Notable Robots

Over the 7 year course for which Robot Wars ran, 324 different robots competed in the main series. Some would become regular competitors, whilst others only competed for one season. This is a list of the most notable robots to compete in the series. The robots are listed via their debuting season, in alphabetical order, using their most recent form shown in the series.

Cassius
Cassius was a wedge shaped robot with a forward hindged flipping ram. Cassius 2 also had a rear spike It competed in Series 2 and Series 3 and was the first UK robot to successfully self-right, using its arm (such a device was later known as a Self-Righting Mechanism, or Srimech). The team also entered in Series 1 with Recyclops, who became the first robot to topple a House Robot. Team captain Rex Garrod was very much a sporting person, and would prefer attacking a House Robot rather than a competitor that had already been beaten.

Chaos 2
Main Article:Chaos 2

Diotoir
Diotoir was a competitor from the Republic of Ireland. It was a roughly circular/semi-circular shaped robot covered in red fur with black spots, and its main weapon was a hydraulic flipping arm (later a shovel) powered by two springs, rather than the CO2 used by most flippers. Although the weaponry was not as powerful as other flippers and the fur meant that the robot frequently caught fire, Diotoir enjoyed a relatively successful run throughout the first five series in which it competed, even defeating the mighty Tornado in a shock turn of events from Series 5. The team competed in Series 1 and 2 with Nemesis, and later lent Nemesis to an Australian team when their robot, Terror Australis, broke down. Diotoir also won the Sportsmanship award three times out of five.

GBH
GBH was a competitor in Series 2 and Series 6. The first GBH was a box shaped robot with a lifting scoop, whilst GBH 2 was a box wedge shaped like an endurance race-car with two flippers. The team also competed in Series 1 with Scrapper (which should not be confused with the Series 7 competitor "The Scrapper") and in Series 3 with Facet.

Griffon
Griffon was a low box shaped robot with a lifting arm. It was based on Biohazard, a highly successful American robot, although it was never really very successful. The team also entered Series 1 with Cunning Plan, which made the Grand Final. In series 2, Griffon won the Internet Insurrection, a side competition for roboteers who thought they had the best website

Killertron
Killertron, made from a wheely big lid, was a pink (sometimes orange) robot with a large scoop on the front and a swinging pick-axe. Although it debuted in Series 1, its best performance was in Series 2, where it came fourth. It also competed in Series 4 and Extreme Series 1, but didn't perform very well in either.

Mortis
Mortis was a tank-like robot running on tracks that competed in the first four wars. Its weapons were an axe that could hit three times in one second and later a lifting arm that could lift 100 kilos. Mortis is known for being one of the most expensive robots in the wars, costing £40,000 to build. Despite this, Mortis never really performed as well as it should have done.

Napalm
Napalm, as described by commentator Jonathan Pierce, was a two-wheeled titanium hull, with a two pronged axe as its main weapon. The team competed in the first five wars, with Detonator in Series 1 and Shadow Of Napalm in Series 4. Although Napalm wasn't the quickest robot, nor was it that secure, it never lost the first round of any wars, and got to the Semi-Finals of Series 2.

Plunderbird 5
Plunderbird was a box-wedge shaped competitor that competed in the first five series. Plunderbird 1 had an interchangable saw and spike. Plunderbird 2 and Plunderbird 3 (known as Plunderstorm) were rammers and Plunderbird 4 and Plunderbird 5 had piercing claws. Plunderbird was well known for its team, who portrayed themselves with a "tough-guy" attitude, and frequently sang raps.

Pussycat
Main Article:Pussycat

T.R.A.C.I.E
T.R.A.C.I.E, which stood for Terrestrial Robotic Artificial Computerised Intelligent Engine, was a flat box with twin ramming spikes. T.R.A.C.I.E was the first ever competitor in Robot Wars to be invertable: that is, to be able to run upside down. It made it to the Grand Final, only to become beached on the featherweight Cunning Plan.

13 Black
13 Black was a rectangular shaped robot with two spinning discs. One of the discs was black with the number 13 on it, the other was painted to look like a roulette wheel. Although it did not appear to be so, 13 Black was capable of running inverted, using its flywheels to "crab-walk" around the arena. 13 Black's best performance was in Series 6, where it reached the semi-final. Although it competed in Series 5-7, the team also entered Series 2 with a tracked robot called Limpet.

