HGUniversal Century

RX-79[G]SW Slave Wraith (Parachute Pack)

A Ground Type Gundam in a commander's coat, dropped in by parachute and armed to the teeth.

MechaGrade Score

3.7/5

[G]SW Slave Wraith (Parachute Pack) · 1/144 · 2020

GradeHG

Scale1/144

Released2020

Runnersn/a

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The verdict

I like this kit a lot more than its P-Bandai exclusivity would suggest.

It is built almost entirely from proven Ground Type Gundam tooling, so the engineering underneath is already sorted out, and the new head, shoulder armor, and parachute pack parts give it a distinct commander-unit silhouette instead of feeling like a recolor. It will not surprise anyone who already owns the HGUC Ground Type Gundam, but on its own terms it is a well-proportioned, heavily armed 1/144 that rewards the loadout tinkering it invites.

Best for: Universal Century collectors who want a Ground Type variant with real character and don't mind hunting a secondhand P-Bandai kit

The full review

What it is

This is the RX-79[G]SW Slave Wraith, the commander machine of the Slave Wraith special forces unit from Missing Link, wearing its parachute pack loadout for orbital drop deployment. It leans on the HGUC Ground Type Gundam frame, so the proportions are already good, then adds a new sensor-heavy head, wearable shoulder armor, and a bulky backpack unit that swaps between the parachute pack and a weapons container with a little parts rearrangement. What won me over is how much gear comes in the box. Beam rifle, two beam sabers stowed in the lower legs, a 100mm machine gun, a 180mm cannon, a rocket launcher, and a shield give this kit a genuinely different feel from the base Ground Type it's built on.

The catch

This was a Bandai Hobby Online Shop exclusive, so it never had wide retail distribution and now mostly turns up through resellers or secondhand at a premium over a standard HG. The articulation is inherited straight from the older Ground Type Revive engineering, meaning a single ball neck, limited torso tilt, and a shoulder swing that is functional but not dynamic by current HG standards. The parachute pack itself is bulky on the back and can make some rear poses feel a little top-heavy. None of this is a defect so much as the honest ceiling of a kit built on a design from before Bandai's newer HG frames.

Who it's for

This is for people who already appreciate the Ground Type Gundam line and want a variant with a stronger visual identity and a bigger weapons loadout, not a first Gunpla purchase. If you have never built the base HGUC Ground Type Gundam and can find it easier, that is honestly the better entry point into this frame. But if you're chasing the Missing Link side story units or you just want a grounded, heavily armed UC suit with parachute-drop styling and a full armory to pose around it, the Slave Wraith earns the hunt. Skip it if you need sharp, modern articulation over character and gear.

The build story

What the build is actually like, and the engineering worth knowing about.

Because this shares the bulk of its runners with the HGUC Ground Type Gundam, the build feels familiar if you have touched that kit before: clean part fit, no glue needed, and gate placement that keeps visible seams to a minimum on the new head and armor pieces. The parachute pack backpack is the most involved sub-assembly, with enough small parts that it rewards a little patience during clip-off and cleanup.

Elbows and knees are double-jointed and the upper arms rotate, which keeps weapon-handling poses looking natural even though the neck and torso are more limited. The real standout is the loadout: swapping between the beam rifle, machine gun, cannon, and rocket launcher, then holstering the beam sabers in the legs, gives this kit more posing variety than its price band usually delivers.

Lore & trivia

01The Slave Wraith is the commander machine of the Slave Wraith special forces team introduced in the browser/mobile side story Mobile Suit Gundam Side Story: Missing Link.
02It reuses the RX-79[G] Ground Type Gundam's beam rifle but fits it with the BP-SS-001 composite box-type sensor system for improved targeting precision.
03Its two beam sabers are stored in the lower legs rather than the backpack or forearms, a layout carried over from the Ground Type Gundam it is based on.
04The kit was released as a Bandai Hobby Online Shop (P-Bandai) exclusive in February 2020, alongside a matching Slave Wraith Corps GM Ground Type variant.