G3 in official canon-
The
RX-78-1 Prototype Gundam is the third Mobile Suit series produced under
Project V, developed and tested in the utmost secrecy at the incomplete
Side 7 colony. Unlike the other two mobile suits, the
RX-77-2 Guncannon and the
RX-75-4 Guntank, which emphasize on firepower, the Prototype Gundam was designed as melee mobile suit, with a very high mobility. It was also the first to feature several new technologies, including the energy cap-based beam rifle (making the Gundam the first mobile suit to pack the firepower of a battleship) and beam saber. Once the RX-78-1 was tested, designs were upgraded and enhanced, bringing along the
RX-78-2 Gundam. All the RX-78-1 models were thus upgraded into the newly improved RX-78-2 model.
The most famous of all the RX-78 models, the RX-78-2 Gundam was built as the second stage (test type) for the RX-78 series. Like the two other RX-78, the RX-78-1 and RX-78-3, it carried the Core Block modular mobile suit design, comprised of three modules:
Core Fighter- which formed the cockpit and torso;
A block- the upper torso, arms, and head: and
B block- the hips and legs.
The idea was that the Core Fighter could be launched into the field as a support fighter, and the A and B blocks could be delivered by another vehicle (the Federation developed a support unit, the
Gunperry, for this role) if needed for a mid-air conversion into a mobile suit. The 3 RX-78 were slated in September UC 0079 to be transported from the development facility at Side 7 for evaluation when Zeon special forces under the command of
Char Aznable attacked the colony where the RX-78-2 was developed. The resulting destruction left both the RX-78-2 and the mobile suit carrier
White Base in the hands of young, inexperienced operators, most notably the young
Amuro Ray, who became the RX-78-2's main pilot due to his skill at handling the machine. The RX-78-2 then saw combat in a variety of environments, including deep space, urban settings, the desert, and even the ocean, performing admirably in each. After the RX-78-2 Gundam was seen as a success, the Federation sold off the designs to other Federation mobile suit makers. Because of this many versions would be seen, such as the
Blue Destiny Units, the
FA-78-1 Gundam Full Armor Type and the improved
FA-78-2 Heavy Gundam, the
RX-78NT-1 Gundam Alex, and the
RX-79G Gundam Ground Type.
Late in the war, the Federation installed a magnetic coating on the joints of the RX-78-2, improving the response time of the mobile suit (which was starting to lag behind the reaction time of Amuro, whose budding Newtype powers were growing exponentially). In the final battle of the One Year War, the Battle of
A Baoa Qu, the RX-78-2 was severely damaged, then destroyed by Char in his
MSN-02 Zeong. Nevertheless, the RX-78-2 performed admirably throughout its service in the
One Year War.
During the attack on Side 7, in September UC 0079, two of the three RX-78-2 Gundam protoype mobile suits were destroyed. The destroyed parts made their way to the Pegasus-Class assault cruiser White Base, and then to the Earth Federation's General HQ in
Jaburo. Once there, the parts were cobbled together and the
RX-78-3 "G3" Gundam was born. The G3 Gundam became a testbed for the magnetic coating that was later applied to Amuro Ray's RX-78-2 Gundam. Visually, the G3 is very similar looking to the Gundam, except for its
gray and blue paint scheme.
Grey and violet in more recent lineart and merchandise.
linearts (RX-78-1, RX-78-2, and RX-78-3)
G3 in the novels (Mobile Suit Gundam- Awakening, Escalation, Confrontation)-
In the novel version of Mobile Suit Gundam, the
G3 became Amuro Ray's mobile suit in the later half of the war after his RX-78-2 Gundam was destroyed in battle with Zeon Newtype
Lalah Sune. It had the magnetic coating added to the joints to increase response time for its pilot. Other than the
uniform low-visibility gray color scheme, it is identical to RX-78-2.
