Striker Pack
In the television anime series Mobile Suit Gundam SEED, the development of the multi-purpose Mobile Suit GAT-X105 Strike included the design of a number of "Striker Packs" to equip it with. These Striker Packs allowed one single mecha to fit out for a number of different roles. During the Bloody Valentine War (Cosmic Era 11 February 70 to CE 2 November 71), no fewer than six Striker Packs were developed for the GAT-X105 and its derivative, the GAT-01A1 Dagger mobile suit.
The GAT-X105 Strike was intended to be able to change weapon systems "on the fly" and several schemes were attempted to enable this, from launching the desired Striker Pack from Archangel's catapult to developing a specially designed support fighter (the FX-550 Skygrasper) to deliver the Striker Packs to the mobile suit, but none of them ever worked out quite the way the Alliance desired, not the least reason for which being that switching packs in a fight left Strike exposed during the change: Phase Shift armor had to be down while switching packs, making the mobile suit very vulnerable to enemy fire. In the end, changing Striker Packs on the fly was left as a design curiosity that never quite panned out.
- AQM/E-X01 Aile Striker: This Striker Pack was designed for mobility and flight, allowing the GAT-X105 enhanced mobility and maneuverability in space, and the ability to fly in the atmosphere. Aile was the most commonly used of the Striker Packs (especially by early Strike pilot Kira Yamato), and generally the one that Strike would sortie with. Aile Striker was equipped with the traditional Gundam armament of twin beam sabers, a shield and a beam rifle, as well as high-powered thrusters. Since the Aile Striker's weapons fit has the least additional weaponry over the base GAT-X105/GAT-01A1, it has the highest endurance... unless an inexperienced pilot fires its weapons with reckless abandon and depletes its power battery.
- AQM/E-X02 Sword Striker: This Striker Pack was designed for close combat, with a very large (15.75 meter long) beam-enhanced anti-ship sword (Schwert Gewehr), a "rocket anchor" (Panzer Eisen) and a beam boomerang (Midas Messer). Of the Striker packs, being equipped solely for close combat, Sword Striker was seldom used by either Kira Yamato or Mu La Flaga, usually relegating the weapon package to Archangel's Skygrasper No. 2 (whether that was piloted by Cagalli Yula Athha or Tolle Koenig at the moment), and probably contributing to the bad-luck reputation that unit possessed. One prototype unit's pilot was known to operate a custom Sword Striker variant with the arm equipment doubled (two shields/rocket anchors and two beam boomerangs). The fate of this unit is unknown, but it did not appear in postwar inventories so presumably it was destroyed during the war, most probably during the Buster Gundam's gun launchers, the Strike Gundam's launchers appeared to fire rocket propelled grenades). The "Agni" Impulse Cannon had enough firepower to punch through a colony wall, or slag an enemy mobile suit with a single hit, even a Gundam. Due to its incredibly heavy firepower, Launcher Striker was the preferred weapons package of Skygrasper No. 1 pilot Mu La Flaga, though when he became the Strike's pilot he, like predecessor Kira Yamato, switched to favor the Aile Striker. The final use of the Launcher Striker occurred during Archangel's escape from Mendel Colony during late CE October 71.
- AQM/E-X04 Gunbarrel Striker: This Striker Pack was specifically designed for use by Mu La Flaga, but as he defected with Archangel to the Orb Union, it was instead used for GAT-01A1 Dagger mobile suits. The AQM/E-X04 Gunbarrel Striker was a modified version of the TS-MA02mod.00 Mobius Zero, with similar equipment (four wired gunbarrels of a slightly modified design, armed with a beam gun and a pair of missiles each, and a four-barrel Gatling gun). It was deployed with Cagalli Yula Athha was unable to master the complicated weapon controls in the short time between its completion and the war's end.
- P204QX Lightning Striker: A Striker Pack whose primary purpose is to increase the operating time of the battery-powered GAT-X105 Strike/MBF-02 Strike Rouge (piloted by Lcdr. Mu La Flaga and Cagalli Yula Athha respectively), as well as to improve its firepower to compete with the vastly more powerful ZGMF-X10A Freedom piloted by Ens. Kira Yamato. The Lightning Striker's primary armament is the Type 70-31 Electromagnetic Cannon, which it carries split in two pieces on its forearms when not in use.
Other Striker Pack-like Devices
FA-71-1 Gundam Full Armor (UC 0079) - RX-78-1 Gundam
In the Universal Century calendar, during the One Year War, the prototype RX-78-1 Gundam had a bolt-on system of armor and weapons called Gundam Full Armor. The Gundam Full Armor included a heavy cannon over the right shoulder, a 2-barrel beam gun on the right arm and several missile launchers in the shoulders and knees. The Gundam Full Armor was never a success, it was too heavy for its propulsion and its space mobility was cut back to little better than that of a Zaku.
RX-78NT-1FA Gundam Alex Full Armor (UC 0080) - RX-78NT-1 Gundam Alex
A fully armored version of the Gundam Alex, this was a very stripped-down version compared to the FA-78-1, the only alteration vs. the standard RX-78NT-1 was the addition of heavier chobham armor; there was no attempt to provide additional fuel or weaponry.
During the war, ZAFT developed a heavy armor system equipped with missiles and a shoulder-mounted rail gun for the stolen GAT-X102 Duel; this system was called the Assault Shroud and was in service on the Duel from early CE February 71 to the last day of the war (CE 25 November 71) when it was destroyed by the Forbidden Gundam.
Fortresta Mode (CE 71) - GAT-01D Long Dagger/GAT-01D1 Duel Dagger
A similar system was deployed by the Earth Alliance for the mass-production GAT-01D Long Dagger and GAT-01D1 Duel Dagger mobile suits, called "Fortresta Mode." Fortresta configuration shared the Assault Shroud's shoulder-mounted rail gun but not the missiles, its primary purpose was to serve as additional armor for the Long Dagger/Duel Dagger.
Silhouettes (CE 73) - ZGMF-X56S Impulse Gundam
After the end of the Bloody Valentine War, ZAFT designed its own Gundam based on the principles of the GAT-X105 Strike, called the ZGMF-X56S Impulse Gundam. The Impulse Gundam's "Striker Packs" are called "Silhouettes"; the first known Silhouette is the Force Silhouette, which combines with the Impulse Gundam to form the ZGMF-X56S/α Force Impulse Gundam. Two other Silhouettes are known at the present moment: the Blast Silhouette (analogous to Launcher Striker) and the Sword Silhouette (analogous to Sword Striker).
