Gundam Epyon

"Just watch me! I'm gonna live right to the bitter end! I'll live the hard life of a warrior!"

- Zechs Merquise

The OZ-13MS Gundam Epyon, piloted by Zechs Merquise, is a close-range transformable Mobile Suit from the 1995 anime series "New Mobile Report Gundam Wing", a part of the long-running and influential "Mobile Suit Gundam" franchise. They appear in the 37th episode of Death Battle, Tigerzord VS Gundam Epyon, where they faced off against Tommy Oliver and Saba of the Power Rangers franchise in their Tigerzord.

History
Designed and built by OZ leader Treize Khushrenada during the political and military chaos occurring in AC 195, the OZ-13MS Gundam Epyon is intended to be the physical manifestation of Treize's martial ideals. Based on combat data acquired on the Gundams fighting OZ and the Romefeller Foundation, the Gundam Epyon ("epyon" is Greek for "next") is intended to be the perfect weapon for Treize's envisioned perfect soldier. Rather than incorporating ranged weapons used by "cowardly" soldiers with no warrior's sense of fulfillment, Treize arms the Epyon with only two weapons: a razor-sharp, retractable whiplike heat rod, stored in a shield on Epyon's left forearm - effective for both grappling and slicing enemies at high speed - and a large beam sword, connected directly to the mobile suit's generator via a power cable. In addition to these melee weapons, the Epyon can transform into a dragon-like mobile armor mode for atmospheric flight and added speed and mobility. These "duelist's" weapons are the only weapons a "true" soldier would need, and Treize, seeing the personal philosophies he lives by embodied in the Gundam pilots, waits until the day he can give his perfect weapon to one of these perfect soldiers.

That day comes when Treize - having withdrawn his support for the Romefeller Foundation's new direction of purpose - is under siege in his Luxembourg headquarters by Romefeller loyalists attempting to take out Treize and his proud supporters. Gundam pilot Heero Yuy arrives on the scene, and his meeting with Treize ends in Heero's acquiring the Gundam Epyon for his personal use. To Heero's surprise, the Epyon incorporates a dangerous cockpit system similar to that of the XXXG-00W0 Wing Gundam Zero - one that interfaces directly with the pilot's mind, eliminating all doubts and fears and providing its pilot with unquestionable knowledge of his enemies and the ability to achieve total victory. Heero, having already had this disturbing experience with the Wing Zero, quickly masters this new Gundam's "Epyon System," though he later ends up trading mobile suits with former OZ pilot Zechs Merquise, who had just recently acquired the Wing Zero himself. Zechs keeps the Gundam Epyon for the remainder of the fighting occurring that year, leading his own soulless mobile doll "troops" on the front lines against Treize's World Nation and the Gundam pilots during the Eve Wars. After a final battle with Wing Zero, the Epyon is presumed destroyed while disabling the reactor of the battleship Libra, but Zechs survives.

Background

 * The 6th original Gundam [Wing]
 * ID: 0S-13MS Gundam Epyon
 * Height: 57 ft/17.4 m
 * Weight: 9.4 tons/8.5 metric tons
 * Max Propulsion: 194,337 lbs/88,150 kg
 * Pilot: Zechs Merquise
 * Armor: Gundanium alloy
 * Power plant: Untracompact Fusion Reactor

Zechs Merquise

 * Code names: Lightning Count, Wind
 * Age: 20
 * Height: 6'1"/184 cm
 * Weight: 168 lbs/76 kg
 * True identity: Milliardo Peacecraft
 * Valedictorian of Lake Victoria Military Academy
 * Ranks: 0Z Colonel, Romefeller Count, White Fang Commander in Chief

Arsenal

 * Beam Sword
 * Epyon Claws
 * Epyon Shield
 * Heat Rod
 * Vulcan Guns
 * Search Eye
 * Epyon System
 * Modified ZERO System
 * Predicts outcomes in mid-battle
 * Potentially harmful to pilot
 * Can cause hallucinations

Strengths & Feats

 * Held off 4 Gundams at once
 * Destroyed Barge
 * Undetectable by most scanners
 * Survived explosion of Libra station
 * Gundanium armor is several times stronger than titanium
 * Zechs defeated Colony 191 in under 1 minute

Weaknesses

 * Lost dual against Gundam Wing Zero
 * No powerful ranged weapons
 * Suspectible to beam cannons
 * Physically & mentally dangerous to pilot
 * Epyon System may cause hallucinations & loss of control
 * Zechs' obsession over Lucrezia Noin

Death Battle Quotes
Note: These are Zechs' quotes.
 * "Hello Noin. Just brooding over how I nearly destroyed the Earth."
 * "What? Really?"
 * "Noin! NO!"
 * "I'LL BREAK YOUR FACE!"
 * "You may be skilled... but you're too slow for Epyon!"
 * "You're finished..."
 * "Hmph, don't get cocky."
 * "Oh, shit..."
 * "Here it comes..."
 * "For NOOOIIIINNNN!!"

Trivia

 * Gundam Epyon is the fourth anime/manga character to appear in Death Battle. The first three being Vegeta, Goku and Strider Hiryu and followed by Majin Buu, Gaara, Guts, Hercule Satan, Astro Boy, Agumon, Roronoa Zoro, Erza Scarlet, Voltron Lion Force, Natsu Dragneel, Portgas D. Ace, Android 18 and Renamon.
 * Gundam Epyon and its pilot are the first characters from the Gundam franchise to be featured in a Death Battle.