User blog:AgentHoxton/Custom Death Battle: Thunderbird 2 VS Gundam Heavyarms

You probably read the title and thought "Why is this a match-up? Heavyarms will curbstomp!". Hell, even I thought that at first. But looking back at the most popular machine of the show I used to watch as a child, I realized that it actually could work rather well, considering digits and arsenal. Non-lethal arsenals have been used before (just ask Batman) and Thunderbird 2's could actually be very combat adaptive for an out-of-the-box battle, as other ones have been done before (Yoshi VS Riptor, Starscream VS Rainbow Dash, hell, even Epyon VS Tigerzord could qualify as this). Combining this reason with the fact that the Thunderbirds TV series is entering its 50th anniversary this year, on top of receiving a 2015 revival of its TV series, makes it a suitable candidate to be sent through a Death Battle, win or lose. It'd make quite a good match to commemorate this fact, much like how Terminator VS RoboCop was for the 2014 RoboCop movie, and Godzilla VS Gamera was for the 2014 Godzilla movie. Let's do this thing.

Description
''Thunderbirds VS Gundam Wing! Two metal giants of old and new, both made and piloted to serve and protect the world from danger, now face off against each other! One will survive, one will be destroyed... which titanic behemoth will go down in flames first?''

Interlude
The side of good. It can come in many shapes, sizes and forms, and always comes from mostly the pure hearted of people who wish nothing else but to protect the people of the world from certain danger. But while heroes can be great on their own, they can be even better when placed at the helm of an enourmous vehicle.

Thunderbird 2, the heavy-duty Thunderbird...

And

Heavyarms, the heavy-duty Gundam.Based on what I could find and understand of these two fighters, I'll try my best to put across these characters' sets of weapons, armor and skills to determine who would be the victor in a death battle! ''Note: This Death Battle will include non-canon sources for both. In the case of Thunderbird 2, it will be fitted with a "seventh pod", which will combine most of its useful machinery, as well as being allowed Thunderbird 4 and Thunderbird 6 as part of its arsenal, and Heavyarms will be allowed to use the modifications made to suit Heero when he used it, as well as the Igel Armament and the Damselfly.''

History
Thunderbird 2 was created by International Rescue as a heavy-duty supplier and transporter of tools and equipment to a rescue zone. Designed and built by Brains, the team's engineer and mechanic, Thunderbird 2 is capable of hauling multitudes of equipment, but its size, versatility and lifting capability makes it a prominent rescue vehicle in its own right. It is even capable of carrying Thunderbird 4 on a mission, and is the main rescue vehicle for Earth-based missions.

Background
Thunderbird 2 can travel at up to 5,000 miles per hour, which was later increased to an absolute maximum of 12,000 miles per hour, almost reaching Mach 16 speeds. An even journey all the way around the world is roughly 40,075 kilometers long, or roughly 24,901 miles long. By travelling at full speed and power, and assuming the possibility of not requiring refueling, Thunderbird 2 could travel all the way around the world in just over 2 hours. To compare, the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird, the current holder of the official Air Speed Record for a manned airbreathing jet aircraft, caps at at 2,193 miles per hour. This exact same journey would take nearly 11 and a half hours for this jet to accomplish. Comparing the two speeds makes the Thunderbird 2 about five and a half times faster than the fastest manned jet on Earth.
 * Height: 60ft / 18.3 meters (Normal) // 110ft / 33.5 meters (Pod lowered)
 * Length: 250ft / 76.2 meters
 * Width: 180ft / 54.9 meters
 * Top speed: 2,000mph / 894 m/s (Cruising) // 12,000mph / 5,364 m/s (Maximum)
 * Weight: 406 tons / 368 metric tons
 * Main Pilot: Virgil Tracy
 * Armor: Top secret
 * Power Source: Atomic fusion reactor

Of course, such a massive vehicle requires quite a sizable crew to operate efficiently. Luckily, International Rescue has just such a team.

