| |
| Reaper Squad | |
| General information | |
| Classification | Mercenary Unit |
| Headquarters | Mobile Train |
| Affiliation and corporate information | |
| Leader | J (presumed) |
| Affiliations | The Foundation |
| Known members | K, D, N, M, J |
| Eras present | The Verdict War |
| Real world information | |
| Appearances | Armored Core: Verdict Day |
The Reaper Squad (a.k.a. Death God Unit in the Japanese version) is a unit of Armored Core pilots that first appear in Armored Core: Verdict Day. They are the ones responsible for Magnolia's (temporary) retirement from the mercenary life, and are the primary antagonists of the game, with the Foundation working in the background.
Their motto is "There are no exceptions."
Information[]
First introduced in mission 3: "Rusting Steel," they are a group of pilots who appear seemingly at random in various battles and attack indiscriminately, targeting military forces and known highly skilled opponents. The Reaper Squad is composed of five members. Like Zodiac before them, Reaper Squad is reputed to be nearly unbeatable in combat and seek out anyone who they feel could become a threat.
While they are allied with the Foundation, it is unknown whether they are a branch of the organization or simply have a temporary alliance. Their base of operations is located on a massive moving train—a modified Great Wall Arms Fort—in which their ACs are serviced and their missions planned out. The protagonist encounters and defeats all five member throughout the course of the story.
The Reaper Squad are a group of Cultivaters-turned-Phantasma Beings, having been described as locked away once they were unneeded, and that they no longer are the same people they used to be, having undergone artificial personality manipulation, essentially making them focused on warfare and fighting, as is standard for Cultivaters.[1]
Appearances[]
Their (possible) first appearance is in Mission 01: Dirty Worker, where a mysterious group have a conversation as to the worth of the Raven 's skill, stating that it is part of their plan to hunt down anyone with hidden talent before they grow too strong.
The first (major) appearance of this group is during Mission 03: Rusting Steel, where Reaper One: K assists the Raven to defeat a squad of EGF-assault UNACs.
Their next appearance is in Mission 05-6. After the player has successfully defended a F21C Stork helicopter from encroaching enemy forces, Reaper Three: N abruptly appears on the battlefield, designating the player as "Number 28" before attacking. Despite his best efforts, N is killed in action against the Raven.
The Reaper Squad appears again in Mission 06: Blue Magnolia. After the mercenary Erik is taken down by a battalion of out-of-control Sirius UNACs, Reaper Squad appears to back the Raven up, consisting of Reaper Two: D and four of the group's custom support-role UNAC's. D also gives praise to the player after finding out that he was in fact the one who terminated N. After all hostiles have been removed, the commander of the Reaper Squad reveals himself, reports that the mission is complete and begins to depart, until Maggy asks him a question. In return, the Reaper Squad Leader asks Maggy if she has "given up her blue AC for good", then calls her by her real name, Magnolia Curtis.
Suddenly catching the hint, Maggy then asks who he is. The commander of the Reaper Squad then states that it was he who shot her down two years before. He then reveals his distaste as to Maggy's current occupation, and says that he cannot decide whether to feel pity for her situation or praise her for her efforts to continue living. The resulting words heavily distress the former mercenary, startling her. Before anything else can be done, the Reaper Squad retire from the battlefield.
The Reaper Squad appears next in the Mission 08: Vendetta, where the Raven is lured into a trap to kill them. K is the first to challenge the mercenary but is ultimately killed in combat. After K's defeat, D is deployed with UNAC support to destroy their target, but is also taken down as well. In a final bid to remove the Raven once and for all, the Reaper Squad launches Magnolia, now known as Reaper Three: M, to kill their designated.
During the ensuing battle, M's AC sustains some moderate damage and chooses to withdraw due to unprepared to pilot her appointed AC unit. At the end of the mission, she then states that the reason for doing what they did was to root out potential ace-pilots with above-exceptional skills, and slay them.
The Reaper Squad Leader then pits in with his own opinion, stating that one "destined to burn all to ash", while another "with an enduring will to fight". He then further goes on to say that once he has found the one who is the strongest, he will kill them, as it is his duty to do so. When Fatman calls him out for being far from sane, J retorts by asking if there was anything wrong with his sense of sanity.
Mission 09: Forgiveness of an Angel is the last mission the Reaper Squad, as a group, appears in. After being hunted down by the Three Forces as well as Fatman and his partner, M tells them the story of the Dark Raven and her reason for returning to the battlefield. After Fatman calls her out for admiring the Dark Raven, M simply states that she never, under any circumstance, wants to be defeated again. She then engages in combat with the object of her anguish.
During their duel, M's AC becomes heavily damaged, losing its left arm in the process--halving its combat capability. When Fatman orders her to back down, M cries out defiance, and hysterically, resumes the fight with her crippled AC. Despite her best efforts to continue the fight, M is defeated by the Raven and, due to the massive trauma on her AC, subsequently dies when it explodes.
After the Foundation Leader reveals himself and states, rather cold-heartedly, that M was nothing more than a candidate of his now-unveiled elimination campaign, he unleashes a large number of Ammon S' automatons, lead by a Scavenger. Despite his best efforts, the Raven destroys all of them, much to his amazement. Realizing it would take more than that to bring the mercenary down, the Foundation Leader challenges them to a duel, saying it will 'prove which one of them is right'.
Mission 10: Mechanized Memories is the final time the Reaper Squad is seen in the game. With the rest of his squad dead, the Reaper Squad Commander: J, takes to the battlefield at the Foundation Leader's request to kill the Raven. He rides into the battlefield piloting the Foundation's trump card, the N-WGIX/v-a refurbished White Glint-while it is docked into a kamikaze-oriented Vanguard Overed Boost unit. After a brief conversation between the two of them, J states that 'the battlefield is his place in the world' and, once the unit is disengaged from the VOB, engages the Raven in combat.
