All-Purpose Gundam Fanfiction Thread

Understandable. I still prefer Option 2, just because I do picture Bright not as unconvincable, but a bit stubborn at times, especially in his youth (much less so over the next decade). Call it fears about command. The brass rapidly changing its orders sounds like classic UC 0079 and classic distant Federal superiors orders, but maybe that's a little too cliched.

Kamille needs to stick with the Zeta.

Beyond that, I'm with option 2 about the stations-of-the-canon thing.

Also, it might sound surprising but I haven't really thought about shipping options for Amuro. As for the others, Kai/Miharu is a given and get their happy ending this time. As will Char/Haman. I also think Sleggar/Emma could be interesting.

And regarding the two options stated before, I considered the White Base being forced off-angle during reentry by someone else. Problem is, I don't think there's a single living person who could match Newtype!Amuro and the Gundam. Ramba Ral? Johnny Ridden? Norris Packard? Anavel Gato? None of them have even a fraction of Amuro's combat experience and they're all flying Zakus at this point. Amuro would literally be a Hopeless Boss Fight for them.

Well, if it's purely reentry, could it be another condition? Inclement weather? Ballute deployment problem? An unanticipated air defense battery? They certainly lack the drama, but at least you don't need to create a military threat.

The White Base doesn't use ballutes, so that won't work.

Weather, though... with Char not being able to hound them, it's entirely possible that the White Base would arrive to Earth earlier and under different weather conditions. However, it only has an effect at low altitudes and the White Base doesn't need to hit a precise target like a Space Shuttle. They only need to land on the right continent and they're all set.

Yeah, I'm thinking Albion (which probably doesn't have them either, I'll shut up now). There could be weather incompatible with planned military conditions (again, I don't know...a typhoon/hurricane?).

That's also why I'd suggest a unanticipated mechanical failure that wasn't in the original storyline (pilot error possibly too, but that would require an entire dramatic setup too).

edited 30th Nov '15 1:08:17 PM by Synthesis

You mean Mirai screws up? That's entirely possible.

And mechanical failure could be excused with the fact that, since they didn't have to repair stuff all the time, the mechanics got lax and forgot to check stuff regularly, hence how the problem went unnoticed.

edited 30th Nov '15 1:18:44 PM by amitakartok

You have to imagine that, for every particular mechanical malfunction or breakdown that could actually divert their course (of which there would not be that many for something like White Base, in retrospect, thanks magical Minovsky antigravity generator), there would be a dozen or more events that could require a delay or reschedule of reentry by the crew according to military protocol. More so since they're not in a threatening situation otherwise. An otherwise inexperienced crew just adds to that further, if that's the case.

Pitch a solar storm at them.

Indeed.

And to be absolutely clear, I'm not keeping notes for this fic idea. Everything above is coming off the top of my head in real time.

Char/Haman is a recipe for disaster, period. Of all her love interests, Mashmyre is her best bet for a healthy romantic relationship by some distance, even if he is a pretty comprehensive idiot.

A happy-ending scenario for Haman is simple - find a way for her to not have to govern Axis solo as a teenager. Given Char's phobia of serious responsibility, that'd require bringing in someone else as a benign, competent politician. Hence how me and Night were chatting about how she'd be goddamn delighted if Garma Zabi made it out of the One Year War as a living, credible heir to Zeon. Remove that burden from her, and you've got a happy young Zeon aristocrat who test-pilots for the Axis military as a hobby and spends rather more time at the arcade thrashing that dimwit Cello boy than she probably should.

Actually, Axis is ruled by Kycilia this time around.

Kycilia also has a Newtype Praetorian Guard, with Lalah as commander and Char as XO. Haman is a lower-ranking member alongside Puru.

edited 1st Dec '15 10:33:24 AM by amitakartok

Yeah, my plan for railroading Haman back into evil was to have Garma retire from public life after the end of the One Year War and try to spend the rest of his days in quiet happiness with Icelina.

But people won't quite leave him alone and he eases into grey eminence territory during the end of Zeta, organizing the Republic of Zeon's political resistance to the Titans. Then we crank Haman's angst factor to maximum as when the Republic of Zeon starts talking about supporting Axis just before the Dublin colony drop, Garma flips the table and takes over the Republic of Zeon to oppose Haman's Neo-Zeon rather than let her restart the One Year War.

edited 1st Dec '15 11:35:57 AM by Night

In that case, Haman seems to have a bit of a legitimacy problem. She's supposed to be fighting to restore the Zabi family to power, but Garma heading the Republic already fulfills that. So Haman either stands down or loses face before her men.

