Shengli Arms

Shengli Arms
Shengli Arms logo.png
Corporation Profile
AffiliationCapellan Confederation
HeadquartersGwinnett
(Victoria II)[1]
LeadershipCEO
Product(s)BattleMechs

Shengli Arms was both one of the most advanced BattleMech manufacturers in the Capellan Confederation.[1]

Overview[edit]

Towards the end of the Third Succession War, House Liao uncovered a subterranean Star League era BattleMech research facility on the weather worn world of Victoria.[1] Unusually advanced for a non–Terran Hegemony facility,[2] the factory was set up to manufacture almost all components for four BattleMech designs, though none of them save the Sling saw service prior to General Kerensky's Exodus.[3]

Even ignoring the treasure trove of advanced technology on the site, with the CCAF's desperate need for 'Mechs and Victoria safely located in the portion of Confederation intact after the Fourth Succession War, Chancellor Romano Liao ramped up efforts to refurbish and restore the facility to function. These efforts would suffer a considerable setback when Victoria was targeted as part of CASE JULIET, the Federated Commonwealth's retaliatory attack for the McCarron's Armored Cavalry's raids during the War of 3039. Landing virtually unopposed, the Fourth Illician Rangers and Twenty-first Illician Rangers succeeded in all but destroying the facility, delaying its reconstruction for many years.[4]

It was not until the reign of Chancellor Sun-Tzu Liao that the Capellans had regained the technology to finally refurbish and restore it to operation. Making concessions to modify the designs found on site to fit the Capellans' new Xin Sheng design esthetic, With the first Duan Gung walking off the production line in 3057 and entering limited production the next year.[3] Full production was made possible by the increasing ties between the Confederation and the Word of Blake, providing technicians and material resources that also revived and introduced the heavy weight Jinggau in early 3059,[5] followed by mammoth Yu Huang in 3060[6] and the Thunder inspired Lao Hu in 3062.[1][7][8]

Aside from Shengli's almost self-contained ability to produce 'Mechs, using the facility's archives and its proximity to the best minds of the well-regarded Victoria Academy of Arms and Technology[1][9] allowed the company to quickly develop Capellan-manufactured examples of newer post–Clan Invasion technology such as the LB 20-X AC for its own designs[6] as well as others. However its most notable contribution to the modern Capellan Confederation Armed Forces was its assistance in the development of Stealth Armor, based on specifications for the SLDF's Null Signature System contained in Shengli's archives[10] with the company only one of two in the Liao realm to manufacture the technology.

At the behest of Archon Katherine Steiner-Davion, Norse-Storm BattleMechs of Loxley engaged in several years of intense and insanely expensive negotiations with Shengli in the hopes of acquiring access to the Stealth Armor technology. Despite appearing to deal with the Lyran Alliance company in good faith, Shengli had no intention of releasing such an advantage to a enemy of the Capellan nation. With the contract having no stipulation stating in what language the technical specifications were to be provided in, Shengli provided Norse-Storm the data in an obscure and ancient Han dialect, forcing the company to employ Shengli Arms techs to install the armor.[11] When all of Norse-Storm's efforts to break the ironclad contract failed, their security chief supposedly went "rogue" and launched an objective raid against Victoria, making off with several hundred tons of stealth armor and crippling Shengli production for eight months. While Norse-Storm denied any link, they detained the Shengli aides required to install the armor and continued production of the "Stealth Spector" unabated while they tried to reverse engineer the technology, Shengli halting all future shipments to Loxley in response.[12]

The Commanding Officer of the Prefectorate Guard, Sang-shao Jorgen Nerekov, was involved in a mysterious research and development accident at the Shengli Arms facility on Victoria in 3065. Details of what happened were kept classified, but it was known that Nerekov suffered cerebral hemorraghing severe enough that he was rendered unfit to command the Guard, and was subsequently awarded the Cluster of Conspicuous Heroism. He was also turned down for the award known as the Baton of Illustrious Service, making him the only Capellan Hussars commander not to be a recipient of this award.[13]

