Concussion

Concussion was a heavyweight robot which competed in Series 9 of Robot Wars. Despite being untested in battle and the team being amateur roboteers, it reached the Grand Final of Series 9 undefeated, twice defeating former Grand Finalist Thor in the process.

Design
Concussion's primary feature was its single-toothed teardrop-shaped spinning drum, revolving at 6,000rpm and weighing 24.5kg. The tooth was designed by team member Sam Griffin for maximum impact. Like other drum spinners such as Pulsar and Sabretooth, Concussion was small, compact, two-wheel driven and invertible. The robot was painted orange around its slightly sloped sides, where the Concussion name is carved out of the metal.

Concussion also featured a steep wedge at the rear, similar to Carbide. Its side armour was made from 3.2mm HARDOX, although Concussion's top armour was a weaker polycarbonate panel, while its baseplate is made of aluminium. Concussion's two front prongs exposed the front ground clearance of several robots, but its wheels were exposed to overhead attacks, and its motors were prone to burning out.

Notably, the team 3D printed their own removable link to lower the chances of the link falling out during battle. The robot was specifically designed to be serviceable from any angle, so as to minimise delays in repairing the robot.

Despite the obvious similarities, Concussion was not inspired by Pulsar or Battlebots competitor Minotaur. In fact, the team were not aware of Minotaur until during the design stage, at which point a few key liberties were taken to distinguish it from being a Minotaur clone.

Series 9
Concussion competed in Episode 3. In its Group Battle, it faced Series 8 fourth-place finisher Thor, fellow newcomer Tauron and another Series 8 returnee, Chimera2. At the start, Concussion immediately lunged at Tauron, but missed, only to slam into Tauron’s side and immobilise it. Seconds later, it flipped Chimera2 over, before chasing Chimera2 as it drove over the arena spikes. Chimera2 pushed Concussion back before Concussion spun away and hit its wedge. Concussion drove away as Thor axed Chimera2, before pushing Chimera2 into the CPZ and getting underneath it as Thor charged in to separate the two robots. A slam from Thor freed Concussion, allowing Concussion to hit its side twice with the drum as Chimera2 was counted out. As a result, Concussion progressed to the Head-to-Head round along with Thor, although not without losing drive to one side as a result of a burnt-out motor. "One of the windings has burnt out on one of the drive motors. Erm, we've never pushed him quite that hard. We've - you know - we've thrown him about in a car park and pulled a car or two, but, you know, never around against everyone else trying to rally against you."

- Tim Rackley assesses the damage to Concussion's drive motor

In the pits, Dorset Roboteering Team found that the affected drive motor was irreparable, and were forced to equip Concussion's second spare drive motor due to a faulty weld in their first spare. Concussion's first Head-to-Head battle saw it face Thor for the second time, with both robots slamming into each other in the opening seconds. It chased and pushed Thor towards a CPZ as the latter triggered 'Rogue House Robot', but was caught by Dead Metal and pinned against the wall as the latter sliced into its top panel. "They're okay, just about!"

- Jonathan Pearce as Concussion escapes Dead Metal's grasp

Dead Metal released Concussion from his grasp, where it momentarily hesitated before pursuing and slamming into Thor. Concussion hit Thor a few more times, sending sparks flying and causing CO2 to vent from the latter's axe mechanism, before driving over Thor’s wedge and momentarily lifting off the floor as it did so. Another couple of hits deflected Thor away and sent Concussion onto the partially-lowered pit panel, leaving it unable to drive away as its ground clearance was too low to drive out of it. Thor slammed into Concussion again, but this impact dislodged one of Concussion's drum belts. Both robots became stuck together as a result, before Thor freed itself using its axe and Concussion spun around on the pit panel as Thor pressed the Arena Tyre a second time. This activated 'Rogue House Robot' mode again, resulting in Matilda ramming into Concussion and getting wedged on top of it. "Oh, Matilda's done us in!"

- Sam Griffin as Concussion is rammed by Matilda

With Concussion stuck underneath Matilda, Thor axed Matilda's tusks before Dead Metal grabbed Concussion again and the three robots separated. Still trying to drive itself off the pit panel, Concussion drove around in circles, only to clip Thor's left-hand wheelguard with its drum and flip it over as the latter charged towards it. This was done with Concussion's drum spinning at half power. "...but poor Concussion. They're almost out of it, because they're stuck in there. They can't drum up enough power to get away – they can! OH! They flip Thor with the mighty power of the drum! What a turn up, what a turn up!"

- Jonathan Pearce as Concussion flips Thor over

With Thor left unable to self-right due to a depleted CO2 supply, Concussion emerged victorious, scoring three points for its first knock-out victory. However, Dorset Roboteering Team still encountered problems with the robot's drive systems, with all of its motors and speed controllers having burnt out following that battle. Despite the prospect of the team forfeiting their place, they repaired Concussion for its next battle with seconds to spare. The second Head-to-Head saw Concussion face Heavy Metal, a new robot from the experienced Team 13. It drove around Heavy Metal at the start, pursuing it across the arena before slamming drum-first into its wedge. Sparks and rubber treads from Heavy Metal's wheels flew across the arena as Concussion hit it again, before Concussion flipped Heavy Metal over and buffeted it towards the wall. Another slam from Concussion ripped Heavy Metal's right-hand wheel off and sent it flying out of the arena, leaving Heavy Metal immobilised on one side and unable to drive straight. Concussion sat in the middle of the arena until 'cease' was called, and scored another three points to remain first on the leaderboard with a total of six. This was enough for it to secure a guaranteed place in the Heat Final, even before its last Head-to-Head against M.R. Speed Squared.

