Q: Can "Robot Arena 2" run on a Mac? [Nate Franklin]

A: System requirements say: Windows 98/Me/2000/XP with a 450 MHz Pentium II or higher. No Mac.

A: That's great! I really enjoy hearing from people who dig in and make a robot out of the pieces they have available. You'll learn a lot and have good fun while you're at it.

My dad keeps a updated mention of my age up above my picture at the top of the page. I'm 17 now and a senior at my high school. This year I'm the student manager of the football team and I'll be playing basketball. I play Yu-Gi-Oh twice a week at the local card shop.

A: Thanks for the props! It's hard to list favorites from Robotica since it took all the different 'bots and personalities to make the competitions as amazing as they were. I have listed a group of particular favorites from Season 1 further down in this archive -- search for 'I really liked'.

For season 2, I thought 'Ill Tempered Mutt' and 'Flexi Flier' both paid careful attention to the Robotica challenges and designed well for them. 'Wizard of Saws' gets my vote for coolest looking, and "Mechacidal Maniac" was probably the most fun to watch.

Season 3 was filled with many of our friends from Season 1 and I can't pick favorites from among them. Of the new teams, I liked the ingenuity of 'Scrap 8.2' and the design of 'Rambot' who borrowed many design features from our 'Run Amok'.

A: Chaos 2.

A: Yes, CM Robotics from Ottawa, Ontario built and operate superheavyweight 'Ziggy', heavyweight 'CycloneBot', middleweight 'VanillaBot', and lightweight 'Texas Heat'.

A: Mark J. here: sorry, my danish isn't very good. Try again in english?

A: My favorite robot is the last robot I beat. My least favorite robot is the last robot that beat me.

A: Sorry, no.

A: Not that I recall.

A: The last I saw of them was at BattleBots 3.0 in May, 2001 where the seeded heavyweight 'Punjar' lost it's opening match to 'Shark Byte'.

A: Marc Thorpe was responsible for popularizing robot combat when he came up with the concept for Robot Wars, but credit for the first organized robot combat tournament goes to the Denver Area Mad Scientists Club. They organized the Critter Crunch as part of the MileHiCon Science Fiction convention in Colorado. The exact date of the first Critter Crunch is in question, but it pre-dated the first Robot Wars event (1994) by at least ten years. The 2008 Critter Crunch will be part of the 66th World Science Fiction Covention in Denver.

A: For an active weapon I like lifters and flippers, but they don't do terribly well under the current judging guidelines that focus on damage and agression rather than controlling the match.

A: No -- why would you believe that? Kyle Rader's 'Evil Beaver' was a low-budget old-school design using as many 'found parts' as possible. The body of the robot was a recycled steel computer case.

A: As she appeared at Robot Wars Extreme Warriors, Chris Gattman's Rosie was invertible. The airplane-style cockpit was held in place loosely and would shear away if inverted to allow for tire contact.

A: If I have enough practice with the 'bot, the whole experience is transparent. I completely forget that I'm holding onto a transmitter or that I'm standing feet or yards away. Everything is pure reflex, just like I was in the arena.

A: The Gap as it appeared at Robot Wars was more of a pneumatic lifter than a 'flipper'. It did score the fastest knockout at RWEW2, and possibly the fastest ever at Robot Wars when it took out 'Trackzilla' in four seconds.

A: That information is classified -- although we do talk a bit about The Gap's weaknesses in a previous post in this section of the archive.

A: The best part was meeting other people who shared our interest in robots and competition. We made many good friends at Robotica.

It was also great fun to watch the production of a television show on a Hollywood sound stage. I hadn't realized how much effort went into making a television program.

A: Hmmm... how about 'Hit and Run'?

A: We do have some sumo designs drawn up, but the nearest competition is 250 miles away and runs once a year. Pretty small fun. If things pick up, we'll be there.

