The GN-004 Gundam Nadleeh (aka Gundam Nadleeh, Nadleeh) is a Mobile
Suit featured in season one of Mobile Suit Gundam 00. It is piloted by Tieria Erde.
Features
Hidden in the GN-005 Gundam Virtue, the Gundam Nadleeh is special among the Gundams deployed by Celestial Being for armed interventions. The Nadleeh's main feature is the "Trial System" which allows its Gundam Meister, Tieria Erde, to take control of machines in a certain area and which are linked to the Celestial Being's quantum computing system, Veda. The system's primary purpose is to counter the Gundams' betrayal and protect them from abuse, and it provides an overwhelming advantage during the anti-Gundam battle. Due to this system, the Nadleeh can be considered a Gundam supervisor. Purging Virtue's armor to reveal the Nadleeh and using the Trial System appears to require Tieria, who is an Innovade, to use his quantum brainwaves, as evidenced by his glowing eyes when he performed these actions. Like its fellow Gundams, the Nadleeh has a semi-perpetual GN Drive at the center of its body that provides nearly unlimited energy and produces special, multifunctional GN particles.
The Nadleeh is concealed to prevent the Trial System from being discovered and used by the enemy against Celestial Being, and furthermore, disguising it as Virtue allows the effective use of the organization's limited GN Drives. While the Nadleeh was supposed to be revealed when a traitor appears, Tieria was forced to reveal it earlier to escape a difficult situation the Virtue found himself in. The concept of hiding a Gundam inside another Gundam can be linked to the common predecessor of the Nadleeh and Virtue : The second generation GNY-004 Gundam Pluto, which has an escape unit known as the "Core Fighter" to protect the GN Drive and Gundam Meister when the Mobile Suit is damaged. However, the Core Fighter's combat capability is insufficient due to its small size, making it unlikely to survive a battle that overwhelms a Gundam. To create a combat-capable evacuation unit and thus increase the chances of survival of the GN Drive and Meister, it was decided to use an MS instead and this concept was integrated into the Nadleeh. So the Nadleeh also functions as the Virtue's escape unit.
The Trial System was originally intended to be tested by the Plutone, but was scrapped as the Plutone's Meister was deemed unsuitable for the task. The GNY-0042-874 Gundam Artemie was later created to utilize the system, but the Artemie's development was halted following a crucial decision made by its Meister and the Nadleeh was built to replace it. The Nadleeh's original plan, when required to use the Trial System, is for the Virtue to first retreat to the CBS-70 Ptolemaios, or a base, before changing form. Strictly speaking, the Virtue does not need to return for the change to Nadleeh as the process only requires simple armor removal. But, not only is doing so on the battlefield dangerous, but the Trial System also has a very limited effective range. So the Nadleeh must be equipped with Akwos equipment to extend the range of the system, and the Virtue must therefore return for this equipment change to be made. However, when the Nadleeh actually used the Trial System during the unplanned battle against Team Trinity's Gundam Thrones, it did not follow the aforementioned plan.
The red hair-like cords on the Nadleeh's head provide GN particles to the Virtue's armor when the former is hidden in the latter, these cords are primarily attached to the Virtue's head and the Virtue's central armor. chest, helping to hold them in place. Like other Gundams used for armed interventions, the Nadleeh also has light purple colored "GN Cables" installed in various locations to facilitate the delivery of GN particles to each part of its body and for attitude control purposes. via the mass manipulation capability of particles. GN particles are also used for propulsion, beam-type weaponry, and stealth purposes, as they can cause electromagnetic interference, rendering conventional communications and radar devices useless. Other GN particle-related equipment used in these Gundams includes a pair of torso-mounted clavicle antennas that serve as the primary particle control device, and GN Condensers mounted throughout the body to store excess particles, ensuring a reserve of particles that the Gundam can rely on when its operation consumes more than what the GN Drive can produce instantly.
In terms of combat capabilities, the Nadleeh is inferior to the Virtue due to its significantly lower GN particle storage capacity. However, this is not a flaw in itself, as the Nadleeh is not intended for active use in armed interventions, with the Virtue being the preferred form for such situations. The Nadleeh has a pair of GN beam sabers and can use the Virtue's GN cannons as portable weapons when free of the Virtue armor. When launched as a standalone unit, it trades the GN Cannon for a GN Beam Rifle and a GN Shield. Like other Gundams, the Nadleeh can activate the special "Trans-Am" system in an emergency, enhancing its thrust and defensive strength, as well as increasing its output to three times that of its normal specifications for a period limited. The Nadleeh also glows red as a side effect, but the system is a double-edged sword as the Nadleeh's performance will drop significantly once it ends. The Nadleeh is later replaced by Celestial Being's GN-009 Seraphim Gundam, which is also equipped with the Trial System.
