From TRO:3060 - Darth Chicken strikes back!
I typically enjoy starting my 'Mech of the Week articles by looking up the 'Mech in question and examining its logistical footprint. Does it use older, tested components? Does it use cutting-edge technology? Is there anything that can be extrapolated from this information? Unfortunately, the Men Shen appears to be a rather large mystery. The chassis, armor, comm/targeting systems and engine are either unnamed or marked "unknown". So...I'll gather whatever information I can.
THE CHASSIS AND THE CONTEXTThe 330 XL Engine was a model completely foreign to Capellan space before the appearance of the Men Shen. Only appearing on 6/9, 55-ton 'Mechs, its only use during the Succession Wars was within the Scorpion - a 'Mech completely out of production. It isn't a stretch to say that the engine was developed and made for the Men Shen's specific use.
I can also tell you that Endo Steel was an uncommon construction material within the Confederation at the time. It first appeared on a homegrown design with the Huron Warrior (circa 3055), followed by the Firestarter Omni in 3057, the Duan Gung in 3058, and the Ti Ts'ang in 3059. Admittedly, 3060 was a good year for Confederation designs, with the Jinggau, Men Shen and Yu Huang all using Endo Steel, but production levels were by no means anywhere close to pumping out the same amounts other successor states were using.
The communication and targeting systems were most likely adapted from those found on the Raven, this machine's progenitor. This most likely meant that the Men Shen fielded state-of-the-art electronics when it first appeared on the battlefield. Another interesting point is that the Men Shen is the first IS OmniMech to use any sort of advanced myomer at all, and (unless I'm mistaken) only the third domestically produced Capellan 'Mech to use the MASC system.
I presume that the ER lasers (and most likely the pulse lasers) found on various configurations were - as noted in TRO3060 - the weapons imported from the Free Worlds League. I am willing to bet that not only the LB 2-X ACs but the missile systems as well are most likely entirely home-grown, with the spheroid LB 2-X AC's first ever use being on this machine (interestingly enough, a weapon system that has only been used on a smattering of other Inner Sphere 'Mechs since.)
What can we gather from all of this? The Capellans pulled no stops when designing and building this 'Mech. A brand new engine, a rare and hard-to-get skeleton, advanced and equally hard-to-get myomer, the best electronics the Capellans could get, and even a unique weapon system fielded for the first time. And an Omni, to boot! This truly was a state of the art machine when it first came out.
THE OMNIMECH AND THE OPPOSITIONThe Men Shen is one of what I would call the "Second Generation OmniMechs". Following on the heels of the somewhat rushed first generation (featuring 'Mechs such as the Avatar, Black Hawk-KU and Strider), this second generation would begin to push the package farther - featuring fewer quantities of fixed equipment, more advanced technology, and other abstract benefits. For example, the second-generation Perseus OmniMech would be the first IS Omni that would manage to pod-mount CASE in 3058, a feat that the Capellans were unfortunately unable to reproduce with the Men Shen. None of its current configs use CASE.
The Men Shen was also first produced when only 3 other IS medium OmniMechs existed: the Strider, the Firestarter and the Blackjack. The Strider's base chassis is easily outclassed by the Men Shen, with the Capellan Omni featuring greater speed, armor, heat dissipation and podspace. It becomes a closer affair when compared to the Firestarter, although the Men Shen still has more podspace, armor and general flexibility, considering the amount of fixed material on the Firestarter-O. The Blackjack-O is a different sort of 'Mech altogether, which makes comparing them difficult - although they most likely faced down on the battlefield on many an occasion, as the Blackjack-O was produced within the St. Ives Compact.
As for the Men Shen's chassis itself? It's an extremely nimble medium 'Mech, with 95.1% of its maximum armor load and a generous 17 tons of podspace. Criticals are hardly a concern on a 'Mech of this weight-class, and the majority of load-outs thought up will be able to fit on this machine. If compared to the main trooper forces of the Confederation's neighbors, we can see that the Men Shen ascribes to the adage of "Outrun anything that can't be outgunned, and outgun everything else". This allows Men Shen to concentrate firepower precisely where needed, pull back when forced, and generally create a fluid battlefield. Its XL engine doesn't promote stand-up brawls, although it can withstand a few decent hits; armor is laid out in a 26/7, 20/6, 17, 24 pattern, with all of the front torsos and legs able to withstand an AC/20 blast and each arm a good Gauss Rifle hit.
THE CONFIGSThe
Prime is a well-balanced trooper. Its Artemis-enhanced LRM/15 worked well in a battlefield not yet inundated by ECM (especially not on the FedCom front), with the four Medium Pulse Lasers neatly covering the minimum range of the LRMs. This configuration works quite well as part of a direct fire support lance, with the arm-flippable pulse lasers and high speed of the Men Shen dissuading quick strikers from engaging the lance as a whole. The Prime also works quite well when massed or used in slashing attacks, engaging multiple foes with the entirety of its firepower without having to worry about heat buildup. The single ton of LRM ammo is a bit of a boon in this situation, lowering the chances of a catastrophic ammo explosion occurring.
The
A is a different kind of striker. It cannot build up heat on its own, allowing it to easily make multiple passes with its LB 10-X AC and three ER Medium Lasers. Its head-mounted TAG also allows it to bring in added artillery support from other units such as the -C3 Catapult. It works well with the Prime, with the two tons of LB-X ammo bringing additional hole-punching and crit-seeking ability to the greater DPS of the former.