A: Our reasons for building combat robots are probably a little different than other teams. We like robots that are responsive to operate and that can do interesting things. We're also too empathetic to really enjoy highly destructive weapons that rip another team's robot apart. We've said before, we like to leave our opponents pretty - but beaten.

There are several robots on our drawing board that we'd really like to build:

• a sub-light version of 'Probophobia' who managed to crawl up and out of 'The Pit' at Robot Wars Extreme Warriors;
• a dominating spinner-killer along the lines of Team Nighmare's 'Breaker Box';
• and even a stealth autonomous sumo 'bot that evades optical and sonic detection.

A: In the main tournament we fought:

• Lightning Tracks (Russ Barrow)
• Destructive Criticism (Randy Eubanks)
• General Chompsalot (Tim Berghoefer)
• Trackzilla (Lawrence Feir)
• The Revolutionist (Brian Nave)
• Propeller Head (Mike Konshak)

A: My dad and I started building combat robots in early 2001. We didn't know much about them when we started but, with the help of people who were very generous with their knowledge, we've done very well. We've built seven combat robots, won four competitions, and been in the top three at half the events we've entered. We fought at big, televised competitions (Robotica, Robot Wars) and smaller local, regional, and national events.

When we struggled to learn new things that were difficult to find information on, we wrote-up what we'd learned as guides for other robot builders (radio programming, PRO-120 speed controller set-up, combat robot gyros). We reviewed combat robot books, and compiled full tournament results from national and international combat robot competitions. We organized and maintain the Combat Robot Hall of Fame and we put on our own unique tournament -- three times. We've also researched the answers to more than 900 questions about combat robots. That all adds up to a considerable education.

A: Sorry, I can't find any connection between Team Gator's "Crockbot" and "Steel Magnolia".

A: Build reports are common features of combat robot team websites, although they vary a lot in detail and completeness. Start at Team Daisy and click on any of the 'build report' links for their robots. A web search for "build report robot" will find many, many more.

A: Mark J. here: Aaron has answered this question -- search this page for 'favorite'. I completely agree with Aaron's view.

While I'm on the topic: I think we would have better tournaments if we had fewer weight classes. Right now there are ten RFL-recognized classes:

I'd suggest a reduction to four weight classes: ant, hobby, light, and heavy. With fewer classes the existing builders would be concentrated for better competition and a cleaner tournament structure. It would also be easier for spectators to follow the progress of the tournament.

A: Robot Wars Extreme Warriors didn't get those introductions. The Gap is still combat-ready, so I'm not eager to talk weaknesses. Let's just say that the wheels could use some spinner protection -- that's what took us out of Robot Wars.

Strengths include precise maneuverability, a very long weapon reach, large CO² and battery reserves, and bulletproof electronics.

A: Team Juggerbot is no longer competing in combat robotics, but they are busy with other robot projects.

A: Team Jawbreaker has retired from combat robotics. Here is a link to their archived site.

A: Tombstone last fought at the 2005 Robogames. Team Hardcore is still active, so I can only guess that they are having trouble finding other superheavyweights to fight. Dragging a superheavyweight around the country for just a couple of fights is just not worth the effort. You can contact the team and ask them directly.

A: Mark J. here: thank you -- I'm always pleased to receive comments and suggestions about the membership of the Combat Robot Hall of Fame. The hall opens for membership voting in August of odd-numbered years. The selection of robots isn't really 'mine' -- my vote counts no more than anyone else's -- but I did set out the original criteria for voters to consider. I suggested that membership be based on:

The hall will open again for membership voting in August of 2009. You can certainly lobby on the forums for your favorite 'bots at that time and perhaps sway some votes to your favor.

A: Archived Rosie the Riveter website. Rosie was badly damaged at the Oregon Clandestine Street Fight, but was certainly reparable. That was the last I saw of her.

A: I think we'll have to call that a draw.

Juggerbot had us outweighed about 40:1, but we did get in the first hit. If their high-pressure flipper had been charged, we'd still be waiting for Mini Run Amok to come back down ; ^ )

Moral: don't bite off more than you can chew.

