| Storm Sworder | |
 NJR Storm Sworder | |
| RZ-029[1] Pteranodon[1] Type Helic Republic | |
| Crew | 1, 2(anime) |
| Weight | 47[1] tons |
| Depth | 10.1[1] m |
| Height | 12.9[1] m |
| Maximum Speed | Air: Mach 3.2 [1] |
| Weapons | Top Sword[2], Wing Sword (2)[3],Double-Barrelled Pulse Laser Gun (2)[4],Iron Claw (2)[5], Sword Missiles (anime) |
| Equipment | Engine Pod (2)[6] |
The Storm Sworder (RZ-029 ストームソーダー) is a Pteranodon-type Zoid, and one of over 200 species of bio-mechanical lifeforms that form the Zoid race depicted in TOMY's Zoids franchise.
Overview[]
The Storm Sworder was created by the Helic Republic to replace the aging Pteras.
One of the first Zoids to be built around the newly-developed Organoid System, the Storm Sworder was developed to counter new Guylos Zoids like the Genosaurer. As a result, the Storm Sworder is both incredibly fast and agile; in the air, the Zoid's agility is matched only by the Raynos and the Deantler-fused version of Storch. An improved version of this Zoid, the Storm Sworder FX, is tied with the mighty Gilvader as the fastest flying Zoid of all time, achieving mach 4 as its top speed.
Despite its role as an air superiority Zoid, the Storm Sworder's weaponry is primarily melee-focused. Its primary weapons are a trio of energised blades that are capable of cutting through most types of Zoid armour. While these are impressive, its stock ranged weapons are mediocre. It is also capable of mounting Gun Sniper units (& perhaps it's successor the Snipe Master) on its wings and deploying them onto the ground.
Battle Story Appearances[]
- This article is a subset of the Battle Story timeline. For an overview of Battle Story, please see the main article: Battle Story. For a summary of events in Battle Story, see: The Zoids File
The Storm Sworder was one of the new Zoids developed with the Organoid System and deployed during the Western Continent War. The Storm Sworder was an air superiority Zoid designed to supplement the land-based Blade Liger and Gun Sniper units.
The Storm Sworder actually began development as an Imperial Zoid, but its construction was postponed in order to prioritize the Geno Saurer. Spies from the Republic Intelligence Bureau managed to steal blueprints for this new flying Zoid, which they completed with their own technology. It proved to be outstandingly effective in battle. A single Storm Sworder could outfight ten of the Guylos Empire's Redlers at once. Its supremacy in the air played a huge role in contributing to the Republic's victory in the Western Continent War, allowing the Republic's Pteras Bombers to attack enemy supply lines unimpeded, thus cutting off the front line Imperial soldiers' access to food and ammunition.
Storm Sworders would continue to be used during the subsequent invasion of the Dark Continent, where it would be joined by the Raynos, which was not only slightly faster but was also easier to pilot thanks to its lack of an Organoid System.
By November ZAC 2108, the Republic had few Storm Sworders and Salamanders remaining, most of them having been shot down during prior battles. Under these circumstances, the Helic Republic utilized the new Dimetra Ptera as their main flying Zoid during the latter part of the war on the Central Continent.
Media Appearances[]
Anime[]
Chaotic Century-Guardian Force[]
The Storm Sworder appears in the final episodes of Zoids: Chaotic Century. A pair of Storm Sworders are piloted by Rosso and Viola, former members of the Deserto Arcobaleno gang, under the pseudonyms of 'Baron of Wings' and 'Sword of Storms,' respectively. The pair use their Storm Sworders to save Prince Rudolph on several occasions. They also help in the defeat of the the Death Saurer by shooting spikes into its intake fan, which managed to temporarily prevent it from using its Charged Particle Cannon in order to give Van Flyheight's Blade Liger a shot at charging through to the Death Saurer's core to destroy it.
In Zoids: Guardian Force, Rosso and Viola, along with their Storm Sworders, become Rudolph's personal guards. Several other Storm Sworders appear during the series, including specially equipped ones used by Irvine and Thomas to take down Hiltz's Hammer Kaiser.
The Storm Sworder Stealth Type (also known as the "Triple S") was a combined project of the Empire and Republic during the timeframe of the series, combining the Republican design with Imperial stealth technology that was used on the Black Redler in the "Eisanback" unit. Although the two prototypes were destroyed after they were stolen, the project was a success, and several Triple S Zoids were moved to the Republic's Ultrasaurus mobile fortress.
New Century[]
The Storm Sworder appears in Zoids: New Century as a replacement for Pierce's Zabat. In this episode, Dr. Laon gives four customised Storm Sworders - two F-1 Types, designed for speed as well as mounting improved weaponry, and two A-1 Types, which sacrifice speed for advanced "high altitude" combat capability - to Pierce, Polta, and two other Backdraft pilots to fight against the Blitz Team. Their Storm Sworders initially prove effective, outnumbering the Blitz Team in the air, and were too fast for land-based attacks to have much effect. Even the Liger Zero Jager's speed was shown to be no match for the new Storm Sworders. Three of the Storm Sworders would be defeated, with Pierce ultimately defecting from the Backdraft in the fourth Zoid.
The regular Storm Sworder was also briefly shown as the Zoid of the first team the Tigers Team beat on their 14-win winning streak, which bgan upon teaming up with Dr. Laon. The Tigers Team looked like they were poised to lose the battle, when lightning struck the flying Zoids (the "weather" was controlled remotely by Dr Laon), damaging their systems and causing them to lose the fight.
In episode 18, Storm Sworders are seen mounting rockets identical to the ones in Guardian Force.
