In the distant future, mankind is divided into two factions: Union and Deague. They have waged a war against each other for so long that no one remembers when it first began. The backbone of the Union military is the manned weapons system Strain, while the Deague uses an unmanned version, the Tumoru.
Sara Werec, the daughter of a respectable family, is a 16-yearold girl who attends Grapera Space Armed Soldier Academy located in the Cranial Solar System, where she is training to become a full-fledged Reasoner (a Strain pilot).
Her brother, Ralph Werec, had been sent to the frontline 130 light-years away to accomplish a special mission when she was 11 years old, a distance that requires 400 years of objective time to traverse by even the fastest Union spacecraft. However, in accordance with the theory of relativity, this corresponds to only two subjective years (time as experienced by those within the spacecraft).
The two of them had lost their parents when they were young and the bond between the two is very close. It is Sara’s dearest wish to be reunited with her brother. To do that, she must travel to the battlefield where he is.
One day, Sara’s planet is suddenly assaulted by Deague forces. To her surprise, her brother, Ralph, turns out to be one of the raiders who successfully kidnap a mysterious girl sleeping in a capsule.
In order to find the truth, Sara gets in a Strain and chases after him. However, she is attacked by Ralph, and the Mimic, a copy of the pilot’s brain which is essential to controlling the Strain, is damaged.
Strain: Strategic Armored Infantry has finished airing and it has 13 Episodes. It is also Known as: 奏光のストレイン, Soukou no Strain
Genres: Science Fiction , Mecha , Action , Space Opera , Piloted Robot , Angst , Shipboard , Future , Stereotypes , Plot Continuity , Space , Military , Ecchi
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Top 10 Anime Like Strain: Strategic Armored Infantry (Soukou no Strain) [2024 List]
10. Starship Operators
For the 73rd class of cadets of the Defense University of the small planet Kibi, a shakedown cruise on the fleet's new starship "Amaterasu" is a fitting lead-up to graduation. As they are returning to their home planet, however, they are shocked to hear news of a declaration of war by the aggressive Kingdom against Kibi. When their planetary government surrenders without a struggle, the cadets decide to launch their own war, aboard the "Amaterasu". To gain funding, they make a deal with a galactic news network - and find themselves the "stars" of their own "reality show". Unfortunately, this is the kind of reality show that can get you killed...
Starship Operators has finished airing and it has 13 Episodes. It is also Known as: スターシップ・オペレーターズ, Starship Operators
9. Aldnoah.Zero
The discovery of a hypergate on the Moon once allowed the human race to teleport to Mars. Those who chose to settle there unearthed a technology far more advanced than that of their home planet, which they named "Aldnoah." This discovery led to the founding of the Vers Empire of Mars and a declaration of war against the "Terrans," those who stayed behind on Earth. However, a battle on the moon—later called "Heaven's Fall"—caused the hypergate to explode, destroying the moon and leading the two planets to establish an uneasy ceasefire.
Their peace was a fragile one, however. Fifteen years later, high school student Inaho Kaizuka witnesses the plotted assassination of the Vers Empire's Princess Asseylum Vers Allusia, who had come to Earth in hopes of repairing the relationship between the empire and its homeland. The ceasefire is shattered, and the Martians declare war on the Terrans once again. In the face of this insurmountable enemy, Inaho and his friends must now fight against the Vers Empire to settle the war once and for all.
Aldnoah.Zero has finished airing and it has 12 Episodes. It is also Known as: アルドノア・ゼロ, AZ
8. Guilty Crown
Japan, 2039. Ten years after the outbreak of the "Apocalypse Virus," an event solemnly regarded as "Lost Christmas," the once proud nation has fallen under the rule of the GHQ, an independent military force dedicated to restoring order. Funeral Parlor, a guerilla group led by the infamous Gai Tsutsugami, act as freedom fighters, offering the only resistance to GHQ's cruel despotism.
Inori Yuzuriha, a key member of Funeral Parlor, runs into the weak and unsociable Shuu Ouma during a crucial operation, which results in him obtaining the "Power of Kings"—an ability which allows the wielder to draw out the manifestations of an individual's personality, or "voids." Now an unwilling participant in the struggle against GHQ, Shuu must learn to control his newfound power if he is to help take back Japan once and for all.Guilty Crown follows the action-packed story of a young high school student who is dragged into a war, possessing an ability that will help him uncover the secrets of the GHQ, Funeral Parlor, and Lost Christmas. However, he will soon learn that the truth comes at a far greater price than he could have ever imagined.
Guilty Crown has finished airing and it has 22 Episodes. It is also Known as: ギルティクラウン, GUILTY CROWN
7. Full Metal Panic!
Equipped with cutting-edge weaponry and specialized troops, a private military organization named Mithril strives to extinguish the world's terrorism and all threats to peace on earth. The organization is powered by the "Whispered," individuals who possess intuitive knowledge and the remarkable ability to create powerful devices and machinery.
Seventeen-year-old Sousuke Sagara, a sergeant working for Mithril, has been assigned to protect Kaname Chidori, a Whispered candidate. He is ordered to join her high school class and be as close to her as possible to prevent her from falling into enemy hands—that is, if he can safely blend in with their fellow classmates without revealing his true identity.
Sousuke, who was raised on a battlefield and has very little knowledge of an average high school student's lifestyle, must adapt to a normal school life to safeguard Kaname. However, enemy forces have already begun making their move, and Sousuke is about to find out that the adversary coming for the Whispered girl may be a lot more familiar than he expects.
Full Metal Panic! has finished airing and it has 24 Episodes. It is also Known as: フルメタル・パニック!, FMP, Fullmetal Panic!
