Q: I've got a crazy Robot Wars question. Were there two different UFO robots and teams in Robot Wars series 6 and 7, or was it just the same team?

A: Officially, they were the same team. They had the same name, the same logo, and they were from Wales -- but the robot and the team members who appeared on camera were different for the Seventh Wars.

A: The 'University Challenge' was a tournament within the second series of Robot Wars Extreme (2003). Six robots loosely associated with specific universities fought in a special tournament -- any excuse for a tournament in the Extreme shows. The robots were Behemoth, Infernal Contraption, CV, Tiberius III, Fluffy, and Infinity. Tiberius III was the winner.

A: It only takes two robots for combat -- so build two robots, get some friends over, and have at it! Team JuggerBot got their start as a few guys who modified R/C cars and fought in a back yard. Your friends will get hooked, they'll start building their own robots, and you're on your way.

Stay away from crazy rotary weapons and dangerously sharp edges and you can have real fun and learn about combat robots without leaving your house. We've had some great antweight fights on the round coffee table in our own living room. Search this archive for 'informal tournament' to get some tips on organizing your own small event.

A: Only a little. British Bulldogs is a schoolyard game where a line of players try to run past two 'bulldog' players without being caught. It's a bit like 'Red Rover'. The Robot Wars version had the competitors line up at one end of the arena and try to dash past the four House Robots and reach the other end. Last robot thru was eliminated.

You can see video of the British Bulldogs trial on YouTube.

A: Combat robots compete in weight classes that range from the 150 gram 'fairyweight' class to the special 390 pound 'superheavyweight' class at the MechWars events. More than thirty robots have competed at this highest weight level.

A: Try the Wayback Machine for BattleBots.com for older versions of their website.

A: Sorry, we don't predict 'fantasy matches' here.

A: I admire the Critter Crunch for their long history and pioneering efforts on behalf of robot combat. I also think it's great that they have been able to keep the tournament so informal and not wring all the fun out of it with complicated rules.

See previous Q&A in the archive for R/C sumo tips.

A: There's a picture of this short-lived Robot Wars house robot at Robots Rule, but it's not very good.

A: Mark J. here: Aaron doesn't like to say negative things about people, so I'll take this one.

The BattleBots organizers are a continuing disappointment to the combat robot community. There is a long history of false starts, withheld information, and fumbled opportunities on their part. Their interests appear to me to be entirely focused on their own promotion with no sign of respect or concern for the builders. I am long past being angered by the actions of the BattleBots organization -- I am now simply disgusted.

Q: Thank you for the heads up about the BattleBots organizers. If the tournament does work out, what do you think about the 'no rules' class?

A: The 'no rules' class is a sham. There may be no official rules, but each individual 'bot must be approved by the organizers. I doubt that the class will happen, but if it does there will be very few competitors.

A: Season 2 has largely been ignored. It aired only once in the US, which is a pity because it had some interesting robots. Sorry to say that I don't have an on-line source for Season 2 video.

A: Not in the U.S. -- if you can fit it thru the arena door it's legal. Sumo robots are the exception.

A: Nope -- but you can get a wav of the main theme song online.

A: Not in RWEW -- "The Gauntlet" and "The Trial" were elimination rounds leading up to "The Arena" in the first two UK Robot Wars. See our 'Second Wars' results page for more information on these events.

A: 'The Sentinel' was a converted backhoe that appeared in a few episodes in the Second Wars. It was not mobile -- it sat near 'The Pit' in 'The Gauntlet' and blocked or shoved robots that came near. It is considered to be one of the House Robots even though it had a very limited role.

A: Questions like this make me wish I was old enough to drink hard liquor. I did my best to match up your descriptions to the Team Litewav RWEW pictures and identify the robots:

• I think the black robot with twin saws was 'Bot-Ugly', but I'll have to check that the next time I watch the tapes.
• Spike
• Sobek
• The tall robot was the bare-bones chassis for The Wife. Very complex -- they never got it working and campaigned one of the 'loaner' robots.
• Lots of weird robots. I'm guessing you're looking at Rippa Raptor.
• Drillzilla
• Medusa Oblongata

A: There was one wall trigger for The Pit of Oblivion (series 5 onward) and one wall trigger for the spinning Disc of Doom (series 6 only).

A: Sure - buy your own TV network and you can put on anything you like.

Q: What was that robot with the claws near Mechadroid's pit?

A: You've got to give me more info than that -- I haven't seen the show lately.

A: 'King of Diamonds' fought at the second Robot Wars Extreme Warriors event in England and went on to compete at the 2003 Robocide and Battle Beach 1 events. It was a diamond-shaped robot with a spinning blade weapon at the leading point. Photo at buildersdb.com.

A: I hate to say it, but I think the Scottish Robot Wars spinner looked like a corkscrew sticking out of a cork.

A: Germany didn't have it's own televised Robot Wars production like Holland did, but they did stage non-televised tournaments with the winners going to the world championships in England. Many European countries saw Robot Wars dubbed in their own language.

A: At the first Robot Wars Extreme Warriors event in London (2001), Chris showed up with his fearsome vertical spinner 'Cyclone'. The robot was damaged beyond on-site repair in the first round of the main knock-out tournament. The production company had several 'loaner' robots on hand that were available to teams with robot problems. Chris drove one those loaners ('Tut Tut') in the Tag Team tournament.

At the second Robot Wars Extreme Warriors event (2002), Chris brought an improved version of 'Cyclone'. Although defeated by 'Probophobia' and 'Spin Doctor' in the opening round of the main knock-out tournament, Chris was able to win 'The Annihilator' tournament later in the event with 'Cyclone'. No need for a loaner that year!

A: That wasn't a terrible noise. 'The Black Knight' was powered by an internal combustion engine -- that was the exhaust note! See the video.

A: You shouldn't believe any of the info broadcast about the Robot Wars house robots. Shunt weighed a good bit more than 105 kg, the axe was not 'diamond edged', and there is no such thing as a cold-fusion engine. The axe was pneumatic and motive power came from a pair of Bosch GPA 750 electric motors.

A: Three answers:

1. The seeds were the top-ranked robots based on their performance at the previous Wars. The seeds were each assigned to their own heat so that they would not face another top-ranked robot in the first or second rounds of the tournament.

2. The only robot combat video game I play beside RA2 is 'Robot Wars Advanced Destruction' for the Game Boy Advance.

3. People didn't normally enter the Robot Wars arena between matches. The house robots and competitors left via the main entrance. Broken robots were pushed out by Refbot, who also rounded up stray pieces.

A: I really liked 'Pussycat'. It didn't even look like a combat robot, but it could sure fight!

