MS-05B Zaku I

The MS-05B Zaku I is a mobile suit line from the Universal Century time-line.
==Technology==
By the outbreak of the One Year War the MS-05 Zaku was five years old and largely considered obsolete. The Mobile suit was developed as first combat production suit, but it was soon superseded by the MS-06F Zaku II. After that it was phased out and mainly consigned to auxiliary duties such as, training, construction and supply duties. The Zaku I however, has an infamous history as it was used by the Zeon Marines in gassing of colony populations and in preparing these colonies for their drops on earth.It wasn't until the closing months of the One Year War that the Zaku I's finally saw front-line action and had a chance for some real glory. After the crushing defeat of Operation Odessa, Zaku I's reinforced their faltering main forces and saw some of the bitterest action of the entire war. Fighting desperate rearguard and holding actions often against the now superior Federation Mobile forces. This old war-horse also fought in the very last major actions of the war, fighting alongside advanced mobile suits such as MS-14 Gelgoog units used during Zeon's last stand at the Space Fortress A Baoa Qu.
==Armaments==
===105mm Machine Gun===
Main conventional weapon for the Zaku I, it is replaced with a 120mm Machine Gun
===Zaku Bazooka===
Another conventional weapon of the Zaku I
===Heat Hawk===
An early type of melee weapon developed by Zeon based on the concept of superheating a metal blade to create a weapon that could melt armor as it cut, thus increasing its overall effectiveness. The Heat Hawk is shaped like an axe and is stored on the rear waist armor.
==History==
Introduced in UC 0075, the MS-05B Zaku I was the Principality of Zeon's first true mass-production model mobile suit. Although designed as a front line combat unit, Zeon's upper brass concluded that it was not adequate to serve as their mainstay unit in the coming war against the numerically superior Earth Federation. The Zaku I was soon replaced by the improved MS-06A Zaku II First Mass Production Type, which was in turn replaced by the MS-06C Zaku II Early Production Type, which was finally replaced by the MS-06F Zaku II as the mainstay of Zeon's mobile suit forces.Early during the One Year War of UC 0079, most Zaku Is were relegated to menial construction and supply duties, although a few did continue to serve in combat roles. During the war's opening days, Zaku Is were also used in other combat-related work roles, including gassing of colony populations, attaching booster engines to space colonies to hurtle them towards Earth, and so on. It wasn't until the last months of the war that Zeon, desperate after facing losses in Operation Odessa and Operation Star One, would move the old Zaku Is back to the front lines to reinforce their faltering main forces. Several units would even see combat on Earth when the Midnight Fenrir Corp fought in defense of the California Base.
==Trivia==
*NikeTube Studios created a facebook page on April 11, 2013 called Zaku I for Gundam fans interested in the mobile suit. Although the page doesn't have anything to do with Mobile Suit Gundam on ROBLOX, it is written by De Leon in the perspective of the mobile suit (as if it was a living being).
Category:Mobile Suits
Category:Zaku-type MS
Category:Principality of Zeon Mobile Suits