Virgil Tracy

 * Main pilot

Gordon Tracy

 * Co-pilot
 * Aquanaut of Thunderbird 4

Alan Tracy

 * Astronaut of Thunderbird 3

Brains

 * Lead Engineer
 * Mechanic

Tin-Tin Kyrano
Thunderbird 2 holds a variety of tools and equipment used for rescue missions (and although they usually use non-lethal weaponry, it's implied that they do use extreme force should they not be at risk of harming innocents, such as in Thunderbird 6 when it and Thunderbird 1 annihlated a base belonging to Black Phantom):
 * Special International Rescue Agent
 * Half-niece of The Hood, International Rescue's arch-enemy
 * Alan Tracy's love interest
 * Kyrano's daughter

Firefly

 * Can travel into the heart of a burning fire
 * Shoots explosive nitro-glycerine shells to put out fires
 * Equipped with high and low pressure foam turrets

Electromagnetic Pod Grabs

 * Can lift over 25 tons
 * Lowered through doors in the underside
 * Works in suction mode and magnetic mode

Laser Cutter Vehicle

 * Powerful laser cutter
 * Capable of cutting through blast doors
 * Uses an on-board computer for determing laser power

Jammers

 * Electronic countermeasure (ECM) jamming
 * Used to protect from missiles

Observation Cameras

 * Two on the port and starboard sides respectively

Machine Cannons

 * Two machine cannons, manned
 * Demolition machine cannon in underside just before pod

Missile Launcher
Even with all of this equipment on board, Thunderbird 2 can call upon one last set of machinery. Since Thunderbird 2 can carry other smaller Thunderbirds onto the scene of a rescue (multiple times, in fact), and the fact that Gordon and Brains are on board, the team can also call upon Thunderbirds 4 and 6 into the scene of battle / rescue.

Thunderbird 4

 * Aquanaut: Gordon Tracy
 * Height: 12 ft / 3.6 meters
 * Power source: Hydrogen fuel cell plant
 * Top Speed: 173MPH (Underwater) / 115MPH (Surface)

Arsenal

 * Missile launcher
 * Battering ram
 * Laser
 * "Paralyser"

Thunderbird 6

 * Tiger Moth biplane
 * Pilot: Brains
 * Height: N/A
 * Top speed: Unknown
 * Used as a satellite

Feats

 * Performed countless rescues
 * Knocked out giant alligators with just tranquilizer darts in the machine cannons
 * Jammed Skythrust's landing gear and stopped it being hijacked by Madeline and Mason with a non-explosive missile
 * Helped Thunderbird 1 to destroy a base of Black Phantom
 * Lifted a giant solar generator reflector from the bottom of a mountain

Faults
This rescue machine may not be the best fighter out there - or even a proper fighter - but it can definitely put up resistance before it can go down. If it plays its defenses right, it may be able to overcome the Gundam.
 * Put out of commission by U.S.N Sentinel with a few missiles
 * A large target
 * Usually carries non-lethal rounds
 * Crew can sometimes argue

History
Hiding in the depths of the L3 Colonies was Gundam Scientist Doktor S, who was working on a new Gundam. Funded by the Barton Foundation, Doktor S made Heavyarms to be a walking arsenal with plenty of guns, but still have options for close range. It was made and developed for the first Operation Meteor plan. With an anonymous young mobile suit mechanic taking up the mantle of the original Trowa Barton, Heavyarms was deployed on Earth with the other Gundams to control the chaos during Operation Meteor.

Background
Heavyarms is piloted by a young mobile suit mechanic under the pseudonym of Trowa Barton...
 * Height: 54.8ft / 16.7 meters
 * Weight: 8.5 tons / 7.7 metric tons
 * ID:  XXXG-01H Gundam Heavyarms
 * Max Propulsion: 194,337 lbs/88,150 kg
 * Pilot: Trowa Barton
 * Armor: Gundanium alloy
 * Power plant: Ultracompact Fusion Reactor

Trowa Barton - Pilot
With Heavyarms' enourmous arsenal, Heavyarms won't be short of weapons:
 * Other aliases: No-Name, Nanashi
 * Age: 16
 * Height: 5'2 / 160 cm
 * Weight: 97 lbs / 44 kg
 * True Name: Triton Bloom
 * Used to be a mobile suit mechanic
 * Took up the mantle of the original Trowa Barton