A: There wasn't much time to waste on the Rats, Nate. I believe that 'Ultra Violence' did spin up its rotary weapon and turn to face a Rat, but the Rat ran for it.

What's with all the interest in obscure Robot Wars entrants lately? 'Fat Boy Tin' lost its only fight in the first round of the Fourth Wars against 'Vercingetorix' and 'Plunderbird'. It had a pair of pneumatic spikes for weaponry.

A: I've got that same GBA game: Robot Wars Advanced Destruction. They actually had that event at Robot Wars Extreme Warriors and Robot Wars Extreme. They called it the 'Challenge Belt'. The winner was the last 'bot standing. Never seemed quite fair to me; if you're the first 'bot up, you have to beat everybody, but if you're last up you only have to beat one 'bot that's probably already kinda beat up.

A: What is this -- test the robot geek? That's the only reason I can see for a question about the utterly obscure 'Direct Action'. Best I can tell, 'Direct Action' fought only once: in the Robot Wars Extreme Series 2 New Blood tournament. It was badly beaten up, then opened The Pit and drove itself in. I'll assume that it was from the UK, like most other New Blood robots.

No more "where is [insert robot name here] from" questions. If you're that interested, buy a copy of "Fighting Robots" by Michael Benson.

A: 'Tiger Cat' fought in the Robot Wars Extreme Warriors series for a team based in New York, USA.

Q: Where in New York was 'Tiger Cat' from? If you say Syracuse I swear I'm gonna explode.

A: You're safe. The 'Tiger Cat' team was from Shirley, New York -- on Long Island.

A: Thanks, Nate. The different Robot Wars competitions can be tough to keep straight:

• Robot Wars Extreme: two seasons of shows filmed in England featuring special challenges and tournaments outside the scope of the regular Robot Wars tournament. Most of the robots were from Europe. Craig Charles hosted. Events included the the All-Stars Tournament, Tag Team Terror, Annihilator, and Challenge Belt.

• Robot Wars Extreme Warriors: two seasons of shows filmed in England in mid 2001 and early 2002 for American television. The robots and teams were Americans who were flown to England for the tournament. Retired professional wrestler Mick Foley hosted. Events included the U.S. Championship, Tag Team Terror, Annihilator, and House Robot Rebellion.

• Nickelodeon Robot Wars: a single short season of six half-hour shows with kids behind the controls of the robots. This was filmed in England in early 2002 -- at the same time as the second season of Robot Wars Extreme Warriors. Most of the kids were American. Dave Aizer hosted. No flame hazards were used in the arena and aggressive language was toned down.

A: At our last national beetle event our spares box held:

• two drive motors;
• a drive gearbox;
• a weapon motor;
• a speed controller;
• a set of wheels; and
• a full set of replacement armor panels.

A: Sorry, I'll have to save these questions until the next time I watch the tapes. It would help if you could tell me which episode you were watching. Just guessing, the strange black robot could be Patrick Campbell's 'The Bat'.

Q: What weapon did 'The Bat' have? Do you have any links to more pictures of 'The Bat'?

A: I guess it's a little hard to see in the photo, but that's a huge rotary blade hanging off the front of the robot. The weapon was powered by four EV Warrior motors and spun at 2500 RPM. The photo came from an archived Team Minus Zero website and is the only one I could find.

A: The Robotica Labyrinth had two 'rat' robots roaming the maze to annoy or sometimes help the competitor robots if they got stuck. I'd guess the rats were about 70 pounds.

A: If it was season 1, probably 'Diotoir'. The first season of RWEW filmed at the same time as the second world championships and many British robots can be seen in the pits.

A: Mark J. here: Nice to hear from you guys! The official video from the 1994 event disappeared in all the litigation and has not re-surfaced. There is video of the 1995 event, shot from the stands by competitor Al Kindle ('Dawn Patrol'). I've seen a several-generation removed copy of the original tape and it's great! Send me your contact info and I'll bug Al to transfer the tape to DVD so it can be distributed.

Do you have a scan of the Newsweek article you'd be willing to share?

A: 'The Labyrinth' event required Robotica season 2 and 3 competitors to get past various obstacles and break an elevated strip of glass to score points. Most competitors fitted some type of vertical rod to strike and break the glass strip, but several invertible robots left off the 'glass breaker' to remain invertible.

Jawbreaker's Revenge was capable of lifting the nose of the 'bot in a 'wheelie'. They planned to use that technique to shatter the glass strips. Early in the first round Labyrinth, they managed to grip their much smaller opponent 'Buzz Bomb' (not 'Panzer') in their powerful jaws. They dragged 'Buzz Bomb' thru the course and used its glass breaker to score 85 points for the win.

In the second round, 'Panzer' disabled 'Jawbreaker' at the start of 'The Labyrinth', so we never got to see how successful the 'wheelie' technique would have been.

A: Some sources list the robots as beng the same, but the Nickelodeon Robot Wars 'Hoot' was built by a team from California and was completely unsuccessful. It seems unlikely that the California team would be either interested or allowed to enter the Dutch Robot Wars. I don't have photos of the two robots to compare for definitive proof, so let's leave it as "I don't think so" for now.

A: See previous post in this archive. Search for 'best robot fight'.

I'm certain that our good friend Dan Danknick will appreciate it if I point out that 'Toro' flipped everyone in that BattleBots rumble except Dan's 'War Machine'.

A: Mark J. here: that was no robot, that was my wife.

A: No DVDs, no VHS.

A: All of the Team Boltz robots ('Psycho Chicken', 'Mad Cow', 'Boltz') were of the same basic design. You can find some photos at their archived website.

A: SozBots organized many antweight competitions in California and Arizona, but there has not been a Sozbots event for several years.

A: The Robotica Rats were there more to assist or annoy competitors than to tear them into chunks like the Robot Wars House Robots.

A: The Rats were cool. The second event at Robotica 2 and 3 was 'The Labyrinth', a multi-path maze wherein both 'bots could roam to choose from six scoring obstacles. Also roaming the labyrinth were two small 'Rat' robots that could interfere with or help the competitors. If a competitor got stuck in one of the obstacles, one or both of the Rats could provide a little help getting them unstuck and keep the event moving. The Rats had small rotary saws for weapons, but couldn't do any real damage. I'd guess that the Rats weighed about 40 pounds each.

A: The Robot Wars production company had several 'loaner' robots available to teams who's own robots were destroyed in combat, got lost in transit, or suffered some other major breakdown. These loanerbots were built by the technical support team at Robot Wars. They were there as insurance, to make sure they had enough robots available to complete the full schedule of events. For Robot Wars Extreme Warriors Season 1 there were six loaners:

• Green House
• The Green Mouse
• Joker
• Rot Box
• Silver Box
• Tut Tut

Q: And where does 'The Bat' live?

