Question about Super Prototype

Does Super Prototype still apply when the prototype in question is the only one of its design (because of cancellation or other difficulties), but is not indicated to be any more powerful than the rest would have been?

I don't see why not

No, it has to be both a prototype (the first one) and better than the standard production model it was the prototype for. If there were no standard production-run models made, it's can't be better than them, therefore it's not super. It's a one-off, not a Super Prototype. If there's no indication that it would have been stronger than the production models if they had been made, it's not super, it's just a prototype, and not a Super Prototype.

edited 19th Nov '13 3:52:25 AM by Madrugada

I don't think that was the question, exactly.

The way I understood it, imagine that Super Robot Mark III is intended to go into mass production. However, after the first one is created, there's suddenly a massive recall because of a last-minute problem being discovered. So they go back to the drawing board and eventually come out with Mark IV, which IS mass-produced, but is significantly inferior to Mark III to avoid the unnamed flaw.

Mark III is still the only one of its type ever created, although it was intended to be part of a series.

Yes, that's still a Super Prototype. The question of which "series" it's from is a bit of a red herring there.

If there's only one of its kind in existence and the production line is shut down, etc., then you have No Plans, No Prototype, No Backup.

If there's a whole army of "lesser" or "production" versions of the thing running around and you have a bigger, badder version that was only made once, that's Super Prototype.

edited 19th Nov '13 7:11:14 AM by Fighteer

Usually a prototype isn't considered part of a series, which often only differ by version. It would count as long as later constructs are based on that prototype, even if just partially.

The only thing that matters is that the prototype's design was reused one way or another, and that it's shown somehow, whether in actual units or plans for them. And of course, that the later designs are weaker.

Or at least a very limited run. Gundam (for example) had a couple of RX-78s running around (plus the RX-79s made from left over spare parts) yet they're still considered Super Prototypes compared to the GM series.

Are they referred to as prototypes, rather than production units? By themselves, not in comparison to the later ones.

The RX-78 design is the prototype for the later, production series GM design. And yes, they are treated as prototypes, doubly so for Alex since it the standard RX-78 design that was further modified for a variety of reasons.

The RX-79s are weird in the grand scheme of things since they aren't prototypes for anything. They're basically spare parts from the development of the RX-78s slapped together into a limited number of working units.

Don't forget about the Ace Custom trope, which covers both modified baseline units AND unique single-purpose creations, neither are meant as a prototype for anything. Between the two tropes you can cover just about all examples.

The thing is that there are just so many possible variations on the concept that you just have to feel it out according to the specific circumstances. It could just be a generational thing, certain features were not deemed necessary in newer models, yet make the older models seem more advanced. Or certain technologies are passed down but it wasn't meant to be the testbed for later models.