Micro Mute was a featherweight robot that competed in the final two featherweight championships of Robot Wars, in the second series of Robot Wars Extreme and The Seventh Wars respectively. It reached the final round in Extreme 2, but lost its heat in Series 7 after getting destroyed by the House Robots.
Design[]
Micro Mute in the arena during Series 7
Micro Mute from the rear
Micro Mute was an invertible, triangular-shaped robot painted black and silver and featuring a long low wedge and static spikes as its main weapons. The robot used Bosch 12V 120W motors for its drive system, overvolted to 24V, as well as 4QD speed controllers.[1] These enabled Micro Mute to reach an exceptionally high top speed of 30mph, allowing it to out-manoeuvre and even cause damage to other competitors, for example, Katnip's wheel in the Extreme 2 Featherweight Championship. However, the robot was very difficult to control, its wheels were easily damaged and it was low enough to get completely wedged underneath angle grinders, which cost it victory in the Extreme 2 Featherweight final.
The Team[]
- Main article: Team Mute
Micro Mute was built by Staffordshire-based brothers, Adam and Daniel Emmett, with Adam Emmett being listed as the team captain, while Daniel Emmett was not present on the team in Series 7, despite competing with Mute in the same series. Jeremy Honcox took his place during the Seventh Wars.
Team Mute also took part in the Extreme 2 New Blood Championship and Series 7 with heavyweight Mute, and Series 8 with heavyweight Bonk.
Robot History[]
Extreme 2[]
Micro Mute turns to face Cutlet after attacking its side
In its heat in the Extreme Series 2 Featherweight Championship, Micro Mute was drawn up against Cutlet, Dragon, Flybot, Gladiator and Kitty. At the start of the battle, Micro Mute became caught underneath an angle grinder, but was quickly freed by Refbot. Turning, Micro Mute just missed a charge on Kitty, but then rammed into the side of Cutlet instead.
- "Micro Mute flying in."
- — Jonathan Pearce
It then attacked Gladiator, and held back for the rest of the fight while Dragon was pitted by Cutlet, and the latter was pitted by Gladiator. Micro Mute followed soon after, throwing itself into the Pit to avoid Shunt, where it joined Cutlet, Dragon, Flybot and Kitty.
Micro Mute drives into the Pit
- "Seeking refuge - wahey! - from the House Robots! How many can we get in that Pit? Just about everyone."
- — Jonathan Pearce as Micro Mute pits itself, having already qualified
By the time cease was called, all of the featherweights and Refbot had ended up in the Pit. As Kitty, Flybot and Dragon had fallen into the Pit before it, Micro Mute advanced through to the final of the Featherweight Championship.
Micro Mute slides underneath Katnip and Gladiator
In the final, Micro Mute went against Argh!, Bernard and Katnip, as well as Gladiator and Cutlet. In this battle, Micro Mute missed an initial charge on Katnip; it then drove towards Gladiator at speed, but then turned away at the last second, stopping its attack. Micro Mute began to spin on the spot, bashing into Argh! with its front end and deflecting Micro Mute away. It continued spinning for a while longer, before charging underneath Katnip and Gladiator, carrying both machines on top of it as it sped across the arena floor, before both machines slipped off to the side.
Micro Mute speeds towards Gladiator
- "And again, that great power of Micro Mute, we saw that earlier on, up to 22 miles an hour, the Micro Mute machine!"
- — Jonathan Pearce
Micro Mute held back for a while, before receiving a hit from the spinning Bernard as it edged towards it. As Micro Mute began to spin on the spot once more, Katnip drove into its path, and the impact from Micro Mute's spinning smashed one of Katnip's wheels off. While Katnip struggled with its mobility and Gladiator was upended by Argh!, Micro Mute charged under Gladiator again, shoving it across the arena floor.
Micro Mute dances around the Floor Spinner
- "One wheel has come off Katnip - and look at the great power of Micro Mute, in underneath Gladiator!"
- — Jonathan Pearce as Micro Mute makes an impact
Micro Mute spun round in a circle several times besides the activated Floor Spinner, before missing a ram on Argh! and Cutlet. A second attack proved more successful for Micro Mute, as it drove underneath the front of Argh!, who at this moment was carrying Cutlet on its rear wedge. Micro Mute's attack sent the three machines onto the Floor Spinner, which spun all three robots away from each other.
Micro Mute attacks Argh! and Cutlet
- "In comes Micro Mute again, and flung away! Great speed!"
- — Jonathan Pearce
Little more was seen of Micro Mute after this, other than a small bump into the back of Cutlet, as it got caught underneath one of the arena angle grinders, although this wasn't mentioned by Jonathan Pearce. Despite being unable to move, Refbot didn't count out Micro Mute, so it was technically still mobile at the end of the battle when cease was called. However, the Judges awarded the win to the much more aggressive and destructive Argh!, eliminating Micro Mute.
