suit out there. Overall, it is one of the Clyne Faction's symbols of power, along with the Eternal, the Archangel, and the Justice.
Armaments[]
- MMI-GAU2 "Picus" 76mm CIWS
- Mounted in the head, the pair of MMI-GAU2 "Picus" 76mm CIWS guns have a high rate of fire but poor penetrating power. Thus, they are mainly used to intercept incoming missiles and enemy units at close range.
- M100 "Balaena" Plasma Beam Cannon
- A pair of powerful plasma beam cannons located in the wings, they are positioned over the shoulders when in use. Amongst the suit's ranged weaponry, the Balaena has the highest firepower and longest attack range.
- MA-M01 "Lacerta" Beam Saber
- The main close combat weapons of the Freedom are two MA-M01 "Lacerta" beam sabers, which are stored above the railguns. As with the beam rifle, the same type of beam sabers are used by the Justice. Since the beam sabers are powered by the suit's nuclear reactor, they have a higher output than the ones used by the original GAT-X series. The two beam sabers can be combined into a twin-edged beam saber, and this form is known as 'Ambidextrous Halberd'. Kira rarely used the beam sabers in this form.
- MMI-M15 "Xiphias" Railgun
- A pair of railguns that are mounted on the waist, they have an excellent rate of fire and high ammunition capacity. Folded into three parts when not in use, they can be used to deal with situations where beam weapons are ineffective and are the suit's most powerful solid-based weaponry. They are developed based on the Duel Gundam Assault Shroud's "Shiva" railgun. Although the railguns have foldable grips at the sides, they can be fired without the grips being held in hands.
- MA-M20 "Lupus" Beam Rifle
- The Freedom uses a MA-M20 "Lupus" high-energy beam rifle, which is the same rifle used by its companion unit, the ZGMF-X09A Justice Gundam. This beam rifle is stronger than the ones used by the original GAT-X series or the ZGMF-600 GuAIZ as it is powered by the suit's nuclear reactor. When not in use, it can be stored on the rear skirt armor.
- Laminated Anti-Beam Shield
- Handheld and/or mounted on the left forearm, the Freedom's shield has a laminated armor surface instead of an anti-beam coating like on the shields used by most mobile suits.
Special Equipment & Features[]
- High Mobility Aerial Tactics (HiMAT) Mode
- The Freedom Gundam's atmospheric flight configuration, in which its wings are unfolded for higher maneuverability. The Freedom is capable of flight even in its normal mode, but this form is better suited for aerial dogfighting. The HiMAT mode can also be used in space whereby it enhances the Freedom's AMBAC capabilities.
- As implied by its name, this unique system allows the Freedom to target multiple enemies and attack them at once. To use this system effectively, the pilot must have high spatial awareness capability, which is rare even among Coordinators. This system can also be used when the Freedom is docked with the METEOR unit.
- Full Burst Mode
- The name of the attack mode in which Freedom uses its beam rifle, railguns and plasma beam cannons all at once. This mode is often used together with the Multi Lock-On System to destroy large numbers of enemy units at once. However, despite its power, Full Burst Mode can only fire in a forward direction.
- As with the other four ZGMF-X series of Gundam units produced in that time period, the Freedom is equipped with a Neutron Jammer Canceller, which counters the effects of the ubiquitous Neutron Jammers and allows these suits to be powered by nuclear reactors. This gives them almost limitless combat endurance, even with Phase Shift armor activated.
- Like the other four units, the Freedom is equipped with Phase Shift armor. Thanks to its N-Jammer Canceller and nuclear reactor, the PS armor is capable of being active for a lot longer than on non-nuclear powered suits such as the Strike.
- Operating System
- The Freedom uses the Generation Unsubdued Nuclear Drive Assault Module Complex operating system.
- Like the Justice, the Freedom can dock with the powerful METEOR unit, a large mobile weapons platform with powerful thrusters and an even more powerful armament of battleship-caliber beam cannons, large beam swords, and dozens of heavy missile launchers.