A: Robot Wars Extreme Warriors competitor 'The Bat' was from Patrick Cambell's Team Minus Zero. Patrick built many successful and well-known robots, including BattleBots veteran 'frenZy' and Robotica competitor 'Wendingo'. Team Minus Zero is based in California.

A: No; yes - several; not that I know of; none are commerically available; kinda; maybe; unlikely; yes - our own 'The Gap' could self-right; sorta; don't think so; not that I remember; not at all - Tiger Cat's was electric and ineffective; possibly; no; I have no idea.

If there was a Robot Wars US Annihilator in England, would it feature Rosie The Riveter, Spin Doctor, Bunny Attack, Brute, Trackzilla and Snookums?

A: There was an American Civil War event at the first Robot Wars Extreme Warriors, and there were Annihilator events at both RWEW events and at the Nickelodeon Robot Wars. Competitor lists and results can be found at tv.com RWEW and tv.com Nickelodeon Robot Wars.

A: Will Tatman and Team In-Theory are from Virginia, not far from Team Suspect's HQ. Will was at RWEW and hung out with Team Suspect, but he was there to compete in the Nickelodeon Robot Wars with his own robot 'Hannibal'. Will and Bill Tatman won 'The Annihilator' competition, defeating 'Bunny Attack" in the final round.

A: There are several fantasy 'Fight to the Finish' pairings I'd like to see:

• JuggerBot 3.0 vs. Whyatica -- big power versus too much power.

• Jaw Breaker's Revenge vs. Ram Force -- it was Team Force upon whom JBR sought revenge.

• Viper vs. Armorgeddon -- would Armorgeddon's suction fan hold up to the best pusher from season 1?

• Mechacidal Maniac vs. Ultra Violence -- a big tower of aluminum for UV's weapon to dig into.

A: The schedule for reruns of Robotica series 3 on The Science Channel has been kinda spotty. One or two shows ran in the US in May, 2008 and more appeared in the schedule, but have now dropped off. I don't know what the deal is, but keep an eye out for more showings.

The finale for each of the three seasons was a two-hour program. The extra time was needed for the six robots in the finals, compared to the four robots in each of the preliminary one-hour shows.

Yes, that is Team Suspect with Ultraviolence in the background, but neither they nor any other team I've questioned can remember anything specific about the Mystery Bot. The qualifying rounds for Robotica went on for several days, with new teams arriving each day and attempting to qualify while production of the show was already underway. The process was chaotic, and teams were just too busy to pay much attention to robots that were still trying to qualify.

A: In order:

• Every episode, many times.
• 'Flippa' was built by a friend here in Oregon, so we'd go after someone else.
• 'Lightning Tracks' was very noisy and kept me from taking a nap in the pits, but was not made of scrap.
• Yes. The scorched fur was torn up and thrown out to fans in the audience.
• No, not that I recall.
• 'Zanzara' was our team mate for the Tag Team Challenge at RWEW2. Why would they want revenge?
• Yes, they were the same robot. -- one of several 'loaner' robots ('Glass House', 'Green Mouse', "Zanzara', 'Tut Tut') supplied by the production company to teams having trouble with their own.
• Yes, Marauder was a full-body spinner at Robot Wars Extreme Warriors 2, but not a powerful one.
• Yes, but higher up and with flames.
• Our very good friend Dan Danknick worked for the Robot Wars technical staff at both RWEW events, but not for our team.
• No, not after these questions.

We're gonna take a break from Robot Wars questions for a while.

A: Would you like to re-word that question?

Q: I'll ask the question again and i'll ask it pacificlly. Did the robot wars extreme warriors teams built other robots instead of the same ones?

A: I didn't understand the question the first time, but now that you've asked it again I understand it perfectly.

Most of the teams ate two and saved the third one for later. Some ate one and saved two. A few didn't even know it was lunch time.

Q: if you were in g4 tech tv robot wars uk couldn't Psycho Chicken be a replacement for Terror hurtz and your robot Run Away be a replacement for Thunder pants?

A: See answer to previous question.

A: I don't know of any photo collections from RWEW on the web. I'll consider putting some of my own photos up. Quite a few of the robots were simply disguised versions of robots recycled from Robotica and BattleBots, but many were built from scratch for the event.

A: Yes, but take a deep breath first -- you're already way too excited about the whole thing.

Psycho Chicken laid an egg that hatched into a small independent robot (I'm not making this up). The Revolutionist trashed the minibot, then entirely destroyed Psycho Chicken -- wheels ripped away and feathers everywhere.

Propeller Head was more maneuverable and more powerful than The Revolutionist and was able to stay on top of the fill-body spinner to keep him from getting the weapon fully up to speed. Late in the match Propeller Head ejected it's own spinning weapon like a helicopter blade, but continued to push The Revolutionist around the arena and took the win.

Q: Did 'The Revolutionist' get disqualified in Robot Wars Extreme Warriors?

A: Nope, just got beat.

Q: Was 'Psycho Chicken' and his robotic egg kind of like a cluster-bot?

A: Technically yes, I suppose that qualifies as a cluster-bot.

A: If you were invited to compete at Robot Wars, the producers picked the events in which you would compete. You could ask to be considered for an event, but the decision was theirs. We were ready and willing able to compete in any event they would throw at us.

A: Full tournament tree results of Robot Wars Extreme Warriors, as well as all other televised tournaments and U.S. national championships are available thru our Who Won page. Click on the purple 'Full Results' button for the event.

A: I'd be very surprised, because they were not built at the time RWEW and Nick RW were filmed.

A: The 12 KG class (about 26 pounds) in the UK is very popular, and 30 pound 'bots are the elite class in Australia. In Brazil all they fight are 12 and 120 pound 'bots.

The main reason for their lack of popularity in the US is that the number of arenas rated for 30 pound and heavier robots is pretty small compared to the number of arenas available to fight 12 pound hobbyweights. You'll get more and better fights building for the hobbywight class than you will building a featherweight.

Q: This is more informational than a question, but I think the FRA UK featherweight rules now specify a 30 pound (13.6kg) weight limit in the UK, since January 2008.

