This article is about the weapon. For other uses, see Spike (disambiguation).
Spikes are among one of the simplest and most versatile weapons used in Robot Wars. They were especially prevalent in earlier series, with Series 1 competitors Nemesis, Prince of Darkness, REALI-T, Shogun, SAT'arn and Wharthog among the first to be fitted with such weapons.
The most successful competitors to have spikes as key parts of their designs include Series 6 champion Tornado, Third World Champion Storm 2 and US Season 2 Grand Finalists Rocky-Bot-Boa and Tricerabot.
Definition[]
- A spike is a pointed weapon fixed to a robot which is intended to ram, pierce and puncture other robots' armour and wheels. They can exist in various forms, ranging from short sharp points to spike traps and even shortened spears, and can be fitted to any part of the robots' chassis and/or armour. Additionally, spikes were often used as extra attachments for certain weapons, including Wild Thing's lifting arm in Series 4 and the axes of Dominator 2 and Kat 3, the latter with the intention of enabling their self-righting capabilities. For convenience, those types of spikes are excluded from this list.
Advantages and Disadvantages[]
Advantages
Das Gepäck shoves Delldog into the pit using its spikes
Mr Nasty rams its spike into Maximus
- Spikes are light, affordable and easy to attach to a robot.
- They can be fixed anywhere on a robot's chassis or armour, considerably improving its defensive potential.
- Their affordability and light weight can allow for improvements to other aspects of the robot, such as stronger armour and more drive power. Tornado, Das Gepäck, Tricerabot and Storm 2 all benefited from excellent pushing power received from heavier and more powerful drive motors, a strength inherited from their adoption of simpler and lighter spike weapons.
- They could cause damage to other robots' armour depending on their design and especially when combined with strong pushing power. Tornado's chassis-mounted spikes were equally able to hold opponents in place as well as piercing holes through their armour and wheels, as was Mr Nasty's larger front spike against Maximus' side in the Extreme 2 New Blood Championship.
- Their shorter length circumvented the manoeuvrability problems faced with spears, as they made robots less liable to getting impaled through opponents, arena hazards or the wall.
Disadvantages
Tornado's basic weaponry in Series 4 was instrumental in its easy defeat against Chaos 2
Fluffy tears one of Das Gepäck's spikes off
- They did not offer much offensive potential compared to retractable spikes or spears, putting most robots equipped with them at a major disadvantage on damage. The majority of Velocirippa's losses, as well as Mighty Mouse's loss to Thermidor 2 in Series 7 and Tornado's loss to Chaos 2 in Series 4, were all attributed to their spike weapons not being as effective or potent as their opponents'.
- While less liable to being broken off than spears, they could still be easily damaged upon contact with other weapons. Das Gepäck notably had one of its front spikes ripped off by Fluffy's spinning blade during the final of the UK vs Germany special.
- As they were not considered to be active weapons, static spikes could not be used as a robot's primary weapon from Series 7 onward. This resulted in robots such as Mighty Mouse and Storm 2 adopting moving weapons to cohere with the new rule.
List of Robots with Spikes[]
Robots are listed alphabetically.
DESKTOP MODE ONLY: Robots which are not heavyweight entries are listed with a green background. House Robots are listed with a gold background. Robots from the 1994-1997 US competitions are listed with a purple background.
