Egg Mobile

The Eggpod, from Sonic 2

Eggpod attached to the larger boss machine in Sandopolis

The Eggpod, also known as the Eggmobile or Egg-O-Matic (particularly in the Sonic the Comic continuity), is the principal conveyance of Dr. Ivo Robotnik. With its distinctive yellow/black hazard stripes and obsidian hemispherical underside, the Eggman had been seen flying his signature vehicle all the way from the original Sonic the Hedgehog (16-bit), with the machine still appearing in later titles like Sonic Unleashed. In Sonic & Knuckles, both Mecha Sonic and Eggrobo are shown to be capable of piloting the Eggpod in combat, and during Act 2 of Sonic 3's Launch Base Zone, Sonic or Tails expropriate an Eggpod for themselves after the first of several bosses.

Boss fights

In Sonic the Hedgehog (8-bit), the boss of Green Hill Zone is an unadorned Eggpod, with which Robotnik attempts to kill Sonic simply by ramming into him. Bosses in Sonic the Hedgehog (16-bit) and Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (16-bit) typically saw the basic Eggpod sporting some sort of menacing attachment, like the iconic ball-and-chain. In Sonic the Hedgehog 3, the boss machines are larger and more intricate (like the Hang Mobile), with the Eggpod functioning as a sort of cockpit (and detachable escape pod, for when Sonic inevitably defeats the Doctor). This dock-on adaptation is exploited by Sonic the Werehog in brilliant, cinematic fashion during Sonic Unleashed's Egg Dragoon boss fight, where Sonic tears the Eggpod out of its moorings as a method of finally defeating the boss.

It's not all boss fights, of course. Eggman also uses the Egg-O-Matic to carry things (like the Master Emerald in Sonic & Knuckles). It's also been used to grab Sonic (depositing him at the Doodlebug Mecha) and later Knuckles (in Sky Sanctuary Zone, with disasterous results for the pilot Eggrobo).

Trivia

• Paying close attention to Sonic Unleashed's cutscenes reveals that Eggman keeps a Sega Dreamcast under the Eggpod's chair.
• Despite being repeatedly shown as perfectly capable of hovering under its own power, the Eggpod uses helicopter rotor blades to make its entrance (and exit) during the Drill Eggman boss.