It might only have been 80% complete when it was deployed, but the MSN-02 Zeong could certainly fight like it was at 100%.
Of all the Mobile Suits developed and deployed during the One Year War, the Zeong might have been one of the most ambitious. Designed for Newtype pilots, exclusively, the Zeong was one of a few suits to utilize the Psycommu system to give pilots enhanced control over their mobile suits and associated weaponry. And it showed that you don’t need legs to fight – even against the legendary Gundam.
MSN-02 Zeong – Design and Capabilities
The MSN-02 Zeong was designed for intense, heavy fighting. Initially developed with the designation MS-16X, the Zeong incorporated the combat data from multiple experimental units, including the MAN-03 Braw Bo and the MAN-08 Elmeth; both of which used the Psycommu system to great effect. And the Psycommu system was at the very heart of the Zeong’s design.
Well, more accurately, it was in its arms. The Psycommu system made the forearms of the Zeong an absolute nightmare in combat. Each forearm was actually a wire-guided Bit weapon, capable of being operated remotely via a Newtype pilot. With five mega particle cannons in each finger (and a convergence/deflection device in each joint), the Zeong could engage targets at all ranges, and often multiple targets at once, especially with a connecting cable that could extend several kilometers.
And while the arms were away, the head and torso of the Zeong could still play. It was equipped with even more mega particle cannons. A pair of fire-linked mega particle cannons were built into the torso, and a third was built into the mouth of the head.
With so many mega particle cannons, you might be wondering, how did they power this thing? Well that’s in part a reason for its immense size. The Zeong stood 17.3 meters tall, with a weight of 21.9 metric tons. It needed a significant generator array to power all its weapons and its Psycommu system.
Though even then, there were still surprises. The head was detachable, and fully spaceworthy – operated by a skill pilot (like Char Anzable) it could serve as its own attack craft. Though in this mode it would need to use a specialized “energy CAP” system to condense energy out of the surrounding atmosphere. This limited the head to about ten minutes of combat operation when separate from the body.
Legs? Who Needs ‘Em – A History Of The MSN-02
The MSN-02 comes into play in the latter stages of the One Year War. After Zeon scientists developed the Psycommu system and the mobile suits that used it (at considerable cost – the Flanagan Institute notoriously experimented on children to develop its weapons oof war), they worked on the suit that would bear the name of the Principality of Zeon itself. It was designed to be the ultimate mobile suit.
However, time – and the progress of the war – caught up with the Zeong before it was complete. During the battle of A Baoa Qu, after Char’s Gelgoog Commander Type MS-14S was damaged, Char boarded the incomplete mobile suit, famously saying that “legs were mostly for show”.
Char immediately proved to be correct, engaging with – and sinking – several Salamis-class cruisers. Ultimately the Zeong faced off with the RX-78-2 Gundam in a prolonged, pitched fight. The Gundam destroyed both of the Zeong’s arms. The Zeong destroyed the Gundam’s arm and head, and in the end the two adversaries faced each other. Amuro Ray set the Gundam to attack the head on autopilot, while Char sacrificed the Zeong’s head to destroy the Gundam, barely managing to escape himself.
And so ended the short, destructive first mission for the “ultimate mobile suit.”
Since then, of course, been more ultimates – but the Zeong remains a class its own.
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