A: Tillah had a fearsome drum weapon, but its mobility was handicapped by the two-wheel drive system. It proved difficult to maneuver and was not successful in combat.

A: Yes. There were three JuggerBot platforms:

• JuggerBot 1.0 was used at Robotics series 1. The chassis was loaned to Team Thunderbolt for use in 'Rosie the Riveter 1.0' at Robot Wars. Later versions of Rosie (and 'Logos Eye') were fully built by Team Thunderbolt.

• JuggerBot 2.0 was a six-motor, six-wheel superheavyweight that competed at BattleBots 3.0. For Robot Wars, the two center motors and wheels were removed to make heavyweight specs and it was renamed 'Tricerabot'.

• JuggerBot 3.0 was built for and competed in Robotoca series 3. It had a new motor layout and a high pressure air flipper weapon.

A: My last source of Robotica videos was inetvideo.com, but they seem to have run out. Keep an eye on EBay.

Q: Ok, are there any videos of your robots in Robot Wars or Robotica on YouTube?

A: None that I know about.

Q: What you think about Juggerbot/Tricerabot and Rosie The Riveter/LogosEye?

A: Mark J. here: Team JuggerBot was one of the top technical teams in the sport and one of the finest groups of people I have ever met. Their robots were always prepared at the highest level and their pit skills were astounding.

JuggerBot 3.0 was one of the most capable combat robots of it's time. The addition of the high-pressure air 'Up Ender' weapon to the quick and agile JuggerBot platform created a (nearly) unbeatable machine. JuggerBot 2.0/Tricerabot was the first and only robot to shove the 1100 pound 'Sir Killalot' into the Robot Wars pit.

Rosie the Riveter/LogosEye was based on the original JuggerBot chassis used at Robotica. Operated by a separate team of members spun off from Team JuggerBot, Rosie continued development of armor and power from the original configuration and proved its durability by surviving a record ten fights at Robot Wars Extreme Warriors 2.

Q: How did 'LogosEye' come into existence? Why it isn't on the JuggerBot website?

A: The full story of 'LogosEye' and 'Rosie the Riveter' can be found at the archived LogosEye Website. 'LogosEye' was built for Robotica Series 3, but failed to perform to the expected standards of the associated JuggerBot teams. You can find a couple of pictures of it in the JuggerBot Robotica 3 gallery, but that's about it.

Q: What you think about RamForce? Jawbreaker? Viper? Panzer Mk. I? Kritical Mass?

A: I hope I don't have to go thru all the Robotica 'bots!

• Ram Force - Andrew Lindsey puts a lot of thought into his designs and he understands the technical aspects of robot building as well as anyone. Ram Force had the best control of any 'bot at Robotica. Just watch it run thru 'The Speedway'. The go-kart slick tires failed to produce the traction hoped for.

• Jawbreaker - The only two-wheeled 'bot to make the Robotica finals, the beautifully built Jawbreaker overcame it's control issues to put on a great show. Tim Berghoefer and crew had a great time and were big fun to hang around with in the pits.

• Viper - Sticking to solid construction and proven design, Bob Allen created the best pushing 'bot in the field. It needed only a little more speed to compete for the top spot.

• Panzer Mk. I - Power, speed, control -- everything needed to win. If they had not run into the only robot that could out push them in their preliminary 'Fight to the Finish', I'm certain that Todd Mendenhall's team could have gone all the way. He got his chance at Robotica 3.

• Kritical Mass - Jeff Cesnik is a very serious fellow and a very tough competitor. Kritical Mass had the most destructive weapon at Robotica. The 'bot was quick, agile, and adaptable. The low clearance and tiny drive wheels just couldn't deal with the clutter in 'The Gauntlet'.

A: Tillah -- another JuggerBot spin-off -- was torn into tiny shards by Megabyte at Steel Conflict 4. There wasn't enough left to rebuild.