Anarchy/101
Anarchy was a walker bot from series 6 with a flipper and axe. Of all the walkers on Robot Wars, it was the most successful, reaching the Heat Final of Series 6. Anarchy was awarded the "Best Engineering" award in series 6. Before Anarchy, the team entered series 2 with Robodoc, a treaded wedge-shaped robot with a lifting arm. In series 3, 4, and 5, the team entered with 101, named because it cost the captain only a pound and a pence. 101 used tracks, and had a spike that would automatically fire when an opponent was in range. 101 was the winner of the first Tag Team Terror Competition with King B3. 101 reached the Third Wars Semi-Finals, defeating Scutter's Revenge before meeting Hypno-Disc in the closest fight in Robot Wars history. It lost, but only just. The team's mascot was called Superbunny, the little plush toy carried around by little Amy Franklin, captain Mike Franklin's daughter.

Arnold, Arnold Terminegger
Arnold, Arnold Terminegger was a box-shaped robot with a front lifter. It competed in series 4 and in the first annihilator of Extreme 1. In Extreme 1, the team added an overhead axe with a full 360 degree rotation. In series 2, the team entered with Jim Struts. Jim Struts was the first ever walker bot to be on Robot Wars, and while it had no weapons per se, the team intended to use its legs for lifting and stomping other robots. Jim did not enter the main competition, but won the Reserve Rumble. In series 3, the team won a walker battle with Miss Struts.

Behemoth
Main Article:Behemoth

Firestorm
Main Article:Firestorm

Gemini
Gemini was the first heavyweight clusterbot in Robot Wars. Two robots went into the arena attached by a rear magnet. Upon the battle starting, the robots would pull apart and act as individuals. Each robot had a powerful flipping arm. The team had previously entered Series 2 and Series 3 with Mace, which was a large box shaped robot with a lifting arm at the front and a spinning flail at the back. It reached the semi-finals of both wars it competed in. Gemini competed in Series 4 and Series 5, but did not enjoy as much success, dropping out in the Heat Final and Second Round respectively.

Haardvark
Haardvark was a large box shaped robot that competed in Series 2 and 3. Its main weapons were a lifting forklift and a circular saw, which was added in Series 3. It reached the semi-finals of Series 2, losing to Cassius, but broke down in the first round of Series 3.

King B Powerworks
Main Article:King B Powerworks

Onslaught
Onslaught was a robot with a front scoop and 2 spikes in back. The body was built from an old R/C car, so Onslaught had a car-like steering system, and was small in comparison to most heavyweights. The scoop was redesigned in series 4 with a more shovel-like appearance. A self-righting mechanism was also added. Onslaught entered in series 2, 3, and 5. A last-minute breakdown forced it to forfeit its spot in the main competition of series 4, but it still participated in that year's sumo, where it came fourth. It also competed in the Southern Annihilator, coming second overall.

Panic Attack
Main Article:Panic Attack

Razer
Main Article:Razer

S3
S3 was a robot with a vertical spinning disc, capable of putting shards of its opponents in the ceiling. It was described as looking like a hammerhead shark's head. S3 appeared in series 5 and 6, making the semifinal both times. The team also entered series 2 and 3 with Sting, a robot with a unique whipping tail weapon. S3 won the "Most Original Entry" award in series 5.

Splinter
Main Article:Splinter

Supernova
Supernova was a long rectangular robot with a spinning disc. The team entered in Series 5, 6, and 7, as well as the 3rd World Championship, where they represented Sri Lanka. The team competed with Oblivion in Series 2. They also competed with Oblivion II in the series 3 pinball competition and the main competition of Series 4

Terrorhurtz
Main Article:Terrorhurtz

Wheely Big Cheese
Main Article:Wheely Big Cheese

Wild Thing
Wild Thing was a competitor from the 4th, 5th and 6th wars. In the 4th wars, it was a wedge shaped robot with a lance mounted on a self-righting arm. For Series 5, a spinning disc was added on the wedge. In Series 6, the robot was completely redesigned into an arrow shaped machine with a vertical cutter. The original Wild Thing was a revamp of Thing 2, a robot the team had entered in Series 3: indeed, the two's shapes were identical. The team also competed in Series 2 with Demon.

