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  1. - Top - End - #31
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    Default Re: Battlebots Season 4

    Ain't that the truth. From the looks of it, Tombstone's armour is very light - he's done everything he can to maximise the mass of his spinner bar - but no one ever seems to be able to get at it. I guess it's quite easy to turn on the spot to keep the spinner pointed at the opponent.

    Perhaps there's a niche for a clusterbot? I watched Gemini's match in episode 7, and it struck me that being able to attack from two directions is the obvious way to counter something like Tombstone. Of course, two half-weight robots will reliably lose against a full-weight robot with any other weapon loadout, so it's still a poor decision strategically. But I'd like to see the concept tested.

    In other news, SawBlaze vs. Blacksmith is one of the closest fights I've ever seen. I don't know how the judges came to a decision there.
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    It doesn't augur well for Blacksmith though, if they can't win in a fight like that, it's hard to see them winning any serious fight. Their weapon just doesn't deal any damage.

    Kind of reminds me of Behemoth from the UK contests. A well-built, good looking machine that does what it's built to do, but just isn't competitive in the prevailing meta.
    Last edited by Ninja_Prawn; 2019-07-24 at 05:23 AM.
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  2. - Top - End - #32
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    Default Re: Battlebots Season 4

    So, watching Blacksmith vs. Kraken.

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    Blacksmith got the win, but I think the bot needs to be retired. This is pretty much the ideal situation. Kraken could not hurt him at all, and was slow enough to take repeated hits with that hammer.

    And it did NOTHING. Zip. Zero. Nada. Some cosmetic damage but the hammer did absolutely nothing. I suppose the judges gave it to him because he did dent Kraken's top, but I don't see that Kraken was impaired in any way by the best Blacksmith had.


    If that's the best Blacksmith can do, then he has no chance, shouldn't even be in the top 16. He should come back with a bot that can do actual damage, although I'm not sure how that would work with a hammer motif.



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    Brian P.
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  3. - Top - End - #33
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    Default Re: Battlebots Season 4

    Quote Originally Posted by pendell View Post
    I'm not sure how that would work with a hammer motif.
    Hammer-shaped bar spinner. Easy.

    Alternatively, if he wants to stick with the overhead swing attack, it needs to be a spike rather than a hammer.

    Just a dumb noob question: how is the top 16 decided? I had assumed it was the 16 bots with the most wins, but the casters keep talking as if it's somehow subjective?
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  4. - Top - End - #34
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    Default Re: Battlebots Season 4

    Quote Originally Posted by Ninja_Prawn View Post
    Just a dumb noob question: how is the top 16 decided? I had assumed it was the 16 bots with the most wins, but the casters keep talking as if it's somehow subjective?
    It is partially subjective. As well, a knockout win is worth more than a judge decision win and the more spectacular the attacks are, the better your chance of getting into the top 16
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  5. - Top - End - #35
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    Default Re: Battlebots Season 4

    Quote Originally Posted by Ninja_Prawn View Post
    Hammer-shaped bar spinner. Easy.

    Alternatively, if he wants to stick with the overhead swing attack, it needs to be a spike rather than a hammer.

    Just a dumb noob question: how is the top 16 decided? I had assumed it was the 16 bots with the most wins, but the casters keep talking as if it's somehow subjective?
    That would be perfect because in addition to a spinning hammer attack which is cool, when it inevitably breaks it will unbalance the entire robot and cause all sorts of hilarious havoc. So it would be a fun fight to watch in victory OR defeat. And yes, spike is far better than hammer. With hammer your best hope is it knocks something loose inside, with a spike you get the impact damage plus the chance of a spiked bit of metal stabbing into something vital.

    The other downside to hammer bots and similar types including bronco is, it adds extra difficulty because it takes timing and good aim to use the weapon effectively. You see it all the time. Flipper bots like bronco, grabber bots like complete control, and hammer bots like blacksmith or chomp. They all have the same weakness in that to do any damage they have to have excellent aim and timing or else its a wasted attack. Whereas spinner bots or drum bots just have to be facing in the right direction, their weapon is basically always on. So even if they WERE an effective damage dealer, they are still playing on hard mode because of the challenge of using their weapon as opposed to always on weapon types.
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  6. - Top - End - #36
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    Default Re: Battlebots Season 4

    Desperado Tournament finale.

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    Black Dragon vs. Minotaur. Black Dragon wins via unanimous decison.

    Can someone explain this? My understanding is the bots are graded on a seven point scale 3- damage 2- control, 2-aggression. I would say both bots were aggressive, and black dragon utterly dominated the last minute of the match, so he gets the control points, but his primary was disabled while Minotaur's is still at least partly functional. So that means minotaur should get the damage points. So my own personal score is Minotaur 5 - Black Dragon 4. Black Dragon was awesome in control, but damage counts for more.

    I suppose one way to solve this conumdrum is to assume that Black Dragon scored higher in both aggression AND control, which cancelled out the greater damage. That would make the score BD 4 - Minotaur 3. Any other ideas as to why this fight was decided the way it was?


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  7. - Top - End - #37
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    Default Re: Battlebots Season 4

    Quote Originally Posted by pendell View Post
    Desperado Tournament finale.

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    Black Dragon vs. Minotaur. Black Dragon wins via unanimous decison.

    Can someone explain this? My understanding is the bots are graded on a seven point scale 3- damage 2- control, 2-aggression. I would say both bots were aggressive, and black dragon utterly dominated the last minute of the match, so he gets the control points, but his primary was disabled while Minotaur's is still at least partly functional. So that means minotaur should get the damage points. So my own personal score is Minotaur 5 - Black Dragon 4. Black Dragon was awesome in control, but damage counts for more.

    I suppose one way to solve this conumdrum is to assume that Black Dragon scored higher in both aggression AND control, which cancelled out the greater damage. That would make the score BD 4 - Minotaur 3. Any other ideas as to why this fight was decided the way it was?


    Respectfully,

    Brian P.
    Without going into the specifics of the fight, the points are not all or nothing. it's possible to reward 2 damage points to one bot and 1 to another, or even just one point to a bot in a category.

    It's technically possible to have a judge pick their winner 2-1, awarding only one point from each of the categories. Also remember...

    Spoiler
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    you only get damage credit for damage inflicted by your primary weapon. With spinners that stop working, that can be a tricky tell because did your weapon stop the spinner, or did the force of the spinner's hits disable it (so self-inflicted)?
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  8. - Top - End - #38
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    Default Re: Battlebots Season 4

    Watching the match, I strongly felt that
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    Black Dragon was more aggressive throughout. I was not surprised at all when the decision came down.
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  9. - Top - End - #39
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    Default Re: Battlebots Season 4

    So I saw episode 9 last night. For me, the highlight had to be Deep Six.

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    It took out a ceiling light. It carved a big chunk out of the floor. It took out the opposing robot. And it took out itself because it had no self-righting mechanism. Result: Only the second simultaneous KO in battlebots history.


    THAT, fellow humans, is entertainment. I hope to see more of Deep Six in the tournament. For the entertainment value if nothing else.

    Respectfully,

    Brian P.
    Last edited by pendell; 2019-08-11 at 07:59 AM.
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  10. - Top - End - #40
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    Default Re: Battlebots Season 4

    Quote Originally Posted by pendell View Post
    So I saw episode 9 last night. For me, the highlight had to be Deep Six.

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    It took out a ceiling light. It carved a big chunk out of the floor. It took out the opposing robot. And it took out itself because it had no self-righting mechanism. Result: Only the second simultaneous KO in battlebots history.


    THAT, fellow humans, is entertainment. I hope to see more of Deep Six in the tournament. For the entertainment value if nothing else.

    Respectfully,

    Brian P.
    I agree. They've got a lot of potential, but I wonder how they'd do against a spinner that's highly maneuverable and well driven, like Tombstone or Minotaur at its prime (which unfortunately mostly wasn't this season). If they can get the first hit in they'd probably win.