A: Run Amok was retired after her return from the second Robot Wars Extreme Warriors competition, but she remains fully operational in a place of honor in our workshop. You can find a listing of all of our combat 'bots down a little lower on this archive page.

A:Team Run Amok remains active in a variety of robotic projects, although it has been a while since we competed at an RFL event. Next month we will host an Antbotica competition here in Oregon, and we just got back from a trip Florida where we helped promote the new Slambot arcade game. We keep several of our 'bots in ready condition in case a opportunity pops up.

I loved the Robotica type, the robots had to be versatile and maneuverable. Driving skills played a big part of success or failure.
[Matt M. - TeamPlumbCrazy.com]

A: Hi, Matt. You build some great robots!

I like all styles of robot combat, but you've probably guessed that a 'Robotica' format is my favorite. It's a challenge to balance the design elements of the robot to meet all the differing tasks, and the driver has to stay cool and be ready to take advantage of any development. We like it so much that we designed our own Antbotica competition to include many of the same elements.

One thing I didn't like about Robot Wars -- we had to drive from a balcony a long way from the 'bot. I like to be close to the robot when I drive and I like to be able to hear the noise and feel the impact! That's what big 'bots are all about for me.

I also like what I've seen about autonomous sumo robot. I saw some great competition at Robothon and could really get into that if there were some local interest. Some of the guys at Western Allied Robotics have been building autonomous antweights and competing against R/C, but if anybody has a transmitter in their hands I want to have one too!

A: Mark J. here: 'Run Amok' was built for the unique demands of the original Robotica competition. It had the balance of speed, stability, power, and adaptability that was needed for that particular challenge.

We've built many robots since 'Run Amok'. For each different type of combat we build a very different type of robot. For Robot Wars, we built The Gap, which does not in any way resemble 'Run Amok'. The decision on self-righting would depend on the layout of the competition. 'The Gap' can self-right. The Gap on Google Video.

Television was only important to our robot combat career because it kept our expenses down. Building, transporting, and fighting heavyweight combat robots is expensive. The televised competitions would pay to transport us and the robots, put us up in a hotel, feed us, and usually pay enough prize money to cover our other expenses. Without that economic help, we've had to settle for smaller robots and 'local' competitions.

A: At Robotica, Run Amok was geared for speed and topped out at 17 m.p.h. For Robot Wars we increased the gear reduction for more pushing power and the top speed dropped to 12 m.p.h.

A: Pump the gas twice, depress the clutch, turn the key to the right. See:

A: Good to hear that you find the diagrams so useful. Tha Ask Aaron Archive had become a big page to load and I've just finished splitting it up into smaller sections. An 'all diagrams' section might be a good addition.

A: Mark J. here: The Combat Robot Hall Of Fame opens for new inductees in August of odd-numbered years. Votes for new members are solicited from the robot building community. As in prior years, the announcement and details of the voting process will be posted to combat robot related discussion groups at the Delphi Forums site. If you are an active member of the combat robot forums, you'll hear about it.

A: Thanks for the props. We really enjoy fielding robot questions and don't do it for recognition, but it's nice to hear that our efforts are appreciated.

A: We only answer robot questions here, so we'll have to modify your question: if a robot made of a carbonate ran into another robot made of an acid, you'd get a cloud of carbon dioxide and a puddle of water. Robot questions, please.

A: It's very tough to make a good case for a business to sponsor a combat robot right now. No TV coverage plus small audience turn-out at events means very few people would see a sticker on your 'bot or a banner in your pit area. Unless you're related to the owner of a business, you're going to find it very difficult to snag a sponsor. The only sponsor we've ever had is my dad's credit card.

Build a small 'bot with your own funds and enter a few tournaments. If you can show some skill and talent it will be easier to convince a potential sponsor to help you build a larger 'bot.