History[]
First Alliance-PLANT War[]
On April 1, C.E. 71, ZAFT rolled out two new mobile suits, the ZGMF-X09A and ZGMF-X10A, named "Justice" and "Freedom" respectively by the PLANT Supreme Council Chairman, Patrick Zala. Both machines were part of a series of advanced mobile suits developed based on technology reverse-engineered from the captured Earth Alliance G Project suits.[2]
On May 5, C.E. 71, the Freedom Gundam was stolen by Kira Yamato, with the help of Lacus Clyne.[2] Kira rushed to Earth with the stolen suit and came to the rescue of the Archangel during the Battle of JOSH-A.[3] Along with the Archangel, Kira defected to the neutral Orb Union[4] and used the Freedom to defend the country against an Earth Alliance attack during the Battle of Orb.[5] During the battle, he reunited with his old friend Athrun Zala who piloted the Justice Gundam, and they soon joined forces to fight against the Earth Alliance's invasion forces, which included three new Gundams, the GAT-X131 Calamity Gundam, the GAT-X252 Forbidden Gundam, and the GAT-X370 Raider Gundam.[6] Afterwards, Kira and the Freedom returned to space along with the Archangel and the Orb battleship Kusanagi,[7][8] and met up with the support vessel FFMH-Y101 Eternal, which was stolen by Lacus Clyne and her supporters, captained by former ZAFT commander Andrew Waltfeld, and which carried the two METEOR units. The three warships then joined forces, becoming the Three Ships Alliance.[9]
During the Battle of Mendel, the Freedom and Justice once again fought the Calamity, Forbidden and Raider.[10] After the three machines temporarily retreated to their mothership, Kira flew the Freedom into the Mendel colony, where he rescued his comrade Mu La Flaga by swiftly disabling Rau Le Creuset's ZGMF-600 GuAIZ.[11] At the battle's climax, Kira attempted to retrieve a Life Pod containing Flay Allster, who had in her possession data on ZAFT's Neutron Jammer Canceller. However, the Freedom was damaged by the Forbidden and Raider, resulting in the Calamity recovering the life pod.[12]
During the Second Battle of Jachin Due, Athrun and Kira used their METEOR Units' firepower to thwart an Earth Alliance nuclear missile attack on the PLANT Colonies.[13] Afterward, Kira battled against Rau Le Creuset and his ZGMF-X13A Providence Gundam. The Freedom was quickly overpowered by the Providence's DRAGOON system, and lost the METEOR to the enemy's attacks. However, Kira managed to retaliate against the Providence, gradually destroying its DRAGOON pods one by one, slicing both its arms, and ultimately, impaling the Providence's cockpit with the combined beam sabers, killing Rau. The Providence was then vaporized by the last shot of the GENESIS superweapon, and the subsequent explosion heavily damaged the Freedom.[14]
Second Alliance-PLANT War[]
After the war, the Freedom was repaired and hidden in a secret underground base in Orb, where it laid dormant for more than two years. It returned to action during an assassination attempt on Lacus, when Kira launched in the Freedom and swiftly defeated the assassins' UMF/SSO-3 ASHs.[15] Afterwards, Kira used the Freedom to "kidnap" Cagalli from her wedding and brought her aboard the Archangel before the ship left Orb. Later, Kira used the Freedom in two failed attempts to stop the battling between Orb and ZAFT forces during the Battle of Dardanelles[16] and the Battle of Crete.[17] During the Battle of Berlin, the Freedom fought and destroyed the Alliance's GFAS-X1 Destroy Gundam, resulting in the death of its pilot, Stella Loussier.[18]
Shortly thereafter, ZAFT launched an attack against the Archangel, known as Operation Angel Down. At the battle's climax, the Freedom was stabbed in the abdomen by Shinn Asuka in his ZGMF-X56S/α Force Impulse Gundam with the Excalibur anti-ship sword from the Sword Silhouette. However, Kira managed to shut off the unit's nuclear reactor before losing consciousness, successfully prevented a nuclear explosion.[19] His sister, Cagalli Yula Athha, later rescued him and the remaining torso of the Freedom from the waters using her MBF-02 Strike Rouge.[20]
Legacy[]
ZAFT developed an advanced version of the Freedom, called the ZGMF-X20A Strike Freedom Gundam, which never progressed past the prototype stage due to technical limitations and the Junius Treaty signed after the first war. In C.E. 73, either the incomplete unit or its plans (it is unknown which) was stolen by the independent faction Terminal, who then modified the suit into a personal unit for Kira, who piloted it after the Freedom was destroyed.[21]
Gallery[]
Lineart[]
Anime[]
Mobile Suit Gundam SEED[]
Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny[]
Gundam Build Fighters[]
Illustrations & Artwork[]
Games[]
Gunpla[]
Action Figures[]
Notes & Trivia[]
- Freedom's head crest displays the text "X-10A DIECI", which is a reference to its model number. Dieci means ten in Italian. In-universe, it is a tribute to the creator of the first mobile suit, the Italian coordinator Gian Carlo Maniani.[22]
- According to some related books, the mock battle between Strike and Freedom proves that there was hardly any difference in power between the two mobile suits, and that the "power" in Kira's statement is not about Freedom's instantaneous output. There are also other claims such as the one in the GUNDAM SEED & ASTRAY MODELING MANUAL Vol.2 (Page 14, released on 2003 by Media Works) which noted that Kira's statement meant that Freedom Gundam has four times the performance of Strike Gundam.
- Kira's line itself was likely simply a reference to Amuro Ray's statement that the RX-78-2 Gundam has "more than five times the energy gain" when he first boarded it.
- According to Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Official File/Mechanics Vol.4, Page 11, the cockpit of the Freedom and other mobile suits in the ZGMF-X series has a switch for Electronic countermeasures (ECM)/Electronic counter-countermeasures (ECCM) devices, but it did not state what these devices are or whether they are common mobile suit equipment.
