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"The year 2049, the robots have taken control of the people! But it is not yet 2049, people still dominate their fighting colossi, in life and death battles, for these are the ROBOTWARS !!"
— Golem website (translated from German)[1]

Golem was a German robot that fought in German Robot Wars and part of UK Robot Wars Extreme. While it lost its only battle in Extreme 1, Golem reached the Heat Final of German Robot Wars, losing to eventual fourth place finisher Tyke.

Golem was scheduled to take part in the Losers Melee to determine fifth through eighth place at the end of the series, but was forced to withdraw after sustaining damage from Shunt in its battle with Tyke. Golem was then stripped of its electronics and the chassis was used as a Drop Zone item in the Grand Final.

Team member Dirk Ferachen also assisted Junkyard Queen roboteer Frank Fietzek during German Robot Wars, despite the two robots battling each other in the first round of the championship.

Design[]

GolemGRW

Golem in German Robot Wars

Golem was a large invertible cross-shaped robot with four wheels, a front wedge and a set of carbon spikes as its weapons. It cost £3000 to build, and was painted silver and green in Extreme 1, with the chassis painted in a darker shade of green for the German series. In the German series, Golem also featured a Michelin Man doll impaled on its front spike, which served as the robot's mascot. The robot ran on a highly modified speed controller, 30 Ni-Cd. Cells with 20 Amps capacity, and electric drive motors with 1.2kW of power in each. The robot's wheels were exposed from the top and could be dislodged easily, and the machine was unreliable, breaking down in two of its battles.

Etymology[]

The name Golem originated from Jewish mythology, meaning "soulless mass". Typical depictions of golems are usually very large, which the robot Golem suited, being one of the largest in the German series.

Qualification[]

Golembfb

Golem at the German series auditions

After RTL announced a series of Robot Wars which would air in Germany, to be filmed concurrently with the fifth UK series and first Dutch series, Golem was built ahead of the deadline, and was ready to compete. However, as Golem was one of only four applicants for the series, filming for a dedicated series never took place due to the lack of entries[2]. Golem was, however, invited to compete in the German Melee of Robot Wars Extreme, alongside the other three series applicants.

When RTL attempted to film another German series of Robot Wars one year later, the series found enough entries for filming to proceed, and Golem was among its twelve participants. Golem was required to attend a safety check two months prior to the filming of the series, alongside all of the other competitors. Here, Golem was the most complete robot in attendance, having been built a year prior.

Robot History[]

Extreme 1[]

Golem arena

Golem in the arena during the German Melee

In The German World Championship Qualifier (which was also broadcast a year later during German Robot Wars), Golem faced Ansgar, Flensburger Power and Nasty Warrior. Before the battle, Golem damaged the arena entry gates by driving straight into it.

"We four teams were divided into two boxes where our robots should do a short driving test. Here, Golem left a "lasting impression". They unintentionally destroyed the aluminium gate and delayed the fight by several minutes (PANIC!). When the damage was resolved, the fight could begin."
— Ansgar website (translated from German)[3]
German melee golem pitted

Golem is pushed into the pit in the final seconds of the German Melee

Golem dodged its opponents, but got stuck on an angle grinder and broke down. Matilda and Shunt pushed it onto the pit, before Refbot pressed the button at the end of the battle. Ansgar was declared the winner, and so qualified for the World Championships.

"After promising 1.5 minutes Golem fell out! Until the end of the fight also Flensburger Power and Nasty Warrior were struck, so that Ansgar won after refereeing decision. Thus, the 1 German champion was determined. Congratulations to the Far North. This success made it possible to participate in the World Cup following on Sunday 1 July 2001, which started with the quarter-finals, in which four robots were sent to the arena at the same time. Ansgar pulled itself through the affair respectably, but did not survive the fight."
— Golem website (translated from German)[4]

German Series[]

GolemLooseWheel

The loose tyre

JunkyardGolem

Golem is lifted by Junkyard Queen

In Golem's first battle, it faced Ansgar's Revenge, for a second time, and Junkyard Queen, both of whom suffered from control issues during the melee. Early on, Golem's wheel dislodged, causing it to have drive issues, especially in reverse. With Ansgar's Revenge limping heavily, Golem spent the rest of the battle fighting with Junkyard Queen, save for the final few seconds, where Golem repeatedly slammed into the arena wall, attempting to reverse but unable to due to the blocked wheel.