  11. - Top - End - #41
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    Default Re: Battlebots Season 4

    A part of me really enjoys the mike tyson style bots. The one hit killers that tend to obliterate their opponents in short order, ziggo, tombstone, now deep six. I wonder if they will figure out a way to put a self righting mechanism on their bot for next time? Thats always been the weakness of the vertical spin bots it seems. Nightmare was the same, though at least he could tow himself around after flipping by his blade.
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  12. - Top - End - #42
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    Default Re: Battlebots Season 4

    Quote Originally Posted by Traab View Post
    A part of me really enjoys the mike tyson style bots. The one hit killers that tend to obliterate their opponents in short order, ziggo, tombstone, now deep six. I wonder if they will figure out a way to put a self righting mechanism on their bot for next time? Thats always been the weakness of the vertical spin bots it seems. Nightmare was the same, though at least he could tow himself around after flipping by his blade.
    Hey, I'm here for the destruction. Also cool fights like

    Spoiler: Subzero versus P1
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    I love me some flippin' action. Subzero threw P1 around, following it up by flipping it out of the ring, where it was caught and stuck just the other side of the screws. Then it went for the minibot too. Which was a little gratuitous , mind you, but I was still cheering non-stop.


    Respectfully,

    Brian P.
    Last edited by pendell; 2019-08-11 at 02:01 PM.
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  13. - Top - End - #43
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    Default Re: Battlebots Season 4

    Quote Originally Posted by pendell View Post
    Hey, I'm here for the destruction. Also cool fights like

    Spoiler: Subzero versus P1
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    I love me some flippin' action. Subzero threw P1 around, following it up by flipping it out of the ring, where it was caught and stuck just the other side of the screws. Then it went for the minibot too. Which was a little gratuitous , mind you, but I was still cheering non-stop.


    Respectfully,

    Brian P.
    My favorite type is still minotaur though. Its a powerful tough bot that dishes out damage but doesnt insta gib its opponent, creating a setup that requires skill, not just needing a single lucky hit. Flip bots are fun, my least favorite being any bot that flat out doesnt do much in the way of damage like blacksmith for example. That hammer does diddly to its opponent. Theoretically it could be effective, but it isnt flashy, we see little visible signs of damage unless it knocked something loose inside, and that looks lame. At least chomp is amusing with its flamethrower in addition to its spike hammer. Even if it generally needs good luck to do anything effective to the opponent.
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  14. - Top - End - #44
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    Default Re: Battlebots Season 4

    Quote Originally Posted by Traab View Post
    I wonder if they will figure out a way to put a self righting mechanism on their bot for next time? Thats always been the weakness of the vertical spin bots it seems.
    Well, there are clearly ways and means. Like with Uppercut, which has two front wedges at 90° to each other, so it can run either way up. There are also vertical spinners that can self right using the gyroscopic force of their weapon, which is cool. I like Witch Doctor and Death Roll's classic lifter srimecs as well, they seem to be very effective.
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    Default Re: Battlebots Season 4

    Quote Originally Posted by Ninja_Prawn View Post
    Well, there are clearly ways and means. Like with Uppercut, which has two front wedges at 90° to each other, so it can run either way up. There are also vertical spinners that can self right using the gyroscopic force of their weapon, which is cool. I like Witch Doctor and Death Roll's classic lifter srimecs as well, they seem to be very effective.
    Yeah but the problem with deep six or nightmare is the spinner is very very BIG in comparison to the rest of the bot, which makes standard self righting mechanisms difficult. Just like any other design, there is always a tradeoff, you cant get a perfect ten in every category. Deep six clearly went for the obliteration level of weapon power over maneuverability, defense, and the ability to self right. Ziggo was probably the closest to perfect in every aspect. Its defense was also its offense and its design made knocking it over incredibly hard as it was very low to the ground and so were its protrusions that did the damage when it span into you, meaning getting under it is dang near impossible (not entirely, but close) So it had huge damage, its design gave it GREAT maneuverability, it was hard to get in range to do damage to it and its design meant even if you DID hit it, it was hard to do solid damage to it as you kinda deflected off the wok body shape.
    "Interdum feror cupidine partium magnarum Europae vincendarum"
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  16. - Top - End - #46
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    Default Re: Battlebots Season 4

    Deepsix reminds me of Son of Whyachi's glory days. Its not a robot. Its 90% weapon with just basic essential armor and mobility.

    The frustrating part for opposing teams has got to be that the only real good angle of attack, is the sides or rear corners of Deepsix.

    The stability arms on the back of Deepsix are probably its second best defense. The fact that while they're still attached to Deepsix's frame, they effectively prevent anything from getting into Deepsix's primary weak point. Try to take them off, and you're just as likely to spin the bot around and have sudden case of "Rapid Unplanned Disassembly" But its only a matter of time until that changes. Nelly kindly showed that right now, Deepsix is its own worst enemy. Its just waiting for one hit to go wrong, and its a self knock-out. Until then? Expect it to continue splitting bots apart until it meets a bot strong enough to take a few hits.

    Unfortunately, the bot that is most likely to survive that? Duck. And I hate Duck because Duck is not a lifter bot. Duck goes back to the Good ol' Bad days of heavy armor/durability push/sumo bots. Except its not even a good push/sumo bot which could dominate with raw drive train power and plow the opposing bots right into the arena hazards. It's just a solid block of metal with some wheels on it and I guess the barest minimal effort put into its weapons to say "See, we have an active weapon" (I seriously question how it got cleared as "effective"), and its strategy amounts into "keep driving into the opponent's weapon until something on it breaks"
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  17. - Top - End - #47
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    Default Re: Battlebots Season 4

    Quote Originally Posted by Razgriez View Post
    Deepsix reminds me of Son of Whyachi's glory days. Its not a robot. Its 90% weapon with just basic essential armor and mobility.

    The frustrating part for opposing teams has got to be that the only real good angle of attack, is the sides or rear corners of Deepsix.

    The stability arms on the back of Deepsix are probably its second best defense. The fact that while they're still attached to Deepsix's frame, they effectively prevent anything from getting into Deepsix's primary weak point. Try to take them off, and you're just as likely to spin the bot around and have sudden case of "Rapid Unplanned Disassembly" But its only a matter of time until that changes. Nelly kindly showed that right now, Deepsix is its own worst enemy. Its just waiting for one hit to go wrong, and its a self knock-out. Until then? Expect it to continue splitting bots apart until it meets a bot strong enough to take a few hits.

    Unfortunately, the bot that is most likely to survive that? Duck. And I hate Duck because Duck is not a lifter bot. Duck goes back to the Good ol' Bad days of heavy armor/durability push/sumo bots. Except its not even a good push/sumo bot which could dominate with raw drive train power and plow the opposing bots right into the arena hazards. It's just a solid block of metal with some wheels on it and I guess the barest minimal effort put into its weapons to say "See, we have an active weapon" (I seriously question how it got cleared as "effective"), and its strategy amounts into "keep driving into the opponent's weapon until something on it breaks"

    I've gotta wonder whether a minibot or similar might actually be useful against Deep Six. Minibots have been pretty useless in the tournament so far, but Deep Six is a one trick pony, a glass cannon. Perhaps a mini could distract it or unbalance it enough for a lifter to avoid Deep Six's 45+ kg weapon and flip it.

    The problem with both Deep Six and Tombstone is they've got absolutely nothing if something happens to the primary weapon. The flip side of that coin is very few bots can survive the weapon's punishment long enough to disable it.

