Terraphaser

Terraphaser
Data
Category	Robot
Height	69 m
Weight	69,000 t
Home World	Planet Earth
Affiliation	TPU/GUTS-Select Sphere (secretly; also its power source) Agams (designer/pilot) Unnamed original AI (pilot) HANE2 (pilot) Kanata Asumi (pilot)
First Appearance	Ultraman Decker episode 10 "Man and Monster" (Cameo) Ultraman Decker episode 11 "Machine God Deployed"
Latest Appearance	Ultraman Decker Finale: Journey to Beyond

Terraphaser , codenamed DG001（ディー・ジー・ゼロ・ゼロ・ワン） , is the pinnacle of TPU's technology and an autonomous robot that first appears in Ultraman Decker. Its true identity is a war machine created solely for Agams's use, who utilised TPU as a front to cover his operations until it was impossible to keep them hidden any longer.

Subtitle: Cybernetic Golem

Conception

Terraphaser is designed after Deathfacer, a robot which was transformed from Prometheus, TPC's computer-guided warship from Ultraman Tiga & Ultraman Dyna: Warriors of the Star of Light. The two also shares its list of armaments; an extendable grappling claw as a right arm, as arm cannon on the left, and their chests having the ultimate one-hit-kill energy cannon.

According to director Tomonobu Koshi, the TR Particles is a reference to the GN Particles from Mobile Suit Gundam 00. The particle setting is also used during the production of Ultraman Z and Ultraman Trigger: New Generation Tiga, but he felt that the two series aren't expressing the element very much, hence the idea of incorporating it to Terraphaser. The original plan is to color the energy particle with green, but doing so would further strengthen the similarity to the aforementioned Gundam series and the mecha of Eureka Seven, while setting the color to blue will result in a reference to the Plavsky Particle from Gundam Build Fighters. In the final product, the TR Particles are portrayed as bluish with small shades of pink color.

Etymology

Terraphaser's name is a play of Deathfacer, Terranoid and the Japanese transliteration for Phases . The artificial Ultraman Terranoid from Ultraman Dyna has an almost similar history to Deathfacer, with the Spheres hijacking it translates to Terraphaser's creator selling out Earth and its people to the Spheres.

Although unconfirmed, following Agams defection, Marluru toys with the idea of that DG Plan, which was the project to create Terraphaser, actually stands for "Decker Genocide" to accommodate the DG initials, following the Bazdo's acknowledgement that Terraphaser's sole purpose of creation is to kill Ultraman Decker from the very start. The initials can also read the same if translated into Japanese, with "G" being the Decker Goroshii Keikaku . It may also be short for Dark God, as indicated by the translated title of the episode Birth of a Dark God.

History

Pre-Ultraman Decker

The development of what would become Terraphaser started as part of the DG Plan , formulated by Agams the Alien Bazdo who slipped into the TPU while taking on an alias known as Yuichiro Asakage, some time during the events of Ultraman Trigger in the wake of the Giants of Darkness' attack on mankind. Following GUTS-Select's disbandment and Earth entering a period of peace, the plan was subsequently put on hold prior to completion. ^{Machine God Deployed} When the arrival of Spheres threaten the Earth, Agams took advantage of the situation of the Spheres as well as Ultraman Decker's arrival to convince TPU into restarting DG Plan. ^{Birth of a Dark God}

Ultraman Decker

The paperwork for DG Plan 001 as delivered to Special Section 3

Once the project was recommenced, Agams submitted Terraphaser's design and plans to Special Section 3, prompting Masamichi Hotta and Marluru to work on constructing the robot. ^{Special Summary: The Return of Marluru} In its development, Terraphaser was outfitted with combat data from GUTS-Select's battles and the use of the GUTS Gryphon's Hyper Thorn Laser being modified into the TR Mega Buster weapon ^{Standing Tall for Someone Special}. A test run was conducted some time after Neomegas' first defeat, but the robot was targeted by both Gazort and Raibasser, the two having sensed a Sphere essence being installed within the robot and acknowledged it as a threat. ^{The Fall of Bazdo} When its original AI unit fried, Asakage manages to link HANE2 into the system as a replacement as it possessed combat data from fighting alongside GUTS-Select. HANE2 successfully fought off Raibasser until he started to overheat, but was saved by Ultraman Decker. ^{Machine God Deployed} After that incident, HANE2 was installed with a dedicated program for piloting Terraphaser and was once again deployed to assist in the fight against Sphere-Neomegas which it helped Decker to attain victory, which caused the popularity of the both of them to rise. HANE2's data was then collected by Asakage, who discovered Kanata Asumi's ability to transform into Decker. ^{Neomegas Strikes Back}