3 Stegs To Heaven
3 Stegs to Heaven was a competitor from series 5 with a small vertical disc in front. It was beaten in the Heat Final by Bigger Brother. In series 3, the team entered with Steg-O-Saw-Us, a robot with a lifting tail in back, however the team relied mainly on Steg-O-Saw-Us's great pushing and ramming ability to win matches. Steg-O-Saw-Us was a grand finalist in series 3, but also succeeded in knocking out the previous champions Beast of Bodmin. In series 4, the team entered with Steg 2, a similar design to Steg-O-Saw-Us, but with an elongated body and improved flipping tail.

Bigger Brother
Bigger Brother was a wedge shaped robot with a powerful flipper on the front that was able to flip its opponents right out of the arena. It entered series 4, 5, 6 and 7 and the team entered series 3 with Big Brother, a more conventional wedge shape with a 'morning star' flailing mace weapon. Bigger Brother's greatest success was in series 5 where it made it to the Grand Final battle beating crowd favourite Hypno-Disc along the way despite sustaining a huge amount of damage. With all the teams pitching in to help they were ready to battle Razer but lost the battle due to a judges decision. Bigger Brother won the Minor Meltdown in Extreme 2.

Blade
Blade was a Y-shaped robot that participated in Series 3. It was equipped with a rotary lawnmower blade in front. While the blade proved ineffective, Blade's decent pushing power saw it through to the semifinal, where it lost to Beast of Bodmin.

Bulldog Breed
Bulldog Breed was a roughly double-wedge shaped robot that competed in series 3 through 7. The first Bulldog Breed featured circular saws, but performed terribly, losing to the almost harmless Robopig in the first round. After this, Bulldog Breed was fitted with a powerful pneumatic flipper, and all the following incarnations had this weapon set-up, developing in set-up and power over time. Bulldog Breed's best performance in the main competition was in Series 7 when it reached the semi-finals and was beaten by X-Terminator. It also won the third Tag Team Terror competition.

Dominator 2
Dominator 2 was a wedged double-V shaped robot with a powerful axe. The axe was powerful enough to pierce most robots' shells, and doubled as a self-righting mechanism. Dominator 2 made it to the semifinals of series 4, 5, and 6. The team also entered the series 3 Pinball Warriors with Dominator.

Evil Weevil
Evil Weevil was a green, black, and yellow bug-like robot with a pair of lifting prongs. It reached the semifinals of Series 3 only to be defeated by Hypno-Disc. In series 4, the team equipped Evil Weevil a hammer and painted it bronze. However, this new weaponry was no help; due to an uncharged battery, it lost Round 1. Evil Weevil won the Series 3 Robotic Soccer tournament. The team was founded by an ex-Panic Attack member.

Gravedigger
Gravedigger was a coffin shaped robot with a flipping arm, much like that of Cassius. It entered in Series 3, 4, and 5. In series 4, the team added a rear scoop to the arm so they could flip robots in front and behind. In Series 5, the arm was converted into an axe. Gravedigger's best performance was when it defeated Mortis to reach the Semifinal in Series 3. After this, it failed to get past Round 1 in the two following wars.

Hypno-Disc
Main Article:Hypno-Disc

Pitbull
Pitbull was a robot with a pair of jaws for clamping opponents. Its was shaped like a barrel so that it could roll back onto its wheels when flipped. It reached the semifinal in Series 3, but was defeated by Firestorm. Pitbull was sold on Ebay to a school in South Wales.

Spawn Again
Spawn Again was a large wedge-shaped robot with a powerful rear-hinged flipper. It competed in Series 5, 6 and 7, reaching the semi-finals of the first two series. The team also competed in Series 3 with Scutter's Revenge, a large box shaped robot with a front bulldozer plough, and in Series 4 with Spawn of Scutter, an invertible box shaped robot with a front wedge, in which a pneumatic spike was concealed. This spike was designed primarily to flip other robots over. Both of these robots also reached the semi final of their respective wars. Despite the success rate, the Spawn Again series was well known for its lack of reliability; with the exception of Spawn of Scutter, all the robots lost after breaking down or suffering mechanical problems. This was especially significant in the Spawn Again robot.

