Raimonds Lauzums
July 05, 2023
Attack on Titan | What is ODM Gear?
Discover the power of ODM Gear in Attack on Titan. Unleashing agility, speed, and mobility is the key to humanity's fight against Titans. Learn its workings and witness Levi's mastery in action!
>By: Simon Shoklevski
The strength and the size of the Titans are something that the humans cannot fight off by only having well-developed physical abilities and sword skills. They need external forces that will increase their fighting options and will improve their chances of winning this fight.
To do so, the Scouts use Omni-Directional Mobility Gear, better known as ODM Gear. The ODM Gear gives the soldiers a lot of mobility, speed, and agility – abilities that allow for swift attacking and maneuvering on the battlefield. It’s a crucial part of every soldier’s equipment and knowing how to properly use one will make the difference between killing the Titans or getting killed.
Every Scout knows how to operate the ODM Gear, but not everyone is a master of doing so. With their impressive control over this gadget, Levi and Mikasa Ackerman are known as the best users who have often been stars of the show thanks to their fancy and flashy swinging.
So, how can this gear make a human so strong that the Titans fear him? Let’s look closely at one of these inventions and see how the ODM Gear works.
The Workings of the ODM Gear
This gadget is made out of many different parts that work in conjunction to allow its user maximal mobility. Let’s learn what are the main components of the ODM Gear and how they function:
- Main Housing: These are two casings where the wires are stored. The soldiers have two separate ones on each side.
- Compressed Gas Cylinder: They have two functions - the first one is launching the wires in the desired direction in order for the soldier to move. And the second time, when the hooks stick to a certain object, the gas cylinders are used to power the turbines that draw the soldier forward.
- Controller Grip: So how are these wires and gas cylinders activated? Their activation is controlled via a mechanism attached to the swords’ handles that consists of two buttons and one lever. One of the buttons launches the wire, the other regulates the gas cylinders, and the lever is used to retract the wire.
- Blades: Cutting a Titan with a regular sword may not be a great idea, so, to increase the chances of a successful slice, the soldiers use special swords made of tough steel called Ultrahard steel. However, since these swords also break, the ODM Gear has special space for extra swords.
How is the ODM Gear Used?
The ODM Gear is a tool used to travel faster and fight the Titans. Most of the time, it’s used to simply fly in a linear direction by hooking onto a target and pulling oneself toward it by activating the gas cylinders. That, of course, is only the ODM Gear’s basic function.
The more skilled soldiers can use the gear in many more ways which are:
- Swinging to the side
- Evading attacks in mid-air by using the gas cylinders
- Going around the target
- Swinging in a zig-zag fashion
- Slowing their landing with the gas cylinders
As you can see, the ODM Gear provides a lot of maneuvering options that are of great help and give a lot of freedom of choice and tactical options in both defense and offense. Their only weakness, however, is that fighting in a place without many spots to hook on may be a problem.
Not for everyone though. A great example of how a skilled soldier can take advantage of every situation and be a total badass while doing it is Levi fighting the Beast Titan in the third season of Attack on Titan. In this episode, Levi used nothing but the Titans to hook on to ultimately reach and unleash all his rage on Zeke’s Beast Titan who was later saved by the Cart Titan.
Since some of the Titans are bigger or smarter than others, the way they can be approached and attacked will differ. The pure Titans are usually slain by simply slicing them on the back of their necks. The 9 Titans require much more than that; typically, a Scout will first try to find a way to immobilize them before attacking their neck, such as slicing the Titan's legs.
ODM Gear Training
To become an official soldier and user of the ODM Gear, a person must go through hard training that lasts for three years. It’s a long period of time full of both mentally and physically exhausting practicing that’s often driving the once ambitious young people away. Many fail this training, fall, and get hurt badly.
This training is improving the physical strength of the soldiers and prepares their muscles for straining activities that couldn’t be endured by a normal person. It’s an unforgiving process that requires and teaches high mental focus and the ability to keep a calm mind in highly stressful situations.
The first thing that’s required of a cadet is the ability to stay upright while using the gear. Sadly, those who are unable to do this are expelled. A great example of a person who had a really hard time staying upright was Eren. He struggled a lot before finally getting the hang of it (no pun intended).
Conclusion
The ODM Gear is a tool that greatly helps humanity. It’s a gadget that’s perfect for the purpose of wiping out the Titans while being able to maneuver quickly. However, using one requires a tremendous amount of work and improving one’s strengths.
While a person may become a soldier and a user of the ODM Gear, it doesn’t mean that he or she will be efficient on the battlefield. Using the ODM Gear to effectively fight off a huge and strong enemy like the Titans requires much more than knowing to simply operate it. It requires battle knowledge and quick thinking that will allow a soldier to make the best out of every situation.
With his efficient utilization of the ODM gear and his prowess as a skilled and stoic warrior, Levi serves as an excellent exemplar of a perfect ODM gear user. He has earned the reputation of being a one-man army, a trait that all Titans, particularly Zeke, are well acquainted with.
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