A: Robotics pioneer Joseph Engelberger once said: "I can't define a robot, but I know one when I see one."

A: Hypno-disc rocks, but my vote goes to Carlo Bertocchini's Biohazard. Twenty-seven wins and three losses is just impossible to beat. My beetleweight Zpatula is based on his electric lifter design, and Carlo was kind enough to autograph Zpatula for me at the 2004 RFL nationals.

Of the Robot Wars 'bots, I always liked Firestorm. Hypno-Disc beat Firestorm 3 in the 5th Wars, but it was a great fight!

I thought biohazard had five losses at: BBLV'99, BB1.0, BB3.0, and Combots cup 2005 (x2)?

I was counting the record at BattleBots, including melee wins. If you want to count the 2005 losses to Megabyte and Brutality, count the 2005 win over Jawbreaker and throw in the undefeated record at the early Robot Wars for an overall head-to-head record of 35 wins and 5 losses. That remains the best win percentage of any heavyweight with more than 10 fights.

A: Sure. Mini Max 2.0 uses the drivetrain from a BattleBots custom series 'DoAll' toy. I replaced the radio and speed controllers with hobby-grade equipment, and added a 700 MAH rechargeable battery pack. The treads are silicone rubber coated for added traction, and I added a removable front polyethylene scoop. The 'bot will run upside down if needed.

Mini Maxbot 2.0 placed second at the 2005 daVinci Days Antbotica event in Corvallis, Oregon.

A: You'll need more power and/or less weight and/or greater gear reduction and/or more traction. With the information you've given, my best advice is to build a combat robot and have it throw your model car over the hill. Robot questions, please.

A: There's a review of "Build your own combat robot" on the Team Run Amok book review page.

A: Try pointing it downhill. If that doesn't work, write back and tell me enough about your robot that I can make a reasonable suggestion.

A: Nobody was gonna beat 'Wallop' at the 2004 RFL National Championships. The magnet wheels gave him a huge advantage on the steel-floored arena. There is more to building a good magnet-bot than just bolting ring magnets onto your hubs, and Jim Smentowski did a great job of it.

On a non-magnetic surface, a 'Zpatula' versus rubber-tired 'Wallop' match would be interesting. I think my narrower lifter might get under his, but Jim is a very experienced driver. Call it a toss-up.

A: Zpatula is based on a BattleBots Pro-Series Biohazard R/C toy that I bought on EBay ($30). We removed the toy radio and installed a SOZBots ESC ($58), a Microbotparts FM micro receiver ($25), and a home-built 7.2 volt 700 mAH NiMHD battery pack ($10). The drive train uses the 130 size electric motors that came with the toy.

The toy gearbox for the lifter was modified to lock the slip clutch and to allow controlled up/down operation with a Team Delta R/C dual-ended switch ($39). We also upgraded the electric lifter motor from a 130 size to a more powerful 180 ($10). The lifter itself is a shortened BBQ spatula ($4).

For protection, we added 1/8" polycarbonate top armor ($3) and 3/16" UHMW polyethylene side/rear skirts ($3). Not counting the radio transmitter, that adds up to well less than $200.

Zpatula won the 2004 daVinci Days tournament and finished 3rd at the 2004 RFL nationals. It's lifetime ranking score is 1277.68, placing it in the top 30 beetles of all time at Botrank.com.

You're Welcome. Your 'bots look great! Happy to hear our advice was helpful.

A: Yes. 'Mini Maxbot' was my first antweight. It is a converted R/C skateboard toy - four-wheel drive with dual 'forks of doom' on the front. It won the first Antbotica competition and won a few combat matches as well.

We still have all of our combat 'bots, although hobbyweight 'Nasty Glass of Water' is not operational.

A: Each of our 'bots at Robot Wars had its own driver and support team. We'd just go for it and see who had the better stuff that day. But no senseless destruction after the match was over!

A: I think I mentioned before that I had a grudge with Sir Killalot -- he attacked 'Run Away' without provocation and from behind. Cowardly! Dead Metal was my fave.