- However, shortly before the Battle of Orbit, Captain Hoffman ordered the deployment of Neutron Jammers.[23] Given that Neutron Jammers are known for disrupting radio waves, it was possible that those ECM/ECCM devices are based on Neutron Jammer technologies.
- In Mobile Suit Gundm SEED ORIGINAL SOUND TRACK III, released on September 21, 2003, there is a track named "Freedom Self-Destructs". Considering some other track titles are based on events from episodes that haven't aired when it was released ("Dominion Sinks", "Flay's Death"), Freedom Gundam's self-destruction in the final episodes may have been planned at some point.
- For the HD Remaster of Mobile Suit Gundam SEED, Freedom's Full Burst Mode is reanimated, particularly to show the railguns firing in bursts rather than as one single shot, and also to show exhaust smoke after firing. In addition, Freedom's CIWS were also fired during Full Burst. Its catapult launch sequence is also reanimated to remove the wings' double flapping during take off.
Appearances[]
- Television Series
- Mobile Suit Gundam SEED
- PHASE-34, Seen and Unseen
- First Appearance
- PHASE-35, The Descending Sword
- PHASE-36, In the Name of Justice
- PHASE-37, Divine Thunder
- PHASE-38, Decisive Fire
- PHASE-39, Athrun
- PHASE-40, Into the Dawn Skies
- PHASE-41, Trembling World
- PHASE-42, Lacus Strikes
- PHASE-43, What Stands in the Way
- PHASE-44, Spiral of Encounters
- PHASE-45, The Opening Door
- PHASE-46, A Place for the Soul
- PHASE-47, The Nightmare Reborn
- PHASE-48, Day of Wrath
- PHASE-49, The Final Light
- PHASE-50, To a Future that Never Ends
- PHASE-34, Seen and Unseen
- Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny
- PHASE-01, Angry Eyes
- Flashback(s) Only
- PHASE-13, Resurrected Wings
- PHASE-14, Flight to Tomorrow
- PHASE-15, Return to the Battlefield
- PHASE-20, Past
- PHASE-22, Sword of the Blue Skies
- PHASE-23, The Shadows of War
- PHASE-24, Differing Views
- PHASE-26, The Promise
- PHASE-27, Unfulfilled Feelings
- PHASE-28, Survivors and Sacrifices
- PHASE-31, The Endless Night
- PHASE-32, Stella
- PHASE-34, Nightmare
- PHASE-35, Eve of Chaos
- Destroyed; Wreckage
- PHASE-39, Kira of the Skies
- Flashback(s) Only
- PHASE-01, Angry Eyes
- OVAs and ONAs
- Mobile Suit Gundam SEED After-Phase Between the Stars
- Flashback(s) Only
- Movies
- Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Freedom
- Flashback(s) Only
- Manga
- Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny Astray
- Chapter 0.5, SCOOP.00: Prologue
- Flashback(s) Only
- Chapter 0.5, SCOOP.00: Prologue
- Games
References[]
- ↑ Master Grade Freedom Gundam Ver. 2.0 (Dramatic Combination: MG x Figure-Rise Bust) model kit manual
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Mobile Suit Gundam SEED PHASE-34, Seen and Unseen
- ↑ Mobile Suit Gundam SEED PHASE-35, The Descending Sword
- ↑ Mobile Suit Gundam SEED PHASE-37, Divine Thunder
- ↑ Mobile Suit Gundam SEED PHASE-38, Decisive Fire
- ↑ Mobile Suit Gundam SEED PHASE-39, Athrun
- ↑ Mobile Suit Gundam SEED PHASE-40, Into the Dawn Skies
- ↑ Mobile Suit Gundam SEED PHASE-41, Trembling World
- ↑ Mobile Suit Gundam SEED PHASE-42, Lacus Strikes
- ↑ Mobile Suit Gundam SEED PHASE-43, What Stands in the Way
- ↑ Mobile Suit Gundam SEED PHASE-44, Spiral of Encounters
- ↑ Mobile Suit Gundam SEED PHASE-46, A Place for the Soul
- ↑ Mobile Suit Gundam SEED PHASE-49, The Final Light
- ↑ Mobile Suit Gundam SEED PHASE-50, To a Future that Never Ends
- ↑ Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny PHASE-13, Resurrected Wings
- ↑ Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny PHASE-23, The Shadows of War
- ↑ Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny PHASE-28, Survivors and Sacrifices
- ↑ Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny PHASE-32, Stella
- ↑ Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny PHASE-34, Nightmare
- ↑ Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny PHASE-35, Eve of Chaos
- ↑ Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny PHASE-39, Kira of the Skies
- ↑ Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Official File/Mechanics Vol.4 (2003), pg. 8
- ↑ Mobile Suit Gundam SEED PHASE-13, Stars Falling in Space
External links[]