Sumpthing

"Hardly a clean machine, good as we need to fight dirty here."

- Jonathan Pearce

Sumpthing (also spelled Sump Thing) was a competitor from the third through to the sixth series of Robot Wars, also entering in both series of Extreme. It was deliberately designed to be as low-tech as possible, described by the team as "Part of the war against the high-tech computer age" and, as a result, cost £10 until decorations were added therefore making it over £60 in total and built over two years. Its speed was 15-20mph and its main weapon was a large pickaxe mounted on a base through a multi-purpose hydraulic system that swung forward when it made contact with opponents. Also part of the weaponary was a makeshift forklift and a rear wedge with spikes added in Series 4. The axe weapon was interchangable with a moveable arm and two saw blades that were only used in Series 5 and Extreme Series 1. The armour (what little there was) was heavy duty steel plate.

Because of its low-tech design, Sumpthing never fared too well in any competitions. Not only did the lack of real armour leave its machinery exposed and the incredibly non-threatening arsenal left it very feeble, but it also had the habit of knocking itself out, which it did twice in its four years of competing. Out of those 4 series, plus both series of Extreme, Sumpthing only managed to win 1 Robot Wars battle (Series 4 Round 1 vs Weld-Dor 2 and Little Fly). Despite this, it was nominated for the Most Original Entry award of Series 4, losing out to the clusterbot Gemini.

Sumpthing was retired after Extreme Series 2, partly after Sumpthing was refused entry for the seventh wars and partly because their win to loss ratio was almost an embarrassment. After a number of odd appearances at certain live events around the country, Sumpthing is currently on display at the Enginuity Museum in Coalbrookdale.

Series 3


In Sumpthing's first appearance in Robot Wars, it was placed against Pitbull in Round 1. It charged towards Pitbull straight away when "activate" was called at a high speed. Sumpthing launched its pickaxe at Pitbull, missing it as Pitbull just managed to escape. However, this strike of the axe caused Sumpthing to break down. It was then edged towards the arena flame torch near Sir Killalot's CPZ by Pitbull and left there for a few seconds before Sgt Bash came in and almost cut it in half, Sir Killalot then picked it up with his lance, twisting it around and then dropped it into the pit, eliminating it from the competition in an embarrassing style.

Series 4
Sump Thing was placed against the number 28 seeds Weld-Dor 2 and newcomers Little Fly in its first round battle of the Fourth Wars. Sump Thing kept attacking Little Fly with its pick axe which bounced off Little Fly's blade. Sump Thing changed target and hit Weld-Dor 2 on an exposed part of electronics and, coupled with the damage already inflicted by Little Fly, the robot was immobilised, pitted and Sump Thing qualified for the next round with Little Fly. Sump Thing then met Mousetrap in the second round of the heat where it tried without success to use the pick axe to break Mousetrap's spring which powered the trap mechanism. During the battle Mousetrap was less mobile than Sump Thing which appeared to be on top early on. The turning point came after it charged at the dormant Mousetrap from the other side of the arena: Mousetrap moved before Sumpthing struck its pick, causing Sumpthing to jump up and the forklift underneath it to swing down, lifting the wheels off the ground and making it technically immobilised as decided by the judges. Sump Thing was pitted by Sir Killalot, putting an end to Sump Thing's best ever run in Robot Wars.

Extreme 1
"Built from bits, scavanged from rubbish skips, but the crusher, axe and new circular saw could leave opponents in the scrapyard."

- Jonathan Pearce

Sumpthing participated in the Mayhem and Tag Team Tournaments in the first series of Robot Wars Extreme. In the Mayhem, it faced S.M.I.D.S.Y. and Pussycat, much more favoured machines. Sumpthing started by staying away from the blade of Pussycat, but the chain for its own blade sustained damage from Pussycat. Sumpthing then escaped the pit, before trying to hammer down on opponents. After getting stuck upon Sergeant Bash, Sumpthing escaped as Matilda (in her first televised appearance with her new flywheel weapon) separated it. Sumpthing then attacked Bash, before reversing into Pussycat, and staying stuck to it, before breaking free towards the end. Sumpthing survived to a judges' decision and was up against Pussycat only as S.M.I.D.S.Y. had already been pitted. Unfortunately for Sumpthing, the judges gave the win to Pussycat.

