BattleBots

Here's Episode 7's fight card.

• Main Event: Tombstone vs. Rotator
• Death Roll vs. Quantum
• Bombshell vs. Cobalt
• Gemini vs. Tantrum
• Lock-Jaw vs. Duck!
• Sawblaze vs. Blacksmith
• Rail Gun Max vs. Shellshock
• Science Channel Bonus Fight: Ribbot vs. Falcon

That main event was really something awesome! Rotator achieved the impossible!

Edited by Savaget1337 on Jul 19th 2019 at 10:37:57 AM

I haven't seen anything yet, but at this point, defeating Bite Force is the impossible. Tombstone...not so much, not after losing to Bombshell so hilariously last year, or the close calls with beta and Yeti and Witch Doctor before that.

Do you really think I disagree? I literally wrote out exactly my thoughts on that match last year.

Edited by terlwyth on Jul 20th 2019 at 6:26:47 AM

That was bullshit, Duck should have won.

How, Duck did no damage with its weapon. The rules are set up to provide interesting fights that are fun to watch, the design of Duck runs pretty anathema to that. Now Duck as an individual works fine because it’s the only one like it and because it’s pretty much guaranteed to loose judges decisions due to be lacking a main weapon (though even I will agree that it should have won the last chance rumble last year). Duck works great as a gimmick bot, but if no-weapon bots become a legitimate thing in TV Battle Bots we are just gonna get boring 3 minute shove matches.

That was pretty much a textbook example of how to win against Duck, do a bit of initial damage then just kill time and win the decision because Duck lacks the ability to score damage points.

Edited by Silasw on Jul 21st 2019 at 12:41:02 PM

And the counter is that now, most finals end up just being spinner against spinner...and when those do work...the match is over too quickly, when they don't...it's a boring shove match.

Anyway, I'm just skipping to the outcomes this time since the time for predictions has past.

1. Axe Backwards continues to embarrass itself, even against Texas Twister.

2. Death Roll has really come back with a vengeance this season. Would've favored Quantum, and it sure looked that way at the beginning, but nope, that;s not how Death Roll rolls!

3. Ah, a grudge match...this time Cobalt won, mostly because Bombshell flipped over, AGAIN. Not surprised at all.

4. Tantrum's also come back much better than last time, though I don't know if Gemini is the best test of strength. I was surprised how close it was though.

5. Another case of the obvious winner denied the win because of "muh aggression". DUCK is inherently screwed by this system.

6. Okay, so Sawblaze v Blacksmith went much closer than I thought it would...I think something was off with Sawblaze this time.

7. Rail-Gun Max defeats Shellshock, not much more to say here.

8. Ah, the Main Event...glad to see Tombstone get some, much as I didn't quite expect that originally. Not quite as hilarious as when it lost to Bombshell, nor satiating as when Witch Doctor and Bite Force won...but nonetheless it'll do. Rotato R continues to amaze.

Tomorrow's Episode is the Desperado Tournament. Here's the Bracket.

The opening rounds will be;

• Minotaur vs. Lucky
• End Game vs. Gruff
• Black Dragon vs. Captain Shredderator
• War Hawk vs. Ragnarok

Also:

• Special Exhibition Fight: Deep Six vs. Axe Backwards
• Science Channel Bonus Fight: Extinguisher vs. The Four Horsemen

Edited by Lightblade on Jul 25th 2019 at 10:48:36 AM

Deep Six: finally.

Since tomorrow is the Desperado Tournament, I'm just gonna do this one wholesale.

Round 1

Minotaur vs. Lucky: Minotaur utterly destroys Luckless...I mean Lucky in a quick bout. 'Solid Minotaur

End Game vs. Gruff: Gruff has a lot of gruff, but Endgame is still very powerful and fast. it's true that EG has had problems this time around though, but they have the advantage. Tilt End Game

Black Dragon vs. Captain Shredderator: Cpt. Shredderator winning would take a miracle. Solid Black Dragon

War Hawk vs. Ragnaroek: This one should be a cakewalk for WARHawk given how hammerbots tend to do and how Ragnaroek IIRC split in half quickly against a similar bot. Solid WARHawk

Round 2

Minotaur vs End Game: Minotaur is more durable and seems to have better turning. END Game is the Glass Cannon here, which could possibly mean Minotaur gets hit in the wheels again, but that's unlikely. Likely Minotaur