Before the battle started, M.R. Speed Squared encountered problems attempting to get its spinning weapon working, with Dorset Roboteering Team both discussing the issue with Team Forsey and evaluating their tactics in light of this. "It didn't look like their weapon was going, so... we're just gonna go hell for leather at them, I suppose."

- Tim Rackley on M.R. Speed Squared’s weapon issues and Concussion's tactics ahead of their Head-to-Head

As the battle began, Concussion drove around and deflected M.R. Speed Squared, the latter spinning uncontrollably as its weapon powered up. This was enough to flip M.R. Speed Squared over and disable its weapon, with Concussion pursuing, hitting and pushing M.R. Speed Squared along the arena before the latter pressed the Arena Tyre to activate the pit. Concussion again hit M.R. Speed Squared, lifting it on top of itself with the drum, before attempting to pit it. Both robots swerved away from the pit edge, with Concussion hitting M.R. Speed Squared a few more times before pushing it over the Flame Pit and into Dead Metal. Once M.R. Speed Squared escaped, Concussion hit and pushed it again, seemingly unable to damage M.R. Speed Squared, before shoving it into Dead Metal and chasing it towards Sir Killalot. Concussion flipped M.R. Speed Squared onto itself again in the process, forcing Sir Killalot to grab and lift M.R. Speed Squared off in an attempt to separate them. "Concussion has been hit and dented, but it has been a very good machine – and very nearly got itself on the precipice there."

- Jonathan Pearce as Concussion tries to pit M.R. Speed Squared again

Once M.R. Speed Squared was thrown across the arena by Sir Killalot, Concussion again pushed it towards the pit, and started smoking as it hit and flipped M.R. Speed Squared a few more times. More smoke billowed as M.R. Speed Squared pushed it back, with Concussion noticeably losing speed and mobility across the arena floor as it tried to retaliate. "Something's on fire."

- Tim Rackley spots Concussion's internal fire

Still smoking, Concussion was rammed again by M.R. Speed Squared, and spun itself and its drum in an attempt to display its remaining signs of mobility. Despite this, it managed to hit M.R. Speed Squared twice more before 'cease' was called, and survived to a Judges' decision. Even with its reduced mobility, the decision went unanimously went in favour of Concussion, awarding it two points and first place on the leaderboard with eight points. "If they can avoid another battle bonfire, could this be the fairy-tale ending for the boys who went from fans to finalists?"

- Angela Scanlon before Concussion's Heat Final against Thor

Even with continuing repairs and uncertainties surrounding the reliability of its left-hand drive motor, this result confirmed Concussion's place in the Heat Final, where it faced Thor once again. At the start, Concussion slowly moved forwards as Thor rammed into it, before driving around and deflecting Thor away with a front-on blow. It chased Thor around the arena before hitting its side and wedge a few more times and almost flipping it onto its back. Again, Concussion pursued and hit Thor's wedge, with another hit causing Thor's CO2 system to leak for the second time, before gingerly pressing the Arena Tyre as Thor tried to push it back. This released the pit, with Concussion continuing to hit, chase and lift Thor with the drum as the two robots momentarily drove close to Dead Metal. "...and Concussion is prowling, and growling, and again holding the arena central space."

- Jonathan Pearce Eventually, another succession of blows resulted in Concussion flipping Thor over, with Thor self-righting immediately in response. More frontal slams allowed Concussion to buckle Thor's front wedge, before the two robots locked together and Concussion was pushed back and nearly axed by Thor. Both backed away, with Concussion nudging Thor as it briefly stopped moving near the Flame Pit. Thor regained mobility shortly after, and pushed Concussion over the Flame Pit seconds before 'cease' was called. Both robots survived to a Judges' decision as a result, with Concussion unanimously winning the decision and progressing to the Grand Final.

Results

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Wins/Losses

 * Wins: 5
 * Losses: 0

Trivia

 * Among Concussion's working names were Thrash Metal and Riptide.
 * The wooden prototype of Concussion was capable of pulling a 1.8 tonne car at over 5mph.
 * The team set a budget of £2000 to build Concussion, but went four times over-budget, and eventually spent £8000 on the robot.
 * Simon Scott of Team Razer manufactured Concussion's drum for a heavily reduced rate. This lead to the misconception that he had been involved in the design process.
 * According to the team, Concussion's ideal Tag Team Terror partner would be Terrorhurtz, so that the robots could attack from above and below in tandem (aerial and uppercut).
 * According to the team, their favourite fight of Series 9's Episode 3 was their defeat of Heavy Metal, as it demonstrated Concussion's full weapon potential.
 * Concussion's drum took 30 hours to mill.