A: Thanks. I still get questions from the UK about 12 kilo 'bots and assumed they were still sticking to that weightclass. Here are the current Fighting Robot Association weightclasses:

• Antweight: 0 to 150 grams
• Featherweight: 1kg to 13.6kgs [2.2lbs to 30lbs]
• Lightweight: 12kgs to 27.5kgs [26lbs to 60lbs]
• Middleweight: 27.5kgs to 55kgs [60lbs to 120lbs]
• Heavyweight: 55kgs to 100kgs [120lbs to 220lbs]
• Super heavyweight: 100kgs to 145kgs [220Ibs to 320Ibs]

A: The Robot Wars event in England filmed just a couple of months after Robotica seqasons 2 and 3 filmed in California. Many of the robots at RWEW2 were Robotica robots with just a few quick changes to alter their appearance.

Russ Barrow's 'Lightning Tracks' was a redressed version of his Robotica series 3 robot 'Dark Track'. The only visible change was the addition of a decorative tank turret to the top of the 'bot.

Ed Robinson's 'Snookums' was likewise a cosmetic update of his Robotica series 2 robot 'Fintastic'. The major visible change was a different paint scheme.

A: Announcements like this have been on their site for years.

Q: BattleBots announced this only a few days ago (February, 2008). This is what all the talk on the RFL forum is about now.

A: Mark J. here: about once a year BattleBots announces some new television deal, usually involving Disney/ABC/ESPN. None of these have gone anywhere.

You have to read these announcements carefully. The current BattleBots announcement describes a "Collegiate BattleBots Championship" competition limited to a single 160 pound (??) weightclass that may be shown on ESPN2 and ESPNU. A heavyweight "professional" class will also potentially be staged and filmed, but the proposed broadcast deal is for the college teams only. It also doesn't say anywhere that BattleBots has accepted, only that ESPN has offered.

A: According to Botrank.com (February, 2008), antweight 'Jimmy Crack Corn' has won 85 of 123 fights, making it the 'bot with the most wins and the greatest number of fights. In the classic weight classes, middleweight 'Devil's Plunger' has won 53 of 68 fights for most wins.

The best record of all 'bots with more than 30 fights belongs to lightweight 'Wedge of Doom' -- 43 wins, 5 losses.

A: Not much bigger. The MechWars tournaments have fought 390 pound robots since 2001. The class is not recognized by the Robot Fighting League.

Q: Has enyone ever built a bot bigger than the 390 pound MechWars class other than Jay Leno's exhibition 'bot "ChinKilla"?

A: Some of the Robot Wars house robots were very heavy. 'Sir Killalot' weighed about 1100 pounds, although the show claimed he was lighter. 'Mr. Psycho' may have been even heavier!

Also, there was an episode of 'Junkyard Wars' where the teams converted automobiles into jumbo R/C combat machines that fought each other. Those could qualify as 'bots.

A: Running your own tournament is a lot of work, even for insect-class robots. I'd suggest that you volunteer to work at someone else's tournament to gain knowledge about what all is involved. The next thing to do is to find out if there are enough competitors willing to attend your proposed event. It isn't much of a tournament if nobody shows up.

See our comments in two previous posts in the archive -- search the page for 'enthusiasm'.

A: The 2nd and 3rd seasons were made in late 2001 -- a 4th season seems unlikely at this point.

A: No -- not enough server space. There are plenty of 'bot fights on 'You Tube' and other video warehouses.

A: For large 'bots, Robogames uses the Combots/Steel Conflict arena. I don't have links to good photos, but full specifications are at the archived Steel Conflict site.

Correction: Oops, I forgot -- Combots sold the Steel Conflict arena after they purchased the MMER 'MechWars' arena in 2007. You can find pictures and specs for the new arena at the MechWars website.

A: Everything you need to know about robot combat in Australia can be found at www.robowars.com. There are robot photos, video, rankings, event reports, a wiki, and a chat forum. I've chatted with a number of Australian competitors and they're having a great time with their robots. They use the RFL ruleset and 30-pound featherweights seem to be the elite weightclass.

There is also some interesting robot combat going on in Brazil. They also use the RFL rules, but they fight mostly 12-pound hobbyweights and 120-pound middleweights. The central website is www.robocore.net.

A: I have no idea what happened to the HouseBots following their donation to charity. I suppose they must be stored somewhere -- just like I store the Holy Grail and the Mona Lisa under my bed.

A: As eventually happens to all television shows, it was cancelled. Scroll down to the third question from the bottom of this page.

Q: Are there any battles with HouseBots going on today?

A: Mark J. here: HouseBots were for the benefit of the television audience. They were there to prolong a match that was over too quickly or to add excitement to a dull match. Few of the competitors liked the idea of HouseBots or exotic arena hazards that could interfere with combat. Since most current tournaments are run by and for the competitors, HouseBots are extinct.

A: The Gap had a good day, defeating both 'JuggerBot 3.0' and 'SJ'. Video of JuggerBot vs. The Gap.

A: There was no 2007 RFL national championship event. No one with a suitable arena was willing to stage the tournament.

A: Yes. Please read the for info on how to find robot combat events.

Q: OK, can you point out WHERE in the 'Frequently Asked Questions' I can find robot battles in CA?

A: There are 21 questions in the FAQ. Start reading at the top; it won't take you long to find it and you might learn something useful along the way.

'Whyatica' was later renamed 'Warrior' and had an 8 win / 7 loss career as a combat heavyweight.

A: They were last open in mid 2005, so I wouldn't hold my breath.

A: The last 'Marin Ant War' I know about was held in the summer of 2006. They had been hosting events twice a year, but nothing in 2007. You could drop a line to Bill Sauro to get the full story.

A: Mark J. here: Robot Wars staff had several 'loaner robots' available to teams that had trouble with their own 'bots at the Extreme Warriors series. 'Green Mouse' was one of those robots. I don't recall the team that used it at RWEW1. Other loaner robots that I remember were 'Tut Tut', 'Glass House', 'Joker', and 'Zanzara'. There may have been one or two more. I don't know what happened to them after the series ended.

The orange robot you recall from RWEW2 was a different robot: 'The Six Million Dollar Mouse' from Chris Hannold's Team Litewav. They also competed at Robotica season 1 [Hands Off], season 3 [Mini Rip], and BattleBots 2.0 [RipOff 2000].

A. Team Run Amok had no connection to Tom Sweeney's Rambot, but it's obvious that he was paying attention to our design from Robotica series 1. It has a similar graphic design, the tall front wedge, and the high ground clearance that made our 'Run Amok' distinctive and successful. It paid off for him -- his was the only non-veteran robot to make the series 3 finals.

I'd heard that 'Robotica' was still showing on television in Europe. I'm glad to know the show is still being enjoyed.

