Chencang

Chencang is a siege fought by the Kingdom of Shu during the Second Northern Expedition of Zhuge Liang. The Wei forces outwitted Zhuge Liang by building inner walls, so that when the battered Shu forces finally breached the outer wall, they would face new defenses with fresh troops. Upon hearing of Zhang He's arrival, Zhuge Liang withdrew with his army, losing valuable officers in the battle. Wei commander Hao Zhao won fame for this victory, but died soon after in Chang'an. In Romance of the Three Kingdoms, it was during the course of this battle that Shu Han lost their brilliant officer Zhang Bao, who was mortally wounded by falling from a gulley. It also led to the death of the great Wei general Wang Shuang, who was hunted down and killed by Wei Yan after having wounding Zhang Ni.

Role in Games
The battle first appears in Dynasty Warriors 5, with both Shu and Wei playable in this scenario.

In the Shu mission, Zhuge Liang gives Jiang Wei command of the battle for the first quarter. The Shu have three armories where they store their siege ramps and rams, and attack the castle gates. Wang Shuang, Zhang Hu, and Fei Yao are near the Shu base, proving threats to the Shu camp. Meanwhile, Xiahou Wei is near the west gate, blocking a flanking attack, as Liu Ye blocks the east gate. After cannons inside the main gate destroy the siege weapons, Zhuge Liang takes over command, and brings in more siege weapons. He orders a unit to destroy the weapons on the walls, and as the main force guards the weapons, other units will take the mountain path and attack the castle walls. Sima Yi will deploy ambush units on these paths in hopes of killing the player character, predicting that the Shu troops would move that way. Soon, Cao Xiu, Cao Hong, Cao Zhen, and other Wei reinforcements will arrive on each path. However, the east gate will open upon the arrival of ambush units, so the player character can defeat Zhang He and then Cao Ren; Cao Ren's defeat will dismantle the operations of the Wei fireball contraptions and allow siege ramps to be set up. Defeating Hua Xin will grant you access to further keeps inside the castle, and defeating Wang Lang will allow you to head to Sima Yi at the Wei main camp, where you defeat him and win the battle.

In the Wei scenario, Zhuge Liang is not present in the battle as of yet, instead leaving command to several units. At this point, the Shu have already breached the eastern gate, leaving Zhang He to wipe Wang Ping and Ma Dai out before they can attack the castle walls; Cao Ren is the commander of the castle's defenses. The Wei forces are able to attack the Shu armories to destroy their siege weapons permanently, as they will respawn until these bases are captured from the guard captains. Soon, after a while of battle, Zhuge Liang will appear at the main camp with some Shu reinforcements, but at this point, many of the Shu units will have been routed. The Wei army will have the opportunity to clear him from the battlefield in one swift stroke if they have already defeated the other Shu units.

In Dynasty Warriors 8, this stage makes a return in the battle that decides the fate of Zhang Bao. In the Shu scenario for the battle, Zhang Bao may fall into a trap where he is wounded, and after the Shu forces defeat the Wei army, he will collapse and die in the arms of Xingcai and Guan Xing, his sister and sworn brother. If the player chooses Zhang Bao as their character for the stage and stays clear of the ambush point, Zhang Bao will survive the battle.

Historical Information
Despite losing at Jieting, Zhuge Liang refused to halt his expedition and brought 100,000 Shu Han troops northwards, besieging the strategic castle on the Chencang Road. The castle was held by Hao Zhao and only 1,000 troops; Cao Zhen had predicted Zhuge Liang's route of invasion and ordered him to build a castle to block Chang'an from the Shu army.

Hao Zhao faced a larger army who had constructed three barricades, so assault was out of the question. He ordered his archers to loose fire arrows at Shu troops climbing ladders into the city, and his men threw boulders on top of the Shu Army's battering rams. While the attackers filled their trenches, Hao Zhao built an interior wall to defend against the next Shu assault, outwitting Zhuge Liang. When the Shu dug tunnels to enter the city directly, the Wei toppled the tunnels and caused a collapse upon the Shu miners, killing them and destroying their works prematurely.

After 20-odd days, Zhuge Liang discovered that Zhang He was leading a reinforcement army to assist Hao Zhao's weakening army. Zhuge Liang retreated from the battlefield, and Wei won a great victory, although Wang Shuang was killed by Wei Yan while trying to pursue the Shu troops.

Romance of the Three Kingdoms
In Romance of the Three Kingdoms, this is the battle where Zhang Bao meets his end. Zhang Bao tried to pursue retreating Wei generals Sun Li and Guo Huai but fell into a gulley and suffered fatal head injuries. Upon his death, Zhuge Liang's condition worsened, leading to his untimely death at Wuzhang Plains six years later.