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    Brian P.
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    Default Re: Battlebots Season 4

    I think one of my more enjoyable sights in battlebots are seeing those tanks designed to break the other guys weapons and watching as they slowly get mulched as it turns into a game of endurance between them. Will the solid lump of metal get torn open? Or will the weapons motor burn out? Seeing those first few gashes appear in the armor, or the wedge getting bent which makes it more vulnerable to future hits and wondering who can outlast the other. As I said, while one shot knockouts are fun, I prefer strategic games where it takes some effort to finish off the opponent but there is never any doubt that they CAN if they drive well.
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    Default Re: Battlebots Season 4

    Quote Originally Posted by Razgriez View Post
    "keep driving into the opponent's weapon until something on it breaks"
    What has been really good about this tournament so far is that spinners, especially vertical spinners, seem to have gotten a lot more durable. The desperados final and Cobalt vs. DUCK! are prime examples, but you've also got robots like Witch Doctor that has improved its reliability significantly, and even Tombstone seems to be catching on fire less often. It's a bad year to be trying the sumo bot thing!
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    Default Re: Battlebots Season 4

    So Saw Episode 10.


    battlebots

    1: Hydra (flipper) vs. Petunia (Crusher)
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    I didn't expect much from Petunia, and I was unsurprised. There was some initial careful maneuvering and
    some missed flips by Hydra, but Hydra eventually got its game and threw Petunia all over the ring. Five times Petunia was bounced off the arena floor before Arena finally threw it clean out of the ring on the sixth try. Well done , Hydra!



    2: Yeti (spinner) vs. Rainbow (Spinner)
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    The announcers obviously expect Yeti to trounce Rainbow.
    Rainbow's spinner malfunctions. Yeti hits her once, smoke comes out, and it's over. Just that fast.
    That shows Rainbow as not being well built. I grant Yeti's a tough bot, but you've gotta take more than one hit.
    Announcer Chris calls it "Chernobyl: The 15 second miniseries". Ouch.


    3: Skorpios (Saw) vs. Tantrum (Punching Spinner)

    Spoiler
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    Announcers expect Skorpios to win.

    Skorpio's saw can't really hit Tantrum, which is so low to the ground.
    Tantrum hasn't been able to do anything. Momentarily its primary weapon is disabled.
    Pulverizer takes something off.
    Goes to the judges but there's not much doubt. Skorpios landed some hits and Tantrum did absolutely nothing.
    Decision: Skorpios.


    4: Bronco (flipper) vs. Free Shipping (lifter)
    Spoiler
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    The fight goes the distance and for a moment it looks like bronco will outdrive him, but bronco broke its own flipper. Free Shipping pushed him around and provided some beautiful flame, but not enough
    to damage.

    Control and aggression to Free Shipping to get the decision, but there was some really excellent driving
    in this fight.



    5: Monsoon (vertical spinner) vs. Valkyrie (low horizontal spinner)
    Spoiler
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    Monsoon plans to let both their weapons spin up, go for the contact, send Valkyrie flying.
    Tge plan fails. Monsoon's weapon is disabled by the contact, and after that the entire match
    is Valkyrie cutting out the bottom of Monsoon with the horizontal spinner. Kudos to them for
    building their bot so tough that it can endure three minutes of buzzsaw, but at the end of the day
    it's Valkyrie that walks away with the decision, and the win.


    --

    6: Chronos (Spinner) vs. Copperhead (drum spinner)
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    A TREMENDOUS hit. Both primary weapons are disabled. Copperhead also loses translational movement and that's the end. Chronos wins by knockout.


    --
    7: Hypershock vs. Bite Force

    Spoiler
    Show

    Quite a fight! After the first contact it looks like Bite Force is crippled, but Hypershock can't take advantage. Bite Force flips him twice and Hypershock loses his weapon. BitE Force leaves bits and pieces
    of Hypershock over the box, causing the judges to flinch from the debris, but at the end it goes into a decision. There's not much doubt, though. Bite Force once again wins, proving itself one of the strongest teams in the field.




    Respectfully,

    Brian P.
    "Every lie we tell incurs a debt to the truth. Sooner or later, that debt is paid."

    -Valery Legasov in Chernobyl

  21. - Top - End - #51
    Titan in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: Battlebots Season 4

    Episode 11:

    Duck vs. Quantum

    Spoiler
    Show

    Duck isn't able to do a thing to Quantum.

    The Quantum team had studied Duck's internals and did their best to use thosee fangs to
    attack its vital points. They inflicted puncture wounds, started an internal fire, but Duck was
    tough enough to go the distance. Decision: Quantum.



    Captain Shrederator vs. Blacksmith

    Spoiler
    Show

    I wasn't expecting anything from Blacksmith, but I was pleasantly surprised.
    Blacksmith's wedge broke Shred's primary weapon, then Blacksmith went to town,
    throwing shrederator repeatedly into the screws. The hammer seemed to do nothing to the top surface, but
    Blacksmith flipped Shred over, hit the underside
    and finally broke enough inside Shrederator to put it out. Blacksmith gets the KO!



    Bombshell vs. Lockjaw

    Spoiler
    Show

    Lockjaw was 3-1 and Bombshell was 0-3. The announcers obviously do not have high expectations for bombshell.
    Bombshell nonetheless puts in a class act, taking out one of Lockjaw's tires and damaging both bots' drive trains.
    Lockjaw manages to kill Bombshell, but if Bombshell had stayed in the hunt for another 20 seconds they'd have won,
    because Lockjaw caught fire and lost motion about 5 seconds into Bombshell's countdown. But Lockjaw gets the KO
    and the win.


    Tombstone vs. Gruff

    Spoiler
    Show

    This Tombstone is a salvage job, since the old bot was totally unuseable after the last fight. Does Gruff
    have a chance?

    What a bee-autiful fight. Gruff put a massive lump of steel on the front and it pays off. Tombstone lands hits
    but Gruff shrugs it off until the very end when Tombstone inflicts some drive damage. Gruff likewise threw Tombstone
    around, threw him into the rails, but Tombstone remained operational throughout the match. It goes to a decision:
    Tombstone.

    Chris shows us the score cards afterwards : All three judges scored the fight 4-3, with Tombstone winning on damage.
    It was still an amazing fight from the rookie. I hope we see more of them!


    End Game vs. Cobolt
    Spoiler
    Show

    Wonderful. Endgame struggles with drive issues but rips off Cobolt's front plow, meaning Cobolt can't bring in
    that big vertical spinner into proper contact. At last End Game gets a nice shot which sends Cobolt flying and it finishes
    on it's head. Endgame gets the KO.


    Ribbot vs. Sawblaze
    Spoiler
    Show

    Sawblaze rips off the frog cosmetics in seconds. Sawblaze bends its saw and Ribbot is helplesss as well.
    Nonetheless, Sawblaze easily controls the match and gets the win via decision.



    Rotator vs. Death Roll
    Spoiler
    Show

    Since Rotator's upset win against Tombstone expectations for this team are high.
    But not this time. Death Roll inverts Rotator within seconds, putting the bot at a disadvantage
    because it can no longer undercut. The blade is on top, not a very useful position, and soon it's gone as well.
    The now weaponless rotator continues to put up a fight, and although Death Roll is leaving bits off Rotator all
    over the battle box, the bot is so tough the fight goes the distance. Even so, the outcome of the judges decision is
    not in doubt, and Death Roll gets its fourth win of the season.


    Respectfully,

    Brian P.
    "Every lie we tell incurs a debt to the truth. Sooner or later, that debt is paid."

    -Valery Legasov in Chernobyl

  22. - Top - End - #52
    Ogre in the Playground
     
    RedWizardGuy

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    Default Re: Battlebots Season 4

    Quote Originally Posted by pendell View Post
    Episode 11:

    Duck vs. Quantum

    Spoiler
    Show

    Duck isn't able to do a thing to Quantum.

    The Quantum team had studied Duck's internals and did their best to use thosee fangs to
    attack its vital points. They inflicted puncture wounds, started an internal fire, but Duck was
    tough enough to go the distance. Decision: Quantum.

    Spoiler
    Show
    While I love DUCK!, this definitely shows the problem it has (and why I think it will never make the final four, no matter how much I want it to). It is really incapable of inflicting any damage to another bot, so if it can't push the other one around and out, it is going to lose (on the decision if nothing else).


