Warhog

Warhog
Participation Information
UK Series	4-6
Other Names	War Hog (Series 4)
Team Information
Team Members	Mark Chalmers Paul Stephenson Colin Hare (Series 4-5) David Marritt (Series 6)
From	Hull (Series 4-5) Brough, East Yorkshire (Series 6)
Robot Statistics
Weight	100kg
Dimensions	0.55m x 0.95m x 0.95m
Top Speed	8mph
Power	550W Motor
Weapons	Full body spinner
Statistics correct as of its most recent show/competition appearance, or if not applicable, qualification attempt.

Not to be confused with Wharthog

"Newcomers to the wars. The shell's mild steel plated aluminium. The motors come from car spare parts, and the spinning wheel weapon, inspired by Hypno-Disc perhaps, rotates so fast, will this hog the limelight?"

— Jonathan Pearce in Series 4

Warhog was a competitor in Series 4-6 of Robot Wars from Hull, East Yorkshire. Despite boasting reasonable weaponry, Warhog lost all three of its televised battles.

Design

"A heavy drum spins around the hub here, with two blades attached. Four wheel drive, two home-designed and built gear boxes, an actuator lifts one end of the robot to assist steering, a wok provides the helmet."

— Jonathan Pearce describes Warhog in Series 5

Warhog's Series 4 appearance

The Series 4 version of Warhog painted brown and called Tazzz

Warhog was a full-body spinner, with a twin-bladed, 30kg rim rotating at 500rpm. The whole body was made from mild steel plate and aluminium and the two home-designed gearboxes were from car parts with an actuator lifting one end of the robot to assist steering. In keeping with its name, the robot had a boar's face on top, and had an army camouflage-style paint job. The spinner was very powerful, even shattering the Arena wall upon coming into contact with it in Series 6, but lacked mobility, reliability and had a high ground clearance, shown repeatedly against S.M.I.D.S.Y. in Series 6. Before entering the qualifiers, Warhog was originally painted brown and called Tazzz, its name and design being based on the Looney Tunes character Taz the Tasmanian Devil. The eyes of the robot remained the same as Warhog, but instead of the boar face, the nose and mouth looked like those of the aforementioned character and the robot's main weapon, the rotating body spinner, was based on the character's iconic twister-like spin.

"It's a very heavy disc, this, so unlike that Hypno-Disc thing, it's got a bit more power behind it. … One [blade] at the bottom, to trip them up, and one at the top to kill"

— Colin Hare demonstrates the spinner in Series 4

In Series 4, War Hog was powered by a 12 volt battery, had two Corsa starter motors and a Ford Granada Starter motor to power the weapon. It had a top speed of 12mph.

Warhog in the arena in Series 5

Warhog in Series 6

For Series 5, Warhog was improved. With the weight limit being increased, Warhog's weight from 79.6kg in Series 4 to 100kg. Warhog now had 24 volt batteries, although the top speed was reduced to 8mph. The top section was changed, with a wedge being added to the back of it, with a flag sticking out. This allowed the team to tell which way Warhog was facing, as the Series 4 had identical faces on each side. A brodie helmet made from a wok was added, the paint scheme was changed from brown, yellow and green, to black, green and red with a brown face. A couple of lights were added to the snout on the front. Warhog returned to Series 6 more or less unchanged.

Etymology

Warhog's name is a pun on warthog, the name given to a genus of wild pigs, combined with 'war'.

The Team

Warhog was entered by a team of work colleagues from Hull in East Yorkshire. Mark Chalmers was the driver, Paul Stephenson operated the weapon, and Colin Hare was the team captain and team tactician. Colin Hare was absent for Series 6, and he was replaced by David Marritt. In his absence, Paul Stephenson became team captain.

Qualification

In order to secure a place in each series it applied for, Warhog attended the live qualifiers for Series 4 through to Series 6. Though limited information is available on its overall performances at this stage of the selection process, it successfully qualified for the televised show on every occasion.

Robot History

Series 4

"I think that's gonna do some serious damage!"

— Julia Reed on War Hog's spinner

Debuting in Heat G of The Fourth Wars, War Hog faced a seemingly tough draw in its opening Eliminator, which pitched it against previous series Heat Finalist Darke Destroyer 2 and 29th seed Dreadnaut XP1.

"We hope to do well, we'll see."