Following this discovery, Agams decided to drop his ruse during Spheresaurus' second attack, hijacking Terraphaser using his Phase Riser to join the the attack on Decker and defeated him. Immediately afterwards, Decker Asumi arrived from the future where Agams came from and took back the Ultra D Flasher to transform into Ultraman Decker, fighting Terraphaser to a stalemate where both fighters blew each other away. ^{Birth of a Dark God} Once Agams managed to locate both Decker and Kanata, he called out Terraphaser again and attempted to kill them both until Kanata transformed into Ultraman Decker again to fight, gaining Dynamic Type in the process and defeating Agams, who was forced to go into hiding until he recovered from the battle. ^{A Promise for Tomorrow}

Agams emerged from his pocket dimension once again and was confronted by a TPU patrol unit, but he was saved by Yapool who decided to cooperate with Agams because of their shared hatred of the Ultras. Agams deployed Terraphaser to fight Decker alongside Yapool's Aribunta, initially overwhelming the Ultraman until Decker changed to Miracle Type to fight them both at once, before using Dynamic Type to defeat them. ^{Invitation from Another Dimension} Agams then used Terraphaser to team up with Sphere-Geomos in their fight against Ultraman Dyna, but he had to retreat during the battle when the Sphere inside the robot threatened to take him over, incidentally also exposing its presence to GUTS-Select, which hypothesize it as the reason behind Gazort and Raibasser's attacks. ^{The Price of Prosperity} Desperate for revenge, Agams decided to contact the Mother Sphere to empower the Terraphaser with Sphere Soldiers, the backlash causing him to become partly assimilated an begun to lose his memories, becoming fully amnesiac after the battle with Decker. ^{The Fall of Bazdo}

After escaping from GUTS-Select's captivity, Agams fused the Terrapahser with the attacking Sphere Soldiers once more to create Sphere Obelisks that would hasten the shrinkage of the Sphere Barrier ^{The Sky of Despair} and attacked the GUTS-Select members during their attempts to destroy the Obelisks. Agams and Kanata had one final battle when GUTS-Select managed to destroy two of the three Sphere Obelisks, despite the Spheres repairing one of them. Kanata's words and determination managed to bring Agams back to reality, releasing him from the control of the Spheres by making him remember Laelia's wishes, before the two of them worked together to destroy the Sphere Obelisks, ending Agams' revenge. However, the Mother Spheresaurus descended onto the Earth after having fought against Ultraman Trigger in space. It defeated the two Ultras while Agams got in the way of its destruction beam to save Kanata, seemingly dying in the process with Terraphaser being severely damaged. ^{End of a Dream} Fortunately, it was sufficiently salvaged to be able to join the final battle against the Mother Spheresaurus, with HANE2 taking control of the robot once more. ^{The Light Far Beyond}

Trivia

• Suit actor: Yoshiki Kuwabara (episodes 11-12), Satoru Okabe (episodes 14-15, 18, 21-25)
• Terraphaser's light-blue coloration is a reference to the light blue hue that covers Deathfacer at the time of its reconfiguration by the Alien Monera.
• Terraphaser shares several key elements with King Joe STORAGE Custom from Ultraman Z, in that both are giant robots under ownership of their respective defense teams and possesses an extendable arm and an arm cannon for weapons. In addition, they are also released as DX toys, signifying their importance to their respective series. It has also been acknowledged in-universe by Kanata and Ryumon drawing comparisons to the stranded SC-3 unit during the events of Dada PDO-3's cyberattack incident. ^{Machine God Deployed}
• Further tying the TR Particles' similarity to Gundam 00's GN Particles, its use as propulsion and shielding may be a reference to the GN Drive and the GN Field deployed by the Mobile Suits of Celestial Being.
• In the early stages of the series, to introduce a mid-level boss for the protagonist before the final confrontation with Sphere, the character initially considered was not Agams, but an AI.
  • According to Toshizo Nemoto's original storyline, this AI character was intended to assist GUTS-SELECT in various operations during the early part of the series. After the development of the giant robot, the AI would serve as its pilot but ultimately betray humanity by aiding Sphere. The reason for this betrayal was not initially determined; it could have been due to an alignment with Sphere's ideology or possession by Sphere.
  • Initially, the prototypes for the giant robot included Mountain Gulliver 5. However, this design was rejected due to its resemblance to giant robots featured in anime, as well as its positioning within the original storyline. Ultimately, Deathfacer was confirmed as the prototype.
  • When designing the giant robot as part of the defense team’s mecha, the GUTS Hawk piloted by HANE2 had not yet been completed. Initially, the concept for the Terraphaser was to allow the robot and the fighter jet to combine, transforming it into a shape-shifting giant robot. However, this would have required CGI animation, which is time-consuming and resource-intensive. Ultimately, the decision was made for the Terraphaser to be non-transformable, leading to the separate production of the fighter jet and the robot.