    Quote Originally Posted by pendell View Post
    Captain Shrederator vs. Blacksmith

    Spoiler
    Show

    I wasn't expecting anything from Blacksmith, but I was pleasantly surprised.
    Blacksmith's wedge broke Shred's primary weapon, then Blacksmith went to town,
    throwing shrederator repeatedly into the screws. The hammer seemed to do nothing to the top surface, but
    Blacksmith flipped Shred over, hit the underside
    and finally broke enough inside Shrederator to put it out. Blacksmith gets the KO!
    Spoiler
    Show
    CS has had so many reliability problems that it is hard to tell whether Blacksmith won or CS lost. They started smoking (and stopped spinning) after they slammed themselves into the side of the box again, which is something that happens to them on almost every hit against any bot. They simply haven't built a durable bot for the style. And remember, Blacksmith gets the KO because their wedge knocked CS into the screws upside down, and they were counted out.

    It's still a case of not seeing the hammer do any real damage. CS's damage appeared self-inflicted. IMHO, these are two bots that are vastly overrated.




    Quote Originally Posted by pendell View Post
    Bombshell vs. Lockjaw

    Spoiler
    Show

    Lockjaw was 3-1 and Bombshell was 0-3. The announcers obviously do not have high expectations for bombshell.
    Bombshell nonetheless puts in a class act, taking out one of Lockjaw's tires and damaging both bots' drive trains.
    Lockjaw manages to kill Bombshell, but if Bombshell had stayed in the hunt for another 20 seconds they'd have won,
    because Lockjaw caught fire and lost motion about 5 seconds into Bombshell's countdown. But Lockjaw gets the KO
    and the win.
    Spoiler
    Show
    Yeah, Bombshell has had issues. I suspect we'll see them in the rumble.


    Quote Originally Posted by pendell View Post
    Tombstone vs. Gruff

    Spoiler
    Show

    This Tombstone is a salvage job, since the old bot was totally unuseable after the last fight. Does Gruff
    have a chance?

    What a bee-autiful fight. Gruff put a massive lump of steel on the front and it pays off. Tombstone lands hits
    but Gruff shrugs it off until the very end when Tombstone inflicts some drive damage. Gruff likewise threw Tombstone
    around, threw him into the rails, but Tombstone remained operational throughout the match. It goes to a decision:
    Tombstone.

    Chris shows us the score cards afterwards : All three judges scored the fight 4-3, with Tombstone winning on damage.
    It was still an amazing fight from the rookie. I hope we see more of them!
    Spoiler
    Show
    Easily the best fight of the night. And it shows that Tombstone's days as top dog may be numbered. It also shows that damage is still king. I honestly had it scored 4-3 Gruff, because I'm not sure Tombstone ever went on the offensive.


    Quote Originally Posted by pendell View Post
    End Game vs. Cobolt
    Spoiler
    Show

    Wonderful. Endgame struggles with drive issues but rips off Cobolt's front plow, meaning Cobolt can't bring in
    that big vertical spinner into proper contact. At last End Game gets a nice shot which sends Cobolt flying and it finishes
    on it's head. Endgame gets the KO.
    Spoiler
    Show
    Yeah, Cobalt (with an "a" btw) has a devestating weapon, but they do rely on that plow to get the other bot into it.



    Quote Originally Posted by pendell View Post
    Ribbot vs. Sawblaze
    Spoiler
    Show

    Sawblaze rips off the frog cosmetics in seconds. Sawblaze bends its saw and Ribbot is helplesss as well.
    Nonetheless, Sawblaze easily controls the match and gets the win via decision.

    Spoiler
    Show
    Yeah, it goes to show the power of good driving. Sawblaxe never really does significant damage with the saw or flame, but they excel at pushing other bots around.



    Quote Originally Posted by pendell View Post
    Rotator vs. Death Roll
    Spoiler
    Show

    Since Rotator's upset win against Tombstone expectations for this team are high.
    But not this time. Death Roll inverts Rotator within seconds, putting the bot at a disadvantage
    because it can no longer undercut. The blade is on top, not a very useful position, and soon it's gone as well.
    The now weaponless rotator continues to put up a fight, and although Death Roll is leaving bits off Rotator all
    over the battle box, the bot is so tough the fight goes the distance. Even so, the outcome of the judges decision is
    not in doubt, and Death Roll gets its fourth win of the season.


    Respectfully,

    Brian P.
    Spoiler
    Show
    For a bot that trashed Tombstone, Rotator came apart very quickly. When the weapons clash there's always the risk of one breaking, and Rotator's snapped nicely.
    "That's a horrible idea! What time?"

    T-Shirt given to me by a good friend.. "in fairness, I was unsupervised at the time".

  23. - Top - End - #53
    Titan in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: Battlebots Season 4

    Minotaur versus shatter
    Spoiler
    Show

    Minotaur seems to be having some drive issues, but Shatter's hammer has minimal effect.
    Shatter's ablative armor works well, but eventually Minotaur wears down the armor and flips Shatter on its back. That's the end;
    Minotaur gets the KO.



    Son of Whyochi vs. Kraken

    Spoiler
    Show

    Well, that was quick. Kraken takes three hits before being knocked over. Doesn't anyone
    know what a self-righting mechanism is for , any more? SOW wins by KO.



    Railgun Max vs. Wan Hoo
    Spoiler
    Show

    First hit leaves bits of wan hoo's belts all over the battle box and his primary weapon powers down. However,
    Railgun max is only able to take advantage of this for a few seconds before her power goes down as well.
    It degenerates into a pushing match, and Wan Hoo begins smoking.
    In the end, Railgun Max gets the decision on damage.


    Witch Doctor vs. Gigabyte

    Spoiler
    Show

    What an amazing fight! Witch doctor goes right at Gigabyte and tears the bot's primary weapon off.
    It smashes repeatedly, knocking gigabyte all over the box. I'm watching, and I'm thinking "This is a champion performance.
    Witch doctor just might have it to go all the way."

    Then her primary weapons burns out , and I think, "well, only if they solve the reliability issue".

    Gigabyte DOES have a self-righting mechanism which saves it several times, but finally WD, reduced to a pushbot with the loss of the primary
    weapon, manages to shove GB under the pulverizer. GB loses an axle and a wheel. The pulverizer finally demonstrates
    that it's good for something. It knocks the other axle off of gigabyte and Gigabyte is disabled. WD by KO!



    Bloodsport vs. Breaker Box

    Spoiler
    Show

    Bloodsport shows a great deal of skill, outmaneuvering breaker box and knocking off first one, then the other, lifting
    nut of the plow. BB's primary weapon goes flying! For a minute Bloodsport's own weapon powers down, but he gets it back up again,
    and this time knocks out Breaker Box for good. What a terrific display of driving skill!


    Texas Twister vs. Whiplash
    Spoiler
    Show

    WIth a skillful move, Whiplash gets its teeth into TTs primary weapon and disables it. Once disables, Whiplash proceeds to disable it and flames
    billow from TT. Eventually, mercifully, TT stops moving and whiplash gets the KO.


    Main Event: Bronco vs. Huge
    Spoiler
    Show

    This fight is grimly, and well fought. But at the end Huge has Bronco on the ropes and on fire. So, decision time for the judges: By unanimous decision, they give it to Huge.
    Probably a good idea, given the crowd is chanting "HUGE" and there may be a riot if they don't. But Huge earned this win by decision.


    Respectfully,

    Brian P.
    "Every lie we tell incurs a debt to the truth. Sooner or later, that debt is paid."

    -Valery Legasov in Chernobyl

  24. - Top - End - #54
    Bugbear in the Playground
     
    Z3ro's Avatar

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    Default Re: Battlebots Season 4

    Quote Originally Posted by pendell View Post
    Minotaur versus shatter

    Witch Doctor vs. Gigabyte

    Spoiler
    Show

    What an amazing fight! Witch doctor goes right at Gigabyte and tears the bot's primary weapon off.
    It smashes repeatedly, knocking gigabyte all over the box. I'm watching, and I'm thinking "This is a champion performance.
    Witch doctor just might have it to go all the way."

    Then her primary weapons burns out , and I think, "well, only if they solve the reliability issue".

