Who Is Gundam Vidar? The Complete Guide to ASW-G-XX and Its Hidden Identity

The story behind the masked mobile suit from Iron-Blooded Orphans — and why it's perfect for LED illumination.

Gundam Vidar — a machine built on deception and revenge

In Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans, few machines carry as much narrative weight as the ASW-G-XX Gundam Vidar. It is a machine built entirely around a lie — a false identity constructed in metal, light, and grief.

Understanding Vidar means understanding one of the series' most compelling character arcs, and it explains why this machine is so visually striking as a display model.

What Is Gundam Vidar? (The Official Answer)

Gundam Vidar is a mobile suit from Season 2 of Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans (aired 2016–2017). Its designation is ASW-G-XX, placing it within the Gundam Frame series — 72 units forged at the end of the Calamity War from ultra-hard rare alloys.

Officially, it is listed as an unknown Gundam Frame — because that's exactly what it was designed to be.

The Secret: Gundam Vidar Is Gundam Kimaris in Disguise

In truth, Gundam Vidar is the ASW-G-66 Gundam Kimaris Trooper — a heavily damaged unit recovered after the Battle of Edmonton — rebuilt and deliberately disguised.

The redesign was ordered by Rustal Elion, commander of the Arianrhod Fleet. The goal was to create a machine with:

1. A completely altered external silhouette
2. An unrecognizable Ahab Wave frequency
3. No data trail — a machine that doesn't exist in any official registry

The method for masking the Ahab Wave is the machine's most distinctive visual element: a third Ahab Reactor mounted on the backpack. This third reactor isn't a power source — it's a signal jammer. It broadcasts a false energy signature to prevent anyone from identifying Kimaris's true frequency.

Who Pilots Gundam Vidar? The Identity of "Vidar"

The pilot behind the mask is Gaelio Bauduin.

Gaelio was a Gjallarhorn officer from one of the Seven Stars noble families, the childhood friend of McGillis Fareed — and the person McGillis betrayed at the end of Season 1. In the Battle of Edmonton, McGillis drove the Grimgerde's saber through the Kimaris Trooper to eliminate Gaelio as a witness to his plans. Gaelio was left for dead.

He survived. Rustal Elion found him.

Returning under the codename "Vidar" — taken from the Norse god of vengeance, the son of Odin who survives Ragnarok — Gaelio concealed his identity behind a full mask and an impossible machine.

Why "Vidar"?

In Norse mythology, Víðarr (Vidar) is the silent god who avenges his father Odin's death at Ragnarok by killing the wolf Fenrir. He is patience and fury held in restraint until the moment of reckoning.

Gaelio is waiting for McGillis. Everything about the machine — the disguise, the false reactor, the masked pilot — exists to support that one act of revenge.

Key Design Features of the ASW-G-XX Gundam Vidar

The Third Ahab Reactor (Backpack)

The most iconic visual element. Larger than the standard pair, it sits on the central backpack housing and glows with an independent frequency. In model form, this is the centerpiece of any display.

Nano-Laminate Armor

Like all Gundam Frames, Vidar is coated in nano-laminate armor — a metallic coating reactive to Ahab particles that absorbs and disperses beam and ballistic impacts.

Hunter Edges (Foot Blades)

Extending from both the toes and heels of Vidar's feet, the Hunter Edges are stabbing weapons rather than slashing ones. They can't cut, but their penetrating force exceeds what most nano-laminate armor can absorb. In the MG kit, these deploy as separate posable parts.

Burst Saber

A thrusting blade housed in the hip armor. Upon piercing a target, the blade tip detaches and detonates internally — causing catastrophic damage from within.

Alaya-Vijnana Type E

This is perhaps the most tragic element of the machine. To use the Alaya-Vijnana System without the implant, Vidar's machine incorporates Type E — an external interface that uses Ein Dalton's brain (a former soldier who died in Season 1) as a neural proxy. Gaelio's vendetta machine runs on the consciousness of the person who died protecting him.

The MG 1/100 Gundam Vidar Model Kit

Bandai released the MG 1/100 Gundam Vidar on March 22, 2025 — the second IBO mobile suit to receive Master Grade treatment after the Barbatos Lupus Rex. The kit includes:

• Updated Gundam Frame with enhanced shoulder mobility
• Deployable Hunter Edges (both heel and toe)
• Full weapon loadout: Burst Saber, pistol, rifle
• Inner frame detail visible through outer panels

At 1/100 scale, the Vidar stands approximately 18cm tall.

Why Vidar Makes a Perfect Display Model

The machine is visually defined by contrast and concealment:

• The dark overall color scheme (midnight blue-black with silver accents) creates excellent depth under directional lighting
• The asymmetrical backpack (three reactors vs. two standard) creates visual tension
• The single monoeye gives it a cold, watchful quality
• The Hunter Edges deployed suggest motion even in stillness

Add LED lighting — with canonical green/red/blue three-zone lighting matching the machine's narrative identity — and the display communicates something beyond aesthetics. It tells a story.

Where to Get the LED Kit

The KOSMOS MG Gundam Vidar LED Light Kit is available for pre-order at $57.99 through Takara Model Studio.

First batch ships May 2026

Summary: What You Need to Know About Gundam Vidar

This article provides an educational overview of the ASW-G-XX Gundam Vidar from Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans. All story information is based on the canonical anime series.