A: Yep, I own the game -- very cool! The housebots cannot be bought there, but you can play as a housebot in 'Robot Wars Advanced Destruction' for the Game Boy Advance.

A: Three reasons:

• Run Away was a longer and taller 'bot than Run Amok.
• We wanted to pack a lot of spare parts and tools in the same crate.
• International shipping required a much sturdier crate to ship Run Away to Robot Wars in England than we needed to ship Run Amok to Robotica in California.

A: We don't need anything new at the moment, but we always have a couple things on the drawing board...

A: Take away its bus pass. [Sorry - couldn't resist the bad joke.]

Walking robots are for advanced robot builders and are much too complicated to talk about here. See earlier posts about walkers for some information sources.

Q: Do you have any more bad robot jokes?

A: Yes, but I don't want to drive people away from my website.

A: Didya run outta robot questions? My favorite color is green, my eyes are blue, I'm 6' 2" tall, my favorite musician is Ray Charles, my favorite class is Computer Aided Drafting, I like to eat pizza (no anchovies) and play Yu-Gi-Oh. I have two dogs, three birds, and a fish named 'Alpha'. More robot questions!

A: Tillah was very compact, but the Oregon drum spinner was a 220 pound heavyweight. The weapon was very heavy. You can see Tillah fight on the Oregon Clandestine Street Fight CD.

Q: How heavy is Tillah's drum?

A: Mark J. here: First, Tillah should be referred to in the past tense - Tillah is no more. As noted in an earlier post, Tillah was destroyed in a match against Megabyte at Steel Conflict 4.

I could only guess at the weight of Tillah's drum weapon. It was made from very thick steel plate. Ask Team JuggerBot for a definitive answer.

A: Mark J. here: The primary weapon of all the JuggerBots was speed and power. Juggerbot 2.0 was the 6-motor 6-wheel drive version that competed as a superheavyweight at BattleBots 3.0. It had no 'active' weapons, but did have a variety of interchangeable front-mounted spikes. This chassis also competed at Robot Wars, minus the two middle drive units, as 'Tricerabot'.

For JuggerBot 3.0, chief weapons officer Ron Ender developed the 'up-ender' weapon -- a small but mighty high-pressure air powered flipper to coordinate with the other attributes of the 'bot.

A: No. We didn't compete in any RFL qualifying events this year; we don't like their scoring system.

A: Yes, and no. Explanation:

The Gap's lifting platform has a max capacity of 1060 pounds, but you'd have to position the load very precisely on the platform to lift that much. The Gap will lift 400 pounds placed anywhere on the platform, and 616 would be very possible if we got well under the weight...

...but, Sir Killalot's true weight was almost double the advertised 616 pounds. Robot Wars didn't want to make it seem too one-sided.

A: Its shift key stuck on and it capitalized itself to death.

Actually, all of the old 'bots from the JuggerBot team are hanging on the wall of Mike Morrow's big workshop in Oregon. They're just bare chassis - all re-useable parts have been removed. The motor units from Tricerabot were used in Mike's full-scale 'Mars Rover' recreation. Cool!

Q: Why did Team JuggerBot's Mike Morrow build a giant mars rover?

A: Not giant, just full sized. The Mars Rover is much bigger than most people think! Mike built it for the 2004 daVinci Days festival in Corvallis, Oregon. He also arranged for truckloads of dirt and rocks to fill one end of a parking lot with a replica Mars crater. Visitors to the festival could drive the rover around the crater. Big fun!

A: Ask Team JuggerBot.

A: Mark J. here: The weapon and electronics changes to turn 'Run Amok' into 'Run Away' for Robot Wars Extreme Warriors cost about $1200. We also had to build a crate to ship Run Away to England.

'The Gap' was built in a big hurry for the second RWEW event, and I never added up all the receipts. I think an exact copy would cost about $4000.

