User blog:H.V. LOBSTA/Robot Wars: Heat Ranked Robots Series 1 Heat A

Heat Ranked Robots: Explanation and Series 1 Heat A

I expect most people that are checking this out have guessed what this is, since Robot Wars Rankdown is already into its third series (count me in at Extreme 1, if it's being done). I’m making this as a sort of, counterpart, done in a different style, and of course, has all my biases, which I will try to iron out as I create this.

The rules are as follows:

Robots shall be ranked from 8th-1st (or 6th-1st) in how well they would do objectively against every robot in its heat. For Series 1 and 2, I will also take into consideration their Gauntlet and Trial runs. If a robot is known to be unreliable, like say Spawn Again or Fluffy (usual suspects, eh?), that will be taken into consideration (but 101’s curse will not apply here) If a robot has qualified for that series, but cannot complete and isn’t replaced, the team’s past performances will be taken into account. New rules will be added if needs be at any point during the HR Department’s (that's my nickname for this) construction.

With all that out of the way, let’s get right into it! We start with what could be the most stacked heat in Robot Wars history, (well, certainly in the original run), though in fairness, it was to get people hooked on the show from the beginning (it worked, obviously!). The Trial in this episode was Sumo.

6th: Shogun

You know, only now am I realising how many combat robots were, and are Japanese inspired, and yet only one or two are actually from the country, considering Japan’s reputation of being robot lovers (that kinda came out wrong, didn't it). Oh well, but now, onto the robot in question. Shogun wasn’t a “bad” robot for Series 1, it was just the worst of a very good bunch. It had decent weaponry and construction (hell, parts of a Rolls-Royce went into making the thing), but it lacked the punch, and control to do well in the competition. 2nd last in the Gauntlet, 2nd last in the Sumo, and a quick knockout by Killertron means that Shogun’s at the bottom of the barrel this time.

5th: Grunt

Some might be surprised on why I put The First Wars’ best stock robot on here, but as with Shogun, it’s kind of out of its league here. Its shape is quite ungainly to drive, with Matthew Dickinson (son of judge Eric Dickinson, in fact) pretty much driving in a straight line to beat the Gauntlet. It has a decent wedge yes, but if you can’t control the bot, especially in a series with the Gauntlet, you, my friend, are a goner. I think Grunt’s a pretty good name for the robot, since it has a military motif going on, with the little decorative turrets making it look like a battleship.

4th: Barry

I wonder if there’s anyone who expected for this super heavyweight to be higher… anybody? Barry, on paper, is actually very good. It has a scoop that’s adjustable, and the pushing power to make it a good method of attack. However, it had a low ground clearance, which was bad in the Gauntlet days and was hard to control, which is why it ended up last in the Gauntlet, and I don’t really trust those huge pneumatic wheels with two robots that could puncture them (Roadblock and Nemesis, they did a surprising amount of damage to each other during their fight). However, I could easily see Barry beating the two robots before it, so that’s why he’s number 4 on the list.

3rd: Nemesis

It was very difficult to choose between this and the number two spot for Killertron and Nemesis, but with much thought, I have placed it here. While it had one of the best drivers in the competition in Peter Redmond, I don’t think it would’ve had the aggression to have been able to beat Killertron, most likely in a judge's decision. Still love what it did for the sport, making comedy bots a thing.

2rd: Killertron The best axe in Series 1 was a well balanced robot, with the aforementioned weapon being great for getting aggression points, and its six wheels giving it prowess in the other Trials. The axe is what I think would give the edge to Killertron, in a fight between it and the bronze medallist of this heat. The Fluorescent Mohican has to settle for second place.

1st: Roadblock How predictable. The champion of Series 1 has got to be the best in its heat, right? Well, it is. Beating the second and third robots, with ease, and maybe not no much ease, it had the best weapon in all the heat, in the way it was able to control the battles it fought, and it had a decent drive system to go with it. Need I say more?