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Maelstrom was a heavyweight robot which attempted to enter Series 8 of Robot Wars. It was submitted for qualification alongside Team Shock's other heavyweights Manta and Shockwave, but was not selected, with Shockwave ultimately being chosen to compete in the series. Prior to this, Maelstrom had enjoyed considerable success at the Robot Wars Live Events run by Roaming Robots, along with other similar events in the United Kingdom and Europe.

Maelstrom was a renamed and rebuilt version of Series 7 Semi-Finalist St. Agro, which had been sold to Team Shock by its original builders, Trelawneys Robot Army. Following years of upgrades and rebuilds, little-to-no material from the original St. Agro remains within the current build of Maelstrom.

Design[]

Maelstrom

The original Maelstrom

Maelstrom maintains the design originally used by St. Agro, with its improvements being largely internal. Maelstrom is a wedge-shaped robot with two exposed wheels, which is symmetrical on both sides, and both the top and bottom of the robot. Its armament came in the form of two small flippers, with one found on the top of the robot's wedge, and the other on the underside of the wedge. The two flippers work in tandem with each other to throw the entirety of Maelstrom from the floor and flip other robots from it at the same time. In order to use this design, Maelstrom was required to have a high ground clearance on all sides. Its flippers could occasionally fail to retract, and the robot's wheels are vulnerable.

Outside Robot Wars[]

St. Agro was sold to Team Shock in 2008, who gradually rebuilt the robot over the subsequent years and renamed it Maelstrom. The original build achieved a long run of success under their captaincy, though the use of brand-new components meant that it was effectively unrelated to St. Agro beyond being its spiritual successor. Amongst its most notable performances included runner-up finishes to Terrorhurtz in the 2009 FRA UK Championship (hosted by Roaming Robots)[1] and to Big Nipper in the 2012 running hosted by Robots Live!.[2] Between 2011 and 2013, it won multiple live events under the Robots Live! and Robots: Extreme Wars banners, also reaching the finals of the FRA European Championships in the latter year.[3]

When the robot's original chassis was considered worn out, Maelstrom 2 was built in 2014 as a direct replacement. It became a regular competitor at the Robot Wars live tours in the following years (see Robot Wars Live Events), but was eventually put into storage as Team Shock focused on their newer heavyweight machines. Many of its internal components - including motors and valves - would end up being salvaged for use in Manta, though the chassis and most of its pneumatic system were left intact.[4]

In April 2023, Team Shock confirmed that Maelstrom was being rebuilt for a return to the UK live circuit. On Facebook, they stated their intention to bring it to the Extreme Robots Brentwood event on 27-28 May; Will Thomas confirmed via a separate Builders Log that Maelstrom would be entered as a substitute for Afterchop. However, its place was later taken by a reworked Aftershock, delaying Maelstrom's comeback to an as-yet unspecified event.[5][4][6]

Robot Wars Live Events[]

Maelstrom 1

The shell of the original Maelstrom, prepared for display

Maelstrom competed in the first event of the Robot Wars live tour at Barnsley in February 2013, winning on a judges' decision against Kronic, Ripper and Thor. Maelstrom also reached the finals at Portsmouth 2013, losing to Eruption, and Widnes in 2013, losing to Iron-Awe 5. It also won the Colchester leg, beating Eruption, Kronic and Behemoth. This was in addition to Team Shock's campaigns in the same tour with Manta and their eventual Series 8 competitor Shockwave. At the end of 2013, Maelstrom competed in the Robot Wars Winter Tour, where it finished second in the Primary heats against Ripper, and the Secondary heats against the team's own Manta. However, it would not earn enough points to qualify for the finals held in Gloucester.

Maelstrom 2

The chassis for Maelstrom 2

In 2014, the Maelstrom 2 build made its competitive debut, with the original St. Agro-based version being retained as a static display. The following year, Maelstrom 2 fought at Barnsley where it reached the semi-finals of the main competition before being beaten by Dystopia. It also fought in the 2015 World Championships at Colchester, defeating Rybot in its first-round battle by flipping it onto its side. However, Maelstrom broke down following a joint attack from Tough as Nails and Kan-Opener, eliminating it at that stage.

Series Record[]

Series Maelstrom Series Record
Series 1-7 Did not enter
Series 8 Not selected
Entered with Shockwave
Not selected with Manta
Series 9 Entered with Aftershock
Series 10 Entered with Aftershock
  • NOTE 1: Will Thomas also competed in Battle of the Stars as the mentor of Soldier Ant.
  • NOTE 2: Will Thomas' students entered Series 10 with Track-tion

Trivia[]

  • Ian Thomas previously stated on robotics podcast Inside the Bot that he felt Maelstrom was the team's most likely robot to qualify for Series 8 of Robot Wars, claiming it to be more original than Manta, and more competitive than Shockwave.

References[]

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