Mortis

"The most feared and technically advanced robot of the first three wars."

- Robot Wars: The Ultimate Guide.

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 around £50,000 to build. Despite this, Mortis never really performed as well as it should have done, only reaching the series semi-finals once in Series 2. However, the robot did end its Robot Wars career on a high by winning the War of Independence in Series 4. Mortis retired after this victory, but would later be revised with wheels and a more reliable srimech, however the revisions were too late and it failed to enter Series 7. The team also developed a hands-free controller in the form of a back-pack style device where the robot controller could slide onto a pair of of poles that folded out from the back-pack.

Series 1
Mortis managed to complete the Gauntlet and the Trial without much trouble. Up against Leighbot it punched several holes in the robot before managing to flip it over. After this fight the axe had broken so it was modified to act as a battering ram instead. Up against Recyclopse it was very aggressive but caused very little damage, both robots pushed each other around the arena a lot, until the judges controversially awarded the win to Recyclopse.

Series 2
This was Mortis's best series, seeded number 2, for some reason higher than all other grand finalists, even Cassius, who actually defeated it in the previous wars, this may have been because Mortis was expected to do so well. It got in a scrap with Shunt and Matilda in the Gauntlet, breaking Matilda's camera. It crossed the line then went back for more, only to go in the pit. It got through the Joust quite well, before meeting Rameses The Second in Round 2. Mortis was the favourite, but Rameses The Second surprisingly managed to push it into the PPZ. Mortis got away, but Killalot got hold of Rameses The Second, holding it over the flame pit. Mortis went through to face Oblivion in the heat final. It was by far on top here, whacking Oblivion repeatedly with its axe, causing massive damage. It tried to push it down the pit, but Oblivion held on to a judges decision, which put Mortis into the semi-finals. In the semi-finals, Mortis completed the Gauntlet despite getting ambushed by Shunt and landing on its back at one point. Now comes the controversy: in the pinball, Mortis started, but the spikes came up from the floor and took one of its tracks off. This meant it went out with 0 points. But Rob Knight was cross, as he'd been told the spikes weren't used in the pinball. So, the production team let Mortis have another go, but Rob, still cross, refused to do it. With Ben Impey driving, Mortis managed to only score 35 points, meaning it would go out anyway. But, when the scoreboard came up, Mortis had been put down as having 100 points, so Napalm went out instead. So Mortis faced newcomers Panic Attack in the next round, but Rob, still cross, refused to drive, so Ben Impey drove again. This, along with the lack of the will to win, was one factor in its downfall, as Panic Attack pitted it without much trouble for a surprise win, thus ending Mortis' most successful run.



Series 3
"Is that over the top enough for you."

- Arthur Chillcot talking about Mortis' new hands-free device. Mortis overturned the very sluggish Ming in the first round, causing its spinning blade to detach and fly across the arena. It also attacked Matilda, before being pitted by Shunt. With one victory under its belt, Mortis faced Gravedigger, doing some aggressive work and starting a pushing match, but lost when its right track stopped working. Soon after, Gravedigger flipped it into the pit. Mortis came 9th in the Pinball with a score of 60.

Series 4
Mortis returned to the wars as the 23rd seed, and its first battle was against Iron Awe and Mazakari. Mortis started by trying to hit Iron Awe with its axe which didn't do much damage. Mortis then turned Mazakari over, which did nothing to the invertible machine, so Mortis managed to get underneath Mazakari and its arm got wedged in the framework. Mortis tried to get Iron Awe to hit Mazakari's exposed belly. Eventually the House Robots twinned up on Iron Awe and Mazakari with Sgt. Bash and Shunt causing damage to Mazakari. The match went to a judges decision which eliminated Mazakari, taking Mortis through to fight Crusader 2. Mortis landed a huge number of blows on Crusader 2, and the brave newcomer was finished off by the House Robots. Finally, Mortis faced Steg 2, and was careful to avoid the flipper. However, the lifing arm of Mortis became stuck open, which meant that it could not self-right, and Steg 2 flipped it over. Finally, Steg 2 pushed Mortis into the pit, ending yet another hopeful run for Mortis.

Mortis did end its Robot Wars career on a high, winning the War of Independence special. It literally butchered Ghetto-Bot from the USA with its axe in the first round, leaving the lighter machine immobile. It then moved into a grudge match against Panic Attack in the second round. Despite heavy aggression from Panic Attack and a air lift from Sir Killalot, Mortis won a judges decision by one point after it hacked the light off Panic Attack and otherwise landed numerous blows from its axe. Finally, it defeated the US robot Frenzy to win the title, bowling it over from the start and foiling each attempt to self-right. Finally, Frenzy's arm stopped working and it broke down, leaving it immobile.

Results

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Wins/Losses

 * Wins: 12
 * Losses: 5

Series Record

 * Series 1: Heat Final
 * Series 2: Semi-Finals, Arena
 * Series 3: Heats, Round 2
 * Series 4: Heat Final
 * Series 5-7: Did not enter