The Essential Guide to Force Exile/Wan-Shen-class transport

Wan-Shen-class transport

Description
The Wan-Shen-class transport was a converted and modified as C-9979 landing craft salvaged from a hidden Separatist weapons cache. Kraechar Arms took the old ships back to Yanibar one by one, where Xi Charrian technicians and Kraechar Arms engineers began refitting the ships. While the original ships were designed to be intersystem landing craft designed to ferry large numbers of goods and materiel from ships in orbit to planetary surfaces, the Wan-Shens had a far different role and were altered accordingly.

As the largest ships in the nascent Yanibar Guard Fleet at the time of their creation, the Wan-Shens were supposed to provide interstellar transport for the Vulture droid starfighters and other small fighters that belonged to the YGF, as well as ferrying troops, vehicles, and supplies. As such, the landing craft had their rear cargo wings refitted with more powerful ion engines to improve sublight performance, and a larger hyperdrive was installed, along with a better shield generator. Other modifications to the rear wings were to increase the number of crew quarters and amenities, as well as install starfighter launching and refueling docks on the underside of the rear wings. Each Wan-Shen was retrofitted to carry a dozen Vulture droid starfighters on the rear wing racks as well as control them via an upgraded C3 (command, control, and communications) suite. The forward wings were still used for holding cargo, but a lot of the internal machinery used by the Trade Federation for droid transport and storage was removed in a more open, modular layout.

Externally, there was little difference in appearance between the standard CC-9979 and the Wan-Shen transports. One modification that did stand out was to add another pair of double laser cannon turrets to each craft in addition to the eight double laser cannon turrets already existing on the wings. These two new turrets were mounted on the ventral area on either side of the landing body and were designed to help defend the ships while landing and from attacks from the underside.

History and use
The Wan-Shen-class transport resulted from a series of modifications performed to salvaged C-9979 landing craft that had originally belonged to the Trade Federation. As Kraechar Arms only had a small terrestrial ship refit yard at the time, it took an entire year for the first transport to be finished. The landing craft was heavily modified from its original configuration to serve as an interstellar transport and carrier, as described above.

The first Wan-Shen was launched in late 13 BBY and was named the Grysloth. It took several months to become fully operational due to a lack of trained crewers, but was soon outfitted with its crew complement and a dozen Vulture droid starfighters. The second Wan-Shen became operational in mid-12 BBY and was named the Mendor Typhoons. It, too, took a few months to equip and launch, but the process was completed just in time for both ships to be taken on an urgent mission to Utapau by Jedi Master and the Supreme Commander of the Yanibar Guard, Selusda Kraen.

The Typhoons and the Grysloth were both loaded with a battalion of Yanibar Guard troops each and departed on a diplomatic mission with the paramilitary organization Freedom’s Sons. They arrived in time to assist Freedom’s Sons with an Imperial entanglement While Selusda Kraen was able to conceal the presence of the Freedom’s Sons base, an Imperial Star Destroyer held orbit around the planet, keeping them interdicted. Instead, a small crew, including Master Kraen, took the freshly unloaded Grysloth into orbit, keeping it concealed via use of the Force. They then made their escape before ramming the Wan-Shen into the Star Destroyer, resulting in the first major ship loss for the Yanibar Guard. Having persuaded Freedom’s Sons to join them, the Yanibar Guardsmen then boarded their remaining Wan-Shen and returned to Yanibar, accompanied by Freedom’s Sons, who had agreed to join them.

Appearances

 * Yanibar Guard Sourcebook