Black Dragon vs WARHawk: WARHawk seems more durable, and it has that minibot that has so far been carrying a lot of the weight of their battles already. I think Black Dragon broke down last battle? Can't recall for sure, but on paper, it looks okay...so... '''Likely WARHawk

Final

Minotaur vs WARHawk: Minotaur probably wins this one, it's still possible the mini-bot does something or WARHawk can effectively stop a wheel like 3 years ago, but I wouldn't bet my life on that. Likely Minotaur

Round 1

Minotaur vs. Lucky

I: Minotaur utterly destroys Luckless...I mean Lucky in a quick bout. Solid Minotaur

O: It was quick bout indeed, but that Minotaur smoked up is a cause for concern. Winner: Minotaur by KO

End Game vs. Gruff

I: Gruff has a lot of gruff, but Endgame is still very powerful and fast. it's true that EG has had problems this time around though, but they have the advantage. Tilt End Game

O: This became pretty much a battle of attrition after one hit,where both drives were damaged. Gruff actually ended up taking over and probably would've won, until they met the killsaw slots and got stuck...what a bummer. Winner: End Game by KO

Black Dragon vs. Captain Shredderator

I: Cpt. Shredderator winning would take a miracle. Solid Black Dragon

O: A miracle did not happen. It was pretty much done in one hit from Black Dragon. Totes didn't see that coming. I guess a miracle could've happened if Black Dragon hadn't been able to self-right Winner: Black Dragon by KO

WARHawk vs. Ragnaroek

I: This one should be a cakewalk for WARHawk given how hammerbots tend to do and how Ragnaroek IIRC split in half quickly against a similar bot. Solid WARHawk

O: Well, this went kinda tit-for-tat for a bit, though WARHawk still had the advantage. Eventually Ragnaroek got hit by Cornered Rat Syndrome and flipped over fatally for their chances. Winner: '''WARHawk by KO

Round 2

I: Minotaur vs End Game: Minotaur is more durable and seems to have better turning. END Game is the Glass Cannon here, which could possibly mean Minotaur gets hit in the wheels again, but that's unlikely. 'Likely Minotaur

O: While Minotaur had a brief scare towards the end, ultimately End Game had been down by that point, and they struggled with drive issues. Minotaur pretty much controlled the match, even if it wasn't quite the Curb-Stomp Battle as hoped. Winner: Minotaur by KO

I: Black Dragon vs WAR Hawk: WAR Hawk seems more durable, and it has that minibot that has so far been carrying a lot of the weight of their battles already. I think Black Dragon broke down last battle? Can't recall for sure, but on paper, it looks okay...so... Likely WAR Hawk

O: Wow, I really had Black Dragon wrong this time. They literally got WARHawk on the screws in the first few seconds, probably because of the latter's drive issues. And the mini-bot was oblierated! Winner: Black Dragon by KO

Extra: Deep Six vs Axe Backwards: So this is Deep Six's debut, and for the design, I'm impressed. That was a One-Hit KO to Axe Backwards...not that they ever had a chance. I do have a feeling Deep Six is the new Nightmare. I look forward to more of their battles. Winner: Deep Six by KO

Final

Minotaur vs WAR Hawk: Minotaur probably wins this one, it's still possible the mini-bot does something or WAR Hawk can effectively stop a wheel like 3 years ago, but I wouldn't bet my life on that. Likely Minotaur

Minotaur vs Black Dragon: Okay firstly, totally didn't see this outcome coming at all, so I'm surprised to see the Brazilians go at it. Even more surprising, this was pretty much a tit-for-tat match most of the way, both got flipped or put on screws. However while Minotaur clearly had the edge in damage, Black Dragon's drivers took no prisoners, and just didn't let up. Winner: Black Dragon by Judge's Decision

Wow, that was amazing. Place 16 going to a bunch of newbies.

Deep Six was everything I hoped it would be. And I could have sworn it was Lockjaw, not Black Dragon with driving and control like that for the win.

I want to see Deep Six, HUGE and Mammoth all in the Battle Box together, full on Trash the Set.

Well, Deep Six did do a bit of set trashing in its fight with Nelly the Ellybot last week, which was pretty fun to watch.