- Trial System
Only installed in the Nadleeh, it is a special function which is not part of the armed intervention plan. The Trial System generates an invisible field known as the "Trial Field" around the Gundam, allowing its Gundam Meister to control all Veda-related machines in this field and forcefully shut them down. This system is one of the protection systems prepared by the founder of Celestial Being, Aeolia Schenberg, to prevent the collapse of the plane. Its main purpose is to prevent powerful GN Drive-equipped machines, such as Gundams, from being betrayed and prevent their misuse should they be captured. Although the system provides an overwhelming advantage in an anti-Gundam battle, it has limited effective range. To address this weakness, the scope of Akwos equipment was expanded. Since its targets are primarily members of Celestial Being, information about the Trial System is highly classified within the organization. Only a few Meisters have access rights to use the Trial System, and it appears that an active link to Veda via quantum brainwaves is also required for its use. Additionally, only one Meister can use it at a time, and there is a hierarchy of access rights. Therefore, a Meister with higher access rights can override the use of the system by another with lower access rights. When this happens, machines previously shut down by the Trial return to their full operational state.
- Trans-Am System
A special system hidden by the founder of Celestial Being, Aeolia Schenberg, in the black box of the original GN Drives, and which is revealed when a traitor appeared in the organization. During Trans-Am, all high-density GN particles accumulated within the Gundam are fully released, enhancing its mobility and defensive capabilities, and allowing it to operate at three times its normal output for a limited time. The entire Gundam turns red as the massive amount of GN particles surrounding, and covering the machine, as well as those inside the GN cables, and in the tiny paths in the armor begin to glow red. Additionally, afterimages are generated when the Gundam is moving. Although the Nadleeh achieves greater destructive power during Trans-Am, due to converting the large amount of compressed high-density GN particles into beams, the system is unfortunately a double-edged sword. The Gundam's performance will drop significantly once it ends, as most of the GN particles in its body have been used up. This negative effect will last until the GN particles stored in the Gundam return to a normal level, so using the Trans-Am requires special attention. For the Virtue, which requires a large amount of GN Particles for attack and defense, even in normal times, this negative effect impacts it more than other Gundams.
- Veda Linked Operation System
The Gundams' operating system is linked to Veda, allowing the quantum computer to provide support to the Gundams and their Meisters. When Alejandro Corner took possession of Veda with the help of Ribbons Almark, they used it to interfere with the Gundams' systems, rendering them inoperable. Fortunately, Ptolemy's team had considered such a probability, and had developed a standalone operating system beforehand. Switching to this autonomous operating system restores the Gundams to their operational state, but the loss of support from Veda makes piloting the Gundams and completing missions much more difficult for the Meisters.
Armaments
- GN Beam Saber: A weapon that emits a beam-like blade made of GN particles from its hilt when fired, it is stored in each knee, and they have the same abilities as those of other Gundams. As the Virtue Gundam is not intended for anti-MS combat, GN Sabers are its only melee weapon. Although more powerful than the carbon blades and sonic blades of conventional MS, the Virtue rarely uses sabers, reserving them for emergencies.
- GN Cannon: The same pair of dual beam cannons used by the GN-005 Gundam Virtue. After the Virtue has purged its armor, the Nadleeh can wield the pair of detached GN Cannons as hand-held weapons using their hidden collapsible handles. In this portable state, the GN Cannons have a wider effective range than when strapped to the Virtue's back. Although their firepower is less than that of the Virtue's GN Bazooka, the cannons can still destroy multiple MS in a single shot.
- GN Beam Rifle: An improved and evolved version of the Beam Rifle used by the GNY-004 Gundam Plutone, the Nadleeh's predecessor. This GN beam rifle is created specifically for the Nadleeh, serving as the primary ranged weapon when the Gundam is deployed as a standalone unit. While not as powerful as the Virtue's GN Bazooka or GN Cannon, it can still fire high-yield particle beams and excels at rapid fire. Additionally, the rifle has a wide output for attacking a wide area, and a beam blade can also be generated from the same muzzle of the barrel, allowing the weapon to function as a large beam saber.
- GN Shield: Like the GN Beam Rifle, the Nadleeh's GN Shield is an improved and evolved version of that of the Plutone. Used when the Nadleeh is deployed as a standalone unit, this defensive armament is mounted on the left forearm and is made from E-Carbon. Additionally, GN particles are attached to the surface of the shield, allowing it to protect the Nadleeh from beams and physical projectiles. Although it has a small protective surface thanks to its sleek design, it is lightweight, easy to handle and does not hinder mobility, making it suitable for use by the lighter Nadleeh than the Virtue.
History
The Nadleeh will make its first appearance during the attack on the LRH, during the Gundam capture operation.
