- "A scary, nightmarish looking robot. Any bots brave enough to attack Banshee are surprised by its ability to revolve!"
- — The Robot Wars File on Banshee[1]
Banshee (sometimes known as Banshee Bandit) was a heavyweight robot that competed in Robot Wars: The Fourth Wars. It lost in the first round after being flipped over by Spawn of Scutter, and finished equal twelfth in the Pinball Warrior Tournament with a score of 75 points.
Team Banshee (as the 39th Huddersfield Scouts) also competed in Series 3 with Shark Attack, which was updated in five weeks to create Banshee.
Design[]
- "It revolves, took 5 weeks to update from Shark Attack in the last series. The weaponry comes from lathe tools."
- — Jonathan Pearce on Banshee's updates and weapon
Front view of Banshee
Banshee was a full-body spinning robot, with fairly low rotating speeds of 200rpm, giving it 360 degrees of defence. It had the novelty head of a large banshee, a female Irish spirit wailing "warnings of impending death and doom" according to the team, complete with hypnotic flashing eyes. It has been jokingly stated that the robot was modelled on team captain Graham Walker's wife. The robot's body proved especially fragile, with its head being decapitated by Shunt's axe following its Series 4 defeat. Additionally, Banshee had no self-righting mechanism, and a top speed of only 5mph which adversely affected its performances in both the main series and the Pinball Warrior Tournament.
Qualification[]
At the Series 4 qualifiers, Banshee fought Sumpthing. In the battle, Banshee's head was repeatedly punctured by Sumpthing's axe and it would eventually lose. Despite this, Banshee was still awarded a discretionary place in The Fourth Wars.[2]
- "[The axe] was exactly the right height for his head! We were just like spearing it in the head relentlessly in the qualifiers! ... Quite macabre actually!"
- — Mr Dig, interviewed in 2022
Robot History[]
Series 4[]
Banshee competed in Heat L of The Fourth Wars, where it was drawn up against 10th seed Spawn of Scutter, the successor of semi-finalist Scutter's Revenge, and newcomer Knightmare in its first battle.
- "We're going to thrash Shunt with this, definitely!"
- — Graham Warner's ironic prediction of the upcoming battle
Banshee is thrust over by Spawn of Scutter's spike
Banshee quickly got its spinning weapon up to speed, but was immediately rammed by both Spawn of Scutter and Knightmare, although neither were able to get underneath it. Spawn of Scutter continued to pursue Banshee, pushing it around the arena but still unable to breach its ground clearance. Banshee's slow speed prevented it from evading Spawn of Scutter and it was eventually rammed by Knightmare. This allowed Spawn of Scutter to force its way underneath Banshee and thrust it across the arena with its spike. Banshee bounced on its own spinning weapon before toppling over, its head detaching in the process.
- "But that's the danger with a robot shaped like Banshee! You can be toppled and thrust away by that spike there! Venomous!"
- — Jonathan Pearce as Banshee is overturned by Spawn of Scutter
Shunt axes through Banshee's head
With no self-righting mechanism, Banshee was immobilised less than thirty seconds into the battle. As Spawn of Scutter and Knightmare turned on each other, the House Robots moved in to attack Banshee. Shunt reached the beaten machine first and fired his axe into its head, much to Jonathan Pearce's delight. Dragging Banshee's head away, Shunt retracted his axe with the head still attached, drove over to the Flame Pit and dumped the head onto the hazard, leaving it to burn.
- "Headache? I don't think any pills are gonna...make that one feel better!"
- — Jonathan Pearce, having recovered from his laughing fit after Banshee's decapitation
Banshee's decapitated head over the flames...
...and the charred remains
Meanwhile, the other House Robots were attacking Banshee's main body, with Dead Metal sawing into the lathe tools and Sir Killalot peeling away the top panel. By this point, Shunt had axed Banshee's head again, dragging it off the Flame Pit and spinning it around, where it flew off and landed by the closed Pit of Oblivion. As Spawn of Scutter and Knightmare continued their own back-and-forth battle, Dead Metal nudged the now re-righted Banshee onto the Floor Flipper, where it was flung across the arena, bouncing a couple of times before landing on its wheels.
- "That's brilliant! That really has made my day"
- — Jonathan Pearce on Banshee's destruction
Cease was called shortly after the flip and Banshee was eliminated from the competition.
- Julia Reed: "I tell you, it's a good thing we got the gag in about looking like your wife before the battle, but we'll have it again, shall we? What's she gonna say about that?"
- Graham Walker: "Errm, good question that. Probably relief. At least she won't have something to compare herself with"
- — Banshee's post-battle interview
In addition to the main competition, Banshee also competed in the Pinball Warrior Tournament, where its run was aired as part of Heat K, one episode before its main series appearance.
- "Hit the barrels down, five points for each barrel (breaks down laughing) knocked over... in your own time, boys! Don't worry about it!"
- — Jonathan Pearce on Banshee's slow speed
Banshee nudges the 50-point target
Banshee immediately targeted the right-hand set of barrels, but its slow speed once again proved a detriment, as it took seven seconds just to turn and knock the barrels over. It then traveled across the right-hand arena wall, with Dead Metal making no attempt to stop it. Despite this, Banshee persisted and ran towards the 50 point target guarded by Sgt. Bash before reversing into it.
- "Look, this is a speedy turn. Hello! I'm turning! I'm turning any day now, I'm turning! Oh, that's aiming at the 50 points, though! Across goes Bash to cover! 50 points scored! Steady progress... the word 'steady' being emphasized."
- — Jonathan Pearce mocks, then praises, Banshee's pinball run
Banshee then turned and attempted to hit the 50 point target again, but this did not count towards its score. It then reversed into Sgt. Bash, who backed away and allowed it to approach the Multi-Ball Release. Banshee glanced the side of the Release, but this was enough for it to activate. Banshee then moved towards the centre of the arena, but was penned in by Dead Metal and Sir Killalot, preventing it from scoring any more points as time ran out.
- "Now, which way are we going dear? OK, steady as she goes! I'm coming towards the ramp now, House Robots! Well, I plan to. Spectacular, spectacular"
- — Jonathan Pearce as Banshee's run ends
Banshee finished its pinball run with a low score of 75 points, which ultimately left it in joint 12th place with Stinger.
Results[]
| BANSHEE - RESULTS | ||
| Series 4 | ||
| The Fourth Wars - UK Championship Heat, Round 1 | ||
| Heat L, Eliminator | vs. Knightmare, Spawn of Scutter (10) | Eliminated |
| Pinball Warrior Tournament Equal 12th (with Stinger) | ||
| Pinball | 75 pts | 12th |
Wins/Losses[]
- Wins: 0
- Losses: 1
Series Record[]
| Series | Banshee Series Record |
|---|---|
| The First Wars | Did not enter |
| The Second Wars | Did not enter |
| The Third Wars | Entered with Shark Attack |
| The Fourth Wars | Heat, Round 1 |
| The Fifth Wars | Did not enter |
| The Sixth Wars | Did not enter |
| The Seventh Wars | Did not enter |
| Series 8 | Did not enter |
| Series 9 | Did not enter |
| Series 10 | Did not enter |
Gallery[]
