Hyena

Hyena
Participation Information
US 1994-1997 Events	1997
Team Information
Team Members	Morgan Dunbar
From	Norfolk, Virginia
Robot Statistics
Power	2-wheel electric drive
Weapons	Circular Saws
Statistics correct as of its most recent show/competition appearance, or if not applicable, qualification attempt.

Hyena was a middleweight robot from the US 1997 Robot Wars Championship where it performed well, getting to the semi-finals after beating both Satan's Revenge and Turtle Roadkiller before losing to Alexander.

Design

Hyena's design was similar to future UK competitor T.R.A.C.I.E. in the sense it was a two wheeled rectangular rambot with spikes and circular saws at the front.

Robot History

1997 US Championship

Hyena received a BYE in the first round and moved straight to the winner's bracket second round where it faced Satan's Revenge. Due to technical issues, the chainsaw of Satan's Revenge was removed prior to the battle, forcing it to fight without a weapon.

The larger Hyena quickly rammed and pushed Satan's Revenge into the moving wall in the opening moments. Backing off, Morgan Dunbar's entry drove into the nearby Cambot, and proceeded to turn around to get its abrasive saws into use. Hyena got underneath and pushed Satan's Revenge around a few more times, though its attempts to use the saws only resulted in one of them breaking entirely. As a result, it resumed its earlier ramming tactics, shoving Satan's Revenge into the bottom-right corner.

Hyena maintained this approach throughout the rest of the battle, pushing Satan's Revenge underneath the spike trap and left-most flipper on the lower perimeter. Following a few more pushes - one against the left side wall - both robots ended up surviving the full duration. The resulting Judges' decision ruled Hyena the winner on points.

In the winner's bracket, third round, Hyena faced Turtle Roadkiller. A tentative opening exchange saw the faster Turtle Roadkiller dodging the approaching Hyena, only to drive into the upper-right flipper. Lawrence Tan's machine backed out and turned to face its opponent, which briefly rode up Turtle Roadkiller's front-right corner. More tentative nudging followed, during which Turtle Roadkiller briefly lifted Hyena upwards with its 'pneumatic flap'. Hyena, meanwhile, was unable to damage Turtle Roadkiller with its saws, which stalled upon making contact with Turtle Roadkiller's shell. Both robots took swipes from the arena flippers, before another head-to-head collision allowed Turtle Roadkiller to pop Hyena into the air.

Hyena rides on the slopes of Turtle Roadkiller

Turtle Roadkiller shoved Hyena again; Hyena began spinning on the spot as the green and yellow machine drove away. Neither robot engaged for some time, driving past each other as Turtle Roadkiller sped into the flipper and wall in the lower-left corner. The collision appeared to leave Turtle Roadkiller stuck in place. Hyena, driving under the spike trap, kept maneuvering across the arena until it drove over the top of Turtle Roadkiller. With Morgan Dunbar's machine now lodged in place, the match was paused to allow for a separation.

When both robots were pushed away from the wall, Turtle Roadkiller was sent coasting into the arena center. It soon became apparent that the robot could no longer move under its own power, as Hyena proceeded to push it around in circles. Turtle Roadkiller was left to take hits from the lower-left flipper and declared to have been immobile, after which Hyena performed a victory spin.

In the semi-finals, Hyena faced Alexander. A tentative opening exchange saw Alexander driving around the side of the spinning Hyena, as both robots met in the center. A few bumps lead the duo to drive side-by-side across the inner perimeter, before Alexander finally pressed Hyena against the wall and sliced into its fiberglass shell. By this point, a motor mount had come loose inside Hyena, leaving it immobilized on one side as Alexander kept attacking with its saw. The two competitors twice rammed each other from the front, though Hyena could not use its own abrasive cutters to good effect.

Alexander tried to bring its saw down onto Hyena again, only to take a side-on ram from the latter. After ramming Hyena again in response, it suddenly stopped moving, and was unable to aim an attack with its rear spike. The spike ultimately proved too low to hit Hyena directly, prompting Team Delta's machine to bring its saw back into use. However, Alexander continued to display erratic movements, as it eventually pinned Hyena against the wall once more. After struggling to aim its saw, it backed out and headed across the inner-left perimeter; severe overheating in its drive motors noticeably hampered Alexander's performance by this point.

With Hyena still circling around on one wheel, Alexander eventually attacked it a few more times with its saw. Both competitors survived to a Judges' decision, which ruled in favor of Alexander. The damage sustained by Hyena's drive was sufficient for it to withdraw from the competition entirely.

Results

Wins/Losses

• Wins: 2
• Losses: 1

Series Record

Events	Hyena Event Record
1994	Did Not Enter
1995	Did Not Enter
1996	Did not Enter
1997	Middleweight Semi-Finals

Outside Robot Wars

Morgan Dunbar would later enter the 1999 BattleBots Long Beach event with the middleweight Ill Intent, however, before its first battle against Spaz it suffered technical problems and withdrew.