Chibe-class

The Chibe-class was a heavy cruiser produced by the Principality of Zeon in UC 0070. It was one of the first warships commissioned after Zeon declared independence.

History

When the Republic of Zeon became the Principality of Zeon in UC 0069, Zeon escalated its arms production in Side 3. The Chibe-class was one of the first warships commissioned by Zeon, with the first units deployed in June UC 0070.

The class was originally designed as a battleship. However, three months after its introduction, the Earth Federation Forces introduced the Magellan-class and Salamis-class equipped with mega particle cannons. This placed the Chibe-class at a disadvantage since it initially lacked beam weaponry.

Due to limited resources being directed toward the expensive Gwazine-class, Zeon chose to refit the Chibe-class with mega particle cannons rather than develop a new battleship. The ships proved effective in their new role as high-speed heavy cruisers thanks to their strong armor and mobility.

When Zeon began focusing on mobile suit warfare, the Chibe-class’s cargo bays were converted into mobile suit hangars capable of carrying up to eight units. Some ships received additional modifications including a third mega particle cannon turret mounted on the ventral hull.

Many Chibe-class ships were destroyed during the One Year War. Notable losses included Commander Conscon’s flagship during an attempted ambush of the White Base at Side 6, and Commander Barom’s ship which was destroyed en route to Texas Colony.

After the war, the restored Republic of Zeon developed the improved Chibe Kai-class. A heavily modified Chibe-class ship named Gulltoppr served with Republic forces in UC 0097 before being destroyed during operations against the RX-0 Unicorn Gundam.

Design

The Chibe-class had a spacious design that allowed its cargo bays to be easily converted into mobile suit hangars when needed. The ships typically carried up to eight mobile suits, double the capacity of the Musai-class.

Five large thermonuclear rocket engines provided excellent mobility, with some variants mounting up to seven engines. Two additional outrigger thrusters were mounted near the bow on either side.

Armaments

The Chibe-class’s standard weapons were twin triple mega particle cannon turrets for ship-to-ship combat, eighteen twin anti-aircraft guns for defense, and twelve missile launchers.

Triple mega particle gun

The primary armament consisted of two three-barrel mega particle gun turrets, with one mounted forward of the bridge tower and another on the stern above the engines. These turrets could rotate 360 degrees and elevate to engage targets above or below the ship. Some variants added a third ventral turret.

Twin anti-aircraft gun

For defense against mobile suits and aircraft, the Chibe-class mounted eighteen twin-barrel machine gun turrets. Nine were mounted on each side, with six on the upper hull and three on the lower hull.

Missile launcher

Twelve forward-facing missile launchers were mounted in the bow, with six on each side. The fixed forward orientation limited their effectiveness against targets not directly ahead of the ship.

Special equipment

The Chibe-class could mount up to six external propellant tanks to extend its operational range. These tanks attached to the sides of the hull beneath the anti-aircraft guns, with three on each side.

Ships and captains

• Chibe, unknown captain
• Chekhov, unknown captain
• [Gulltoppr])/gulltoppr) captained by Zoltan Akkanen
• Unnamed ships captained by:
  • Barom
  • Conscon
  • Deramin
  • M’Quve

Behind the scenes

Tomino Yoshiyuki was the original mechanical designer, with Okawara Kunio assisting in cleanup of the design. Katoki Hajime later redesigned the class for Mobile Suit Gundam MS IGLOO: Apocalypse 0079.

The class is sometimes referred to as “Chivvay-class” due to an error in translation of the English editions of the Mobile Suit Gundam novels. Official materials like the Gundam Mechanic books use “Chibe-class”.

Variants

• Chibe Kai-class
• Tivvay-class

Appearances

Anime

• Mobile Suit Gundam
• Mobile Suit Gundam Narrative
• Mobile Suit Gundam Thunderbolt

OVA

• Mobile Suit Gundam MS IGLOO: Apocalypse 0079

Games

• Mobile Suit Gundam: Encounters in Space
• Mobile Suit Gundam: Pilot’s Locus
• Mobile Suit Gundam: Spirits of Zeon Dual Stars of Carnage

External links

• Chibe-class on the Gundam Wiki
• Chibe-class on MAHQ