A. Panzer Mk. 3 was the winner, defeating JuggerBot in the final match. Full results here.

A: Combat robots 'evolve' and names get re-used, so it can be tricky to figure out a specific robot's history. Using the botrank.com criteria for 'active' [fought in the last 18 months], there are five robots from BattleBots 3.0 [May, 2001] on the active list as of October '07:

• Death by Monkeys - lightweight
• Ice Cube - middleweight
• Hexadecimator - heavyweight
• SJ (formerly Slam Job) - heavyweight
• Vladiator - superheavyweight

Who is the oldest continuously active 'bot? John Neilson's 'AGSMA' has fought in at least one tournament every year since its debut as a lightweight at BattleBots 4.0 [November, 2001] and has never fallen off the active list. The current version of AGSMA retains only the general layout of the 'bot that fought in '01 -- I don't think many pieces of the original remain.

Who is the oldest 'bot to ever fight? 'BioHazard' at the 2005 ComBots Cup: 9 years, 2 months, 27 days after its first fight at the 1996 Robot Wars.

Q: Which is the oldest active team?

A. Depends on what you call 'active'. November 2007: I can't find any teams that fought in the last 18 months that pre-date the teams from BattleBots 3.0 (May, 2001) mentioned in the question above. Of those five teams, three still fight under the same name and with the same core members:

• Team Blackroot (SJ)
• Team Toad (Ice Cube)
• Team WhoopAss (Hexadecimator)

A: Using the current definition, you could count all the 'true walker' combat robots on the fingers of one hand -- and none of them are active. They were all agonizingly slow.

Q: OK, who was the fastest true walker?

A: Mark J. here: rules keep changing about what makes a 'true walker'. If you want to use a strict deffinition (independent control of vertical and horizontal motion for each leg, no rolling or dragging parts in contact with the floor, no continuous rotary motion in the drive train) then I suppose the only 'true walker' ever to compete as a combat robot was 'Mechadon'. With nothing to compare him to, you can't really call him 'fastest', just 'only'.

A: Noll was the Robotica entry from students at California State Polytechnic University at San Louis Obispo (Cal Poly SLO). They showed up with a big pile of parts and an unfinished robot. Their design was very complex with an overhead spike and adjustable pneumatic suspension, all crammed very tightly under enclosing armor.

The team got the robot together and qualified for the competition, but in their first match against 'JuggerBot' a bolt backed out and jammed the drive train on one side, frying the motor. While hurrying to install their spare motor, two of their team were injured by slipping tools and sharp metal and were sent for medical attention. Remaining team members did get the new motor installed but failed to notice that the bolt holding the wheel onto the drive shaft was too long to allow free rotation. That fried their only spare motor while testing in the pits. The robot was never seen again in competition.

Lessons: keep your 'bot simple, finish and test early, work safely.

A: As mentioned in the , the best places to look for U.S. combat robot event notices are the Robot Fighting League event calendar and the Builders Database. There are no combat robot events currently scheduled for the Carolinas -- feel free to start one.

Q: I love the idea of starting a competition in Charlotte, but I could use some help (lots) in designing an antweight arena. I would like to style it after Robot Wars with house 'bots and a pit and flames, but it sounds kinda complicated to build. Any suggestions?

A: You have ambitious plans! I do have a few suggestions:

• The best arena is useless without people willing to build robots and compete. Find those people first. Get their input and their help to build the arena. Think about starting with a simple arena and adding new 'features' that your builders can agree upon. Many robot builders prefer a simple enclosure without 'hazards'.

• Arena flames are a no-go. Many places you might like to hold your event (shopping malls, conference halls, technology fairs) are going to balk at anything involving flames because of fire codes and insurance restrictions. You'd also have extra expenses for fireproof arena materials and commercial fire extinguishers.

• The standard enclosure material for an antweight arena is 1/8" thick polycarbonate (Lexan) plastic. You can find polycarbonate at many glass and window shops, or on the internet. Do not substitute acrylic plastic that is commonly available at hardware and home centers -- it is brittle and nowhere near as strong as polycarbonate.

• A typical antweight arena is 4' by 4' by 3' tall. Budget $300 for the polycarbonate needed to enclose the sides and top of an arena this size.

• Browse the Delphi Antweight Forum. You'll be able to ask for specific advice from people who have built and maintained small arenas, and you can publicize your event.

• Most of the member organizations of the Robot Fighting League have antweight arenas. Get in touch with them for tips on arena construction and running events. Consider joining the RFL.

A: Both 'bots were built and fought by team Killerbotics and have many common features.

• The 8-wheeled superheavyweight 'New Cruelty' last fought in May of 2002 at BattleBots 5.0.
• The 4-wheeled heavyweight 'Polly Prissy Pants' (also known as 'Polly Pushy Pants' and 'Corporal Punishment') first fought in August of 2003 at Robot Assault.

A: By my count, there were eleven teams that competed at all three events:

A: In 2006 the Northeast Robotics Club (NERC) came up with a 30-pound combat robot class with a set of restrictions on weapons to limit the amount of damage done to the competitors and to encourage creative designs. This 'sportsman' class prohibits wedges and high-power spinners but does require some active weapon like a lifter, clamper, or flipper.

Section 2.2 of the 2007 Robot Fighting League Rules include specifications for this 30-pound sportsman class. There is still some vague wording to the class rules, but the idea seems to be catching on.

A: If it were five years ago I'd care.

Under current rules, Son of Whyachi would be a superheavyweight since shufflebots no longer get a weight bonus. SOW won all of it's fights as a heavyweight and won the BB 3.0 heavyweight tournament, but had only a 1 win/2 loss record as a superheavy.

Team Blackroot has kept active in the sport and has continued to upgrade 'Slam Job', now renamed 'SJ'. They won the 2004 RFL National Championships, and hold the current #7 and historic #5 heavyweight rankings at botrank.com.

A: BattleBots uber-spinner and Combat Robot Hall of Fame member Ziggo has a great record. I count 17 head-to-head wins (16 by knockout), one rumble win, three lightweight championships, and four losses. The losses were to:

• 'Defiant' - Long Beach '99 (Ziggo came back to defeat Defiant in double-elimination)
• 'Das Bot' - BB 1.0
• 'Sallad' - BB 3.0
• 'Code Black' - BB 5.0

A: Gosh, Doofus -- we've put on three successful Antbotica competitions, but I'm sure the robot competition you put on in Michigan is ever so much better. Oh, wait - there aren't any robot competitions in Michigan, are there? Write back after you've done something constructive.

A: Double points for enthusiasm, but no points for planning ahead.

Think about running your own informal tournament. Team Juggerbot started out as a group of friends building small robots and fighting them at each other's homes. Show your 'bot to your friends and get them interested in building their own. You might talk to a 'local interest' reporter at your newspaper to get some more interest thru publicity.

