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For the Irish entry by Team Nemesis, see Nemesis.

Nemesis was a heavyweight robot which competed in the 1996 US Robot Wars competition. In the Heavyweight Face-Off championship, it was eliminated in the first round by TerMinal frenZy after suffering a malfunction. Nemesis would make up for this, however, by reaching the final of the Heavyweight Melee tournament, which it would lose to La Machine. Both its Face-Off and Heavyweight Melee Final battles would be highlighted in the American Robot Wars 1996 VHS.[2]

Team captain Chris Harriman would later enter televised competitions as part of Team Raptor, enjoying great success in Robot Wars: Extreme Warriors and BattleBots with various robots.

Design[]

"What we did here was put a wedge on the front. And we designed the chassis and the weight transfer system so when they try to get up the front of the robot, they're gonna transfer their own weight to our back power wheels, to give us more traction to beat them."
— Chris Harriman
Nemesis team raptor

Team Raptor with Nemesis

Nemesis was a large, box-shaped robot with a square steel chassis and armored in sheet metal plating. Internally, it had a four-wheeled layout with car-type front steering and a powered rear axle, driven by a 'large electric motor'. At the front, a narrow triangular wedge was fixed onto the robot as its main weapon, which could also double as a spike or ramming blade.[2]

In American Robot Wars 1996, Chris Harriman further explained Nemesis' chassis design, while also revealing its use of a unique 'weight transfer system'. The latter enabled it to transfer additional weight from its opponents against its own rear wheels, hypothetically increasing its traction and pushing power. In spite of this technology, Nemesis would still have a larger turning circle due to its steering layout, while its armor was 'loosly [sic] affixed' and easily damaged in combat.[2]

Robot History[]

1996 US Championship[]

Nemesis' 1996 run began in the Heavyweight Face-Off, where it faced the axe-wielding TerMinal frenZy. This battle was among the Face-Off duels highlighted in American Robot Wars 1996 and the Robot Wars Club-exclusive American Robot Wars Final 1996 variation.

Terminal Frenzy vs Nemesis

TerMinal frenZy smashes down on Nemesis

During a tentative start, it crossed over the center of the arena to meet the spinning Team Minus Zero entry. Both heavyweights bumped into each other; Nemesis' top plate was dented by TerMinal frenZy's first axe blow. Unfazed by the damage sustained, Nemesis pushed TerMinal frenZy back into the side wall, with the latter moving away quickly before sustaining any damage itself.

"Watch TerMinal frenZy's hammer smash chunks of concrete out of the floor... as well as giving Nemesis a bad headache."
Paul Vallis

At some point, both robots ended up in the bottom-right corner, where Nemesis struggled to escape while TerMinal frenZy retreated. A blown circuit breaker ultimately left Nemesis completely immobilized, and vulnerable to further axe blows from TerMinal frenZy. TerMinal frenZy, having damaged the arena floor, proceeded to spike through, lift and bend Nemesis' top plate out of shape. Chris Harriman's machine was eliminated from the Heavyweight Face-Off as a result.[2]

Nemesis would fight again in the Heavyweight Melee competition, facing Killbborg, Punjar and South Bay Mauler in its preliminary round.

In the opening moments, it immediately approached and lost its right side panel to a hit from South Bay Mauler's flails. All four robots converged near the perimeter, where Nemesis lost its back panel to a second hit from South Bay Mauler. In spite of this, it attempted to pin South Bay Mauler, then halted the spinning weaponry of the Tilford family's machine while ramming it. This set up a head-to-head duel between both robots, which resulted in South Bay Mauler being pushed and frequently swatted by a mousetrap. Nemesis would eventually push its opponent into the arena flippers, and was unaffected when South Bay Mauler tried attacking it with its slower-spinning flails.[3][4]

The pair were joined by Killbborg, which Nemesis pushed into the bottom-left corner. During the latter stages of the fight, it pinned Ken Atkinson's machine under the bottom mousetrap. Nemesis continued this strategy until time ran out. An audience vote was subsequently cast, which resulted in every competitor, including Nemesis, qualifying for the Heavyweight Melee Final.[3][4]

In the Final, the quartet fought against La Machine, The Master, DooMore, Tazz, Red Scorpion, Merrimac, Gutrip and Marvin.

