Sha Yu SYU-2B

         Hellespont Industries wisely chose to use the Raven chassis as the starting point and discovered that with a slightly heavier frame and alteration to the electronics package, a stealth armor system would work beyond projected expectations. This would become the Sha Yu, the Shark, named for its bullet-shaped forward thrusting cockpit on which an engineer painted an old combat decoration more often seen on fighter craft. A fitting description, Hellespont finally decided, given that the Sha Yu certainly had “teeth”.

         Lightly armored, the Sha Yu’s primary focus is not close-range combat. The inclusion of a TAG spotting laser is more a leftover from the original Raven design, though the TAG does have a tendency to deter larger ‘Mechs from closing and risking a directed Arrow IV artillery strike.
         Central to the BattleMech’s field tactics is, of course, the stealth armor system that employs the Guardian Electronics Countermeasures system to create a “reduced targeting profile.” Radar and thermal imaging systems both have trouble acquiring target locks. So, in effect, while no enemy will want to close pointblank with a Sha Yu, the Shark also maintains a serious advantage at longer range.
         If the Sha Yu has a disadvantage, it is the tendency of MechWarriors to overuse the “alpha strike” capability of the machine and run extremely high heat levels. MechWarriors who pilot the Sha Yu have taken to calling out “blood in the waters,” as a warning to lancemates they are about to attempt such a feat. Running cool to that point, suddenly the Sha Yu turns inward within effective range of its medium lasers. The battle at this point can degenerate into either a slugging match, with debilitating heat effects quickly reducing the Sha Yu’s effectiveness, or a saber dance of high-speed passes followed by evasive runs in which the ’Mech fires little while cooling off from a previous all-out strike.

         While the Sha Yu’s primary design focused on medium-to-long range battles, the 4B variant was designed specifically for close-in fighting. Two extra tons of armor protect the BattleMech while two ER medium lasers and three medium pulse lasers work in concert to give it a solid punch. TAG is switched out for a C3 slave unit, connecting the 4B into a Command/ Control/Communications network when its stealth technology is deactivated. An LRM-5 is its only far-reaching weapon, though in theory its two tons of ammo contain only special munitions for spreading minefields across the terrain.

         The Sha Yu has been shipped in good numbers to high-profile units such as the Capellan Hussars, Warrior Houses and McCarron’s Armored Cavalry. A few companies of these ’Mechs have also worked their way into middle-guard regiments. Despite its Guardian ECM System and the TAG laser, CCAF directives highly recommend that the Sha Yu be employed offensively rather than as a recon unit. Any command deploying the Sha Yu is also advised to field a Catapult with Arrow IV capability, the better to threaten an enemy into keeping his distance.