User blog:VulcansHowl/What if...Terrorhurtz fought in Series 7?

As everyone knows, all but one seed made it to the warzone in Series 7. That seed, of course, was Terrorhurtz. Fresh from finishing fourth in the Sixth Wars, and seeded third in Razer's absence, John Reid's masterpiece received a revised axe, new shape and thicker armour for Series 7, ready for another chassis-bending, panel-smashing, breakdown-inducing reign of terror. But that reign was stopped before it began. Terrorhurtz was rejected from the studio for arriving unfinished; John Reid had the unfortunate responsibility of reenacting its disqualification for the cameras. Missing in action from its first-round battle in Heat B, Terrorhurtz was not to set wheel into the arena again until 2016.

For a while, that incident got me thinking. What if the disqualification hadn't occurred in the first place? What if the producers allowed Terrorhurtz to be completed in time for Heat B, in honour of its status as the then-third seed? With these questions in mind, I would like to present my views on how it might have fared if it was permitted to compete in Series 7, and if that 'all robots must be complete' clause was never enacted upon.

Terrorhurtz (3) vs Jackson Wallop vs Gyrobot vs Killerkat
For this round, I have to consider the individual performances of the other three robots that fought in this melee. Out of all of them, I felt that Jackson Wallop was the strongest performer, being able to pummel, tear and knock Killerkat onto its side through its flails. Gyrobot had decent power through its spinning rim and drive system, although the rim had a tendency to stop working after a few hits. As for Killerkat... well, let’s not say any more about it, shall we? Anyway, Terrorhurtz's polycarbonate would have posed an obvious weakness, since both Jackson Wallop and Gyrobot proved effective at damaging tougher armour, and Terrorhurtz's experience with Fluffy showed it as being particularly vulnerable to spinners in the past. However, with its new armour being substantially thicker than before, Terrorhurtz would've easily withstood blows from both spinners as it knocked and pounded Killerkat into submission. At some point, Gyrobot's spinner stops working after a few attacks, and Terrorhurtz capitalises on this fault by cornering the defenseless Gyrobot in a CPZ and axing it until it becomes immobilised. The third seeds go through along with the promising Jackson Wallop.

Scenario 1: Big Nipper vs Terrorhurtz (3)
Now this is where things get a little more difficult. If we take the draws of the real Heat B into account, then Terrorhurtz, by being the most dominant robot in its melee, would face Big Nipper, and Jackson Wallop would face The Grim Reaper in Gyrobot's place. There are two clips on YouTube which show Terrorhurtz and Big Nipper fighting each other at live events. On the evidence of these clips, as well as Big Nipper's tussles with The Grim Reaper, Big Nipper appears to be more than capable of withstanding Terrorhurtz's axe blows to no end, while simultaneously exploiting its ground clearance with the lifting claws.

My view is that if Terrorhurtz and Big Nipper met at this stage, the battle might have panned out in a similar way to the first clip. Big Nipper lifts and pushes Terrorhurtz several times while occasionally grabbing its axe, while Terrorhurtz momentarily makes up for this by repeatedly axing Big Nipper while being pressured. Eventually, the axe runs out of CO2, and Big Nipper is finally able to turn Terrorhurtz over into a position where it can't self-right. The third seeds crash out shockingly early, and the Heat Final plays out as normal.

Scenario 2: Terrorhurtz (3) vs The Grim Reaper
HOWEVER, since the drawing system in Robot Wars is unpredictable at best, as highlighted by CaliforniaKingsnake and CrashBash's recent blog posts, there's a chance that the producers might have wanted to draw Terrorhurtz against The Grim Reaper instead. Here, I feel that Terrorhurtz has a stronger chance of reaching the Heat Final. It has plenty of experience coming out on top against flippers, having pulverised the likes of Kronic 2, Spawn Again, Bigger Brother and Dantomkia into submission up to this point. The Grim Reaper is solid, fast and aggressive, but the end of its flipper always seemed to struggle in getting fully underneath opponents, and even in its first-round battle it was never able to finish Big Nipper off.

In other words, Terrorhurtz has the measure on both damage and finishing power. A sustained number of axe blows would likely damage The Grim Reaper's armour, chassis and exposed tyres, and possibly knock something loose inside the Reaper that would more than likely immobilise it. The Grim Reaper is defeated, while Terrorhurtz reaps the rewards by going through to the Heat Final...

Heat Final
There, it faces Big Nipper, and I'm afraid the first scenario I proposed in Round 2 would probably enact itself again at this stage. As a result, Terrorhurtz is eliminated, and Big Nipper reaches the Semi-Finals for the first time ever in impressive style. Meanwhile, another Series 7 seed meets an early demise...

Conclusion
In conclusion, I would say that Terrorhurtz wouldn't have been able to progress far in Series 7, but would've at least reached the Heat Final depending on who it faced in the second round. Evidence from the live events suggests that Big Nipper would've had the measure of the third seeds in a one-on-one encounter, and pulled off a surprising but commanding victory that only Fluffy, Razer and Tornado had properly achieved by this time. Terrorhurtz, the third seed, would've still crashed out of Heat B, but in a much more dignified and satisfying way than in real life.