A: About 208 pounds, with an empty CO² tank.

A: Yea, it's a pun. Look up 'mettle'.

Q: I don't understand the 'mettle' pun.

A: Never try to explain a pun.

A: Chris Gattman, former member of Team JuggerBot and captain of Team Logoseye (Robot Wars: Rosie the Riveter, Robotica: Logoseye) is also the frontman for the hard rock band, Logoseye (turn up your speakers and click the link). I hadn't heard that they were giving out a robot trading card with CD purchase. Here's a list of all the robot cards in the series:

• R1 - Team Run Amok: The Gap
• R2 - Team Run Amok: Run Amok
• R3 - Team JuggerBot: JuggerBot 3.0
• R4 - Team Logoseye: Rosie the Riveter
• R5 - Team JuggerBot: TriceraBot 3.0
• R6 - Death by Monkeys: Death by Monkeys
• R6 - Death by Monkeys: Silverback (repeated number)

Q: How can I get the Team Death by Monkeys robot trading cards?

A: Write to them and ask nicely. Contact info is at their website: www.teamdeathbymonkeys.com.

A: On our first trip to Robot Wars we spent a lot of time on the London 'Underground' subway system. There were signs and a voice on the PA system reminding riders to 'mind the gap', which meant to look out for the space between the boarding platform and the train.

When we built our lifterbot for the next Robot Wars, it had a 'gap' between the raised lifter platform and the lower frame that could trap other 'bots. We thought it was only fair to point out that our opponents should mind The Gap.

A: Team Jawbreaker reports that Jawbreaker/General Chompsalot 3 has been ready for some time. Looks about ready to me: Photo.

Q: General Chompsalot 3 look's very heavy! Is it a superheavyweight?

A: No, GC3 was originally built to Robot Wars specifications -- 100 KG heavyweight.

A: I was in the Team JuggerBot workshop a few months ago and there was no sign of an upgrade to JuggerBot 3.0. Team leader Mike Morrow is working on other things.

A: No -- we designed our 'bots to fight other 'bots in our weight class, not the Housebots. We were happy to let other teams have a go at that!

A: Sure: www.ebay.com -- that's where I got mine.

A: We didn't fight 'Sir Forcealot' at RWEW2. 'Sir Forcealot' was a renamed version of our nemesis from Robotica, 'Ram Force'. The tournament trees didn't lead us into any of the same matches in England.

A: The robot combat community is a small one. Teams that compete in one series often show up at other events. We've met dozens of teams from BattleBots.

A: My mom is a big part of the team as well! She makes our travel and shipping arrangements, does most of our banners and graphics, and keeps us from doing anything stupid. That last part is really hard.

We also expanded our team for our second trip to Robot Wars to include our chief metal guy, Max Chapin and his family. Max does the metal forming and welding on our big 'bots and contributes to design and engineering.

A: We build 'bots to win matches, not destroy other 'bots.

A: Yes - 'Rat Amok' won the daVinci Days tournament, and 'Mini Maxbot' won the first Antbotica.

A: Mark J. here: This is a good time to tell the whole story. 'Nasty Glass of Water' was built for the September 2001 NERC Hobby Expo event in Chicago. I was sharing a hotel room with Team Delta's Dan Danknick at the event. Dan built a lightweight 'bot called 'Evil Fishtank' for BattleBots and I wanted to play on that name for my hobbyweight. What's smaller than a fish tank? A glass of water. What's a little less than evil? Nasty!

NGOW was an open 'dustpan' design powered by two very large automotive windshield wiper motors running at 24 volts. Even with the overvolting it was very slow, but it could really push! In our first match a motor capacitor failed and shorted to ground. The battery pack got so hot that I blistered two fingers prying it out of the 'bot. By the time I had the pack cooled down and the capacitor fixed, we'd missed our next match and were out.

