Overview : Salager’s Arena is a former gravel pit, cut into the sides of several low hills. The pit catches the frequent rainfall of the coastal region, which transforms the terrain into nearly impassable terrain, though many relish the challenge. Most matches at the Arena are fought for small purses, and as a result the facility rarely attracts any truly experienced MechWarriors, especially since the muddy terrain strips away the glamour of Mech combat.

Capabilities : 100-meters deep and roughly 200-meters across, bare concrete bleachers ring the pit’s outer rim, protected by 30m-tall concrete barricades. Large lights beam down into the pit, lighting it brightly and keep the entire facility open to view by the cameras and big screens. Since most matches occur at night, the lights are an important feature at the site.

The mud and water along the sides and bottom of the pit dramatically hinder the movement of BattleMechs. Between matches, arena staff lower earth-moving equipment into the pit to stir the mix and ensure its consistency. Accounts of entire WorkMechs disappearing into the goo are simply urban myths, although most do sink up to their knees in the goo. Occasionally, Rianna Kali is known to bury vibrobombs in the pit’s sides to “enliven” combat.

Matches begin in the facility with opponents on opposite sides of the pit. They move 30m-down, and a fire mark informs all contestants to go weapons hot. The position of the pit’s lip at this point allows Mechs to open fire without endangering spectators behind the barricades. The pit’s sides, however, often cause pilots to slide down into the pit’s bottom moments after a match begins. Most fights tend to become toe-to-toe slug fights with opponents trying to overwhelm each other by sheer firepower.

Lacking any blocking terrain, only the pools in the pit provide any form of cover, and contestants are often dealt long barrages of weapons-fire, typically at close range. The nature of the arena leads many Mechs to have very short, brutal combats, which rarely last more than a couple minutes. Between bouts, arena staff lift Mechs with the two heavy cranes at the facility out into the repair yards.

Kali Munitions Range : A public firing range for testing Mech and vehicle weapons is located just outside the city limits, north of the arena covering a 64-square kilometer section of land. Users are charged 200 Cs per hour per vehicle or Mech for use of the range, and it is commonly booked solid for a week before the latest Mech fights at the arena, with contestants trying their newest weaponry in live-fire drills.

Access for contestants is through a private roadway linking the arena with the range, but public access is through the main road and a separate check-in and loading station. Steep hills cover the northern border, but the field is marked with clear signs and a new chain-link fence clearly warning against intrusion. Old ordinance, shell casings and bomb craters can be found everywhere within the perimeter, since the danger in collecting “spent” ordinance far out-weighs the benefits. In addition, a pair of battered and rebuilt LCT-1V Locusts patrol the edge of the grounds, with orders to shoot first and ask questions later.

The munitions range was the designated testing range for both the 120mm Towed Rifled Mortar and the Victory 150mm Autocannon, and was also the testing range for its vehicle Jabali “Wild Boar” MBT in late-3030. Indumil continues use the site for its military weapons testing, largely for its proximity to the capital and the tank plant, as well as the skill of its technical support staff and equipment.

History

The rise of Salager’s Arena is tied closely to the economy of both the district, and supporting infrastructure of Terramatrix Industrial Salvage. The arena has been in operation since late-3015, and has risen to become the primary entertainment venue for international broadcasts across the planet, and into nearby colony worlds.

Today, with the general economy of the nation and district around it booming, and the nearby support of [[;ciudad-garcia]], Salager’s Arena remains the primary form of entertainment for most of the region’s wealthy technical and corporate management. The facility is increasingly spawning new “Mech Stables” that are forming and reforming almost weekly, in response to their success or failure in the arena. Much of this is fueled by a superior amount of parts and technical services available locally, much of which is cast-off equipment sold to the general market through the efforts of the nearby * Iron Dingoes Autonomous District (IDAD) and its successful mercenary bands, in addition to the constant supply of parts and armor from Terramatrix Salvage.

Salager’s Arena, supported by direct access to the planet’s sole highport of “The Factory”, is also becoming a minor hiring hall, supported by the increasing number of independent mercenaries that find their way to this Periphery nation-state, with hopes for a better life for themselves.