— Colin Hare in the team's introduction

Darke Destroyer 2 charges towards War Hog

War Hog is thrown through the air

War Hog started by standing still as Darke Destroyer 2 charged at Dreadnaut XP1, getting its spinner up to speed. As Darke Destroyer 2 reversed away from Dreadnaut XP1, War Hog moved across to Dreadnaut XP1, knocking it back with its spinner. War Hog bounced off, and Dark Destroyer 2 rammed into it, stopping the spinner for a second. Dark Destroyer 2 pushed against the side of Dreadnaut XP1, whilst War Hog waited, getting its spinner up to speed again. Dreadnaut XP1 turned away from Darke Destroyer 2, and War Hog charged into the side of Dreadnaut XP-1, ripping parts off.

"Something's happened there to Dreadnaut! It was from the spinning blades of War Hog, look at that! Shattering off the side of Dreadnaut XP1."

— Jonathan Pearce

The damage inflicted by War Hog to Dreadnaut XP1's front

Sir Killalot cautiously approaches the spinning War Hog

Darke Destroyer 2 reversed into War Hog, trying to get under it with its wedge, but War Hog's spinner sent it spinning away. The impact threw War Hog into Dreadnaut XP1, knocking it aside as well. However, after this impact, War Hog stopped moving. Dreadnaut XP1 drove into it, and War Hog went flying towards the arena wall, while Dreadnaut XP1's forks were almost ripped off.

"Oh, crash! Like dodgems in a fairground, off Dreadnaut."

— Jonathan Pearce

War Hog catches fire

Dreadnaut XP1 and Darke Destroyer 2 continued battling, but War Hog had become immobilised. The House Robots cautiously approached the spinning robot, with Sir Killalot moving War Hog away from the wall by pushing the top section with his claw. Sir Killalot then drove into War Hog, stopping it from spinning.

"War Hog spins, but actually you're supposed to spin against the opponents. I think he's doing some sort of disco dance just for the benefit of Killalot. Err, Killalot's more of a sort of hip hop, jungle-y beat dancer these days the hog, you're a little bit old fashioned with that one."

— Jonathan Pearce as the House Robots approach War Hog

Dead Metal drags War Hog over to the Floor Flipper

Dead Metal grabbed War Hog, cutting into it with his saw and pushing it onto the Flame Pit. After War Hog caught fire, Dead Metal pushed it to the Floor Flipper, cutting into it as he did so. Shunt helped position War Hog on the flipper, but then Darke Destroyer 2 rammed into War Hog, pushing it off the flipper and into the top arena wall. Sir Killalot then picked up Dreadnaut XP1 and spun it around, causing its shell to fall off. Regardless, War Hog was eliminated as it was deemed to have become immobilised first.

"Well War Hog promised so much, but then lost power. Dreadnaut and Darke Destroyer 2, ay, they go through!"

— Craig Charles after the battle

With the Blade Runner team struggling to repair the damage dealt to Dreadnaut XP1 ahead of its Heat Semi-Final fight, Julia Reed briefly alluded to the possibility of War Hog being reinstated in its place. However, the necessary repairs were completed in time for Dreadnaut XP1 to continue, thus denying War Hog a second battle in The Fourth Wars.

Series 5

In Heat E of Series 5, Warhog was drawn against Napalm 2, former Semi-Finalist and Heat Finalist.

Napalm 2 pushes Warhog

Both robots started slowly, with Napalm 2 driving at Warhog, but Warhog moved away down the arena. Warhog paused as Napalm 2 turned after it, then drove into it. Napalm 2 only managed to push Warhog back a little, then Warhog reversed. Warhog tried driving into Napalm, but failed to do any damage or push its opponent back. Napalm 2 turned around to try and use its axes, but Warhog reversed away.

"This is rather tentative, isn't it? Not the quickest robots around, neither can get beyond eight mile-an-hour top speed. It's all a bit tentative. Are we watching this in slow-motion?"

— Jonathan Pearce

The two robots drove into each other, with Napalm 2 reversing into Warhog, and pushing it into the flywheel of Matilda. This did some damage to Warhog, but only superficial. Warhog found its escape blocked, first by Matilda as it tried reversing, then by Napalm 2 as it tried driving out of the CPZ. As Napalm 2 blocked Warhog, Matilda got behind Warhog and reversed into it with her flywheel. This only hit the drum and did no major damage, and the push helped Warhog get beyond Napalm 2 and escape the CPZ. Warhog drove into the arena centre, but then slowed, and it appeared that the team were having control problems.

"They've got problems there I think, Warhog, up in the control booth! Paul Stephenson, Mark Chalmers and Colin Hare, desperately ... what? Trying to get some electrics to work?"

— Jonathan Pearce as the team fiddle with the controls

Napalm 2 reverses Warhog into the wall

Napalm 2 reversed into Warhog and pushed it towards the wall. Warhog tried getting away, but drove into the arena wall. Warhog then drove into Napalm 2, which pinned it against the wall.