Vulcan Guns

 * High rate of fire, but weak
 * Generally ineffective against mobile suits

Machine Cannons

 * Pair of machine cannons within the clavial armor
 * Stronger than Vulcan Guns

Homing Missiles

 * Stored within shoulders
 * Fired with a lock-on
 * 44 missiles maximum

Micro Missiles

 * 26 micro missiles per pod on the legs
 * Also stored on shoulders and side skirts

Chest Gatling Cannon

 * Two cannons in chest section
 * Can deal significant damage to Gundanium armor

Beam Gatling Gun

 * Mounted on left arm
 * Can deal significant damage to Gundanium armor due to beam ammunition
 * Also doubles as a shield

Army Knife

 * Concealed on bottom right arm
 * Short blade

Beam Cannon
And on top of these, Trowa has other modifications made as well as additional extras:
 * Capable of destroying a Mobile Suit in one shot

Beam Saber

 * Revealed after detaching the Beam Gatling Gun
 * Fixed to upper arm
 * May be borrowed from Wing Gundam

Igel Armament

 * Two large missile pods on each shoulder
 * Two small missile pods on each leg
 * Pair of treads on the legs for ground mobility

Damselfly

 * Helicopter pack
 * Dual propellors and boosters
 * Allows for flight

Feats

 * Able to duel with Zech's Tallgeese, which can match a Gundam in combat
 * The only Gundam of the original five to not be damaged enough to become disabled
 * One of the best original Gundams for long range weaponry and firepower
 * Able to chew through enemies easily
 * Excellent at ground combat

Faults
Heavyarms' weaponry and armor makes it a heavy-duty powerhouse, and should not be underestimated, much like its opponent. If it can land a few good strikes, it may be able to take the edge.
 * Not good at aerial combat (without the Damselfly)
 * Least close-combat capable of the original five Gundams
 * Has a tendency to run out of ammo quickly
 * Left behind by Trowa for some reason when the battle of Operation Meteor took to space

Advantages

 * Larger than Heavyarms in all aspects
 * More diverse arsenal
 * Many times faster, cruising or otherwise
 * Thunderbird 4 and Thunderbird 6 are accessible and can be piloted by other crew members
 * Crew is organized and good at planning
 * Has unlimited range

Disadvantages

 * Not initially made for combat
 * Few methods of lethal weaponry outside of Thunderbirds 4 or 6
 * Crew not adaptive towards combat despite implications
 * Thunderbird 2's armor likely not as strong as Gundanium

Advantages

 * More lethal arsenal
 * Trowa is trained and more experienced with combat
 * Gundanium alloy likely stronger than Thunderbird 2's armor
 * More methods of lethal weaponry

Disadvantages

 * Smaller than Thunderbird 2
 * A lot slower
 * Could be grabbed and lifted by the Pod Grabs
 * More suited to ground combat than aerial combat
 * Some of the explosive equipment of the Thunderbird could cause trouble
 * Could be outnumbered when Thunderbirds 4 and 6 are put into play

Who do I think would win?
While it may seem obvious, it really depends on scenarios and exactly what happens when. Not to mention some assumptions and formulas, on top of the already established stats. So to chalk up an overall view, I've devised this table to compare and contrast... So while I do agree with the general idea that Heavyarms would be most likely to win against the Thunderbird, it'd definitely be a hard-fought battle, even if it doesn't look like it on paper. The crew behind the lean green rescue machine will put up a good resistance and it won't exactly be a stomp for Heavyarms - it's going to be a victory that it will have to work hard to earn, I believe.

Would you like to see Thunderbird 2 VS Gundam Heavyarms become an actual Death Battle episode? Yes No

Read up on my previous Death Battles...

 * Guile VS The Soldier
 * Agent 47 VS Aiden Pearce
 * Dan Hibiki VS Glass Joe
 * Sonic VS Lilac
 * Trevor Philips VS Dallas