She'd likely argue, to her captive audience of hardliners who will be happy to listen, that Garma's opting to surrender the Earth Attack Force instead of making a last-ditch attack on Jaburo per the canon means he's the one with the legitimacy problem; the rest of his family fought to the end.

To the citizens of the Republic of Zeon, on the other hand, he's the only Zabi who opted to bring their sons and daughters home rather than sacrifice them on the altar of self-aggrandizement.

edited 1st Dec '15 12:07:29 PM by Night

Just curious, though, why Haman thought that "sending forces to give final "Fuck You, Feds"" rather than "lay low and licks your wounds when your nemesis giving you chance because crushing you is not worth it" is actually a good idea? Because last time that happens, Titans happens.

Because Nazi Germany analogies. In the final days, Hitler gave the order to completely destroy what was left of Germany's infrastructure in order to ensure that if he dies, the German people die with him. Luckily, his subordinates realized what a fucking insane idea that was and quietly ignored it.

Coupled with aspects of bushido, which demands that a warrior either wins the battle or falls in battle; surrender is for cowards who consider their filthy lives more important than glory and honor. And if your master dies, you die with him. Hell, samurai who refused to seppuku after losing their master were ostracized and turned into pariahs - and at least some of them ended up as the precursors of the yakuza because they could not legally earn a living after disgracing themselves. It's idiotic, but that's centuries-old Japanese tradition and the Gundam franchise is a Japanese product, so it's obvious there would be cultural influences.

edited 1st Dec '15 12:27:31 PM by amitakartok

They say same things happen in Japan, but a bit inverted: Emperor wants peace, top brass want to continue to war. Allied forces all but too quick to ensure top brass didn't get what they wanted.

But why Haman herself though it was a good idea? Nostalgia Filter or something like that? Had personal grudge on Feds?

Yep. When the emperor was about to broadcast the nation's surrender after the nukes, some Japanese generals pulled a coup d' etat and tried to stop the broadcast from going out. It didn't work because the guards refused to join them and betray the emperor, so the generals seppuku'd to avoid being tried for treason.

In the end, the Nazis weren't all that different either. Just look at what happened with Rommel: one of his acquaintances was a member of the Stauffenberg plot trying to off Hitler. Rommel himself wasn't a part of the conspiracy, but he was a friend of someone who was, so he got told that either he blows his brains out, receives a full state funeral and has his family receive full financial benefits of being the relatives of a deceased war hero, or he gets shot by a firing squad for treason and his family are send to a concentration camp.

Getting yourself killed out of perceived personal honor has historical precedent.

As for Haman, I can perfectly see her doing it purely because, after never having had the chance to live the life of an ordinary woman, her loyalty to the Zabi cause is the only thing she has left. She has, in Full Frontal's words, become a vessel, void of everything but purpose towards a greater good.

Oh, and Night: if Haman still gets scorned by Char, have you thought about Reccoa joining Haman instead of Scirocco?

edited 1st Dec '15 1:19:40 PM by amitakartok

Might as well pimp it here, too: now presenting, with a new 4th chapter, one of the ONLY Gundam crossovers with Lyrical Nanoha. This one primarily being a G Gundam crossover, but with a few elements of Turn A, and an increasing number of UC references.

Another thing is that holding Axis together after the war (and keeping Mineva alive) was hellish, and turned Haman into what she is today. She'd probably have just as much of a grudge against Garma as she did against Char, and she could probably lever that into broader appeal by presenting herself as the saviour of Zeon after its prince abandoned it.

It'd also be interesting to see where Mineva fits into all of this. Garma could probably talk Haman into giving him custody, though whether it'd be open or a secret hidden by body-doubles to preserve her legitimacy as a Zabi protector would very much depend on when he asked her.

I just had a rather hilarious idea: Warcraft / Universal Century fusion.

What MS design aesthetics do you think the various races would use?

Orcs = Dark Army.

Dunno anything else about WH Fantasy.

Ahem. Warcraft, not Warhammer.

If we wanted to equate them to Gundam factions, humans = Federation, orcs = Zeon and night elves = Moonrace (even though it's not exactly UC) are a given. The others... not so much.

edited 5th Dec '15 5:21:16 PM by amitakartok

....derp.