Ultraman Decker Finale: Journey to Beyond

Terraphaser was repaired some time after the events of the series, and was once again put into deployment. It was piloted by HANE2 in a battle against King Joe, but had a difficult time against the opposing robot due to its ability to split into its components. Ultraman Dinas then joined the fight and turned the tide of the battle. Terraphaser was then deployed again when Gibellus transformed into Zor-Gigalogaiser, but even with Dinas' help, Gibellus managed to defeat them both. Preparing to finish off Dinas, Zor-Gigalogaiser fired a powerful beam at her but Kanata moved Terraphaser into the way of the oncoming attack, killing him inside it. HANE2 then took control of Terraphaser for the final attack on Zor-Gigalogaiser after Kanata's revival and his regainin of Ultraman Decker's powers, aiding him in defeating Gibellus. ^{Ultraman Decker Finale: Journey to Beyond}

Trivia

• While piloting the Terraphaser, Kanata is situated in the same room where Agams used to pilot it. However instead of the cables that bio-link to his nervous system, he was given a set of virtual controllers similar to the ones used by Himari Nanase from Ultraman Trigger: New Generation Tiga when remote controlling the GUTS Falcon.

Data

• Phase 1
• Phase 2

Stats

• Height: 69 m
• Weight: 69,000 t
• Origin: TPU's hangar
• Weaknesses:
  • The original AI intended for Terraphaser lacks sufficient combat data and is also vulnerable to electrical attacks from the opponent, causing it to fry and rendering the entire robot inert unless a replacement AI can be installed.
  • When piloted by HANE2, attempts at accessing the TR Mega Buster can cause it to overheat due to the enormous amount of strain placed onto the AI. This is no longer the case when HANE2 is installed with the programming to allow better control of the robot.

Phases

Terraphaser's glass-like face projects two types of icons, which is recognized as Phases .

• Blank: Both the inactive and original state when Terraphaser is piloted by its original AI. Its face is portrayed by a blank black screen.
• Phase 1 : Represented by a small inverted triangle, which occur when HANE2 replaces the original AI.
• Phase 2 : Represented by a sinister-looking face, which occur when Agams hijacked the robot's control through his Phase Riser. Its facial icon is a result of receiving control through the Ark Signal , and in addition also receiving a set of new powers through the Mons Dimension Cards.

