Robot Wars: The First Wars/Heat F

The First Wars - Heat F was one of six heats which determined the Grand Finalists of Robot Wars: The First Wars. The episode featuring Heat F was originally broadcast on March 27, 1998 on BBC2.

Competing Robots
Eubank the Mouse T.R.A.C.I.E. (Terrestrial Robotic Artificial Computerised Intelligence Engine) Skarab Prince of Darkness Elvis The Blob

Gauntlet
Eubank the Mouse - Completed - Its speed and manoeverability took them straight through the route guarded by House Robots despite the fact all three House Robots were patrolling at the time. Dead Metal was the only House Robot to cause them much trouble forcing them back half way through the course.

Prince of Darkness - Completed - Despite the doubts about the robots durabiity (being made of wood and in under five hours) they successfully tackled both ramps and crossed the finish line but Matilda pushed them back out into the arena. The team celebrated as they thought they had completed the course but the judges said they hadn't fully crossed the line. Matilda had pushed them back into a pyramid but couldn't manoever to keep Prince of Darkness pinned and they escaped to cross the finish line once and for all. Host Jeremy Clarkson then informed them that theirs was the worst robot he had ever seen.

Skarab - Completed - Skarab also took on the House Robot route. It wasn't as fast as Eubank the Mouse and took some punishment from Sgt. Bash's saw before being squeezed between Sgt. Bash and Dead Metal. They escaped and and were pressed into the arena side wall by Dead Metal but they carried on into the end zone.

T.R.A.C.I.E. - 8.70m - The team had confessed a worry in the pits that they had not been able to find enough power to get them down the gauntlet. The robot was very slow getting out of the turntable but its low centre of gravity meant Sgt. Bash's flamethrower was unable to damage it. The House Robots blocked T.R.A.C.I.E.s route and the robot seemed immobile by this point in any case.

The Blob - 7.00 - An initial burst of speed took The Blob beyond Sgt. Bash but Dead Metal stopped them in their tracks. Unable to progress down the course The Blob was pushed back by Dead Metal, Sgt. Bash and Matilda.

Elvis - 2.75m - Elvis ponderously approached the ramp and almost instantly got stuck due to its low clearance. It's 'light shade' and 'rivet ram' weaponry were no help and Sgt. Bash used its circular saw to scar the paintwork. Elvis raised its 'light shade' and shattered part of Sgt. Bash's saw but it didn't improve their performance.

Eliminated: Elvis

Trial (Snooker)
1. Prince of Darkness 2. Skarab 3. The Blob 4. T.R.A.C.I.E. 5. Eubank the Mouse

T.R.A.C.I.Es design was ideal for this because their spikes provided the perfect ball controllers. Skarab, Prince of Darkness and The Blob all added different kinds of ball controller to help them in the game. The Blob was first to the pile of balls, whilst T.R.A.C.I.E. seemed to have already either broken down or wedged themselves into their own goal. Prince of Darkness managed a long shot from the centre of the arena straight into its goal giving them the first pot. Skarab also managed to score and spent the remainder of the round guarding their pocket tactically. Prince of Darkness scored two more goals in quick succession whilst The Blob nudged a ball towards their pocket but its didn't quite cross the line. Prince of Darkness gathered a lot of balls to pocket them and bought their total to six and Eubank the Mouse appeared to have broken down. The Blob was also cleared to go through because it remained active throughout the game. Despite the fact T.R.A.C.I.E. was the least active it was announced that Eubank the Mouse had irrepairably broken down.

Eliminated: Eubank the Mouse

Arena
Neither robot was very fast but it became clear very quickly that Skarab had the edge when it came to pushing power and they attempted an attack with their hammer but missed. Their pushing power proved effective and it shoved The Blob onto the side rails where Shunt and Sgt. Bash attacked the fallen robot.
 * The Blob vs. Skarab

T.R.A.C.I.E. managed to puncture Prince of Darkness' tyres twice in a matter of moments. Prince of Darkness just escaped being placed on the grill but T.R.A.C.I.E. nearly flipped them over as the house robots moved in for the kill.
 * T.R.A.C.I.E. vs. Prince of Darkness

Final
Skarab vs. T.R.A.C.I.E. Skarab's hammer had broken in the previous fight so they were using a mace borrowed from the Killertron team. T.R.A.C.I.E. was quick to attack Skarab and ripped off some of Skarab's armour. T.R.A.C.I.E. dashed round Skarab and drove its prongs straight into Sgt. Bash. Matilda used her chainsaw on Skarab and chopped of their aerial but Skarab wasn't immobilised by this move. T.R.A.C.I.E. attacked Matilda's tusks forcing the House Robot away from Skarab and then turned and attacked Sgt. Bash for a second time. Although the match went to a judges decision there was little doubt over the winner

Winner: T.R.A.C.I.E.