| Robot | Series Appearances with Spikes | Notes | Image |
|---|---|---|---|
| A-Kill (Middleweight) | Series 3 | ||
| Alien | Series 3 | Robotic Soccer only. | |
| All Torque | Series 2-3 | Series 2 Heat Finalist. Replaced with a static scoop for Series 3, though a pair of horizontal crushing spikes were added for The First World Championship. | |
| Ally Gator | Series 3 | Front and rear spikes, as well as serrated spike strips along its top armour to catch robots that drove on top of it. | |
| Angel of Death | Series 2 | Eliminated in the Gauntlet stage before the weapons could be used in combat. | |
| Anvil | Extreme 1 | ||
| Atlas | Series 3 | ||
| Beef-Cake | Extreme 1 | Extreme 1 Featherweight Champion. | |
| Blackdevil Warzone | Dutch Series 2 | ||
| Black Widow (Extreme Warriors) | US Season 2 | US Season 2 Tag Team Terror champion, along with Rocky-Bot-Boa. | |
| Bulldog Breed | Series 3-5 | Rear spikes, discarded from Series 6 onwards. | |
| Cerberus | Series 3-4, Extreme 1-2 | Sets of large spikes at the front, designed to resemble 'claws'. | |
| Challenger | Series 2-3 | ||
| Chip | Extreme 2 | Replaced its spinning disc after the latter broke before competing in the New Blood Championship. | |
| Close Enough | US Season 1 | ||
| Darke Destroyer | Series 3-4 | ||
| Das Gepäck | Series 6, Dutch Series 2 | Joint winner of the UK vs Germany special, along with Fluffy. | |
| Dead Metal | Series 1-7, US Season 1-2, Nickelodeon, Dutch Series 1-2, German Series | Single rear spike complementing the House Robot's exoskeletal design. | |
| Demon | Series 2 | Two 10mm steel spikes at the rear; robot mostly relied on its front wedge shape. | |
| Doodlebug | Series 2 | Middleweight Championship only. | |
| Double Trouble | Series 6 | ||
| Eddy Evolution | Extreme 2 | Featherweight. | |
| Flepser | Dutch Series 2 | ||
| General Carnage 2 | Series 5 | ||
| Golem | Extreme 1, German Series | ||
| Hard Cheese | Series 2-3, Extreme 1 | Series 2 Middleweight Champion. | |
| Havoc | Series 2 | ||
| Kater Killer | Series 3-4 | Pair of front spikes in Series 3, replaced with a spiked lifting arm in Series 4, although a pair of rear spikes still featured. | |
| Lateral Thought | Series 2 | Reserve robot. | |
| Lightning Tracks | US Season 2 | ||
| Mad Dog (US) | 1996 Championship | Side spikes fixed on either side of the featherweight's wedge shape. | |
| Malc 1.5 | Extreme 2 | Middleweight. | |
| Manta | US Season 1-2 | ||
| Mastiff | Extreme 1 | ||
| Mega-Hurts | Extreme 1 | ||
| Micro-Mute | Series 7, Extreme 2 | Featherweight. | |
| Mighty Mouse | Series 6-7 | Used front HARDOX static spikes - painted to resemble the mouse's 'teeth' and 'tongue' - to save weight for better armour and more powerful drive motors. | |
| Milly-Ann Bug | Series 2-4 | ||
| Mini-Maul | Series 7 | Featherweight. | |
| Miss Struts | Series 3 | ||
| Mr Nasty | Series 6, Extreme 2 | ||
| My Little Pony | 1996 Championship | Large front white spike. | |
| Nemesis | Series 1-2 | Optional side and rear static steel spikes, used in tandem with a front pneumatic spike. | |
| Nemesis (1996) | 1996 Championship | ||
| Oblivion | Series 2-4 | ||
| Onslaught | Series 2-5 | Two small spikes on rear bar. | |
| ORAC | Series 2-3 | A pair of 'lifting chisels' in Series 2, replaced with two short static spikes for Series 3 when competing as Orac's Revenge. | |
| Overdozer | Series 8 | Two 20cm fixed spikes. | |
| Panda Monium | Series 2 | A large front lifting spike for ramming and defence against circular weapons, paired with two static 'chisel' spikes on either side. | |
| Panzer | Series 3 | Interchangeable with a cutting saw. | |
| Paul Bunyan | US Season 2 | ||
| Penetrator | Series 2 | ||
| Phantasm | Nickelodeon | ||
| Plunderbird | Series 2-4 | Claw-shaped spikes placed on the top of the bodyshell in various incarnations; Series 2 Semi-Finalist as Plunderbird 2. | |
| Pokey | 1996 Championship | Capable of puncturing T6 grade aluminium. | |
| Prince of Darkness | Series 1 | Middleweight entry; removable spike fitted to the front wedge shape for the Arena stages. | |
| Raging Reality | Series 6, Extreme 2 | ||
