"
A transformable gundam". That's the main idea behind the few similar gundams that share this feature through out the Gundam universe. A
disruptor and fast moving vehicle/gundam, able to transform to a commonly plane shaped vehicle, they move around the battlefield at blinding speeds
creating confusion among enemy ranks.
First operational in
Kidou Senshi Gundam 00 S2, Arios wasn't launched at first with it's pilot. The unit's operator,
Allelujah Haptism, was captured by the Federation, only to be rescued by the Celestial Being's blitz attack on the prison. Arios was deployed to rendevous with Hallelujah to facilitate his escape and to return as a Gundam Meister.
Arios, the successor of
Kyrios, is the next generation of gundams to come. A
combat support type, it weaves around the field in search of targets. Able to
handle close-combat missions as well as solo and stealth missions, it is a very versatile gundam in the battlefield.
Unit Design
Well, firstly, to who ever first laid eyes on Arios, would have noticed that Arios is a lot broader than it's predecessor. This is due to the transformable "
claws" located on the shoulder of the unit.
Similar to Kyrios which has it's left hand full with the
pincer claw shield, this feature has been transferred to the shoulder parts. Will explain in greater detail in a the
Weaponry section.
However, it still retains its
sharp design, having many sharp edges and an
ariel design. The head of the unit has 4 'horns' compared to other gundams, another interesting design. Other than that, it has "
GN Drives" (or a more compact version as it doesn't have a huge solar drive) placed at the both leg units.
Weaponry System.
Different from Kyrios, it carries an upgraded version of the previous main gun, the
GN Twin Beam Rifle II. Supporting 2 barrels, it fires at an amazing rate with condensed GN particles.
Also, at some point of time, it was later equipped with another, supporting 2 beam rifles.
Also, it carries
2 GN Sub-Machine Guns under the forearm unit of Arios. These 2 weapons are entirely new to the Gundam 00 universe as they prove to be the other main weapon Arios uses. And it has changed the way Arios moves and fights, no longer relying on a hand-held weapon. One thing for sure, it has surpassed the firing rate of the GN Twin Beam Rifle it has, giving the unit
lethal speed to fit this type of mobile suit.
Also included in its armaments are 2
GN Sabers at the leg units. However, Allelujah prefers to utilize energy weapons rather than saber as they are hardly seen.
Apart from those, not much attention is paid to the defense of the unit. Located on the shoulders of the unit, there are GN Beam Shields for protection instead of its predecessor. Despite it's very
lacking defense, its
speed and agility makes up for this weak point.
As said earlier,
Kyrios previously had the
GN Shield which had taken up the left hand. Now, the Kyrios has the same concept,
GN Beam Shield, installed in the fighter mode. When in flight mode, it is able to deploy its claw-like pincers onto the enemy,
clamping down on the hull of the mobile suit, either taking them away from the battle zone or tearing them apart with its
GN particle infused pincer.
There must have been many hardships of not being able to fully utilize the Arios as Allelujah is no longer a
Super Soilder, thanks to the head injury preventing
Hallelujah, his alter ego, to awaken in the previous season's operation.
To make up for this, Celestial Being attached a support/addition unit to the Arios.
The
GNR-101A GN Archer.
When combined, it becomes the
GNR-101A Archer Arios.
This new unit also functions as a GN Tail Booster, powering up the Arios for
more speed,
more firepower and
more maneuverability.
However, I'll leave that to another post for more in depth details.
The Arios Gundam also did get a make over for the final battle. This included some awesome armaments that really change the firepower of the Arios,
GN-007GNHW/M Arios Gundam.
Read here to know more about the
HW (
Heavy
Weapons) version.
Next gundam post;
GN-008 Seravee Gundam
Look forward to it~!