Steel Avenger
Steel Avenger was a plough shaped robot with a large pneumatic axe as its weapon. The team competed in Series 3, 4, 5, and 7. In addition to its weaponry, Steel Avenger often sported a rainbow-coloured feather duster. In series 5, the team added a rear flipper to Steel Avenger. Steel Avenger never made it past a heat final, but came in second in the Extreme 1 Tag Team Terror.

Stinger
Main Article:Stinger

Suicidal Tendencies
Suicidal Tendencies was a tracked robot with a crusher and front scoop, entered in series 3,4 and 5. Suicidal Tendencies' name proved appropriate; it often lost matches by breaking down. In series 3, its weapon was a milling cutter. In series 4, it featured a forklift and axe. Suicidal Tendencies also participated in the Extreme 1 Tag Team Terror, coming in second.

The Grim Reaper
The Grim Reaper was a competitor in Series 3 and 7. The original Grim Reaper was a rectangular, 3-wheeled robot with a front mounted spike and rear mounted lifter. It lost the first round to Big Brother on a judges decision. The team returned in Series 7 with a brand new design: a box-wedge shaped robot with a front flipper. Thsi version was more successful, reaching the semi-finals. Incidently, all of the fights The Grim Reaper competed in ended with a judges decision.

Thermidor II
Thermidor was a robot with a design that bore much resemblance to a lobster. It was equipped with a spike and a pair of claws for grabbing. The original Thermidor, which also had a small cutting disc in the tail, competed in Series 3, and Thermidor II competed in Series 4 through 7. In Series 4, the lobster head was replaced with a pneumatic flipper. In Series 5, the claws were redesigned to be wedge-shaped and thus, not get in the way of the flipper. Thermidor II reached the Semifinals of Series 4 and 7, but lost in the first round in Series 5 and 6.

Trident
Trident was a robot with an axe who competed in series 3. It was very shiny and shaped like a mailbox. It had three wheels on each side, arranged like those of Pussycat. Trident made it to the semifinal in Series 3, losing to Chaos 2

Triterabot/Mousetrap/Black & Blue
Triterabot, Mousetrap and Black & Blue were three very different robots created by the same team. Triterabot was a triangular shaped robot that competed in Series 3. It had a spike on each corner, was invertible and could also emit a smokescreen. Mousetrap, who competed in Series 4 and 5, was a wedge-shaped replica of a spring mousetrap, with the trap itself being the weapon. For Series 5, a blade was added to the trap. Black & Blue, from Series 7, was a clusterbot, each machine a small invertible box with a spinning drum. Of these three machines, only Mousetrap had any great degree of success, reaching the semi-final of Series 4. Both Triterabot and Black & Blue were beaten in Round 1.

X-Terminator
X-Terminator was a wedged box-shaped robot that competed in Series 3 through 7. Its weapons were originally a spiked axe and a front scoop. It also had a pneumatic spikes on each side to assist in self-righting. For Series 4, X-Terminator had a flipping arm that could be interchanged with the axe. In series 5 and 6, the axe was enlargened and the self-righting spikes were replaced with small arms, similar to Behemoth's. For Series 7, the original X-Terminator was sold on Ebay and a new model was built; the axe was replaced with a vertical spinning disc with enough power to fling opponents out of of the arena. X-Terminator reached the semi-finals of Series 4 and came 4th overall in Series 7.

Atomic
Atomic was a trapezoid-shaped robot with a pneumatic flipping scoop. It competed in Series 4, 5 and 7. In series 5, a pneumatic spike was added at the rear. However, Atomic had a terrible run of luck, coming up against seeded robots such as King Buxton, then Chaos 2 in their first appearance, and then Hypno-Disc in their second wars. Hypno-Disc smashed Atomic's best performance was in Series 7, where it used its powerful flipper to flip almost all of its opponents out of the arena. It lost in the semifinal to Typhoon 2.

Disc-O-Inferno
Disc-O-Inferno was similar in shape and weaponry to Hypno-Disc and could also run upside down. It competed in Series 4, 6, 7 and Extreme 1. When it could get the disc working it had the potential to cause major damage but the robot and the weapon were very unreliable and most of its battles were lost due to it breaking down. It's greatest achievement was winning the second annihilator in Extreme 1.