Blank face

Phase 1

Phase 2

Powers and Weapons

• TR Particles : A special type of particle that exhibits various effects, Terraphaser is powered by converting them into energy via the Backpack Unit . Its abilities include:
  • Barrier: By mass generating the particles, Terraphaser can shield itself from energy attacks and deflecting them in multiple directions.
  • Propulsion: Using the particle emitter on its back, Terraphaser is also able to propel itself forward and initiate anti-gravity flight.
• Claw Arm : A pincer claw on its right arm which can extend forward.
• TR Beam Cannon : A railgun-shaped cannon on its left arm. It can fire up to four beams of TR Particle energy simultaneously, and using the properties of TR Particles, Terraphaser can alter the direction of these beams mid-flight. When hijacked by Agams, the TR Beam Cannon can act as a conduit to channel the powers of Mons Dimension Cards once the Phase Riser reads it:
  • Ultra Oscillation Wave : By scanning Gomora's card, Terraphaser can shoot a beam of red energy wave.
  • Electric Discharge Beam : By scanning Eleking's card, Terraphaser first charges a light blade before it fires the rest of its electricity beam. The resulting attack is strong enough to decimate a trio of Dimension Card Monsters in one shot.
  • Heat Ray: By scanning Neomegas' card, Terraphaser can shoot a beam of light blue heat ray.
  • Great Destruction Beam Shell : By scanning Mons-Ahgar's card, Terraphaser can launch a fireball, so powerful that it could even destroy Decker Circle Barrier.
• TR Mega Buster : Terraphaser's ultimate weapon, a chest cannon which fires a large beam of TR Particles that could kill its opponent in a single hit. According to its DX figurine, Terraphaser's state of forming the barrel on its chest is called TR Mega Buster Mode . When not in use, the barrel splits into two halves that act as Terraphaser's shoulder armors.
• Bio Linking: Situated in its secret cockpit, Terraphaser has a pair of wires which can bio-link to Agams through his bodysuit, granting the alien control over the robot as a motion pilot. However, long usage of bio-linking can cause Agams to lose his memories and consciousness.
• Sphere Empowerment: By merging with the Sphere Soldiers, Terraphaser empower itself to fight on the same level as Decker Dynamic Type. According to Agams, he did this by directly establishing contact with the Mother Sphere.
  • Sphere Obelisk Creation: Terraphaser shoots for laser beams from its body, causing the Spheres to form the Sphere Obelisk and facilitate the shrinking of Sphere Barrier.

TR Particles

Barrier

Propulsion

Claw Arm

TR Beam Cannon

Ultra Oscilation Wave

Electric Discharge Beam

Heat Ray

Great Destruction Beam Shell

TR Mega Buster

Bio Linking

Sphere Empowerment

Sphere Obelisk Creation

Merchandise

DX

• Cybernetic Golem Terraphaser (DX, 2022)
  • Release Date: September 24, 2022
  • Price: 4,620 yen
  • JAN/ISBN: 4549660809180
  • Materials: ABS

Released for the premiere of Decker's "Machine God Deployed", the DX toy of Terraphaser is a 20cm figure (ironically, out-of-scale with its rival Ultraman Decker, both Ultra Hero Series (2016) and the Ultra Action Figure.) that features light-and-sound and other gimmicks; The toy features a changeable LED "Phase" glass-like face activated by the switches on the back (three watch batteries are needed), an extending right claw arm powered by a push-and-pull switch, and a convertible TR Mega Buster shoulder armor/chest cannon. Phase 1 includes HANE2's four lines, two of which is from initiating the TR Mega Buster. Phase 2 on the other hand replace it with the roars of Gomora and Eleking, as well as their Ultra Oscillation Wave and electricity discharges (this trait is not documented in other online sources, possibly as a spoiler for episode 14).

According to director Tomonobu Koshi (who is in charge of episodes leading to the robot's debut), DX Terraphaser can unofficially emulate its initial "blank" face by spinning the dial in between its Phase changes.

S.H.Figuarts

• Terraphaser (2023)
  • Release Date: June 2023
  • Price: 9,900 yen
  • JAN/ISBN: TBA
  • Materials: PVC, ABS
  • Accessories: Extended claw arm, additional Phase 2 face, support stand for claw arm, 1 pair of sword holding hands for S.H.Figuarts Ultraman Decker, Ultra Dual Sword (Decker Mode) for Ultraman Decker

First revealed to conclude the release of "End of a Dream", the S.H.Figuarts Terraphaser is a 15cm collectible action figure with multiple points of articulation. It also features a functional transforming TR Mega Buster feature, and comes with an extra interchangeable Phase 2 face, an an interchangeable claw arm (with a support stand). In addition, Terraphaser comes with the Ultra Dual Sword (in Decker Mode) and its specialized sword holding hands for the S.H.Figuarts Ultraman Decker figure. (sold separately)

Terraphaser is released exclusively for the Tamashii Webshop.

Gallery

Ultraman Decker

Terraphaser's Maintenance Hatch

Terraphaser's original fried AI terminal, placed on its dedicated pedestal.

HANE2 taking over as Terraphaser's pilot.

Terraphaser in Phase 2, after Agams takes control as its pilot.

Miscellaneous

Terraphaser in Ultraman Decker night

Terraphaser and Ultraman Trigger