"And Warhog is just being eased around the arena slowly by Napalm! Well, the lights were blinking in the snout of the hog, but there's very little life elsewhere!"

— Jonathan Pearce as Napalm 2 pins Warhog against the wall

Matilda reverses into Warhog

As Warhog was just outside the CPZ, Matilda reversed out of her CPZ and hit Warhog with her flywheel, but only managed a glancing blow on the helmet. Napalm 2 appeared to have stopped whilst pinning Warhog, and Refbot pushed the two robots apart. Napalm 2 slowly moved towards the wall, but Warhog did not move. Refbot pushed Warhog away from the wall, and it drove into Napalm 2, but Refbot pushed it over the Flame Pit and into the centre of the arena. Napalm 2 had also stopped, and Refbot tried pushing it away from the wall.

"This is most curious."

— Jonathan Pearce as both robots show limited mobility

Warhog drove towards Napalm 2, but missed its charge and drove onto the Flame Pit, where it became stuck and caught fire. Time ran out, and the battle went to a Judges' decision.

"Not the sturdiest or most reliable of robots, these two. It'll go to the Judges. Let's be honest, they don't need a pocket calculator to total up the points score, do they?"

— Jonathan Pearce as the Judges' decision beckons

Both machines last to the judges' decision

As both robots became immobilised simultaneously at the end, the Judges made their decision based on the battle up to that point; on aggression, they ruled Napalm 2 the winner. Having seen Warhog's spinner working before the battle, David Crosby stated afterwards that he did not expect Napalm 2 to win, with the team relying on their strategy to ram Warhog into the walls and prevent its spinner from reaching its top speed.

It was revealed during the post-battle interview that Warhog's rim was not spinning due to the weapon not being plugged in before the battle.

Craig Charles: "One of the things they sort of said was that your weapon wasn't working from the start."

Mark Chalmers: "It's not working from the start, I reckon we've left the earth lead off it."

Craig Charles: "What happened?"

Mark Chalmers: "I've absolutely no idea! When they came in earlier on, they didn't really want to spin the weapon out there, and of course we didn't check it, and it's not running."

— Post-battle interview

Series 6

Philippa Forrester: "You're spinning around, very quickly."

Mark Chalmers: "Very quickly."

Philippa Forrester: "How quickly?"

Mark Chalmers: "About 500 RPM."

Philippa Forrester: "How fast does Hypno-Disc spin?"

Mark Chalmers: "Ah, doesn’t matter, we're much heavier!"

— Pre-battle interview

In the first round melee of Series 6, an unchanged Warhog was up against veterans S.M.I.D.S.Y., Comengetorix, and newcomer, St. Agro

"Now the disc has two blades attached moving via four wheel drive system and an actuator which is used to lift one end to a system with steering but it's got a very high ground clearance I think."

— Jonathan Pearce on Warhog

St. Agro under Warhog

Warhog about to destroy the Arena wall.

Warhog started by standing still, letting its spinner get up to speed. Comengetorix got under S.M.I.D.S.Y., while St. Agro got underneath Warhog, although neither robot was able to flip its target. St. Agro pinned Warhog against the wall, then turned away after Comengetorix was pushed into it by S.M.I.D.S.Y. Warhog moved away slowly, and began spinning, but St Agro was close behind it. S.M.I.D.S.Y. bumped into Warhog whilst charging into Comengetorix, which pushed it into St. Agro. However, St. Agro couldn't get its flipper under Warhog, and Warhog moved away up the arena. Again, St. Agro was close behind, and managed to get underneath the disc as Warhog drove into Refbot, but Warhog drove off the flipper before it could fire. St. Agro left Warhog, and it stayed still, getting its disc up to speed, but then Comengetorix, pushed S.M.I.D.S.Y. into Warhog, resulting in Warhog being pushed into the arena wall and smashing it.

"Against the arena side wall, Warhog! And the arena side wall is literally in splinters!"

— Jonathan Pearce

Comengetorix reversed into Warhog, and Warhog bounced into the middle arena entry gate. Warhog drove at Comengetorix, but merely bounced off.

"Warhog again slams against the arena side wall, so we know the destruct-ability of that spinning disc and the blade, we know how heavy it is, but is it fully under control?"

— Jonathan Pearce as Warhog bounced off Comengetorix into the arena wall

Shunt lifts Warhog onto S.M..I.D.S.Y.

S.M.I.D.S.Y. carries Warhog

Comengetorix pinned Warhog against the wall, but then S.M.I.D.S.Y. came in, and Comengetorix left Warhog. S.M.I.D.S.Y. nudged Warhog towards Shunt, and as Warhog tried to get away, it drove straight into Shunt, who axed it, piercing the helmet. S.M.I.D.S.Y. pinned Warhog against Shunt's scoop, and Shunt used his scoop and axe together to lift Warhog up, allowing S.M.I.D.S.Y. to drive under Warhog, so that when Shunt released Warhog, it fell onto the top of S.M.I.D.S.Y., allowing S.M.I.D.S.Y. to carry Warhog.

