Incubus was a competitor robot which attempted to enter Series 5-6 of Robot Wars. It was not selected to compete.
Versions of Incubus[]
Incubus (Series 5)[]
The first version of Incubus was a tall, bi-wedge shaped heavyweight robot armed with a flipper weapon powered by a pneumatic cylinder. The weapon was originally designed to use strong rubber bands, but this was scrapped as the flipper could not retract effectively or reliably, and the power of the flipper threw the entire robot over in testing. A pneumatic ram was originally added to help reset the flipper before pneumatics were utilised throughout the rest of the system. However, Incubus struggled to self-right with this amended weapon design, so a large arm was designed several weeks prior to filming for The Fifth Wars.[1]
It was primarily black and yellow in colour, with warning stripes running down its front and its name adorning both side panels.
Incubus II (Series 6)[]
One of Incubus' speed controllers in June 2024
A second version of Incubus was designed and built for The Sixth Wars, boasting an even more powerful flipper design purported to be able to "flip 300kg and lift 600kg", using three industrial rams designed to lift buildings. According to its builder, Incubus II's weapon ran at "10,000psi" and was designed solely with the intention of flipping Sir Killalot, though this was likely considerably lower due to design limitations in place at the time which forbade pressure greater than 1,000psi. It is also possible details were misremembered or erroneously noted.[1] Had Incubus II been accepted to compete, the team would have set after the House Robot rather than prioritising fighting its opponents, but Incubus II was also not selected for the televised show.[1]
The robot was powered by overvolted Sinclair C5 motors driving go-kart wheels which, combined with its 4QD NCC-70 speed controllers, allowed Incubus to be able to pull a car, according to its builder.[1]
Etymology[]
Incubus' name refers to the legendary demon from medieval European folklore.
Series Record[]
| Series | Incubus 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 | Failed to qualify |
| The Sixth Wars | Failed to qualify as Incubus II |
| The Seventh Wars | Did not enter |
| Series 8 | Did not enter |
| Series 9 | Did not enter |
| Series 10 | Did not enter |
Outside Robot Wars[]
Incubus taking on Stinger
Another angle of Incubus' fight with Stinger
Several weeks prior to filming for The Fifth Wars, the first iteration of Incubus competed at the June 2001 Robots@War event. There, it is known to have fought Series 4 Grand Finalist Stinger but the winner of this is not known.[2]
A pneumatic cylinder powering Incubus' weapon was sold in Facebook in June 2024 - the only remaining part from the robot - to UK builder Matt from Team Shanty Robotics.[1]