    Gigabyte DOES have a self-righting mechanism which saves it several times, but finally WD, reduced to a pushbot with the loss of the primary
    weapon, manages to shove GB under the pulverizer. GB loses an axle and a wheel. The pulverizer finally demonstrates
    that it's good for something. It knocks the other axle off of gigabyte and Gigabyte is disabled. WD by KO!
    If you haven't seen it yet, check out the battle bot event they had in Las Vegas. There was something like ten matches between some of the tops bots, mostly good fights. Witch Doctor fought both Tombstone and Bronco and looked like an amazing bot in both fights. They might have what it takes to go all the way, provided they figure out their issues.
    I don't know about angels, but it's fear that gives men wings - Max Payne

  25. - Top - End - #55
    Halfling in the Playground
     
    OldWizardGuy

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    Default Re: Battlebots Season 4

    If you like this stuff and want to jump in at a less expensive level, I highly encourage fighting in Robot Battles. I'm too new to be able to post a link, but it's robotbattles.com.

    My son built some robots in late middle school and early high school. The first was from a kit and then he got more creative. You can get into this hobby for an entry build cost of a couple hundred bucks. It's obviously expensive to continue because unlike normal robotic hobbies you are suffering massive damage every time you play.

    There is a pretty widespread network of different organizations putting on entry level robot fights. If you live in Florida or Texas you are really set.

    A lot of the builders from BattleBots also fight/judge the smaller local meets. We met competitors from Battlebots and actually got to fight against them and smaller versions of their Battlebot robots.
    Last edited by Shabbazar; 2019-09-08 at 11:05 AM.

  26. - Top - End - #56
    Ogre in the Playground
     
    RedWizardGuy

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    Mar 2009

    Default Re: Battlebots Season 4

    Week 13:

    Spoiler: Breaker Box vs. Hypershock
    Show
    Hypershock throws Breaker Box all around the ring for a bit, then loses their weapon. Hypershock actually gets stuck in the floor saw slots twice, and both times Breaker frees him to continue the fight (good sportsmanship). Breaker finally gets stuck and Hypershock gets the KO with 2-3 seconds left.


    Spoiler: Yeti vs. Tantrum
    Show
    Yeti knows that Tantrum's weapon is really only effective if someone is on top of them, so plays it a little slower than they have. It's no contest and Yeti gets the KO. Tantrum's weapon design MIGHT be ok in concept, but it doesn't work in execution since it barely clears the front of the slot it is in and I'm not sure it actually clears the front of the bot itself.


    Spoiler: Copperhead vs. WAR Hawk
    Show
    Copperhead FINALLY has things working well. They charge in and begin knocking pieces off of WAR Hawk. Hawk can never get anything going and it is an easy victory for Copperhead.


    Spoiler: Bite Force vs. Monsoon
    Show
    Can Bite Force get the perfect season 2 years in a row? Paul knows he has to stay out of Monsoon's longer reach and time his shots, and boy, does he! There's a little circling, then Bite Force gets one solid hit to knock Monsoon off balance. It's then hit after hit and Monsoon goes down in under a minute. This gives Bite Force 12 consecutive victories (going back to last season) and should clench them the one seed.


    Spoiler: Free Shipping vs. RailGun Max
    Show
    This one starts with Max on the offensive and definitely inflicting some damage. But then they lose their weapon and Shipping begins pushing them around the ring. Shipping is able to grapple Max a few times, but can't get them out of the ring. It goes to the judges, who give it to Shipping in a split decision.

    To me, this fight showcases the fact that damage is king, regardless of how it occurs. In re-watching, Max's drum went down after it pounded the side of Shipping. That's NOT considered damage inflicted by the primary weapon of Shipping, and therefore shouldn't count based on their own rules. And that's really the only damage Max took. Both were equally aggressive. I can give the control to Shipping, but damage should have been Max only. Incidentally, this was the only fight of the evening that didn't end in a KO



    Spoiler: Uppercut vs. Skorpios
    Show
    Skorpios is also trying for that 4-0 season. But Uppercut comes out quickly and damages both of Skorpois's tires in short order. Although they try and make a fight of it, Skorpios is built around maneuverability. Uppercut gets the win.



    Spoiler: Hydra vs. Bronco
    Show
    Here's the battle everyone is waiting for. The old guard (Bronco 0-3) versus the new hotshot (Hydra 3-0). Bronco is really playing only for a moral victory here if they can show that they can beat the new hot flipper.... Except they can't. Hydra runs circles around Bronco and takes them on an air tour of the box. Some of the flips are 15 feet in the air. Hydra quickly works bronco onto the side of the box and flips them into the wall where they can't get out, and gets the KO.

    Bronco had a horrible season. Structural issues (bad titanium), control issues, etc. And even when things were working it just didn't look as maneuverable as it has in previous years
    .

    And with that the regular season is done. Standings can be found here (includes week 13 matches).

    Now if it was just win/loss record, this would be pretty easy. Take every team with three wins or more (a majority win record), remove Minotaur because their record is only 50%, and you have your 16. However, since there's a lot of intangibles they take into consideration, it's not that easy. There's also something happening this coming Friday (a rumble?) that could change things as well. I'll be curious to see how they rank them.
    "That's a horrible idea! What time?"

    T-Shirt given to me by a good friend.. "in fairness, I was unsupervised at the time".

  27. - Top - End - #57
    Titan in the Playground
     
    Planetar

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    Default Re: Battlebots Season 4

    Saw the Bronco vs. Hydra. The bots really did look fairly evenly matched; this came down to a duel of drivers, and the winning driver was just better. A LOT better.

    Sooo... I imagine all the 4-0s are in. Someone won the Desperado tournament so they are a guaranteed entry. I imagine the balance will come from the 3-1s, based on who is going to make the best , and most entertaining, show.

    Let's see..

    4-0
    Bite Force
    Death Roll
    Hydra
    Witch Doctor

    Black Dragon won the Desperado, so they have a slot.

    There are 12 bots with 3 victories apiece. I'd include them all except Minotaur, who I think was a bit unimpressive this season. Let them have some time off and let's see a newer bot, such as RailGun Max. Most of the 3 victory bots are multiple season veterans and I think we should change things up a bit.

    Respectfully,

    Brian P.
    Last edited by pendell; 2019-09-12 at 06:53 PM.
    "Every lie we tell incurs a debt to the truth. Sooner or later, that debt is paid."

    -Valery Legasov in Chernobyl

  28. - Top - End - #58
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    Razgriez's Avatar

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    Default Re: Battlebots Season 4

    September 13, 2019, S4E14 "Live to Die Another Day" Recap and opinions:

    Well the hyped up "The Selection committee does something unprecedented!" that the episode info gives is just a bit overhyped, what it does bring is good news. Basically, due to the number of bots entered into the season/tournament and battle records, 8 bots/teams are selected as automatically qualified for the Round of 16, and the final 8 will be selected with another 17 bots battling it out. Yes I said 17, because one of the battles is a 3 bot Rumble. Anyways, lets get to the battles.

    Spoiler: Valkyrie vs. Quantum
    Show
    Valkyrie: Horizontal spinning bar/disc
    Quantum: Toothed Crusher

    Both teams made weapon modifications for this fight, with Valkyrie being equipped with a lighter bar/disc dubbed "Sweet Carolina" for a faster spin-up due to expecting a box-rush and Quantum switching from its twin fangs to a single tooth to concentrate all its "bite" force into a single point.

    The battle begins and soon after the first few initial taps the first moderately heavy impact and the rotational force of its own weapon causes Valkyrie to flip over. While this puts the disc now at the height of Quantum's weapon arm it does make Valkyrie harder to control. Soon after, Quantum moves in to try and attempt getting a bite into under-side armor of Valkyrie and instead gets an impromptu surgical dental extraction, with its single metal fang getting ripped off by Valkyries disc.

    This however does little to faze Quantum, and instead begins operating as a "clamp/grab bot", gets hold of Valkyrie and takes it for a tour of the arena hazards. It ends with Quantum finally tossing Valkyrie up and into the screw hazard and in a fashion that causes Valkyrie's disc to get trapped and wedged in to prevent the screws from reversing direction. 10 seconds latter, Quantum makes a leap into the tournament while Valkyrie is sent back to Robot Valhalla to wait for the next season.