Most important: keep your tournament safe! You must provide suitable protection for your drivers and spectators. The level of protection depends on the size of your robots and the types of weapons you will allow. Get creative -- you probably don't need a bulletproof plastic box. You might fight insect-class 'bots in your back yard with the drivers inside the house looking out thru a sliding glass door or window. Consult the Robot Fighting League standards for guidance.

Q: Do you need insurance for a tournament?

A: Mark J. here: If you put on a real tournament with entry fees and prizes and all -- yes, you will need insurance. If you have an informal tournament that's just a group of friends having some fun with their small robots under safe conditions, standard homeowner insurance will likely cover your liability. If you're worried, check with your insurance agent.

A: Mark J. here: I've learned a few things about small-scale events from organizing three Antbotica events:

The most important thing is safety. Make sure your arena and rules provide a safe environment for spectators and participants. The event organizer is going to be very busy, so assign a safety monitor in the pit area to enforce regulations and keep spectators out.

The second most important thing is fun. If everybody, including you, is having fun then it's a successful event. Don't get so hung-up on event details and regulations that you squash the fun.

Finally, make sure that full information on rules, schedule, and event details are available to participants well in advance of the event. Event turn-out will likely be less than you expect -- don't be disappointed.

A: I've misplaced my tape of the 1999 pay-per-view event, but I remember that at the end of the match, the true-walker Mechadon had a couple of it's six legs inoperative and it was tangled up against the rail. The saw-wheeled Ginsu was tipped over on it's side and couldn't move. Ginsu had done a lot of damage, but the judges apparently decided that it was incapacitated at the end of the match while Mechadon could still kinda move a little.

The match decision went to Mechadon, but Team Sinister couldn't repair the damage in time for the next match and they had to forfeit.

A: CIRC is a member of the Robot Fighting League, and there is a table of RFL minimum radio requirements in the archive FAQ. However, the event organizer has the final call on variations to the RFL rules. Try asking CIRC president Bruce Stott: brucestott@yahoo.com.

A: I'm not a big fan of destruction for its own sake. I think destruction is an over-rated factor in robot combat. I'd rather see a fight won by crafty driving and strategy any day. Wouldn't you rather ask about the 'best' fight of all time?

That said, there are plenty of 'bot fights where one machine tears the other a new oil hole (like 'Ultra Violence' vs. 'Tiger Wood' at Robotica III), but not many where both 'bots get really well shredded.

For being both mega destructive and a great overall battle, I'd nominate the heavyweight final of BattleBots 3.0 at Treasure Island. 'Son of Whyachi' and 'Biohazard' beat the bolts out of each other! Armor is ripped away, weaponry is mangled and snapped, systems fail and recover, and still the fight goes the distance.

As an aside, I don't agree with the judges' decision in this fight -- I score it in favor of Biohazard.

Q: OK, so what do you think was the best robot fight of all time?

A: San Francisco, Robot Wars 1995, heavyweight final: 'Thor' vs. 'The Master'. There is a video of the '95 event shot from the stands that circulates in the combat robot underground. Find a copy if you can!

A: Nickelodeon GAS sometimes reruns the Nickelodeon Robot Wars series with kids driving the robots. That's the only current showing of Robot Wars I know about. Check their website for times.

A: There were more than 20 matches at that tournament and they didn't all get recorded. I think you can spot 'Mini Maxbot' in the 'rumble' footage if you look carefully. Most of the 'Rat Amok' fights are included.

A: Active weapons must be turned on and off remotely -- no 'turn it on and set it in the arena' allowed. Further, an active weapon must turn itself off automatically if the radio transmitter is turned off. Finally, active weapons are not allowed with toy/AM radios. Sounds like you'd better stick to a passive weapon with your 'bot, or upgrade to a failsafe FM R/C system.

A: We were at that match in London. By the time Sir K got involved, Drillzilla had already lost the match. The housebot operators are carefully instructed to not influence the results of any 'final' match. None of the teams we talked with thought the match was less than fair.

A: Those pics are from the first round of the Tag Team Terror match: 'Run Away' and 'General Chompsalot' vs. 'Falcon' and 'Joker'. General C. is shown fighting Falcon, and you can see Run Away in the background of picture #3. Joker was a full-body 'tuna can' spinner.

A: 'The Speedway' challenge used in the first season of Robotica was a figure-8 race with two robots traveling in opposite directions. Robots scored 10 points for each lap (up to 8) completed within the time limit with a 20 point bonus to the winner of the race.

There never was a tie in 'The Speedway'. If two 'bots had completed the same number of laps, the winner would have been the 'bot that completed their final lap first. The closest finish was between Run Amok and Kritical Mass. Run Amok crossed the line to finish her 6th lap just feet ahead of Kritical Mass and defended the line long enough for the clock to run out, holding Kritical Mass to 5 laps.

A: If I told you, it wouldn't be 'clandestine'.

A: Our library of tournament trees contains major televised tournaments (Robot Wars, BattleBots, Robotica) that developed big followings, and the earlier versions of those same tournaments that weren't televised. Those tournament trees are the most popular feature of our website!

We have recently added the RFL National Championship trees to the site, but there just isn't enough interest in the BBIQ tournaments to justify digging up the data needed for the trees.

A: About ten o'clock on each of the first three mornings of the competition, all of the robots on hand would gather and go thru the qualifying tests. The top eight qualifying teams would divide into two groups of four 'bots and film two shows that day.

All eight teams would compete in 'The Speedway', then the big 'Maze' set had to be moved into place. After 'The Maze', that set had to be moved out and and 'The Gauntlet' moved into position. Finally, 'The Gauntlet' could be cleaned up and moved out and the platform for the 'Fight to the Finish' could be rolled in. Every set change took a couple of hours -- longer if there was a mechanical problem. Each day wrapped up about three in the morning.

For the 'Fight to the Finish', each 'bot had to be lifted up onto the entry gantry to drive onto the platform. After the match, the winner had to be lowered back down, if they were still on the platform! Each 'Fight to the Finish' took about 40 minutes, once the platform was ready to go.

A: Opinion: the summaries I sampled were not good reading. I'd rather not check them all against the tapes for accuracy.

A: Last time - NO! We don't hold copyright to the material and cannot legally do anything with it but watch it in our own home. We'd get seriously sued!

A: Robotica presented a number of different challenges. For some of those challenges, weight and bulk were a disadvantage. It was much easier to slip thru the barrier walls in 'The Gauntlet' with a small 'bot than by banging a big 'bot against all those bricks and blocks, and you didn't need to be big to be fast in 'The Speedway'. Run Amok herself was almost 40 pounds under the weight limit to get an edge in maneuverability.