| Raizer Blade | Series 3-4 | Rear spike, interchangeable with a chainsaw in Series 3. Replaced the chainsaw in Series 4. | |
| Rambot | Series 4 | A total of four spikes; two on the front lifter, and two more at the rear. Used to puncture Behemoth's side armour in combat. | |
| Rammstein | Series 4 | A static spike replaced the robot's original pneumatic spike for the War of Independence, in order to bring it within the 95kg weight limit for American Robot Wars 2000 applicants.[1] | |
| Rattus Rattus | Series 3 | ||
| Rawbot | Series 7, Extreme 2 | ||
| RC Warrior | Extreme 1 | Featherweight. | |
| REALI-T | Series 1 | The main armour was made out of sharpened wire, making it the first robot to feature armour which doubled as a weapon. | |
| Red 2 | 1996 Championship | Two rear spikes, along with toothed sections on each side. | |
| Robocow | Series 3 | ||
| Rocky-Bot-Boa | US Season 2 | Front and side spikes used for ramming and defensive purposes. US Season 2 Grand Finalist and Tag Team Terror co-champion, along with Black Widow. | |
| Roadkill | Series 3 | Did not appear in the televised series after being involved in a behind-the-scenes accident. | |
| Ron | Series 2 | ||
| Rosebud | Series 2 | Lightweight Championship only. | |
| Rosie the Riveter | US Season 1-2, Nickelodeon | ||
| Rottweiler | Series 2 | ||
| S.M.I.D.S.Y. | Series 3-4 | Rear spikes replaced with a horizontal disc from Series 5/Extreme 1 onwards. | |
| SAT'arn | Series 1 | Consisted of a pair of 'horns' made from shelving brackets bolted together. Featherweight entry. | |
| Shadow of Napalm | Series 4 | ||
| Shockwave (Extreme 1) | Extreme 1 | ||
| Shogun | Series 1 | Interchangeable pairs of side spikes varying in length and thickness. | |
| Sniper | Dutch Series 1 | ||
| Soc'em | Series 2 | Super Heavyweight Championship only. | |
| Spectre | Series 3 | Robotic Soccer only. | |
| Spiked Master 2 | 1996 Championship | Long spikes on the front, sides and rear. | |
| Spiny Norman | 1996 Championship | Entire bodyshell lined with outward-facing nails acting as spikes. | |
| Sting | Series 2-3 | ||
| Storm 2 | Series 7-8, Extreme 2 | Pair of static spikes at the rear. Extreme 2 New Blood Champion, Series 7 runner-up and Third World Champion, although relied primarily on its speed and pushing power. | |
| Sumpthing | Series 3-6, Extreme 1-2 | ||
| Talos | Series 2 | Interchangeable with a lance. | |
| Tantrum | Series 2 | ||
| Techno-Lease | Series 3 | ||
| Terror Australis | Series 3 | The original version was replaced with a repainted and renamed Nemesis for the International League Championship. | |
| The Blob | Series 1 | ||
| The Brute | US Season 1-2 | Rear ramming spike, paired with a set of front lifting spikes (Season 1) or a spinning drum (Season 2). | |
| The Iron Mask | Series 3 | ||
| The Parthian Shot | Series 2 | ||
| The Termite | US Season 2 | ||
| Thermador | Series 3 | Designed to resemble a lobster. Spike was incorporated into the robot's 'head'. | |
| Tornado | Series 4-7, Extreme 1-2 | Series 6 Champion. Sets of small static spikes at the front and rear, used in tandem with a pneumatic spike for Series 4. Enabled Tornado to save weight for more powerful drive motors. A larger ramming spike was also used as an interchangeable weapon in Series 6, used in its Heat Final against Anarchy. | |
| Tricerabot | US Seasons 1-2 | Five large front ramming spikes. Season 2 US Championship runner-up as Tricerabot 3.0. | |
| Triterobot | Series 3 | ||
| UFO | Series 6 | ||
| Velocirippa | Series 3-4, Extreme 2 | 8mm HARDOX ramming spikes in Series 3-4, front spikes replaced with a cutting disc for Series 5/Extreme 1. Front ramming spikes were refitted for the Extreme 2 model, but replaced with a lifting scoop for Series 7. | |
| Victor | Series 2-3 | Side-facing rear spikes; used for sit-and-spin attacks. | |
| Wedge of Doom | 1996 Championship | Four spikes lined along the top of the featherweight champion's front wedge shape. | |
| Weeliwako | Series 3 | ||
| Wharthog | Series 1 | ||
| Wheelosaurus | Series 2, 4 | Large spikes mounted to the aluminium dustbin lids protecting its wheels. | |
| Xenomorph | Series 7 | ||
| Zeus (UK) | Series 3 |
References[]
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