Sumpthing and S.M.I.D.S.Y also participated in the Tag Team Tournament together, where they were described in the pits as 'the grease-monkeys' of the competition. In Round 1, they were up against Cerberus and Thermidor 2. Cerberus and S.M.I.D.S.Y. started this battle, but sparks came out of S.M.I.D.S.Y.'s disc, and it collided with its team mate before running to the other end of the arena and breaking down. Sumpthing then stormed out and charged into Cerberus just as Thermidor 2 came out. Sumpthing then backed into Thermidor's flipper and was flipped, coming to a rest on the two front spikes. It was counted out, eliminating it and S.M.I.D.S.Y. from the competition.

Series 5
Sumpthing returned with two discs on an arm. In its first round battle, Sumpthing went up against Widow's Revenge. The battle largely consisted of both robots ramming each other continuously, with Sumpthing's new disc weapon causing sparks. Near the end of the battle, a piece of Sumpthing came loose as Sir Killalot picked up Widows Revenge and dumped it on top of Sumpthing. By the end of the fight, Sumpthing was spinning only in tight circles but still survived to a judges' decision. The judges voted in favour of Widows Revenge. "Has something gone wrong with Sumpthing?"

- Jonathan Pearce's concern on the damage inflicted on Sumpthing

Series 6
"We started in War 3, and when we entered War 3 we were low tech then. We are positively archaic now"

- Mr. Dig noting Sumpthing's continuing low tech design.

Sumpthing entered Series 6 reverting back to an axe rather than the circular saws used in Series 5 and Extreme 1. It was placed against Dominator 2 (seeded 6th), Axe-C-Dent 2 and Hydra in its first round battle. Axe-C-Dent 2 was quickly defeated after being flipped by Hydra in the opening seconds, so the remaining three were left to fight it out alone. As Hydra and Dominator 2 smashed into each other, Sumpthing remained largely in the background. Hydra rammed Sumpthing, who fled to the other side of the arena. Driving into the CPZ, Sumpthing was hit with Shunt's axe, and pushed against the wall. At Shunt's mercy, Sumpthing was dragged around the arena, but then got away just as Shunt was about to shove it into the CPZ. Sumpthing and Hydra teamed up and attacked Dominator 2, but Sumpthing unfortunately was slammed by Growler without even being in the CPZ, forcing it to only go round in circles as only one of its wheels was left working. Refbot counted out Sumpthing before Growler seized the robot and pitted it. "Beaten in the heats again"

- Jonathan Pearce, as Sumpthing is pitted

Extreme 2
Sumpthing was involved in the Tag Team Terror alongside S.M.I.D.S.Y. for the second tournament in succession. In the first round of the competition, the pairing were drawn up against two former Tag-Team participants from different teams, in X-Terminator and Mini Morg. S.M.I.D.S.Y. and X-Terminator started this battle, and S.M.I.D.S.Y. was axed constantly by the former UK Semi-Finalists, so Sumpthing came into the action. S.M.I.D.S.Y. then attacked Mini Morg, but was still being axed by X-Terminator, before Sumpthing was axed by Shunt when trying to tag it. Dead Metal and Shunt then chased Sumpthing over the flames and into another CPZ, but eventually managed to escape and join the other three competitors in action. Sumpthing then stopped moving, as the three converged in another CPZ, and was counted out by the Refbot just before the timer ran out. This eliminated Sumpthing and S.M.I.D.S.Y. from the competition. This was Sumpthing's last appearance in Robot Wars.

Results

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Wins/Losses

 * Wins: 1
 * Losses: 7

Series Record

 * Series 1-2: Did not enter
 * Series 3: Heat, Round 1
 * Series 4: Heat, Round 2
 * Series 5: Heat, Round 1
 * Series 6: Heat, Round 1
 * Series 7: Did not enter