"Warhog to me, seems out of control... oh piggyback! Lif...HA HA! Lifted up on S.M.I.D.S.Y.! Ha ha ha ha ha ha! Where's he gonna go from there?"

— Jonathan Pearce

Warhog drives across the Pit

S.M.I.D.S.Y. took Warhog down the arena, and although Warhog slid off the top, it was still hanging off the rear, so S.M.I.D.S.Y. managed to ram it against the arena wall, before driving off, Warhog falling off as it did. Warhog drove into an empty CPZ, but as Shunt came towards it to attack, S.M.I.D.S.Y. reversed into Warhog, intending to use its rear disc on Warhog. This proved a mistake, as Shunt axed it instead, pushing it out of the CPZ. Warhog hit S.M.I.D.S.Y.'s side, but did no damage as the disc wasn't spinning fast enough. Warhog reversed after Comengetorix, driving dangerously close to the edge of the Pit, but Growler pushed Warhog back, as it was attacking Comengetorix. Comengetorix reversed away from Growler, nearly falling into the Pit as it reversed across the edge. Immediately after this, Warhog drove across the edge of the Pit, and then S.M.I.D.S.Y. pushed St. Agro down.

"It's now free, and it's gone in the Pit? No! Very nearly, ooh, and the crowd! Dear, dear, Warhog's almost gone in, and now finally St. Agro's bitten the dust and they've gone in! Dear, oh dear, oh dear."

— Jonathan Pearce struggles to keep up as St. Agro finally goes into the pit after close shaves for both Comengetorix and Warhog

Warhog drove into the arena centre, but S.M.I.D.S.Y. pushed it up the arena, straight into Shunt, who axed the helmet again and pinned Warhog down. Shunt moved Warhog around, until S.M.I.D.S.Y. pushed Comengetorix into Warhog. Comengetorix tried to axe Warhog, but caused no damage, and Shunt let go of Warhog, and tried to axe Comengetorix, allowing Warhog to get away. However, S.M.I.D.S.Y. got under it again and pushed it down the arena, then pinned it against the wall in a CPZ.

"Warhog has been great value, although I'm not too sure the judges will agree with me if it goes to a judges' decision..."

— Jonathan Pearce as S.M.I.D.S.Y. pushes Warhog

Warhog almost got off S.M.I.D.S.Y. as its opponent rammed it on the wall, but was stuck on the lifter. S.M.I.D.S.Y. tried to lift Warhog onto its top, when suddenly Growler charged at Warhog, which knocked it on top of S.M.I.D.S.Y., from where it would not recover.

"Warhog piggybacking again on S.M.I.D.S.Y., trying to take a ride through to the later stages, it's not going to work boys. Go on S.M.I.D.S.Y., get rid."

— Jonathan Pearce as S.M.I.D.S.Y. carries Warhog around the arena to the pit

Warhog is pitted by S.M.I.D.S.Y.

Carrying Warhog around the arena, S.M.I.D.S.Y. dropped it into the Pit, almost driving in itself as it did so. Warhog was eliminated along with St. Agro, meaning it fell in the first round for a third and final year.

"This is your arena barrier ... We're sorry about that, yes. Not very sorry, but we are sorry!"

— Paul Stephenson shows the broken arena barrier to Philippa Forrester

Results

Wins/Losses

• Wins: 0
• Losses: 3

Series Record

Series	Warhog Series Record
The First Wars	Did not enter
The Second Wars	Did not enter
The Third Wars	Did not enter
The Fourth Wars	Heat, Round 1
The Fifth Wars	Heat, Round 1
The Sixth Wars	Heat, Round 1
The Seventh Wars	Did not enter
Series 8	Did not enter
Series 9	Did not enter
Series 10	Did not enter

Gallery

Official image for Series 4

War Hog in the arena during Series 4

The team in Series 4

The insides of Warhog in Series 4

The team in Series 6

Warhog's mascot from Series 6

Trivia

• In Series 4, Stuart McDonald introduced War Hog as The War Hog.
• All of the robots that defeated Warhog lost their next battle and only one of them returned for another series.
• Comengetorix was the only one of Warhog's opponents that never reached a heat final.
• Mr. Psycho and Sergeant Bash were the only House Robots not to appear in a battle with Warhog, discounting Cassius Chrome, who only appeared in Series 7, which Warhog did not appear in.
• Shunt was present in all three of Warhog's battles.