While Tieria was under the LRH Squad's diversions, he noticed that Allelujah let the GN-003 Gundam Kyrios be captured by enemy forces. This prompted Tieria to direct Virtue's GN Bazooka towards the LRH transport holding the Kyrios captive, deeming Allelujah unfit to be a Gundam Meister. However, before it could fire, it was intercepted by LRH's MSJ-06II-SP Tieren Taozi. The two units were then locked in a MS duel. Tieria was surprised by the Taozi's mobility and high reaction rate compared to the average Tierens.
Eventually, the Kyrios managed to escape from the fleeing LRH transport that was keeping it captive. With the "Winged Gundam" out of their reach, Team Chobu decided to capture the Virtue, not wanting their operation to end in
failure. Six Tierens suddenly interfered in the battle between the Virtue and the Taozi and stopped the Gundam from moving using carbon wire and binding gel. Tieria attempted to fight back, but even Virtue's weaponry was rendered useless by the enemy. As the Virtue dominated the Tierens, Sergei ordered the Taozi's pilot, Soma Peries, to cut off the Virtue's limbs to prevent it from moving. Left with no other choice, Tieria activated the Nadleeh System, purging Virtue's armor and revealing the GN-004 Gundam Nadleeh. Tieria was freed from the enemy's bonds and began taking out Tierens with GN Cannons located on Virtue's shoulders. The remaining units of the Chobu LRH team immediately began to retreat.
The Nadleeh will make another brief appearance following the actions of Team Trinity. After Team Trinity's attack on the Iris Corporation factory in Iowa, which killed 800 civilian workers, Setsuna and her Exia decided to attack the Thrones for their actions. Tieria feels the same way, he goes out with Virtue and joins the fight with Setsuna to face the three Gundam Thrones.
For the first time, the two Gundam Meisters cooperated, despite their numerical disadvantage, Tieria knew that they would be assured of victory thanks to Setsuna's presence. The two Gundam Meisters instantly adopted battle formations against Team Trinity. This equalized, or even diminished the effect of the numerical advantage that Thrones had.
As Throne Eins and Drei prepared to attack the Exia with the GN Mega Launcher, Virtue stopped them with his beam saber. The Thrones dodged the attack and quickly captured the Virtue for a point-blank attack. With Virtue's slow mobility hindering her ability to dodge the attack, Tieria eventually freed Nadleeh and activated her Trial System. Both Thrones quickly stopped moving and fell towards the ground.
The Nadleeh's final appearance will be during Celestial Being's final battle (at the end of season 1).
After Tieria finished working on the Nadleeh, Allelujah reminded her of the Nadleeh's low particle intake. However, Tieria swept them aside as he was determined to avenge Lockon's death. Eventually, the UN forces returned, accompanied by golden Mobile Armor as reinforcements and with more GN-X. The Mobile Armor launched pre-emptive attacks against the Ptolemy,
destroying one of the ship's particle emitters. The GNR-001E GN Arms Type-E was ordered to intercept the MA, while the Nadleeh and Kyrios were to engage the approaching GN-X teams. Tieria confronted the team of 5 GN-Xs that were heading towards the Ptolemy's right.
Tieria managed to keep the GN-X team at bay, preserving the Nadleeh's Trans-Am. The Nadleeh has a limited particle pool and Tieria wanted to limit its particle usage during battle. However, not long before, a shot from the enemy Mobile Armor hit the Ptolemy and damaged its right side. Tieria furious that the enemy had managed to seriously damage the Ptolemy, irritated by the enemy and his own weakness, he resolved to finally activate the Nadleeh's Trans-Am. With it, he finally managed to destroy 3 of the enemy GN-Xs. However, as he was about to destroy the remaining enemies, another attack from the enemy AM destroyed the Nadleeh's right leg.
The remaining GN-Xs took this opportunity to fight back, ripping off the Nadleeh's legs and left arm with beam-type attacks. With only the MS's right arm, Tieria fired the Nadleeh's final two shots at the two attacking GN-Xs. The fire destroyed the enemy MS, but at the same time one of the GN-s also took the lead from the Nadleeh. The remains of the Nadleeh were damaged beyond repair and Tieria used her last strength to eject her GN Drive so that Celestial Being could retrieve it.
Did you know?
- The name "Nadleeh" comes from the Navajo word meaning "Two Spirits", a reference to the feminine figure hidden within the masculine.
- In the early stages of the concept, Nadleeh was named "Queen Gundam". The Queen was supposed to be a powerful unit with no blind spots or weaknesses. His abilities included a strange "psycommu ESP-grasping" ability to "grab" other MS, as well as wireless units that can be used as offensive and defensive weapons. He was not supposed to participate in normal battles, except when the King Gundam was in danger, at which time the Queen was summoned from within as his bodyguard. The later version Nadleeh inherited her feminine appearance, while the MS's input ability was changed to become the Trial System and the wireless units became the Fangs for the Gundam Thrones Zwei.