"We lost a drive wheel in the fight, Golem was thereby uncontrollable and again could not show his true strength. Nevertheless, we got into the next round and even punched a hole in the armour of "Ansgar's Revenge", which was unfortunately eliminated. After that we had to fix and improvise for half a day to get Golem back on the road. After all, our highly modified speed controller had easily survived the match."
— Golem website (translated from German)[5]
ShuntAxesGolem

Golem's battery pack is axed by Shunt

GolemCountout

Golem is counted out against Tyke

In its Grand Final qualifier, Golem faced Tyke and began the battle well, despite running into Shunt, shoving Tyke into the pit release button. Tyke fought back, and, just as it had broken away, Golem broke down. Smoke could be seen billowing from the top of Golem as the Refbot counted it out, and the House Robots attacked. Golem was put onto the flipper and thrown across the arena, put onto the Drop Zone where a collection of balls was dropped onto it, and finally pushed into the pit by Mr. Psycho.

"It was again the House Robot "Shunt". He punched through our 5mm aluminium armour with approx. 1 cm hard rubber cushioning and stabbed us in the middle of our battery pack, cutting and crushing several cable insulation. The whole thing triggered a gigantic short circuit and "Golem" stood motionless and smoking in the arena. Of course, once again the usual fire-fighting action was needed to fight the fire. Unfortunately, our battery blew his life out. May his ashes rest.... "
— Golem website (translated from German)[6]
GolemDropzone

Golem being used as a Drop Zone object

Golem was set to appear in the Losers Melee for 5th-8th position, but, like Hydrotec, had to withdraw. Despite this, it did make an appearance in the battle, as a Drop Zone item. It descended onto the top of Junkyard Queen which had been immobilised, mostly missing its mark, but still knocking the weight off Junkyard Queen's weapon.

Results[]

GOLEM - RESULTS
German Series
German Robot Wars
German Championship
Heat Final
Heat A, Eliminator vs. Ansgar's Revenge, Junkyard Queen Qualified
Heat A, Final vs. Tyke Lost
Grand Final, Losers Melee vs. Junkyard Queen, Not Perfect Withdrew
NOTE: Golem was forced to withdraw before the fight began due to damage sustained from Shunt during its battle with Tyke. Hydrotec was also due to compete and forced to withdraw.
UK Series
Extreme Series 1
The Second World Championship
German Melee
German Melee vs. Ansgar, Flensburger Power, Nasty Warrior Lost
NOTE: This battle was also broadcast during German Robot Wars

Wins/Losses[]

  • UK Wins: 0
  • UK Losses: 1
  • German Wins: 1
  • German Losses: 1

NOTE: The losers' melee from which Golem withdrew is not included in the tally.

Series Record[]

German Series[]

German Series Golem Series Record
German Robot Wars Heat Final

UK Series[]

Main Series Golem Series Record
The First Wars Did not enter
The Second Wars Did not enter
The Third Wars Did not enter
The Fourth Wars Did not enter
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
Robot Wars Extreme Appearances
Series 1 German Melee
Series 2 Did not enter

Gallery[]

Outside Robot Wars[]

Golem

Golem at the Dutch Robot Games in 2001

Golem vs Philipper 2

Golem fighting Philipper at the Dutch Robot Games 2001

Between its appearances in Extreme 1 and the German series, Golem competed at the Dutch Robot Games in 2001. In the first round of the international bracket, Golem faced Philipper, but suffered from a severe speed controller outage in battle, causing it to burn out[7]. The Golem team were present at the Dutch Robot Games in 2003, but instead competed as part of the Black Hole 2 team.

"On 26 and 27 April 2003 the second Dutch Robot Games took place in Rijswijk (NL). The event was held as part of a doll fair in the Darlingexpo halls. For the first time, the transportable Lexan arena of "Roaming Robots" was used on Dutch soil. It was fought according to the rules of Robotwars with a pitfall in the arena. In total, about 50 international teams took part, including 8 teams from Germany."
— Golem website (translated from German)[8]
Golem Alarm Fur Cobra 2003

Golem at a German live event in 2003

Golem's last known competition was at a German live event on 15 November 2003, which was filmed to make footage for the German television series Alarm für Cobra 11. Unfortunately, not much is known about this competition, or if any of the footage from the show ended up on television, other than the fact that Golem faced Son of Armageddon.

Aside from their heavyweight machine Golem, the team also started building a raptor class robot with a pneumatic axe, and an antweight robot named Golissimo, designed to scale down the Golem design.

Trivia[]

Golem with Michelin Man

Golem with a Michelin Man doll during the German series

  • Golem is the only robot to be put on the Drop Zone and then used as a Drop Zone object.

References[]

External Links[]

Navigation[]

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