A: No. It was 3:00 AM when we finished the 'Fight to the Finish". Nobody wanted to load up the other 'bots for another fight.

Q: Who do you think would have won the consolation 'Fight to the Finish' at Robotica if it had happened?

A: The 'bots involved would have been 'Kritical Mass', 'Jawbreaker', and 'Viper'. Of the three, Viper had by far the best traction and pushing power. They took 'Panzer Mk I' off the platform in the preliminaries in an incredible pushing match. My vote would go to Viper.

The consolation match in Robotica II would have had 'Deb Bot' against 'Ill Tempered Mutt'. Deb Bot was quick and powerful, but much lighter than ITM. My vote goes to the Mutt.

The third-place fight at Robotica III would have been 'Ultra Violence' (an evolved version of Kritical Mass) versus 'Jawbreaker's Revenge'. Two experienced teams, crushing jaws versus a powerful spinning weapon, too close to call!

A: The Robot Wars Second World Championship in England paid $25,000 to the winner. We were there, but 'Panzer' took us out in the qualifying round.

A: The 2005 event had 3-day adult tickets for $50, kids 7-17 for $40, 6 and under free. Single day tickets were $20/$15/free.

Update: spectator admission to the 2006 national championships in Minneapolis was free!

A: Try the archived Steel Conflict site.

A: Mark J. here: Very funny, Alex.

Technically, Robotica may have been the fairest and least-scripted of all the televised competitions. Competitors went thru a qualifying trial to test their maneuverability, precision, and power. The preliminary round match-ups were based entirely on the scores from the qualifying trial, and matches in the championship were based on tournament scores from the preliminary round. Nobody got a 'bye' for the early rounds, and the show producers had no hand in the tournament matches.

The outcome of the first Robotica competition certainly played like a Hollywood script, but none of the interviews or matches were coached or scripted. I once joked that we had to film the final 'Fight to the Finish" three times before it came out right, but I was kidding!

A: Yes, some more than twice. Check the RFL Events Calendar.

A: Sorry - our collection of tournament trees doesn't include the 'extra' events at RWEW. The Robots Rule site lists the robots that fought in the extra events and notes the winners. Both of the events you mention were simple single elimination tournaments with eight 'bots.

A: Yep. Search Google Video for "Robot Combat" and you'll find the first half of the match between 'The Gap' and 'JuggerBot 3.0' at the Oregon Clandestine Street Fight.

A: Not exactly. If you win an RFL sanctioned tournament using a full BattleKit within one year of purchase from an authorized dealer, you are eligible for a refund of the cost of the basic BattleKit you purchased. Details are at the BattleKits website.

[Note: the BattleKit refund offer is no longer available]

A: The official BattleBots webpage has battle clips, but I don't know of any source for full episodes.

A: Some events allow projectile weapons if they have a restraining device to stop the projectile in 8 feet or less. Untethered projectiles are prohibited, so paintball guns are right out. Projectile weapons have never been popular.

Check the current Robot Fighting League rules for details on allowable weapons.

A: Gift certificates from various robotics suppliers are common prizes at tournaments. Robot Marketplace has been a prize sponsor at the BattleBots IQ competitions.

A: We have our own tournament: see Antbotica.

A: Robotica paid the largest top prize in American robot combat: $12,000 cash. Second thru sixth paid $2000 each. DaVinci Days paid out quite a bit less -- about $100.

A: The Run Amok video library has tapes of all five seasons of Comedy Central 'BattleBots', all three seasons of TLC 'Robotica', both seasons of TNN 'Robot Wars Extreme Warriors', and the BBC 'Robot Wars' episodes from the 4th Wars onward. Wish I had the earlier Robot Wars!

Q: Is there any way I can buy stuff from the video library?

A: Sorry - we don't have rights to sell any of those commercial videos.

Q: Where did you get the robot combat videos for your library?

A: They were recorded off-air, for personal use only.

A: Tillah was built by Oregon's 'Team Tillah', headed by Team JuggerBot weapon designer Ron Ender. The design is essentially the back half of the basic JuggerBot chassis with a large and nasty square drum spinner weapon hanging off the front. The robot was 'entropically retired' at the 'Steel Conflict 4' tournament by the combat robot hall of fame spinner 'Megabyte'.

You can see Tillah in action on the Oregon Clandestine Street Fight video CD.

A: Part of competing at Robot Wars was the challenge of putting on exciting matches. If you had an entertaining 'bot you would be invited to participate in some of the 'extra' events like the House Robot Challenge, the Annihilator, and Tag Team Terror.

As mentioned in a previous post, the American competitor 'Tricerabot' was 'JuggerBot 3.0' in a cardboard disguise. The team had several replacement costumes. The burning costume did no harm to the titanium armor underneath, but added excitement to their matches.

A: The Wikipedia is correct; Growler did have a rear-mounted flamethrower. The flame didn't come from the end of the tail, but from underneath -- more like a flame farter.

A: Mark J. here: I have no connection to the sale of the Robotica videos. They are sold by InetVideo.com. The link appears on our Run Amok webpage only as a service to fans.

I'm told that the video they offer has episodes five and six, plus the double-length final episode. Please contact InetVideo with any further questions. For info on the Robotica competition format, see the Robotica Wikipedia page.

A: Sorry, no. Try Robots Rule - Housebot page for photos and stats.

A: I don't know of any purpose-built American multi-bots, but it is not uncommon for a couple of 'bots from one weight class to 'team up' and enter a higher weight class just to get more arena time. In general, multi-bots don't do very well.

A: Very observant! The TV robot shows didn't want 'bots with the same name or appearance as other shows, so builders often disguised and re-named their 'bots to compete in different televised events. There is actually a relationship between all four of the 'bots you mentioned:

• Tricerabot actually was JuggerBot 3.0 in a cardboard costume.
• Rosie the Riveter 2 was a disguised Logoseye.
• Team Logoseye was a group of builders that split-off from Team JuggerBot after the first Robotica season -- the underlying designs of 'bots from both teams were very similar.

A: Biohazard, hands down. Ziggo and Hazard are tied for second, in my opinion.

A: BattleBots.com has DVDs from the pre-Comedy Central tournaments.

A: Best I remember, the match went to the judges. Voltarc got under the skirts of Biohazard and managed to look more aggressive all thru the match.

A: The very early versions of Biohazard could self-right, but that ability was lost in 1997 when Carlo added the large titanium side skirts. 'Vlad the Impaler' managed to get under those skirts and flip Biohazard at the 1999 BattleBots 'Pay-Per-View' event in Las Vegas and Biohazard couldn't recover. Vlad went on to win the championship at that event.