Fuzors[]
Storm Sworders can be found in Zoids: Fuzors, in numerous small roles. One is used by the Zoid Hunters hired by Burton to destroy the Fire Phoenix in the early episodes.
A group of Storm Sworder Jets were used by the Terror Blades, a terrorist group, to take control of the Mayor of Blue City's Whale King in episode 17. While effective against the Peace Keeper Bureau, the Zoids were defeated by RD's Liger Zero Falcon.
Genesis[]
The Storm Sworder does not make an appearance in the main plot of Genesis; however, it is shown briefly in the intro before the theme song, along with several Zoids that appeared in Fuzors. It can be seen as a darkened Zoid, next to the Gojulas Giga.
Manga[]
Chaotic Century[]
Three Storm Sworders appear in the Chaotic Century manga. The first is piloted by Melissa Su, a child prodigy tracking down an escaped prototype Hammer Head. Due to the nature of the escaped Zoid, Feng Jian is capable of underwater combat. The second, known as Yunjian (Cloud Blade), is larger than the standard Storm Sworder and acts as a transport Zoid. It is used to transport Irvine and the damaged Tornado to Melissa Su's research lab in the Republic. The third is known as the Storm Sworder Stealth Special or S4, and is piloted by Rob Herman.
Rosso and Viola do not appear with Storm Sworders in the manga, and instead pilot a Liger Zero Schneider and Jager respectively.
New Century[]
Storm Sworders feature several times in the New Century manga. The first is piloted by Leena, when she is kidnapped by Team Mord. Two more feature when Pierce and Raid fight against Team Blitz (the "Blitz Team" as it is written in the manga). Storm Sworders are also seen as random battles during a monologue given by Altair (Altail as written in the manga).
Video Games[]
The Storm Sworder makes an appearance in the Zoids Saga series and Zoids VS III. Two alternate versions of the Storm Sworder, the Storm Sworder F and the Storm Sworder FX, appeared in the Zoids Saga series. The Storm Sworder F was a customised version of the Storm Sworder that removed the trademark Swords, forcing the Zoid to attack with a simple strike claw. The modifications did improve the amount of weight the Zoid could carry. The Storm Sworder FX was much stronger. It addressed the original's weakness by adding several guns attached to its underside. It could also fly at Mach 4.0.
Zoids Legacy Stats for Storm Sworder F:
- Length: 10.1m, Weight: 50.2t, Speed: Mach 3.1
Zoids Legacy Stats for Storm Sworder FX:
- Length: 11.0m, Weight: 48.5t, Speed: Mach 4.0
Trading Cards[]
The Storm Sworder was featured in Volume 2 of the Trading Collection Cards release and in the Zoids Scramble release of Zoids Trading Cards.
Models[]
Zoids (1999)[]
The Storm Sworder was first released as part of the Zoids (1999) line. It was introduced in 2000, with production continuing until 2004[citation needed].
The Storm Sworder model comes on four frames[citation needed] along with a battery-powered motor, a separate battery pack, twelve rubber caps, a clear canopy and a small grey pilot. The Storm Sworder is moulded in light grey, with some dark grey components. The Zoid includes a translucent orange canopy and painted details on the frame.
The Zoid comes with both wing claws and beam cannon parts, but cannot use both. They can, however, be swapped after the model is complete. The Zoid uses two "AAA" Batteries for power; once turned on the Zoid walks forwards and flaps its wings. The Zoid's canopy and blades can be manually positioned, and the legs can also be raised to put the Zoid in a "flying" position, but the Zoid cannot walk while in this mode.
The Storm Sworder was the first Republic Zoid with a battery "backpack."[citation needed] However, the pack is incompatible with the CP-16 or the packs of other Zoids. No upgrade kits were ever produced for the Storm Sworder, and the Zoid lacks the small pegs used to attach extra weapons.
A chromed version was released by Leoshop of Taiwan[citation needed].
Zoids: Build Customize Mobilize[]
The Storm Sworder was released as part of the Zoids: Build Customize Mobilize line. The Zoid was released in England by TOMY[7]. A Hasbro version was planned[citation needed], but did not see release.
Storm Sworder Jet[]
TDP Storm Sworder Jet
The Storm Sworder Jet is a Toy's Dream Project special edition model that was also released as part of the Fuzors line. The Zoid is remoulded in black and light purple, and is given translucent red eyes, but retains the same label sheets. The Zoid's statistics had also been altered, with a maximum speed of Mach 3.4 given. The Zoid was initially named "Jet Storm" but later on had its name changed to "Storm Sworder Jet".
Zoids: Original[]
Storm Sworder FSV box art colored
For the 30th anniversary of Zoids, a Storm Sworder was released as part of the Zoids: Original line. Called the Storm Sworder FSV (Flame Slash Version). It is colored primarily red, it comes with extra wings that are a translucent with a crystalline appearance.
Highend Master Model (HMM)[]
A HMM Storm Sworder was released in November 2017 with an "Ala Barone Ver." released exclusively to the Kotobukiya Shop in December 2017. The HMM Storm Sworder was re-released in May 2020.
Trivia[]
- The F and A designations given to the the two Storm Sworders by Dr. Laon are similar to real aircraft. F refers to use as a fighter craft while A refers to ground attack capability. Both of these fall in line with the uses of the F-1 and A-1 Storm Sworders
References[]
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M: Maccurtis • Madthunder • Matrix Dragon • Malder • Mammoth • Merda • Megatopros • Megaleon |
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S: Saberlion •Saicurtis • Salamander • Sandspeeda • Sauro Knights • Savinga • Scissorstorm • Scorpear • Scorpear Kai |