Anyway, here's the fight card for Episode 10.

• Main Event: Bite Force vs. Hypershock
• Hydra vs. Petunia
• Yeti vs. Rainbow
• Skorpios vs. Tantrum
• Free Shipping vs. Bronco
• Valkyrie vs. Monsoon
• Chronos vs. Copperhead

I forgot about this round until about halfway through...I've caught up though.

Gotta admit, this was definitely the best Hypershock has ever done against Bite Force...

What about a robot that's a spinner, and a flipper?

There was one. Warrior Clan.

YouTube Removes Videos of Robots Fighting for "Animal Cruelty''

Apparently, Youtube's algorithms are confusing Battlebots with cockfighting...

UPDATE: Episode 11 Fight Card

• Main Event: Rotator vs. Deathroll
• Duck! vs. Quantum
• Blacksmith vs. Captain Shredderator
• Bombshell vs. Lock-Jaw
• Tombstone vs. Gruff
• End Game vs. Cobalt
• Ribbot vs. Sawblaze

Edited by Lightblade on Aug 22nd 2019 at 10:41:54 AM

Has there ever been a bot with a Pile Bunker?

I suspect the problem is the same as with the bot this season that shoots its spinner forward, it’s very hard to line up a shot with a weapon that has to be activated to shoot forward, you almost need a way to hold the other bot in place before punishing forward.

I wish there was a way to make a successful bot that wasn't a wide, flat, close to the ground box.

I would pay good money to watch a bot fight with something like an overhand gripper/crusher claw, with enough torque to crush 500 armor and balanced enough to lift and carry another bot for a ringout. Sort of like a smaller version of Kraken on an articulated arm like Sawblaze. CUAD the Unmerciful was partway there, but there is nothing in the current heavy or superweight divisions even close.

Edited by ViperMagnum357 on Sep 11th 2019 at 10:35:40 AM

Huge has been doing pretty good, I do wonder if bots beyond certain dimensions should get extra weight or something, same as walking bots.

Episode 14 Fight Card.

• Cobalt vs. Minotaur
• Valkyrie vs. Quantum
• Yeti vs. Duck!
• Lock-Jaw vs. Skorpios
• Hypershock vs. Huge
• Rail Gun Max vs. Bloodsport vs. Uppercut
• Rotator vs. Blacksmith
• Son of Whyachi vs. Copperhead

Edited by Lightblade on Sep 12th 2019 at 11:46:32 AM

The Official Battlebots Bracket Template has been posted to the Battlebots Twitter.

Which bots are which seeds has yet to be announced, but the Round of 16 will be this Friday, September 20th, and the Quarterfinals, Semifinals, and Final will be on the next Friday, September 27th.

Alright, now that the tournament is underway, Imma gonna do the ground matches.

NOTE: I appear to have gotten the match set-up wrong on a few, so I'm gonna re-do.

Anyway, for the Round of 16

Bite Force v. Uppercut: Bite Force sails through easily. Solid Bite Force

Witch Doctor v. Blacksmith: This already happened last year, and the Witch won...but it was close. Both bots have improved since, but Witch Doctor easily has the advantage here. Likely Witch Doctor

Death Roll v. Yeti : Death Roll is faster and fairly powerful, but so is Yeti and Yeti is a bit more reckless, which should be to its advantage. Tilt Yeti

Hydra v. Minotaur: Minotaur is durable, fast and powerful...but Hydra is close to the ground and lacks exposed areas, and it has a powerful flipper. I think this one depends on which part of the arena dominates the fight. Toss-up

Tombstone v. Quantum : Quantum needs to somehow get a hold of Tombstone, fat chance of that! Solid Tombstone

Whiplash v. HUGE : Whiplash has good drivers and its fast, but HUGE is high off the ground and powerful, but with those easy to hit wheels. Ugh, this is harder than it looks. Toss-up

Sawblaze v Son of Whyachi: Sawblaze has the dustpan and goes quite fast, while Whyachi needs to get to top speed, and even then they run the risk of being coptered . Likely Sawblaze

Black Dragon (8) v Lock-Jaw (9): Similar vertical spinner design, so going with a gut-instinct...Tilt Black Dragon

Edited by terlwyth on Sep 21st 2019 at 8:52:42 AM