- "Due to its size and the intended aggression it pointed more towards a rat than a mouse. The latin name for the common rat is Rattus Rattus and so a name was found."
- — The team's website
Rattus Rattus was a robot which competed exclusively in Series 3 of Robot Wars. Rattus Rattus won its first battle against S.M.I.D.S.Y. but lost to the experienced Dreadnaut in Round 2.
Design
- "Upon reading material from Mentorn it became apparent that a novel idea was wanted to help get the machine accepted into the show. As we looked at the shape of the chassis and what body was going to be needed it began to look rather rodent like."
- — The team's website
Side view of Rattus Rattus
Rattus Rattus was shaped like a rodent, with a pointed-wedge front and chassis from an old desk. It had six wheels as it was considered "easier" to steer, as it had tank style control and the weight would be balanced over the middle wheels. [1]. Its armament included two spikes at the front, and a flail at the rear. It was originally going to be over 2.5 metres long, but the team was forced to cut it in half upon discovering that a robot that size would not fit in their car. Despite this, it was still the longest in its heat.
One of Rattus Rattus' spikes
Rattus Rattus' flail
Rattus Rattus was originally covered in brown fur but the fur was not permitted after a test. It took 3 days to remove the fur and add a different coating. However Rattus Rattus still maintained its Dark brown colour scheme,[2] though it appeared black on television.
- "A chap from the health and safety department asked for a small piece of fur to perform a flame test on it. It failed. He told me it produced poisonous gases and would need some sort of coating to stop it from catching fire. Back in Guernsey we took a piece of fur to the fire brigade and asked their opinion. He agreed that the fur was not fire proof and would need a coating. He sent us down to Securicor who have what we need. The man at Securicor took a piece of fur to run a test. He coated it that night and the next day he tried the same test as the fire brigade. The phone call from him told us we needed a different covering."
- — Rattus Rattus website
Etymology
Rattus Rattus was said to have its name derived from the Latin name of the Common Rat (or Brown Rat). In actual fact, Rattus rattus is the Latin name of the closely related House Rat (or Black Rat), with the Common Rat's actual Latin name being Rattus norvegicus. The team jokingly claimed that Rattus Rattus was from the fourteenth century, and had been responsible for the spread of the bubonic plague. Despite the name confusion, Rattus rattus was indeed the rat species that helped spread the plague.
The Team
The team with Rattus Rattus
- "After seeing the robot Killer Hurtz in series 2 Gary was inspired to get involved and started designing a chassis that would overcome many of the hurdles that Robot Wars puts in front of its competitors."
- — The Rattus Rattus website on Gary Pike
Rattus Rattus was entered by a two man team from Guernsey, consisting of team captain Gary Pike, who drove the robot, and Rick Ozanne, the technical and electronic advisor. The Rattus Rattus team were the only ever team to come from the Channel Islands.
Qualification
Rattus Rattus under construction
Rattus Rattus qualified for Series 3 by running the obstacle course. It went through a slight change when it attempted qualification in later seasons, with the flail being removed and the armour being changed in order to withstand attacks from House Robots - otherwise the design remained similar.
Rattus Rattus first attempted to enter Series 4, where it fought Dominator 2. Rattus Rattus immediately came under fire, with the axe of Dominator 2 piercing straight through its rear armour. A second axe blow from Dominator 2 allowed it to pierce Rattus Rattus and push it into the pit. However, in the process of pitting Rattus Rattus, the removable link fell out of Dominator 2, and as a result, Rattus Rattus was declared to be the winner of the battle. Despite this, Rattus Rattus was not chosen to compete in Series 4, whereas Dominator 2 received a discretionary place.
- "The compere made a mention of the incredible power of our axe, and you had to feel a bit sorry for the defenceless Rattus Rattus. After a quick dance around around the arena, Dominator's axe buried itself 8 inches deep in the back of RR, (missing the aerial by 1/2 an inch!) Another short dance, and the axe struck again, with Dominator poised to push the impaled RR into the pit, when the removable link jumped out, and Dominator was powerless, forfeiting the bout to RR! However, with a bit of leading from the compere, the audience voted that Dominator II should be eligible to go through to the next stage as well!"
- — The Dominator 2 website on the Series 4 qualifier battle (edited)[3]
Rattus Rattus also attempted to qualify for Series 5. Its only known qualifier battle was a six-way melee which also included Granny's Revenge, Purple Predator, Razer, Roobarb and Shunt[4], but ultimately this did not lead to Rattus Rattus earning a place in the Fifth Wars.
Robot History
Series 3
Rattus Rattus took part in the final heat of the Third Wars. Rattus Rattus was placed up against fellow newcomers S.M.I.D.S.Y. in the first round of the heat.
S.M.I.D.S.Y. is charged by Rattus Rattus
Rattus Rattus drives over S.M.I.D.S.Y.
Rattus Rattus pushes S.M.I.D.S.Y. onto the arena spikes
Rattus Rattus, with its shell dislodged, on the flame pit
After a cautious start to the battle, Rattus Rattus managed to get in underneath its opponent. Rattus Rattus was then bounced by the arena floor spike a few times before driving up and over S.M.I.D.S.Y.'s top. Rattus Rattus then pushed S.M.I.D.S.Y. onto the arena spike, and then into Dead Metal's CPZ, before colliding with Dead Metal itself, dislodging its own body shell upon impact. Rattus Rattus then carelessly drove over the flame pit and began smoking, but S.M.I.D.S.Y. meanwhile was limping itself, and was eventually pushed into the pit of oblivion by Dead Metal, therefore putting Rattus Rattus through to the next round of the heat. After the fight, the team revealed that they had fitted a block of wood at the tip of the wedge, with the vain hope that it would keep the shell in place.
In the second round, Rattus Rattus was placed up against Robot Wars veterans Dreadnaut.
Dreadnaut nudges at the lifeless Rattus Rattus
Rattus Rattus is pushed across the arena by Matilda
In this battle, Rattus Rattus was eagerly moving backwards and forwards before 'activate' was called, but when 'activate' was called, Rattus Rattus did not even move at all.
- "They say it came from the 14th century - well, the engines probably ground to a halt long ago since then."
- — Jonathan Pearce
Dead Metal slices into Rattus Rattus
Dreadnaut rammed into it a few times, before the house robots moved in and began attacking Rattus Rattus, with Dead Metal in particular causing major damage to the outer shell. Cease was eventually called and Rattus Rattus was eliminated from the competition.
- "It suffered from its own plague!"
- — The Rattus Rattus team blame the bubonic plague for their robot's demise
Results
| RATTUS RATTUS - RESULTS | ||
| Series 3 | ||
| The Third Wars - UK Championship Heat, Round 2 | ||
| Heat P, Round 1 | vs. S.M.I.D.S.Y. | Won |
| Heat P, Round 2 | vs. Dreadnaut | Lost |
Wins/Losses
- Wins: 1
- Losses: 1
Series Record
| Series | Rattus Rattus Series Record |
|---|---|
| The First Wars | Did not enter |
| The Second Wars | Did not enter |
| The Third Wars | Heat, Round 2 |
| The Fourth Wars | Failed to qualify |
| The Fifth Wars | Failed to qualify |
| The Sixth Wars | Did not enter |
| The Seventh Wars | Did not enter |
| Series 8 | Did not enter |
| Series 9 | Did not enter |
| Series 10 | Did not enter |
Trivia
Prizephita's statistics board in Series 3 displayed with the Rattus Rattus team members
- Had it not been cut in half, it would have been the second longest robot to enter Robot Wars.
- In the Third Wars, the statistics board for Prizephita mistakenly displayed the names of the Rattus Rattus team instead.