During the fight, the Lone Mercenary manages to damage the N-WGIX, almost shocking the Foundation Leader. After a spasm of excitement from the Foundation Leader, J increases the N-WGIX/v's generator output to dangerous levels, purging its primal armor as it overloads it KP generation, dispersing particles and massive amounts of heat all over the battlefield. When the Foundation Leader states about humankind destroying itself, J cuts in stating that 'words are meaningless', then issuing a challenge, resumes his fight with the Raven.
Despite his best efforts, J is eventually defeated by the Raven, with the N-WGIX being so heavily damaged from the battle that it enters a self-termination state as its generator overloads. Fatman snidely remarks that J got what he wanted, asking if he "is happy now". The Foundation Leader answers instead by saying he, even now, refuses to 'believe that mankind has hope'. He also says that he 'will never forgive the filthy world that destroyed his life, stating that no matter how much mankind does to change, he will never forgive them.
The Foundation Leader then, in his dying moments, reveals his plan in full: to make use of the N-WGIX/v, he activated the Tower it was housed within, and having acquired purchase of the others, activated them as well - which resulted in restarting the secret manufacturing facilities that helped produce both the UNAC and AC technology, including the vast numbers of Last-Age autonomous weapons. He states these weapons will 'continue on without him', and that the 'battle for the Towers have begun'.
Before the Foundation Leader self-terminates, he grants Fatman and his partner the freedom to carry on as they please, saying that they have 'that right and responsibility'. Fatman retorts by saying that they will do exactly that, as long they live.
With the Reaper Squad all but annihilated, it is speculated that they no longer posed a threat in the world after the Foundation's coup. However, evidence has shown that mercenaries during the Verdict War had been recruited into another Reaper Squad of unknown origin, via special contract, to continue to hunt down potential high-calibre pilots.
Members[]
- J - Commander of the Reaper Squad. Shot down Magnolia Curtis two years prior to the start of the games story; and pilots the N-WGIX/v against Fatman's partner in Mission 10. An enigmatic, shady character. He shows great respect for Fatman's partner by the end of the campaign, and has an interest in Magnolia because he finds out that she had survived their encounter which had effectively 'crippled' her.
- N - The most mysterious member of the Reaper Squad, under the callsign 'Reaper Three'. He pilots a close-range lightweight bipedal, R.I.P3/N. He appears to have a rather honest, forth-coming, yet snidely cynical attitude to things. He is encountered during Story Mission 05-6.
- K - The first Reaper to be encountered in the game fully. Goes under the callsign 'Reaper One'. She pilots a long-range, sniper-oriented heavy-reverse-jointed AC, R.I.P1/K. She seems to hold the Raven in high regard, out of respect for his/her skill.
- D - The third Reaper squad member to be encountered, under the callsign 'Reaper Two'. He pilots the only-known assault-model tank AC among the group, R.I.P2/D. He seems to be very fond of the protagonist, quoting in admiration how they first defeated N, and then K. He seems to have a preference to cheat, made clear as to how he is often encountered with UNAC support when entering the battlefield.
- M - The newly introduced member of the Reaper Squad, M was once a proud, well-respected mercenary that went under the callsign 'Blue Magnolia'. M is administered the callsign of 'Reaper Three' after N's defeat. She pilots the only-known medium biped AC, R.I.P3/M. She becomes fixated on eliminating Fatman's partner, driven by a desire to be the best. She seems to have been fairly close, at least to some degree, to Fatman, as indicated by her dialogue before her end.
Gameplay[]
In-game information[]
VoW Archive 12: The Reaper Squad[]
An enigmatic group of ACs sighted in combat zones throughout the front lines of the current war.
Appearing alone or in packs, they attack others indiscriminately, then disappear. Their anonymity and seemingly supernatural strength have earned them their present nickname. While no one knows the aims of the Reaper Squad, the timing of their appearance aligns almost perfectly with the adoption of UNACs into combat forces across the globe. Photo credit: VoW |
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- Each member's name consists only of a single letter, which seems to be taken from the first letter of their given names.
- Reaper Squad also have access to their own UNACS, which come in two configurations, both of which are medium weight ACs geared for support roles.
- Dialogue indicates that the Reaper Squad have either traded their bodies in exchange for inhuman piloting skills, becoming one with their AC, or that they were cybernetically enhanced to better pilot an AC. Zodiac, as their precursors, were used as a testbed for the 'Designed' technology.
- J is mentioned in supplemental materials to be an artificial human known as a 'Cultivater'. Cultivaters are designed to be perfect weapons, cloned from a skilled pilot from the distant past; it is implied that he might be Joshua O'Brien, which explains his ability to pilot the N-WGIX/v via AMS, given his very high AMS count, and the fact he used an AC reminiscent of 4's White Glint. While the rest of the Reaper Squad are Cultivaters, M is not.
- With the exception of R.I.P.3/M, the Reaper Squad ACs share the same red-and-black paint scheme as Nine-Ball. This is further enforced with the alternate BGM during mission 08, which features a remixed version of 9, Nine-Ball's theme song.
- In World Mode, a special contract can be issued to Mercenaries that will form a PvP Reaper Squad-- this squad is comprised entirely of Mercenaries, has no factional affiliation, and only be put into offensive Normal Sorties against players. Being part of, or facing this squad will display the message "There are no exceptions".
- If the player attacks K too many times in Story Mission 03, K will retreat and call him/her 'a rabid animal'.
- ↑ Page 38 of the AFTER.