Well, do you see my power, Yamato? But I won't stop attacking. Now you understand. I am the ruler of the universe. I own the universe and all of it's lifeforms, and I control them all. Yamato, watch closely... as your Earth take it's punishment and is smashed into pieces!
—Emperor Zwordar, to Yamato crew[1]
Zwordar's giant Battleship is Emperor Zwordar's personal command vessel and the companion craft of the White Comet Empire's capital, Gatlantis.
Armaments and Technical Specifications[]
At a staggering 12,200 meters, the massive dreadnought was one of the largest and most powerful ships the Yamato ever faced in its entire front line career. The dreadnought held the record as the largest warship any EDF ship had ever faced, until the Yamato's encounter with the Denguil city-ship Uruku in 2203. Emperor Zwordar’s giant battleship also held the record as being the most powerful and fearsome looking warship ever encountered.
The giant battleship bearing down on the Yamato.
The massive ship was frightfully well armed and it carried thirty-three massive Magma Shock cannons (guessing by Gatlantis technological advancement and preferences) as its main armament, which were powerful enough to critically damage and disable the Yamato herself. These guns were carried in eleven triple-mounted turrets that were as big as the Yamato herself in comparison. It also had a vast array of auxiliary weapons. When Zwordar himself fired the ship's main weapon at EDF HQ, the entire building was nearly destroyed in a single shot. Another example of this in an alternate timeline is that it melted the moon's outer rocky surface in a single shot.
For a gigantic battleship of its size, its steering crew is remarkably small with only one man that is needed to steer it, thanks to a small navigation console on the bridge.
It’s main bridge section is located aft of its arrowhead-shaped bow, the front of which contains ten massive searchlight-like structures, five on either side. The bridge itself is massive, and has a titanic viewscreen for its commanding officer to use.
For propulsion, it has ten engines on its two midship-mounted "wings" and another four on its stern.
History[]
Farewell to Space Battleship Yamato (Alternate Timeline)[]
When his capital city, Gatlantis, was destroyed by the efforts of the Yamato's crew, Emperor Zwordar V, the Comet Empire's nihilistic dictator, escaped in a new dreadnought to gain his revenge on the ship. After the massive dreadnought erupted from the ruins of the once-proud artificial comet, Zwordar blasted the the Earth’s Moon with the dreadnought's super weapon and proceeded to mock the Yamato’s remaining crew on their failure (after the Yamato very narrowly avoided being hit). With the Yamato out of action (after it’s exhausted battle with Gatlantis) Emperor Zwordar proceeded to unleash his full wrath on the planet Earth.
However, his plans came to an abrupt halt when the Yamato, piloted by Susumu Kodai and Yuki Mori, with the assistance of the space-goddess Teresa and the spirits of the Yamato's crew rammed into the hull of the dreadnought, and destroyed it, ending the threat of the White Comet Empire on Earth, even at the cost of both Susumu Kodai and Yuki Mori sacrificing both their own lives in the process. ("Farewell to Space Battleship Yamato")
Space Battleship Yamato II (Main Timeline)[]
After causing massive damage to Gatlantis, the mobile city of the White Comet Empire, the crew thought they had finally won the battle, at the cost of so many brave souls. But it was already too late to celebrate, as the cruel Emperor Zwordar reveals his final trump card; a gigantic super battleship sized vessel that serves as his personal flagship, soon emerges from the flaming ruins of his devastated empire. Leaving its companion ship behind, the massive battleship erupted from the flames of Gatlantis, much to the shock and horror of the Yamato's crew.
After the massive dreadnought turned and unleashed a full broadside with its main armament on the crippled Yamato, crippling her even further, nearly destroying her, and killing a large portion of her crew including the ship’s chief engine operator in the process. The massive battleship then pulled alongside the now helpless Earth space battleship Yamato, as Emperor Zwordar himself hailed them and he then while cackling evilly, he taunted the exhausted crew, proclaiming himself the "Emperor of Space" and telling them that it is useless to resist, before declaring that he will let the survivors of the Yamato watch as planet Earth takes it’s punishment and is smashed into pieces.
Emperor Zwordar then had his massive vessel leave the now crippled Yamato as Zwordar prepares a deadly surprise for Earth itself. He then unleashed a devastating super-weapon, a much larger and much more powerful version of the Magma Flame Cannon onto the Earth below, hitting targets across the blue planet with near-pinpoint accuracy, and indiscriminately slaughtering many of the planets innocent men, women, and children alike down below without mercy whatsoever.
As the world below felt the full wrath of Zwordar, Susumu Kodai and Yuki Mori prepared to stop him by using the Yamato itself as a battering ram against the dreadnought, since they were out of options and starting to feel hopeless upon severely underestimating their enemy. However, just as they were starting their plan to head straight towards and ram the enemy ship with the Yamato, a new challenger unexpectedly appeared on the battlefield. It was Teresa, who was carrying the recently-revived Daisuke Shima, arrived in front of the two and quickly explained that she was going to destroy the dreadnought herself instead of them, much to Susumu Kodai and Yuki Mori’s protests, but Teresa convinces them that it takes great courage to go home in defeat before Teresa bids farewell to them and Shima one last time, before heading straight towards Emperor Zwordar’s dreadnought. Emperor Zwordar in the meantime continues his orbital bombardment of Earth itself while cackling madly and demands Humanity’s extinction, just before being Teresa herself instantly appeared in front of the battleship, catching Emperor Zwordar completely by surprise. Slack-jawed and in both shock, horror, and fear for the very first time in his life, Emperor Zwordar immediately ordered his helmsman to turn his flagship around in a desperate attempt to escape the only being in the universe he truly fears, even going as far as deliberately shoving his helmsman aside and taking the massive battleship’s controls himself.
The now fearful Emperor Zwordar desperately tried to evade her in his cowardice, but she kept up and quickly eliminated the giant battleship in a gigantic flash of light, which ultimately destroyed it, and thus bringing a well deserved end to the vile Emperor Zwordar, ultimately saving Earth from the most powerful universal threat ever encountered by humanity.
After Emperor Zwordar’s defeat, the heavily damaged space battleship Yamato then slowly heads back to Earth and was eventually repaired and made airworthy again several months later. ("Space Battleship Yamato II", Episode 25 "Strategic Invasion of the Imperial City!" & Episode 26, "Be Forever Yamato")
Appearances[]
- Farewell to Space Battleship Yamato
- Space Battleship Yamato II
- Farewell, Space Battleship Yamato: Warriors of Love
Gallery[]
Farewell to Space Battleship Yamato[]
Space Battleship Yamato 2[]
Concept Art (Zwordar's Giant Battleship)[]
Merchandise[]
- Emperor Zwordar’s Giant Battleship has received many toys and model kit merchandise, most special being the 1/3071 scale Bandai model kit of the terrifying dreadnought.
- There was even a small very well detailed diecast model toy the was released for the 35th anniversary of Space Battleship Yamato Mecha Collection.
Trivia[]
- The ship was never formally named in the series; it is identified only as "giant battleship" (巨大戦艦, Kyodai Senkan) in subtitles in the final episode of Space Battleship Yamato II.
- The name "Portent of Darkness" was only used once in the Star Blazers English dub for the sake of identifying it.
- In Space Battleship Yamato II, the ship is coloured a dark purple. In Farewell, it is coloured jet-black.
- Its size was confirmed in the Yamato Fact File (an encyclopedia on the Yamato universe) size comparison charts.
- While Zwordar’s Giant Battleship didn’t return in Yamato 2202 reboot TV Series, however, its bow was reimagined as as the center castle tower of the Ark of Destruction itself.