Ma Zhong (Shu)

Ma Zhong (onyomi: Ba Chū) is a Shu officer who fought under Zhuge Liang during Shu's Southern Campaigns. He later contributed greatly to Shu's Northern Campaigns.

Role in Games
In Dynasty Warriors 8, Ma Zhong appears at the Battle of Wuzhang Plains. In Shu's version of the battle, he is one of the frontline officers and will clear the center of the map while the Shu forces split to attack Wei's main camp from the eastern and western sides. In Jin's version, he guards the western path of the map. He further appears in Zhurong's Nanzhong battle, where he appears at the eastern side with reinforcements once Meng Huo is rescued. Finally, he appears in Wei's hypothetical route at Nanjun in the southeast to delay the advance of the Wei forces.

In Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Ma Zhong is given decent overall stats in the 70's. He can be found in the Shu area and serves Shu in the later scenarios. The eleventh installment gives him a skill that allows him to nullify damage taken from plankways.

Historical Information
Ma Zhong was from Baxi in Yi Province. He was raised outside of his family and known as Hu Du. When he returned to his family later on, he changed his name back. He started his service as a county official in the 210's and was named Xiaolian, eventually replacing the Chief of Hanchang. The Grand Administrator of Baxi, Yan Zhi, sent 5,000 locals to help replenish Liu Bei's army after the defeat at Yiling and Ma Zhong was among them. When Ma Zhong met Liu Bei, he talked to him for a while and afterwards, Liu Bei said, "Although we have lost Huang Quan, we have gained Hu Du (Ma Zhong). In this generation there is no lack of worthy men". After Liu Bei's death in the next year, Ma Zhong was appointed as "Supervisor of the Lower Gates" by Zhuge Liang. Two years later, he became Grand Administrator of Zangge and quelled the rebellion of Zhu Bao.

Ma Zhong joined Zhuge Liang's northern expeditions in 230. In 231, he accompanied Zhuge Liang on the campaign on Mt. Qi and aided him with military affairs. When the Nanman leader Liu Zhou rebelled in 233, Ma Zhong was sent to replace Zhang Yi and killed Liu Zhou, pacifying the southlands. He was promoted to "General Who Exerts Might" and became Marquis of Boyang. Following that, he moved his headquarters to Weixian, which was between its previous location at Pingyi and Jianping, the latter being barbarian territory. He subsequently aided Zhang Yi in pacifying the region and was further promoted to "General Who Pacifies the South". In 242, he returned to the capital and was moved to Hanzhong, where Jiang Wan further promoted him to "General Who Conquers the South".

When Fei Yi led his forces to oppose Cao Shuang, Ma Zhong was left in Chengdu to take control of the civil affairs of the state. After the victory at Mt. Xingshi, Ma Zhong was sent back to the south. He died in 249. He was succeeded by his son Ma Xiu. He had another son named Ma Hui, whose son Ma Yi became an official of Jin. Ma Zhong was known to be a lenient and tolerant man, who would often smile and not show his anger. The Nanman tribes both feared and respected him and his death was widely mourned.

Romance of the Three Kingdoms
In Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Ma Zhong served during Zhuge Liang's campaign against the Nanman alongside Wang Ping. He would defeat Ahui Nan, but when he tried to rescue Zhang Ni, he was captured by Zhurong. Zhurong herself was later captured by Zhao Yun and both Ma Zhong and Zhang Ni were freed in a prisoner exchange. Later, he was appointed as General of the Right and followed Zhuge Liang on his northern campaigns, where he scored a few victories.

Trivia
Prior to Dynasty Warriors 7, Ma Zhong of Wu used his biography in his encyclopedia article.