    Winner by KO: Quantum


    Spoiler: Yeti vs. DUCK!
    Show
    Yeti: Upward vertical spinning drum
    DUCK!: Duckbill lifter, solid aluminum block armor and structure capable of withstanding hard impact forces, causing other bots to suffer the worst of their weapon-recoil

    Yeti's operators know that DUCK!'s main advantage is its durability that tends to leave attacking bots limping from the impact force of their own weapons, and so opts for a more tactical approach of aiming for the softer exposed components of DUCK!. The battle goes for the full 3 minutes, with Yeti taking repeated jabs at DUCK's weapon arm and wheels, or pushing it around the arena. Largely though, the fight isn't too eventful and goes to Judges Decision. And its a pretty easy one as by Unanimous Decision due to Yeti controlling the flow of battle throughout the match. Thus the mythical creature gets to live on and fight in the Round of 16, while DUCK! migrates home for the off-season (and maybe improve its ability to push other bots or its weapon).

    Winner by Judge's Decision: Yeti


    Spoiler: Lock-Jaw vs. Skorpios
    Show
    Lock-Jaw: Vertical Spinner w/ Lifting Forks
    Skorpios:Top Attack Saw/Spinner "stinger"

    Billed as the battle between famous bot-builder Donald Hutson (Lock-Jaw) and long time fan Zachary Lytle (Skorpios). Lock-Jaw wastes no time getting stuck in, and begins racking up damaging hits on Skorpios, bending its front armor/scoop, and repeatedly being knocked on its back appears to have damaged Skorpios' weapon. Then Lock-Jaw repeatedly gets direct hits on Skorpios' wheels and begins shredding the tires, eventually tearing one off and leaving it with a damaged wheel rim. Just about mid-way through the match, Lock-Jaw begins showing signs of internal damage, and begins emitting some light smoke. Knowing he's going to be counted out soon due to only being able to "crab-walk" Skorpios, Lytle begins trying to encourage Hutson to keep attacking Skorpios, which Hutson obliges. Despite the occasional wisp of smoke emitting from it, Lock-Jaw maintains operation through the fight and with 30 seconds remaining in match, backs off and lets the 10 second knock-out countdown commence, sealing the battle.

    Winner by KO: Lock-Jaw


    Spoiler: Hypershock vs. HUGE
    Show
    Hypershock: Vertical Disc Spinner w/ Dual-Lawn Rake sub weapon
    HUGE: Vertical Bar Spinner

    To those unfamiliar with Battlebots, that is not a typo. The team that practically killed off the passing trend of helicopter drone mini-bots by using a lawn rake as a fly-swatter against Team Whyachi's previous version of Warrior Clan a few seasons ago decided to take another dip into the "stupid enough to work" pool of ideas. One quick trip to Big Box Tool And Home Improvement Store Chain latter, they brought back and installed two rakes to its self-righting mechanism to try and limit HUGE's ability to approach on its own terms. This is definitely going to be the fight between two quirky gimmicks, one armed with lawn-rakes, the other, a bot with silly large wheels.

    At first, Hypershock's lawn rakes work and keep HUGE's bar out of range while Hypershock drives in and begins chipping away at the wheels. At one point, after sacrificing one of the rakes to absorb a hit from Huge's Spinning bar, the other is used to prevent it from spinning back up to speed again. But soon, disaster strikes for Hypershock, as the flimsy ad hoc installation of the add-on weapons comes back to bite it, when the second lawn rake is destroyed by HUGE, while also taking off a portion of Hypershock's top shell armor. A large piece of the lawn rake gets stuck between Hypershock's hull and weapon, jamming and disabling it.

    HUGE goes on the counter attack, and while Hypershock is able to push HUGE around the arena, the previous damage it inflicted to HUGE's wheels causes them to bend and then let Hypershock slip underneath and right into HUGE's fully spun-up bar several times in a row. HUGE's attacks deal damage to several of Hypershock's tires, before completely destroying the right rear wheel. Almost right after that hit, the "magic smoke" is seen escaping from Hypershock and it fails to respond to control inputs, ending the fight.

    Winner by KO: HUGE


    Spoiler: 3-Way Rumble Match: Bloodsport vs. RailGun Max vs.Uppercut
    Show

    Bloodsport: low profile bot with top mounted horizontal bar spinner
    RailGun Max: "Egg Beater" drum spinner (spinner weight concentrated to two striking bars), with Mini-bot (pushbot/ramp)
    Uppercut: "Puncher"/asymmetrical-style vertical spinner.

    Three youngblood teams all trying to get into Round of 16. And right from the start something goes wrong for RailGun, as it proceeds to run weapon first right into its own mini-bot, wrecking it for the remainder of the match. Uppercut proceeds to play a game of trying to avoid fighting until one of the other two teams are disabled, and gets it wish, as a weapon to weapon hit between Bloodsport and RailGun occurs, with RailGun living up to its name and launching Bloodsport upside down and skidding across the arena floor to bounce over the corner wall, before it comes to rest right next to the BattleBox entrance door, knocking it out.

    Railgun's propensity to not be able to withstand its own hits strikes again and this one leaves its weapon disabled, and there's still another active bot in the arena. In comes Uppercut, and it begins taking chunks out of RailGun's hull and destroys the the right wheel, effectively immobilizing RailGun by limiting it to spinning in circles/crab-walking. The battle is called soon after.

    Winner by Last Bot Standing/KO: Uppercut


    Spoiler: Blacksmith. vs. Rotator
    Show
    Blacksmith: Hammer with built-in flamer
    Rotator:Double Horizontal Disc-Spinner, mounted in Low-Front, High-Rear configuration

    Team Rotator, not wanting to leave so much of their robot exposed to Blacksmith's Hammer, reverts back to its classic weapon set-up, even though they know it won't be able to use both weapons simultaneously at full power, but it comes with the added benefit that the "top" side disc will be perfectly level with the weapon-drive chain for Blacksmith. Sure enough, it proceeds to destroy the chain and damage the sprocket wheel on Blacksmith. This however, only serves to make Blacksmith's crew angry, who proceed to go all-out sumo/push-bot style, repeatedly ramming Rotator into arena hazards, dealing minor tire damage, internal motor-drive damage, and seemingly weakening Rotator's weapons. Its to the point that Blacksmith may win by Knockout, but rather than back off and let the Ref make a judgement of Rotator being effectively disabled, it continues its attack for the full three minutes, leaving it up to Judges Decision.

    The winner by Unanimous Decision, Blacksmith


    Spoiler: Copperhead vs. Son of Whyachi
    Show
    Copperhead: Vertical Drum Spinner
    Son of Whyachi: Caged 3-arm Horizontal Spinner with hammerheads.

    The latest version of Team Whyachi/Ewert Family's namesake robot has a chance of making it into the Round of 16, and perhaps the chance at a Whyachi Brawl between Luke Ewert controlling SoW and brother Jake Ewert on Hydra, the new King of the Flipper-bots after taking the crown from Bronco.

    That said, everyone knows by now to dread the impact force of Whyachi's weapon, but that to defeat it you have to run directly at it, and hope it breaks itself apart from the impact and better yet, that the recoil sends it pin-balling into walls. Team Caustic Creations knows this especially after defeating SoW previously with their old 2016 precursor to Copperhead, Poison Arrow, and equips Copperhead the drum it hopes to be best suited for a weapon-on-weapon hit.

    The fight begins in very cautious manner, with both robots operators attempting to maintain control of the center of the arena. The first two hits simply send both bots to opposite sides and corners, with the distance giving them time to avoid slamming hard into the wall. Then Copperhead gets a good hit in and sends SoW flying into the air, but SoW lands safely with minimal damage. But the hits are beginning to unbalance Copperhead, and the "Minotaur Effect" of gyroscopic force caused by its spinning Drum weapon becomes more pronounced, limiting Copperhead's ability to turn quickly without flipping it self over. The next Weapon-on-Weapon hit ends poorly for Copperhead, sending it flying hard into the screws, with sparks shooting out from its underside armor and damaging a wheel motor. Copperhead baits SoW into another weapon-on-weapon hit to avoid the K.O. countdown, but the hit causes Copperhead to go flying again, this time getting one of its lower "jaw" armor and drum caught on the outer arena edge and perched right over the gap between the battle area and safety Lexan of the Battlebox.