Series 7[]
Micro Mute, in trouble from Sir Killalot
In the Featherweight Championship of the Seventh Wars, Micro Mute participated in the final and smallest heat, where it fought a new version of Gi-Ant-O, Rampage 2 and Whipper. It became apparent from the beginning that one of Micro Mute's wheels had seized up already, as it couldn't move much further from its starting position near the CPZ. As Micro Mute struggled to get out of the CPZ, Sir Killalot came in to attack it, but Micro Mute circled round the House Robot's claw to avoid it.
- "Micro-Mute can get up to 30 miles an hour; we haven't seen it yet."
- — Jonathan Pearce
Micro Mute sustains damage from Matilda's flywheel
Micro Mute continued to spin round, bashing into Sir Killalot's tracks several times with its front end as it did so. Then, for a few seconds, Micro Mute's wheel appeared to unseize, and after driving once into Sir Killalot, it reversed and charged out of the CPZ, zooming past a largely immobile Gi-Ant-O, and into Matilda's CPZ. The same wheel then seized up again, and Micro-Mute couldn't pull away from Matilda's flywheel. It hid beneath Matilda, but was hit by the flywheel after trying to break free, immobilising it completely and spinning it away. It was then sliced from behind by Matilda's flywheel, causing more damage.
- "Micro Mute underneath Matilda's tail. You really don't wanna be - ooh! - you really don't wanna be there, that's for certain!"
- — Jonathan Pearce as Micro Mute takes damage from Matilda
The counted out Micro Mute is flipped by Matilda
Micro Mute then received a third hit from Matilda, cutting further into the armour near one of the wheels, and the former finalist was subsequently counted out by the Refbot, before Micro Mute was flipped into its left arm by Matilda's tusks.
- "Micro Mute counted out - sustained terrible damage from Matilda. Up to then I thought it looked nippy, and manoeuvrable, and quite dangerous."
- — Jonathan Pearce
The House Robots show no mercy to Micro Mute
Sir Killalot shoved Micro-Mute against the arena wall, then picked it up with is claw, before carrying it over to hold its remains over Matilda's flywheel. More damage was inflicted by the House Robots, and Adam Emmett left his control booth in frustration.
- "Well, it is a beaten machine, it is in the arena, and once it is beaten the House Robots can cause damage, and Adam looks most upset. Terrible damage sustained by Micro Mute, out; the crowd love it, the team doesn't."
- — Jonathan Pearce, as Adam Emmett turns his back on Micro Mute's Featherweight heat
Sir Killalot continued to parade Micro Mute across the arena in his grip whilst Matilda activated the Pit, and Micro Mute's remains were eventually pitted, eliminating it from the competition, along with Gi-Ant-O, who had also been immobilised.
- Jayne Middlemiss: "How long did that take you to do?"
- Jeremy Honcox: "Well, over 3 years."
- Jayne Middlemiss: "3 years, and they've ripped it apart in 5 minutes. They're not very nice, the House Robots, are they?"
- Jeremy Honcox: "No, and that's not a quick fix either."
- — Post-battle interview
Although the motors and speed controllers of Micro Mute were written off in battle, it was later revealed that much of the shell was reusable[2].
Results[]
| MICRO MUTE - RESULTS | ||
| Extreme 2 | ||
| Robot Rampage Featherweight Championship, Final | ||
| Round 1 | vs. Cutlet, Dragon, Flybot, Gladiator, Kitty | Qualified |
| Final | vs. Argh!, Bernard, Cutlet, Gladiator, Katnip | Lost |
| Series 7 | ||
| Special Events Featherweight Championship, Round 1 | ||
| Round 1 | vs. Gi-Ant-O, Rampage 2, Whipper | Eliminated |
Wins/Losses[]
- Wins: 1
- Losses: 2
Series Record[]
The destroyed remains of Micro Mute
| Main Series | Micro Mute Series Record |
|---|---|
| The First Wars | Did not enter |
| The Second Wars | Did not enter |
| The Third Wars | Did not enter |
| The Fourth Wars | Withdrew with Mute |
| The Fifth Wars | Failed to qualify with Mute |
| The Sixth Wars | Failed to qualify with Mute |
| The Seventh Wars | Featherweight Championship, Round 1 Entered with Mute |
| Series 8 | Entered with Bonk |
| Series 9 | Not selected with Bonk |
| Series 10 | Did not enter |
| Robot Wars Extreme | Appearances |
| Series 1 | Did not enter |
| Series 2 | Featherweight Final Entered with Mute |
Outside Robot Wars[]
An older version of Micro Mute
Before competing on Robot Wars, an older version of Micro Mute featured an all-black chassis with a transparent polycarbonate front, and a simpler wheels configuration.
Trivia[]
- Micro Mute was one of the last two robots to appear on the original run of Robot Wars without a moving weapon, the other being T-Wrecks. The active weapon rule did not apply to featherweights or antweights[3].
References[]
External Links[]
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