RGM-79G GM Command
Mass production general purpose mobile suit developed by the Earth Federation.
The RGM-79G GM Command was a mass production general purpose mobile suit developed by the Earth Federation Forces following the success of the RGM-79D GM Cold Districts Type.
The “R” in the model code meant it was a Federation model1 and the “GM” indicated that it was a mass production Gundam mobile suit. The “79” in the model code denoted it was developed in UC 0079, and the “G” suffix designated it as an improved variant in the GM Command series.
History
Following the success of the RGM-79D GM Cold Districts Type, a late production type GM deployed in the One Year War, development of new localised warfare machines using the suit as a basis started. The basic concept was to maintain the fundamental design of the GM Cold Districts Type whilst improving on its output and mobility.
Demands of mobile suit pilots who were unsatisfied with the original RGM-79 GM’s performance were also taken into account, and with the upcoming counter offensive in space against the Principality of Zeon in mind, a decision was made to simultaneously develop a ground use unit and a space use unit. The end results were the ground use GM Command and the space use RGM-79GS GM Command Space Type.
Both suits were also used to collect data for the development of next-generation mass production models. The GM Command is also called the “Colony Type” as it specialised in defending bases in space colonies and surrounding areas. For this reason, its output and weaponry were adjusted to reduce fatal damage to the colony’s structure and walls.
Due to the accumulation of manufacturing and designing knowledge, the GM Command series’ maintainability and operability was greatly improved compared to the very first mass production models that had inconsistent standards. The GM Command series was said to be a match for Zeon’s MS-14A Gelgoog, but as many of the machines were deployed to areas outside of the main battlefields, they did not see as much combat as other mobile suits.
Design
The RGM-79G GM Command maintained the fundamental design of the GM Cold Districts Type whilst incorporating significant improvements to output and mobility. The mobile suit featured enhanced thruster systems and improved sensor capabilities that made it superior to earlier GM variants.
Unlike the normal GM, the GM Command series had additional sensors in the head such as environment monitoring sensors to thoroughly detect human presence and survivability, which boosted the suit’s anti-personnel and anti-material evasive capabilities. The GM Command series was also the first in the GM series to utilise mono-eye camera in the head to improve producibility.
Communication capabilities were enhanced via the shoulder antenna, which also helped to prevent interferences or jamming caused by frequency bands used by civilians inside and outside of colonies. It was relatively easy to change the GM Command series’ armour, backpack, and other parts; furthermore, its specifications could also be changed with little modification to the base structures.
The mobile suit was powered by a Minovsky type ultracompact fusion reactor with an output of 1,330 kW, representing a significant improvement over earlier GM variants. The enhanced thruster system provided a total output of 67,000 kg, giving the GM Command superior acceleration and manoeuvrability.
Armaments
The GM Command’s standard weapons were two 60 mm vulcan guns for anti-aircraft defence, two beam sabers for close combat, and a shield for protection.
60 mm vulcan guns
A pair of shell-firing armament built into the head. Though they had low offensive power, they were used to restrict enemy movement and lay down a wall of suppressive fire due to their rapid fire capability.
The vulcan guns were effective against lightly armoured targets such as aircraft, missiles, and infantry, making them valuable for base defence operations in colony environments.
Beam sabers
The GM Command was equipped with two beam sabers stored in recharge racks on the rear waist armour. These provided effective close-range combat capability when ranged weapons were insufficient.
The beam sabers used an I-field to contain Minovsky particles within the shape of a blade. Minovsky particles broke down matter at a molecular level, meaning the beam saber could cut through almost any material.
Shield
The mobile suit mounted a shield on either forearm for defence. This was an improved model of the RGM-M-Sh-003 with the exact same size as its predecessor, but its material was changed to titanium-ceramic composite. Its mount latch was made movable, allowing the shield to be positioned up or down when carried by a mobile suit manipulator or mounted on the forearm, increasing its usability.
90 mm bullpup machine gun
The bullpup machine gun was a system weapon developed as a space/ground dual use projectile weapon. Though compact, it had sufficient anti-mobile suit firepower whilst maintaining accuracy. Its muzzle velocity was increased due to the use of new gunpowder and this enabled it to easily penetrate the armour of Zeon’s mobile suits.
A box-like sensor system incorporating a video camera and laser sensor was installed at the top, and when this system was used alongside the GM’s targeting system, target acquisition capability was enhanced.
100 mm machine gun
The standard armament for Federation’s mobile suit ground forces during the One Year War that was developed by Yashima Heavy Industries. It had an alternate model number: “NF·GMG-Type.37/100mm”.
Equipped with a box magazine and folding stock, it had excellent rate of fire and was easy to wield. The weapon could utilise three different types of ammunition: HEAT (High Explosive Anti-Tank), APFSDS (Armour-Piercing Fin-Stabilised Discarding-Sabot), and HESH (High Explosive Squash Head), allowing combat units to select the appropriate type to meet operational needs.
Beam gun
A next-generation beam weapon developed as a testbed for a new category of weapon between the beam rifle and the beam spray gun, resulting in the new ‘beam gun’ category. The most unique features of the BG-M-79F-3A was the large beam accelerator and battery pack located on top of the rear portion of the weapon.
These mechanics created a type of beam that, in addition to pinpoint penetration of targets, also had the side effect of cutting through the internal systems of the target, which proved to be very effective at disabling the said target.
Variants
- RGM-79GS GM Command Space Type - Space combat variant
Behind the scenes
Okawara Kunio was the original mechanical designer. The GM Command was designed for Mobile Suit Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket.
In SD Gundam G Generation games, the GM Command is merged with the RGM-79GS GM Command Space Type for the sake of simplicity. It is able to operate both on the ground and in space, and has a colour scheme based on the Space Type.
Appearances
See also
External links
- RGM-79G GM Command on the Gundam Wiki
- RGM-79G GM Command on MAHQ
Footnotes
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Federation in Japanese is renpou, hence the use of “R”. ↩