    Winner by Knock-Out/Ring-Out: Son of Whyachi


    Spoiler: Main Event: Cobalt vs. Minotaur
    Show
    Cobalt: Vertical Disc Spinner
    Minotaur: Drum Spinner

    Minotaur has been plagued throughout the season with weapon issues, with multiple failures to spin up, and concern over their heavier drum making the bot difficult to control. But with this being their last chance this season to get into Round of 16, Team Minotaur equips the heavier 2-1 Drum (2 short bars on one side, one long bar on the other). Cobalt on their end, decide to switch from the multi-tooth Sprocket/Buzz-saw style spinner, to an asymmetrical 1 tooth disc-spinner, and equip a wedge ramp on the front to hopefully feed Minotaur right into its weapon.

    The first hit was huge, with both bots sent flying into opposite corners, Minotaur inverted, and the wedge ramp of Cobalt sent flying high with enough force to shatter yet another Battlebox light and bring parts of it crashing back down to the arena (add "armored lights" to the 2020 BattleBox build list). Minotaur used its drums own gyroscopic force to safely flip back over to its preferred orientation and hit Cobalt hard again, sending Cobalt flying about 10-15 ft up into the air, and barely avoiding a Ring-Out by landing on top of the arena edge. But Cobalt remained fully functional, while Minotaur's drum again broke down. But this led to a new problem: Cobalt's weapon is mounted too high to be able to score a decent strike on Minotaur, and Minotaur still has the power to push Cobalt around the arena, pinning Cobalt repeatedly against the sides, corners, and Kill Saws for the rest of the match.

    Winner by Unanimous Judges Decision: Minotaur
    Last edited by Razgriez; 2019-09-15 at 04:53 AM.
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  29. - Top - End - #59
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    Default Re: Battlebots Season 4

    Quote Originally Posted by Razgriez View Post
    September 13, 2019, S4E14 "Live to Die Another Day" Recap and opinions:

    Well the hyped up "The Selection committee does something unprecedented!" that the episode info gives is just a bit overhyped, what it does bring is good news. Basically, due to the number of bots entered into the season/tournament and battle records, 8 bots/teams are selected as automatically qualified for the Round of 16, and the final 8 will be selected with another 17 bots battling it out. Yes I said 17, because one of the battles is a 3 bot Rumble. Anyways, lets get to the battles.

    Spoiler: Valkyrie vs. Quantum
    Show
    Valkyrie: Horizontal spinning bar/disc
    Quantum: Toothed Crusher

    Both teams made weapon modifications for this fight, with Valkyrie being equipped with a lighter bar/disc dubbed "Sweet Carolina" for a faster spin-up due to expecting a box-rush and Quantum switching from its twin fangs to a single tooth to concentrate all its "bite" force into a single point.

    The battle begins and soon after the first few initial taps the first moderately heavy impact and the rotational force of its own weapon causes Valkyrie to flip over. While this puts the disc now at the height of Quantum's weapon arm it does make Valkyrie harder to control. Soon after, Quantum moves in to try and attempt getting a bite into under-side armor of Valkyrie and instead gets an impromptu surgical dental extraction, with its single metal fang getting ripped off by Valkyries disc.

    This however does little to faze Quantum, and instead begins operating as a "clamp/grab bot", gets hold of Valkyrie and takes it for a tour of the arena hazards. It ends with Quantum finally tossing Valkyrie up and into the screw hazard and in a fashion that causes Valkyrie's disc to get trapped and wedged in to prevent the screws from reversing direction. 10 seconds latter, Quantum makes a leap into the tournament while Valkyrie is sent back to Robot Valhalla to wait for the next season.

    Winner by KO: Quantum


    Spoiler: Yeti vs. DUCK!
    Show
    Yeti: Upward vertical spinning drum
    DUCK!: Duckbill lifter, solid aluminum block armor and structure capable of withstanding hard impact forces, causing other bots to suffer the worst of their weapon-recoil

    Yeti's operators know that DUCK!'s main advantage is its durability that tends to leave attacking bots limping from the impact force of their own weapons, and so opts for a more tactical approach of aiming for the softer exposed components of DUCK!. The battle goes for the full 3 minutes, with Yeti taking repeated jabs at DUCK's weapon arm and wheels, or pushing it around the arena. Largely though, the fight isn't too eventful and goes to Judges Decision. And its a pretty easy one as by Unanimous Decision due to Yeti controlling the flow of battle throughout the match. Thus the mythical creature gets to live on and fight in the Round of 16, while DUCK! migrates home for the off-season (and maybe improve its ability to push other bots or its weapon).

    Winner by Judge's Decision: Yeti


    Spoiler: Lock-Jaw vs. Skorpios
    Show
    Lock-Jaw: Vertical Spinner w/ Lifting Forks
    Skorpios:Top Attack Saw/Spinner "stinger"

    Billed as the battle between famous bot-builder Donald Hutson (Lock-Jaw) and long time fan Zachary Lytle (Skorpios). Lock-Jaw wastes no time getting stuck in, and begins racking up damaging hits on Skorpios, bending its front armor/scoop, and repeatedly being knocked on its back appears to have damaged Skorpios' weapon. Then Lock-Jaw repeatedly gets direct hits on Skorpios' wheels and begins shredding the tires, eventually tearing one off and leaving it with a damaged wheel rim. Just about mid-way through the match, Lock-Jaw begins showing signs of internal damage, and begins emitting some light smoke. Knowing he's going to be counted out soon due to only being able to "crab-walk" Skorpios, Lytle begins trying to encourage Hutson to keep attacking Skorpios, which Hutson obliges. Despite the occasional wisp of smoke emitting from it, Lock-Jaw maintains operation through the fight and with 30 seconds remaining in match, backs off and lets the 10 second knock-out countdown commence, sealing the battle.

    Winner by KO: Lock-Jaw


    Spoiler: Hypershock vs. HUGE
    Show
    Hypershock: Vertical Disc Spinner w/ Dual-Lawn Rake sub weapon
    HUGE: Vertical Bar Spinner

    To those unfamiliar with Battlebots, that is not a typo. The team that practically killed off the passing trend of helicopter drone mini-bots by using a lawn rake as a fly-swatter against Team Whyachi's previous version of Warrior Clan a few seasons ago decided to take another dip into the "stupid enough to work" pool of ideas. One quick trip to Big Box Tool And Home Improvement Store Chain latter, they brought back and installed two rakes to its self-righting mechanism to try and limit HUGE's ability to approach on its own terms. This is definitely going to be the fight between two quirky gimmicks, one armed with lawn-rakes, the other, a bot with silly large wheels.

    At first, Hypershock's lawn rakes work and keep HUGE's bar out of range while Hypershock drives in and begins chipping away at the wheels. At one point, after sacrificing one of the rakes to absorb a hit from Huge's Spinning bar, the other is used to prevent it from spinning back up to speed again. But soon, disaster strikes for Hypershock, as the flimsy ad hoc installation of the add-on weapons comes back to bite it, when the second lawn rake is destroyed by HUGE, while also taking off a portion of Hypershock's top shell armor. A large piece of the lawn rake gets stuck between Hypershock's hull and weapon, jamming and disabling it.

    HUGE goes on the counter attack, and while Hypershock is able to push HUGE around the arena, the previous damage it inflicted to HUGE's wheels causes them to bend and then let Hypershock slip underneath and right into HUGE's fully spun-up bar several times in a row. HUGE's attacks deal damage to several of Hypershock's tires, before completely destroying the right rear wheel. Almost right after that hit, the "magic smoke" is seen escaping from Hypershock and it fails to respond to control inputs, ending the fight.