La machine vs nemesis

La Machine slams into Nemesis

Immediately, Nemesis engaged in a head-to-head pushing match against Marvin, occurring on the left-most side of the arena. It pushed Willis Wong's machine around, only to be one of the machines to be shovelled by La Machine. Nemesis later pushed Merrimac into the upper-left corner, then helped Punjar snare Marvin in the upper mousetrap. At one point, it also pushed Red Scorpion from the back, while the latter attempted to hook Merrimac, itself dicing with Killbborg.[5][6]

Alongside Tazz, Nemesis then joined one of a number of multi-robot pileups, pinning South Bay Mauler against a stranded La Machine. Here, it also began pushing the Tilfords' machine against the upper-left flipper, moments before La Machine was freed. La Machine proceeded to push Nemesis into the same flipper, though Chris Harriman's machine survived and would end up getting pushed around by Merrimac. Merrimac started pushing Nemesis past Marvin, before the former two machines exchanged further rams with La Machine. Just over three minutes into the battle, Nemesis was pursued and pinned against the upper-right flipper by La Machine.[5][6]

Nemesis continued to be pressured by Trey Roski and Greg Munson's machine, later engaging in a head-to-head duel with DooMore. It next attempted to join in the battle between Punjar, The Master and South Bay Mauler, though this was disrupted when La Machine collected and rammed Nemesis into the upper-left corner. Alongside La Machine and Merrimac, it took turns at ramming Tazz, itself having been overturned by the former. Killbborg closed in to try and spear Nemesis from the back, but Nemesis pushed back in response. Nemesis would join another pile-up near the center, driving into South Bay Mauler alongside DooMore, Punjar and La Machine. Nemesis pushed Killbborg back, only for both robots to later be pinned together in the upper-left corner alongside DooMore.[5][6]

Following a few tentative moments, Nemesis was pushed into the lower-left pocket by La Machine. It recovered to push Punjar and The Master across the inner perimeter, though Mark Setrakian's machine escaped by driving over Nemesis' front end. Nemesis then proceeded to re-right Tazz with a series of rams, before bumping into Killbborg a few times and heading back to the left-hand side of the arena. This proved a costly mistake, however, as it was then scooped up and almost turned over against a flipper by La Machine. A six-robot pile-up involving Nemesis soon occurred, again leading to La Machine pushing it up against the corner.[5][6]

Mauler 96 Battle 2

Nemesis (center) survives as the audience vote is conducted

Nemesis later found itself in yet another pile-up, this time opposite the arena doors, briefly trapping La Machine in the process. Following further rams from La MAachine, it finished the Melee by engaging in another duel with DooMore, parking near the center of the arena following the subsequent Judges' decision. While a tie was provisionally called by the Judges, an audience vote was cast, ruling La Machine as the 1996 Heavyweight Melee champion.[5][6]

Alongside the main tournaments, Nemesis fought a one-off 'Grudge Match' against fellow heavyweight Namreko 3000.

At some point during this fight, it was caught by Namreko 3000's jaws, with Namreko 3000 proceeding to lift it opposite one of the mousetraps. The mousetrap descended on Nemesis, knocking out of the grasp of Mike Okerman and Curtis Nemeth's machine. In the same moment, Namreko 3000 was toppled over and left unable to self-right, gifting Nemesis victory.[2]

Results[]

NEMESIS - RESULTS
1996 US Championship
Heavyweight Face-Off
Round 1
Round 1 vs. TerMinal frenZy Lost
Heavyweight Melee
Final
Round 1 vs. Killbborg, Punjar, South Bay Mauler Qualified
Melee Final vs. La Machine, South Bay Mauler, The Master, DooMore, Tazz, Punjar, Killbborg, Red Scorpion, Merrimac, Gutrip, Marvin Lost
Other Battles
Grudge Match
Grudge Match vs. Namreko 3000 Won

Wins/Losses[]

  • Wins: 2
  • Losses: 2

Series Record[]

US Series Nemesis Series Record
Season 1 Entered with Cyclone and Rippa Raptor
Season 2 Entered with Cyclone 2
Nickelodeon Did not enter

Outside Robot Wars[]

Chris Harriman later appeared with many different machines over the years as part of Team Raptor. For more information see here.

References[]

External Links[]

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