A: They may have bounced off each other in one or more of the superheavyweight 'rumbles', but they never met 'head-to-head'. Toro and Diesector somehow always ended up on opposite ends of the BattleBots superheavyweight tournament tree and never met in the final:

• Season 2.0 - Toro lost to 'Atomic Wedgie' in a quarter-final match. Diesector beat Atomic Wedgie in the final.
• Season 3.0 - Both 'bots lost in the quarter-finals: Toro to 'Minion', and Diesector to eventual champion 'Vladiator'.
• Season 4.0 - 'New Cruelty' defeated Diesector in the semi-finals, then lost to Toro in the final.
• Season 5.0 - 'Phrizbee Ultimate' took out Toro in the third round. Diesector won the championship.

A: Arenas built to contain heavier robots are very expensive to build, costly to transport and assemble, and big bucks to maintain. Without major sponsorship, big arenas just aren't cost effective. Without big arenas, there isn't anyplace to fight big 'bots.

A: Find out what weight classes are popular at the tournaments you plan to enter. It won't do much good to build a 'bot for a class that isn't supported. Beyond that, it's largely a matter of your budget and level of mechanical experience. Start simple.

A: The standard Robot Fighting League rules allow AM radios in weight classes up to the 12-pound 'hobbyweight' class, with some restrictions on weaponry. Most RFL member tournaments follow these guidelines.

A: MechWars is a member of the Robot Fighting League, but they have modified the RFL rule set for their events. Section 4.4.6 of the MechWars ruleset has been altered to require FM radio systems for all weight classes and weapon types. The AM radio in your 'Fly Wheels' wouldn't comply.

I'd suggest emailing Jon Vandervelde (jon@tcmechwars.com) to make sure this applies to antweights. At big events it's common for another organization to handle the insect class competition -- they might have different rules.

A: I think 'Robo Rat' (picture here - scroll down the page) was built just to fight 'Rat Amok', but the match never happened. Rat versus Rat Trap -- who do you think would'a won?

Q: Where is 'da Vinci Days' held?

A: The da Vinci Days technology festival happens each July on the campus of Oregon State University in in Corvallis, Oregon. No robot tournament there this year (2006).

A: We've been to a few 'big' competitions like Robotica and Robot Wars. Robotica had the biggest prize of any robot combat event ever held in the US. Robot Wars Extreme Warriors 2 had more than 50 heavyweights from the U.S. plus quite a few from Europe.

Q: How much was the grand prize at Robotica?

A: $12,000 -- we won!

Q: Where did 'Robotica' take place?

A: All three seasons of Robotica were filmed on a large sound stage at the old ABC studios in Hollywood, California.

A: The show gave the impression that the housebots were autonomous, but each of them had a R/C operator down at arena level that you never got to see.

A: Yep, see www.roboforge.net.

A: For builders, antweights. For spectators, heavyweights.

Q: What is the least popular weight class?

A: The 6-pound 'mantisweight' class is not popular with builders, and the 50-gram 'fleaweight' class isn't getting much action, either.

A: Try the Robot Marketplace Video Store -- I don't think any of the videos there are over $20, and some are under $15.

A: There were races, obstacle courses, barrier destructions, head-to-head push-offs -- all sorts of matches. Take a look at the Robotica page at Wikipedia for a full listing of events in all three seasons of Robotica.

A: I drove my dad's 'bot at Robot Wars when I was ten. Most events don't have an age limit, but they may require adult supervision in the pits. Check with the event organizer.

A: I think the Nickelodeon version of Robot Wars with kids driving the 'bots is still on the Nick Games & Sports network -- watch for me driving 'Run Away' in that series!

A: Yes, Ted. The robot's name was 'Gemini'. It competed in the Fourth and Fifth Wars. It won the 'Best Design' and 'Most Original Entry' awards at the Forth Wars. I think I remember that both halves of the multibot were identical CO2 flippers. It did OK, winning the first round fight both times, but didn't get any farther.

Robot Wars rules said a multibot had to enter the arena as a single unit. Gemini used magnets, but broke apart prior to fighting.

A: Building a robot that can fight and win without an operator is quite a challenge. This is real 'cutting edge' stuff, and you're pretty much on your own trying to build an autonomous navigation and attack system. You might get some help from robotics publications like Servo magazine.

Some tournaments give a weight advantage to autonomous 'bots and let them fight the R/C 'bots. I like to drive my 'bots. Letting them fight with me just standing there sounds like less fun. Besides, the autonomous 'bots I've seen fight weren't very good at it. My dad has offered a $100 prize to the first autonomous 'bot to take him out of a tournament. I think his money is safe.

A: Nope - I was at the RFL nationals last year, but not this time. Must be an impersonator.

A: Literary question - Mark J. here: Brad Stone's Gearheads is a great book on the history and politics of the early days of robot combat. Unfortunately, it is also the only book published on the subject. If you have an interest in the topic, you might enjoy reading thru the archive of the original U.S. Robot Wars forum on the Delphi site: http://forums.delphiforums.com/RobotWars/start

A: I've always liked Dead Metal. His design is cool and the weapon is very effective.

A: Heck yea! I don't know of a competition that hasn't had at least one female competitor. Robotica, Robot Wars, and BattleBots all had female teams, and the local competitions I go to have plenty. Don't let anyone tell you that girls don't build 'bots.

A: I'm sorry to be the one to give you the bad news, but the final season of Robot Wars -- the Seventh Wars -- was filmed in late 2003. The house robots were given to charity, and the arena was sold to the Fighting Robot Association in England. No more Robot Wars.

The good news is that there are plenty of robot combat tournaments both in the U.S. and England. For information on U.S. events, try The Robot Fighting League. For British events, try The Fighting Robot Association.

A: Never seen Robot Wars? It's pretty simple -- two big (220 pound) remote controlled robots enter a sealed box about the size of a basketball court. Destroy the other robot and you win. You can crush, smash, pierce, saw, or flip the other 'bot. You can throw them over the arena rail. You can push them into the pit, or roast them over the flames. Just do NOT turn your back on the 'house robots' that patrol the edges of the arena.

A: I liked being able to see all the other robots close-up. I especially liked the British robots "Tornado" and "Razer". The American robot "Tricerabot" was very impressive at the first Robot Wars Extreme Warriors -- he almost pushed Sir Killalot into the pit! My friend Jerome had an impressive robot named "Unibite" that was pretty strong. It was the first robot to go into the "drop zone". Being in the pits was awesome!