    Winner by KO: HUGE


    Spoiler: 3-Way Rumble Match: Bloodsport vs. RailGun Max vs.Uppercut
    Show

    Bloodsport: low profile bot with top mounted horizontal bar spinner
    RailGun Max: "Egg Beater" drum spinner (spinner weight concentrated to two striking bars), with Mini-bot (pushbot/ramp)
    Uppercut: "Puncher"/asymmetrical-style vertical spinner.

    Three youngblood teams all trying to get into Round of 16. And right from the start something goes wrong for RailGun, as it proceeds to run weapon first right into its own mini-bot, wrecking it for the remainder of the match. Uppercut proceeds to play a game of trying to avoid fighting until one of the other two teams are disabled, and gets it wish, as a weapon to weapon hit between Bloodsport and RailGun occurs, with RailGun living up to its name and launching Bloodsport upside down and skidding across the arena floor to bounce over the corner wall, before it comes to rest right next to the BattleBox entrance door, knocking it out.

    Railgun's propensity to not be able to withstand its own hits strikes again and this one leaves its weapon disabled, and there's still another active bot in the arena. In comes Uppercut, and it begins taking chunks out of RailGun's hull and destroys the the right wheel, effectively immobilizing RailGun by limiting it to spinning in circles/crab-walking. The battle is called soon after.

    Winner by Last Bot Standing/KO: Uppercut


    Spoiler: Blacksmith. vs. Rotator
    Show
    Blacksmith: Hammer with built-in flamer
    Rotator:Double Horizontal Disc-Spinner, mounted in Low-Front, High-Rear configuration

    Team Rotator, not wanting to leave so much of their robot exposed to Blacksmith's Hammer, reverts back to its classic weapon set-up, even though they know it won't be able to use both weapons simultaneously at full power, but it comes with the added benefit that the "top" side disc will be perfectly level with the weapon-drive chain for Blacksmith. Sure enough, it proceeds to destroy the chain and damage the sprocket wheel on Blacksmith. This however, only serves to make Blacksmith's crew angry, who proceed to go all-out sumo/push-bot style, repeatedly ramming Rotator into arena hazards, dealing minor tire damage, internal motor-drive damage, and seemingly weakening Rotator's weapons. Its to the point that Blacksmith may win by Knockout, but rather than back off and let the Ref make a judgement of Rotator being effectively disabled, it continues its attack for the full three minutes, leaving it up to Judges Decision.

    The winner by Unanimous Decision, Blacksmith


    Spoiler: Copperhead vs. Son of Whyachi
    Show
    Copperhead: Vertical Drum Spinner
    Son of Whyachi: Caged 3-arm Horizontal Spinner with hammerheads.

    The latest version of Team Whyachi/Ewert Family's namesake robot has a chance of making it into the Round of 16, and perhaps the chance at a Whyachi Brawl between Luke Ewert controlling SoW and brother Jake Ewert on Hydra, the new King of the Flipper-bots after taking the crown from Bronco.

    That said, everyone knows by now to dread the impact force of Whyachi's weapon, but that to defeat it you have to run directly at it, and hope it breaks itself apart from the impact and better yet, that the recoil sends it pin-balling into walls. Team Caustic Creations knows this especially after defeating SoW previously with their old 2016 precursor to Copperhead, Poison Arrow, and equips Copperhead the drum it hopes to be best suited for a weapon-on-weapon hit.

    The fight begins in very cautious manner, with both robots operators attempting to maintain control of the center of the arena. The first two hits simply send both bots to opposite sides and corners, with the distance giving them time to avoid slamming hard into the wall. Then Copperhead gets a good hit in and sends SoW flying into the air, but SoW lands safely with minimal damage. But the hits are beginning to unbalance Copperhead, and the "Minotaur Effect" of gyroscopic force caused by its spinning Drum weapon becomes more pronounced, limiting Copperhead's ability to turn quickly without flipping it self over. The next Weapon-on-Weapon hit ends poorly for Copperhead, sending it flying hard into the screws, with sparks shooting out from its underside armor and damaging a wheel motor. Copperhead baits SoW into another weapon-on-weapon hit to avoid the K.O. countdown, but the hit causes Copperhead to go flying again, this time getting one of its lower "jaw" armor and drum caught on the outer arena edge and perched right over the gap between the battle area and safety Lexan of the Battlebox.

    Winner by Knock-Out/Ring-Out: Son of Whyachi


    Spoiler: Main Event: Cobalt vs. Minotaur
    Show
    Cobalt: Vertical Disc Spinner
    Minotaur: Drum Spinner

    Minotaur has been plagued throughout the season with weapon issues, with multiple failures to spin up, and concern over their heavier drum making the bot difficult to control. But with this being their last chance this season to get into Round of 16, Team Minotaur equips the heavier 2-1 Drum (2 short bars on one side, one long bar on the other). Cobalt on their end, decide to switch from the multi-tooth Sprocket/Buzz-saw style spinner, to an asymmetrical 1 tooth disc-spinner, and equip a wedge ramp on the front to hopefully feed Minotaur right into its weapon.

    The first hit was huge, with both bots sent flying into opposite corners, Minotaur inverted, and the wedge ramp of Cobalt sent flying high with enough force to shatter yet another Battlebox light and bring parts of it crashing back down to the arena (add "armored lights" to the 2020 BattleBox build list). Minotaur used its drums own gyroscopic force to safely flip back over to its preferred orientation and hit Cobalt hard again, sending Cobalt flying about 10-15 ft up into the air, and barely avoiding a Ring-Out by landing on top of the arena edge. But Cobalt remained fully functional, while Minotaur's drum again broke down. But this led to a new problem: Cobalt's weapon is mounted too high to be able to score a decent strike on Minotaur, and Minotaur still has the power to push Cobalt around the arena, pinning Cobalt repeatedly against the sides, corners, and Kill Saws for the rest of the match.

    Winner by Unanimous Judges Decision: Minotaur
    Well written summary. I was impressed by the number of bots that got thrown out of the ring and arena lights got smashed up.

    Thoughts on the rumble:

    Spoiler
    Show

    I guess this shows the skills of a veteran -- Railgun Max had never fought in a rumble before but Bloodsport and Uppercut had. RM fought brilliantly but aggressively, taking too much damage. Uppercut, who has laid back and allowed the others to exhaust themselves, makes the two hits needed to lay RM out.

    That actually reminds me of some pretty common MMO strategies -- never be the obvious threat everyone else gangs up on.


    Blacksmith vs. Rotator
    Spoiler
    Show

    I think Rotator had this because it DID disable Blacksmith's primary weapon while BS did hardly anything, and nothing at all with that hammer. But I suppose the judges noted that Blacksmith could have had a KO earlier , and decided to give it to them on that basis. I can see the aggression and control going to Blacksmith, but I thought damage was all-important.


    Huge vs. Hypershock
    Spoiler
    Show

    Looks like they outsmarted themselves with those garden rakes. It was a brilliant plan, right up to the point their own rake busted their own primary weapon. It looks like Huge didn't win this fight so much as Hypershock beat themselves.



    Thanks for the excellent commentary!

    Respectfully,

    Brian P.
    "Every lie we tell incurs a debt to the truth. Sooner or later, that debt is paid."

    -Valery Legasov in Chernobyl

  30. - Top - End - #60
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    Default Re: Battlebots Season 4

    Spoiler: Regarding RailGun Max and the Rumble Fight
    Show
    I'm going to have to respectfully disagree on the idea that RailGun Max's operators fought "Brilliantly". Aggressive? Yes. But when you start the match and not even 12 seconds in you've destroyed your own mini-bot with your weapon, and then go right for an attack on the bot that has 360 degree weapon coverage? That's just foolish in a Rumble match. They just tunneled vision in on the first enemy bot they saw, and charged right at it.

    The "Egg Beater" on it is a great weapon, certainly one of the more destructive drum-spinners out there due to the concentrating most of the weight of the drum into just the striking bar. But the team really needs to be more communicative and careful to not destroy their own mini-bots, and reinforce critical components to avoid destroying it self after only a few hits


    Otherwise, appreciate the the feedback on my recap
    Last edited by Razgriez; 2019-09-15 at 07:34 PM.
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