The
B is a nice configuration to have, playing into the flexibility of OmniMechs to create a decent AA platform. Dual LB 2-X ACs share a single ton of ammo (which has no reason not to be cluster rounds) and are supported by four ER Mediums. This really plays as a more effective upgrade of the original Blackjack, with the greater speed of the platform itself making it more dangerous towards VTOLs that might otherwise attempt to duck for cover or outmaneuver a slower machine.
The
C is a hunter-killer, perfect for disruption the operations of quick C3 spotters. Dual Large Pulse Lasers, combined with a largely useless ER Small and an extremely useful Guardian ECM make the Men Shen a major threat to units such as the Owens, Raptor, Firestarter and Strider Omnis that were found across the Sphere, interdicting their C3 networks before taking chasing down the spotters and taking them out.
The
D is a generalist, and one with a large number of options. It has (roughly) the same amount of firepower as the prime in a more concentrated package, with two of the same Medium Pulse Lasers alongside two SRM/4s sharing a single ton of ammunition. An ERPPC rounds out the package. Heat woes are a bit more important than with any of the configs to date, and pilots will most likely generally choose between firing the Pulse Lasers and the SRMs to avoid dangerous heat buildup. Slowing down to 5/8(10) or even 4/6(8 ) can easily be acceptable, however, if a path to cover is planned out in advance.
The Fifth config, the
E, first appeared in 3070 - during the Jihad. The Men Shen's lack of any decent Anti-Infantry configs up to now is remedied via a total of eight Light Machine Guns (tied into two array) and a Plasma Rifle with a generous two tons of ammo. The range advantage of the LMGs and Plasma Rifle against infantry are very nice to have here, especially when considering the infantry beasts that appeared in the '60s and '70s. The only oddity is the two Medium Lasers backing up the firepower - especially after the generous use of ER Mediums in the other configs. This can be explained through supply issues faced during the Jihad, with only domestically-made Medium Lasers available for the chassis at the time.
The
F appears in 3076, and could have been made in response to a change in C3 spotter tactics. Units such as the Men Shen C would encourage spotters to remain at the edge of the ECM bubble instead of hugging their target, relying on the slightly greater distance to stay alive and feed data to friendly Light Gaussses, ERPPCs, etc. The F's dual Snub-Nosed PPCs (linked to a targeting computer) would make hitting these targets easier, while the TAG and weapons load-out also makes using this configuration to hit slower, short-ranged targets quite viable. Of course, the F works very well with the C as an interdiction/hunter-killer duo, or with the A or D for assault against tougher 'Mechs.
The
U is one of many underwater Omni configurations that appeared during the Jihad (if someone could point me to the campaigns where they would have been needed, it would be greatly appreciated). 6 UMUs allow it to move quicker than most, and the Snubbie is a fantastic underwater holepuncher. The use of two ER Mediums and two SRT/4s is more questionable to me. The Men Shen -U lacks of Harjel, and with the XL engine that'll mean that it'll quickly die to breaches at the short ranges it wants to engage at. I'm not quite sure what TAG is doing on this configuration, although I guess it could be an amphibious assault unit meant to breach shorelines and call in artillery from surrounding naval cruisers.
The newest config, the
G, is a rework of the generalist D. The Medium Pulse Lasers are replaced with X-Pulses, increasing the heat burden, while the SRM/4s are upgraded to Streaks. The main punch of the ERPPC is swapped over to a TSEMP, however. Heat management is relatively simple once again if only firing the X-Pulses at the same time as the TSEMP, although the Streaks will now need another 'Mech to punch holes for them.
HOW TO KILL A CAPELLAN FOR DUMMIESWays to kill one? Quick and sturdy mediums can be a pain to deal with. They've got the speed to avoid your shots, the armor to absorb those you do land, and the firepower to gun down lighter 'Mechs sent after them. After all, a Men Shen should typically be aiming for at least a +3 movement modifier every round, with even the occasional burst of +4. Therefore, you're typically looking at a base of:
4 (base gunnery) + 3 (movement modifier) + 1 (attacker walked): 8+ to hit.
If the Men Shen is engaging at mid-range (or using the Snubbie config) this can easily jump up to 10+ to-hit - ignoring terrain features, a running attacker, or one of the +4 movement modifier rounds. This makes things difficult, to say the least. And the problem here when compared to troopers such as the Griffin, Trebuchet, Enforcer, Wolverine, etc. is that the Men Shen's firepower will generally be more accurate, since it's only using its ground speed to reach the same THMs as those classic 'Mechs.
I would recommend engaging in rough terrain if possible to bring those movement modifiers down a bit. Engaging with your own Snubbies, Large Pulse Lasers or TargComp'd weapons will make things easier on you. Otherwise, stay in tight formation, and don't rush. Being patient and cautious is a good tactic against the slashing attacks the Men Shen excels at. If you have a typical FedSun or FWL formation of medium troopers from the 3060 era, chances are you'll have nice array of 5/8/5 movers. Your jump jets should be used defensively, to maneuver into a position where you'll be able to stay put and mass firepower on the Men Shen. If you're on the offensive, all the better - Men Shen are not lineholders. Don't hesitate, move forward, and force the Men Shen into uncomfortable positions. Urban combat will also play out in your favor, with the asphalt forcing the Men Shen to take risks in order to remain untouchable.
As always, more info on the Men Shen on the MUL here:
http://masterunitlist.info/Unit/Details/4619/men-shen-ms1-o-baseAnd painted up versions can be found on camospecs:
http://camospecs.com/MiniList.asp?Action=Detail&ID=308