Raging Knightmare
Raging Knightmare was an invertible box-shaped robot with a flipper. It reached the Semifinals of series 7, losing to Tornado. The team also entered Series 4 with Knightmare, a triangular wedge-shaped robot with an outward flipper, Extreme 1 with Spirit of Knightmare, a similar robot with grinding blades and double axes at the back as well as the flipper, and Series 6 with Raging Reality, a cutoff wedge-shaped robot with a triangular flipper. The team competed in three seperate annihilators, more than any other robot.

Robochicken
Robochicken was a basic wedge-shaped robot meant to resemble a chicken. It was entered in Series 4 through 7. It had an axe that looked like a chicken's beak and a flipper that resembled a tail feather. The axe was decorated with ballcork eyes and a red rubber glove crest. In series 5, the team entered with Robockicken Evo, a similar design with a semicircle-shaped body. In Series 7, the team put the chicken head on the back of the flipper so that the head went down when the flipper was fired, and added a spinning disc. Robochicken never made it past a heat, but did win the Extreme 2 Tag Team Terror.

Spikasaurus
Spikasaurus was a robot with two long ramming spikes. It competed in Series 4. It featured four rollbars on to so that it would roll back onto its wheels if it were upside down. It lost its first match in the main competition, but won the series 4 Northern Annihilator.

Tornado
Main Article:Tornado

Tiberius 3
Tiberius was a competitor from Series 4 through to Series 7. It was a basic two wheeled box-wedge shaped robot with a crushing weapon mounted on top. In Series 4, the weapon was a large spike powered by a car jack. From Series 5 onwards, a more conventional crusher, similar in design to Razer, was used. Tiberius' best performance was in Series 7, where it made the Heat Final. Tiberius 3 also won the University Challenge special in Extreme Series 2.

Crushtacean
Crushtacean was an oval-shaped silver robot that competed in Series 5, 6 and 7. It was designed to resemble a crab, with its main weapon being a pair of pincers. Rather than being controlled by a button or a joystick, the claws were operated by a uniquely designed pair of gloves, which had sensors so that the claws would open or close in relation to the wearer's hand movement. Crushtacean's best performance was in its debuting season, where it reached the heat final. The team originated from South Africa and represented the country in international competitions, coming joint third with Tough As Nails in the 3rd World Championships.

Corkscrew
Corkscrew was an unusually designed robot. It appeared to be a corkscrew stuck into a cork, with a spinning weapon at its base. It proved more dangerous than it looked, however, defeating strong competitors such as 13 Black and X-Terminator in series 5 before going down to Dominator II. It competed in series 6 and 7 as well, but failed to get past the first round.

Fluffy
Fluffy, a competitor from Series 5 through 7, was a low octangonal shaped robot. It was shaped very much like Disc-O-Inferno, only smaller and, instead of a conventional flywheel, its main weapon was a horizontal double-headed spinning axe. Fluffy proved to be extremely destructive in its battles, but it suffered from severe reliability problems and frequently broke down. Fluffy jointly won the UK vs Germany special of Series 6 with Das Gepack.

Hydra
Hydra was a large box shaped robot competed from Series 5 to Series 7. The first Hydra had a flipper as its main weapon. For Series 6 onwards, the flipper was remodelled into a flipping arm and a sledgehammer was added. In this form, it greatly resembled former competitor Mortis. Hydra did not enjoy great success in the wars, but came second in the third Tag Team Terror tournament.

Kan Opener
Kan Opener was a large octagonal yellow robot with two large blue horizontal crushing claws. The original design had a self-righting mechanism, whilst the following version, used in Series 6 onwards, was invertible and flatter. A battering ram was also added to the back. Kan Opener competed in all three wars from its debut, but never won a single battle. In direct comparison, it won two seperate annihilators, the only robot ever to do so.

Ripper
Ripper was a very large wedge-plough shaped robot with a massive front flipper. Despite its size, Ripper's mechanics were isolated to one spot, with most of the robot's insides being empty. This allowed Ripper to take a significant amount of damage before being immobilised. Ripper competed in Series 7, where it reached the Heat Final. It also came second in the annihilator held that year. The team had previously entered Series 5 with a robot called T-Bone, which had a horizontal spinning disc.

Storm 2
Main Article:Storm 2

Typhoon 2
Main Article:Typhoon 2

 