6. Eureka Seven
In the backwater town of Bellforest lives a 14-year-old boy named Renton Thurston. He desires to leave his home behind and join the mercenary group known as Gekkostate, hoping to find some adventure to brighten up his mundane life. However, stuck between his grandfather's insistence to become a mechanic like him and the pressure of his deceased father's legacy, the only excitement Renton finds is in his pastime of riding the Trapar wave particles that are dispersed throughout the air, an activity akin to surfing.
Everything changes when an unknown object crashes through Renton's garage, discovered to be a Light Finding Operation—a robot capable of riding the Trapar waves—specifically known as the Nirvash typeZERO. Its pilot is a young girl named Eureka, a member of the Gekkostate, who requests a tune-up for the Nirvash. Their meeting sparks the beginning of Renton's involvement with the Gekkostate as he takes off alongside Eureka as the co-pilot of the Nirvash.
Eureka Seven has finished airing and it has 50 Episodes. It is also Known as: 交響詩篇エウレカセブン, Koukyoushihen, Eureka 7, Eureka Seven Psalms of Planets, Koukyou Shihen Eureka Seven
5. Aoki Hagane no Arpeggio: Ars Nova
By 2039, global warming had caused sea levels to rise and large amount of territory to be lost. As though in response, a mysterious group of warships clad in mist, "the Fleet of Mist," appeared in every corner of the ocean, and began attacking human ships. In spite of humanity mustering all their strength, they were utterly defeated by the Mist's overwhelming force. All of humanity's trade routes were blockaded by the Fleet of Mist, their political economy was destroyed, and the human race was steadily beaten down. Seven years later, the Fleet of Mist's submarine I-401 appears before cadet Gunzo Chihaya. The humanoid life form that pilots the sub, who should be their enemy, is instead offering her services to mankind.
Arpeggio of Blue Steel -Ars Nova- has finished airing and it has 12 Episodes. It is also Known as: 蒼き鋼のアルペジオ ‐アルス・ノヴァ‐, Aoki Hagane no Arpeggio: Ars Nova
4. Mai-HiME
Thirteen girls, each with the ability to materialize "Elements" and summon metallic guardians called "Childs" have been brought to Fuuka Academy to battle mysterious creatures called Orphans. Each with a different personality and background, they must decide who they truly care about and why they fight.
My-Hime has finished airing and it has 26 Episodes. It is also Known as: 舞-HiME, My Princess
3. Muv-Luv Alternative: Total Eclipse
Since 1973, an invasion of aliens upon Earth known as BETA has driven human civilization to destruction. In order to defend themselves from this enormous mass of enemy force, mankind has developed large humanoid arms called Tactical Surface Fighters and deployed them to its defense lines through out the world. However, its efforts could only slow down the impending defeat, and mankind has been forced to abandon the major areas of the Eurasian Continent. For 30 years, they have been caught in an endless war against BETA without any hopes of victory.
Now in 2001, Imperial Japan faces difficulties in the development of the next-generation of Tactical Surface Fighters (TSF) as it defends the front lines of the Far East. The UN has proposed a joint development program between Imperial Japan and the United States as a part of its TSF international mutual development unit, the Prominence Project.
Yui Takamura (a surface pilot of the Imperial Royal Guards of Japan) is given the responsibility of the project and sets off to Alaska. Meanwhile, Yuya Bridges, also a surface pilot of the US Army, heads to the same destination.
They never had any idea just how drastically their encounter would change their fates.
This story of internal dilemma takes place during the development of the new Tactical Surface Fighters, the most crucial and effective weapons against BETA. And this time, the stakes are much higher than a handful of lives and our sanity.
All we can do is fight.
Muv-Luv Alternative: Total Eclipse has finished airing and it has 24 Episodes. It is also Known as: マブラヴ オルタネイティヴ トータル・イクリプス, MuvLuv Alternative Total Eclipse, MLA TE
2. Uchuu no Stellvia
The year is 2356 A.D. - 189 years after a distant supernova caused a global catastrophe that wiped out 99% of the world population. To keep track on all space activities, mankind has built colossal space stations called "foundations" all over the Solar System. After passing the Space Academy entrance exams, Shima Katase embarks to the Earth-based foundation Stellvia to fulfill her dream of seeing the galaxy and to prevent another interstellar catastrophe from destroying Earth.
Stellvia of the Universe has finished airing and it has 26 Episodes. It is also Known as: 宇宙のステルヴィア, Cosmic Stellvia, Stellvia in Space
1. Cross Ange: Tenshi to Ryuu no Rondo
The royal life of Princess Angelise Ikaruga Misurugi was as idyllic as the life of a sixteen-year-old princess could be. Beautiful, talented, athletic, loved by her people, and soon to be baptized in honor of her ascension to the throne of the Misurugi Empire, Angelise had everything. Even her kingdom was in a blissful age of peace and prosperity thanks to the utilization of an extremely advanced technology materialization force known as "mana."
However, everything Angelise has come to know soon crashes to the ground around her after she is revealed to be a "norma," a member of society resistant to the effects of mana and unable to use it herself. Just like the rest of the norma, Angelise is arrested and removed from society. Now she's being forced to work as a soldier based out of the prison camp, Arzenal, and fly a transforming robotic vehicle called a "Paramail."
To survive, Angelise will have to adapt to several different aspects of her new life in Cross Ange: Tenshi to Ryuu no Rondo, coping with prison society, relationships with other "norma" women, and piloting her Paramail against giant beasts known as DRAGONs. Will revenge be a great enough motive to encourage her to overcome these challenges? Or will the hate for those that betrayed her tear her apart in the process?
Cross Ange: Rondo of Angels and Dragons has finished airing and it has 25 Episodes. It is also Known as: クロスアンジュ 天使と竜の輪舞〈ロンド〉, Cross Ange: Tenshi to Ryuu no Rondo