Base L13

The L13 Asteroid Base is a location that appears in Mobile Suit Gundam: Shadows of Ascent. It is one of the two known asteroid bases occupied by White Hearts.

Appearance
The L13 base is one of the few top secret military bases concealed inside asteroids in the Asteroid Belt between Mars and Jupiter. The base looks like a standard asteroid to unauthorized vessels - when the correct IFF designation is broadcast by the vessel, the automatic system inside the base's supercomputer deducts it and grants access to the base by showing previously hidden gates to the target vessel. If the vessel attempts to board the base by force, it should be stopped by the large self defense batteries that are hidden in hatches below the asteroid's surface.

Gaining access
Gaining access to the base can prove to be quite difficult. First, the target vessel broadcasts an IFF designation, while it's already being under surveillance under the self defense system. There is no way to figure out if the code is incorrect, until the third time, during which the batteries open fire. If the vessel survives, the supercomputer inside the base attempts to infiltrate the vessel's systems and deletes all traces of the encounter and instead replaces them with dummy information.

If the code is correct, the base sends out an automatic response with the docking coordinates to one of the entry gates. The batteries are still locked on, however, to allow easier elimination if the vessel turns out to be hostile. The IFF system can be conditioned to allow only units of a specific affiliation - if, for example, a Crimson mobile suit shows up and somehow knows to broadcast a code, the base can immediately destroy it. If it enters the correct code and the gates show up, the base waits for the correct moment and opens fire on the mobile suit. This tactic is not suited to larger groups, however, and as such the automatic battery salvos are usually omitted from the programming when designating targets.

After the unit arrives in one of the hangars, the gates immediately close behind them and the unit is connected to a recharging unit using a pair of clamps. From there, the unit can be maintained and repaired for further operations, and most of the base is open to the pilot.