Shengli Arms attempted to create an independent security force to protect itself from further raids such as the disastrous Case Juliet raids, but the company chose to suspend its efforts when Chancellor Sun-Tzu made the fateful decision to assign the battered remains of Olson's Rangers mercenary unit to help garrison the plant. Having suffered heavy losses during a failed attempt to take Acamar for the Confederation in 3066, the already debt-ridden Rangers were forced to rely heavily upon Shengli and the Confederation to rebuild, leading many cynics to suggest the Chancellor's posting was an effort to force the Rangers into a "Company Store" scheme to become that force.[14]

This decision would backfire disastrously in December 3068 when the Rangers turned their guns against Shengli without warning, inflicting significant damage and crippling the company's production lines before they were finally dislodged by fellow garrison unit Sung's Rangers and forced to flee off-world.[15][16] Very nearly obliterated completely, the company would suffer capital and personnel losses of 84% from this single attack, with the production volume only restored to 63% by 3079.[17] While able to restore the Duan Gung and Jinggau lines to limited production in short order, the Yu Huang line was irreversibly destroyed. In response to the large number of active Assault 'Mech lines and the horrific losses that the CCAF's light 'Mech forces during the Jihad, rather than rebuild the lost line Shengli instead focused on creating and building the Dola in the same chambers that once housed the Yu Huang’s assembly area once that conflict had concluded.[18]

During the Victoria War, the plant was captured by the Second Syrtis Fusiliers. The Fifth Capellan Defense Force had attempted to destroy the factory in December 3103 to deny it to the AFFS,[19] but some of it was recoverable and sold to Kallon Weapon Industries,[20] which gave them access to designs such as the Paladin Defense System.[21]

Manufacturing[edit]

Shengli Arms had manufacturing centers on Victoria. In 3105 the retreating Capellan forces destroyed the production lines. When the AFFS captured Victoria, Duchess Hasek sold the damaged lines to Kallon Industries. When the CCAF retook Victoria in 3145 the Capellan High Command was deciding to retool the lines from Davion centric mechs to more traditional Capellan mechs.[22]


Victoria[edit]

Components produced on Victoria:[23]
Component Type
Mechs
DOL-1A Dola[23] Light BattleMech
DOL-1A1 Dola[18] Light BattleMech
D9-G9 Duan Gung[3] Light BattleMech
JN-G8A Jinggau[5] Heavy BattleMech
LHU-2B Lao Hu[8] Heavy BattleMech
LHU-3B Lao Hu[8] Heavy BattleMech
LHU-3C Lao Hu[8] Heavy BattleMech
Y-H9G Yu Huang[6] Assault BattleMech - Destroyed 3068
Y-H10G Yu Huang[6] Assault BattleMech - Destroyed 3068
Chassis
Chariot Type II Endo Steel Duan Gung[3], Jinggau[5], Yu Huang[6] & Lao Hu[8]
Tianshi I-A DOL-1A1 Dola[18]
Extralight Fusion Engine
Ceres Motors 240 XL DOL-1A1 Dola[18]
GM 375 XL Lao Hu[8]
Hermes 360 XL Yu Huang[6]
Omni 175 XL Duan Gung[3]
VOX 325 XL Jinggau[5]
Jump Jets
Chilton 360s DOL-1A1 Dola[18]
Rodan-90s Yu Huang[6]
Armor (BattleMechs & Combat Vehicles)
Star Shel Standart Yu Huang[6] & Lao Hu[8]
Valiant DefCo Duan Gung[3] & Jinggau[5]
Valiant Lamellor Shipped to Corey for Huron Warrior[citation needed]
Ferro-fibrous Armor
Hellespont Lite ferro-fibrous DOL-1A1 Dola[18]
Communications System
Dian-bao Comms Advanced w/Angel ECM Suite DOL-1A1 Dola[18]
Dian-bao Comms Standart Duan Guang[3], Yu Huang[6] & Lao Hu[8]
Dian-bao Comms Heavily Insulated Jinggau[5]
Targeting-Tracking System
Dynatec 990 T&T Duan Gung[3] & DOL-1A1 Dola[18]
Dynatec Special T&T Jinggau[5]
O/P 911 Lao Hu[8] & Yu Huang[6]
Medium Laser
Martell Duan Gung[3] & Yu Huang[6]
ER Medium Laser
Firmir Improved DOL-1A1 Dola[18]
ER Large Laser
Martell Lao Hu[8] & Yu Huang[6] Shipped to St. Ives for Phoenix Hawk & Emperor and to Warlock for Marauder & Ostroc[citation needed]
ER Medium Laser
Diverse Optics Sunfire Jinggau[5], Yu Huang & Flea[citation needed]
Medium Pulse Laser
Raker-IV Jinggau[5] & Yu Huang[6]
Gauss Rifle
Zhi-tong-yao Jinggau[5], Lao Hu[8], & Yu Huang[6]
LRM-10
"Zeus" LRM-10 - Duan Gung[citation needed], Yu Huang[6] & Lao Hu[8]/Shipped to Ares for Manticore
"Zeus" Lao Hu/Shipped to Styk for Crusader to Grand Base for Shadow Hawk & Corey for Huron Warrior
LRM-20
"Zeus" Shipped to Grandbase for Archer[citation needed]
LB 20-X AC
Shengli Yu Huang[6], Lao Hu[8], TR-XL Trebaruna[24]
ER PPC
Shengli Yu Huang[6]

