XMA-01 Rafflesia

The XMA-01 Rafflesia (XMA-01 ラフレシア, XMA-01 Rafureshia) was a massive mobile armour piloted by Iron Mask (Carozzo Ronah) during the climactic battle of Mobile Suit Gundam F91. Named after the corpse flower known for both beauty and death, the Rafflesia featured distinctive tentacle-mounted Variable Speed Beam Rifles and swarms of autonomous “Bug” weapons, representing the Crossbone Vanguard’s ultimate expression of aristocratic military technology in Universal Century 0123.

Development

Ronah Family Super-Weapon

The Rafflesia was developed by the Ronah Family as ultimate weapon for Cosmo Babylonia’s military campaign. Like many mobile armours throughout UC history, it embodied the philosophy that individual super-weapons could achieve decisive strategic impact through overwhelming technological superiority.

The mobile armour combined:

Massive size providing stable weapons platform
Advanced Crossbone Vanguard technology
Innovative weapons systems unique to UC 0123 era
Integration with cyborg pilot (Iron Mask)

Design Philosophy

The Rafflesia’s design reflected both aristocratic aesthetics and practical military requirements:

Flower-like appearance (hence “Rafflesia”) combining beauty and lethality
Tentacle beam weapons providing omni-directional coverage
Bug swarms creating defensive/offensive screen
Cyborg pilot integration maximizing machine’s potential

This represented Cosmo Babylonia’s belief that aristocratic refinement and military power could coexist – the Rafflesia was meant to be both beautiful and terrible.

Technical Specifications

Tentacle VSBR System

The Rafflesia’s most distinctive feature was its tentacle-mounted Variable Speed Beam Rifle system. Multiple flexible “tentacles” each mounted beam rifles that could:

Engage targets from any angle simultaneously
Adjust beam power/speed based on tactical requirements
Create overlapping fields of fire preventing enemy approach
Operate semi-autonomously under pilot direction

This weapon system made conventional mobile suit tactics nearly useless – the Rafflesia could engage multiple opponents from all directions simultaneously.

Bug Weapons

The Rafflesia carried hundreds of “Bugs” – small autonomous needle-like weapons that could:

Swarm enemy mobile suits
Pierce armor through kinetic impact
Create defensive screen around Rafflesia
Overwhelm point-defense systems through sheer numbers

The Bugs functioned as both offensive weapons (swarming and destroying enemies) and defensive system (intercepting attacks).

Size and Mobility

At 44.2 meters tall, the Rafflesia was enormous, dwarfing standard mobile suits. Its size provided:

Platform for extensive weapons systems
Intimidation factor
Protection for pilot through distance from combat
Stable base for tentacle weapon operation

However, like all mobile armours, size also meant large target profile and reduced manoeuvrability compared to mobile suits.

Operational History

Final Battle

The Rafflesia saw combat during the climactic battle of the F91 conflict, piloted by Iron Mask against Seabook Arno in the F91 Gundam. The engagement demonstrated:

Rafflesia’s Dominance:

Tentacle VSBR system created kill zone impossible for conventional units
Bug swarms destroyed multiple Federation mobile suits
Iron Mask’s cyborg integration maximized the machine’s potential
The mobile armour appeared nearly invincible

F91’s Counter:

The F91’s advanced technology (MEPE system, bio-computer)
Seabook’s piloting skill and Newtype abilities
Close-range penetration past tentacle defense
Targeting the Rafflesia’s core

Destruction

The Rafflesia was destroyed when Seabook penetrated its defenses and struck the central core. Iron Mask’s death in the Rafflesia marked the end of the immediate Cosmo Babylonia threat and his family’s aristocratic crusade.

The mobile armour’s destruction was both military victory and personal tragedy – Cecily Fairchild witnessed her father die in his monstrous creation, whilst Seabook had to kill his love interest’s parent.

Significance

Wonder Weapon Pattern

The Rafflesia continued the Universal Century pattern of super-weapons developed late in conflicts:

Mobile Armour	Conflict	Pilot	Outcome
Big Zam	One Year War	Dozle Zabi	Destroyed by Amuro
Zeong	One Year War	Char	Destroyed, war lost anyway
Psycho Gundam	Gryps	Four Murasame	Destroyed
Rafflesia	F91 Conflict	Iron Mask	Destroyed, war ended

All represented belief that perfect weapons could overcome strategic disadvantages – all failed.

Aristocratic Technology

The Rafflesia embodied Cosmo Babylonia’s aristocratic military philosophy:

Refined aesthetics (flower design)
Advanced technology demonstrating noble superiority
Individual excellence over mass production
Pilot skill and machine perfection combined

Its failure demonstrated that aristocratic philosophy couldn’t succeed militarily where nationalist and revolutionary ideologies had failed.

Cyborg Integration

Iron Mask’s piloting of the Rafflesia represented complete merger of man and machine – his cyborg body integrating with the mobile armour’s systems. This literal fusion symbolized how ideology and technology had consumed his humanity.

Behind the Scenes

The XMA-01 Rafflesia was created for Mobile Suit Gundam F91 by mechanical designer Okawara Kunio. The design deliberately evoked the rafflesia flower – known as “corpse flower” for its carrion-like smell – to symbolize both beauty and death.

The tentacle weapons system was designed to appear both elegant and horrifying, reflecting Iron Mask’s character – aristocratic refinement masking monstrous nature. The Bug swarms reinforced this theme, creating visual spectacle of beautiful death.

Director Tomino Yoshiyuki intended the Rafflesia as exploration of how technology and ideology could create monsters. Iron Mask’s integration with the mobile armour made him literally one with his creation, embodying complete loss of humanity to fanaticism.

The name “Rafflesia” was deliberately chosen for its associations – the flower is both largest blossom in the world and smells of death, perfect metaphor for the mobile armour’s nature.

Appearances

Mobile Suit Gundam F91

External links

Rafflesia on the Gundam Wiki