Notes[edit]

  • The term Shengli could be translated as "victory" in Mandarin Chinese.

References[edit]

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Handbook: House Liao, p. 136: "Shengli Arms"
  2. House Liao (The Capellan Confederation), p. 137: "Victoria"
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 Technical Readout: 3060, p. 76: "D9-G9 Duan Gung"
  4. Historical: War of 3039, p. 129: "Countering the Big Mac - Victoria"
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 5.7 5.8 5.9 Technical Readout: 3060, p. 112: "JN-G8A Jinggau"
  6. 6.00 6.01 6.02 6.03 6.04 6.05 6.06 6.07 6.08 6.09 6.10 6.11 6.12 6.13 6.14 6.15 6.16 Technical Readout: 3060, p. 126: "Y-H9G Yu Huang"
  7. Field Manual: Capellan Confederation, pp. 148–149:"LHU-2B Lao Hu"
  8. 8.00 8.01 8.02 8.03 8.04 8.05 8.06 8.07 8.08 8.09 8.10 8.11 8.12 Technical Readout: 3067, p. 86: "LHU-2B Lao Hu"
  9. Field Manual: Capellan Confederation, p. 49: Victory Academy of Arms and Technology"
  10. Field Manual: Capellan Confederation, p. 143: "New Equipment"
  11. Technical Readout: 3058, p. 206: "SPR-5F Spector"
  12. Technical Readout: 3050 Upgrade, p. 58: "HBK-5M Hunchback"
  13. Field Manual: Updates, p. 20: "Prefectorate Guard"
  14. Field Manual: Mercenaries, Revised, p. 94
  15. Jihad Hot Spots: 3070, p. 34: "Mercenary traitors Rampage on Victoria!"
  16. Objectives: Capellan Confederation, p. 25: "Victoria Commonality"
  17. Objectives: Capellan Confederation, p. 3: "State of the Industry at a Glance (Dec 3079)"
  18. 18.0 18.1 18.2 18.3 18.4 18.5 18.6 18.7 18.8 Technical Readout: Prototypes, p. 96: "DOL-1A1 Dola"
  19. Historical: Wars of the Republic Era, p. 54
  20. Field Manual: 3145, p. 29: "Victoria Commonality"
  21. Technical Readout: 3145: Federated Suns, p. 26: "Paladin Defense System"
  22. Era Report: 3145, p. 29: "Inner Sphere - 3145"
  23. 23.0 23.1 Experimental Technical Readout: Liao, p. 7: "Produced Experimental Dola 'Mech variant"
  24. Technical Readout: 3085, p. 106

Bibliography[edit]