The next day we were back for the hobbyweight 'rumble'. NGOW scooped up and trapped a 'bot called 'Green Dragon' that had a good bar spinner weapon still operational. With lots of pushing power and an effective weapon, the 24 pound NGOW/GD combo 'bot cleaned house! The unimaginative event director decided that a combo-bot wasn't quite legitimate and disqualified us, but the audience really loved it!

A: Here in the Pacific NorthWest robots larger than the 60 pound 'lightweight' class are getting pretty rare -- but we have a few:

• Team LNW from Washington has been fighting heavyweight 'LNW' with good results over the last few years.

• The 2004 RFL National heavyweight champion 'SJ' belongs to Scott Kincaid. His 'Team Blackroot' is from Idaho.

• Here at Team Run Amok, we keep our heavyweight flipper 'The Gap' ready to fight, just in case.

• Team JuggerBot is just a few miles down the road. I suspect they would show up for a regional heavyweight fight.

• Gary Warren's Team Maggot fights out of Idaho with their RFL national qualified middleweight 'Botfly'.

• Robot Wars veteran Joe Murawski campaigns Team X-Bots' middleweight 'Paminator' out of Washington.

• Team Atros fights their middleweight 'Atros' out of Vancouver, Canada

A: Entry into the Robotica tournaments was by invitation only and winners weren't invited back. The producers were saving the winners from each season for a 'Challenge of the Champions' event that was to take place after a few more seasons had gone by. The ratings for seasons 2 and 3 fell off from the first season and the 'Challenge' tournament never happened. Rats!

A: Mark J. here: I've never published my journal from the second Robot Wars trip. I think you get most of the 'behind the scenes' flavor from the first journal, but I might reconsider.

There IS a Robotica Journal.

A: Mark J. here: Run Amok needed a little graphic impact to show up well on TV. My design, my decision.

A: Try emailing JuggerBot team captain Mike Morrow (mike@juggerbot.com) and asking nicely.

A: The Revolutionist was a VERY dangerous 'bot! The Gap and the Revolutionist met in the first round Robot Wars Extreme Warriors 2 in a 3-way fight with 'Trackzilla'. While the Revolutionist was spinning up, The Gap charged over and tossed Trackzilla on its top for the fastest K.O. by an American 'bot in Robot Wars history -- about 4 seconds! Just then the Revolutionist had a radio glitch and went out of control, smashing into the back of The Gap before shutting down. Both of us went on to the next round.

We didn't meet again. The Gap was designed to get under spinners with its long lifter platform, but the exposed wheels would make a tempting target for the Revolutionist. It would have been a good match -- not sure who would have won.

A: Not many large American 'bots have a dedicated SRiMech. Run Amok was originally built for the Robotica competition where there wasn't any real need for self-righting -- if you found yourself upside-down, there just wasn't time to self-right. I don't think any of the Robotica 'bots had SRiMechs, but some could run inverted.

When we went to Robot Wars for the first time, we didn't have enough time for major changes to Run Amok. We added the 'side-wheel' rotary weapon to make 'Run Away' showy and unique, and extended the top armor as far to the rear as the rules allowed to make her more resistant to flipping and more difficult for Sir Killalot to pick up (it worked!). That was a learning trip for us.

For our second trip to Robot Wars we built our own new flipper 'bot, The Gap. The Gap does self-right. We had a chance to take a second 'bot, so brought the battle-weary Run Away along as well.

As it turned out, Run Away never really needed a SRiMech. She ended up on her back a couple of times, but by the time that happened the match was already lost and self-righting wouldn't have made a difference.

Q: Why doesn't the 1/10th Scale Run Amok Model have a back end?

A: Nobody's ever complained before! It's kind of a cluttered view that doesn't add much to the model. You can see the steel battery box hanging from the chassis, the differential/chain drive, a peak of the drive motor, and a glimpse of the speed controller cover. There is no rear armor.

Just to keep a fan happy, here's a special 'cut and paste' rear-view insert panel to complete your Run Amok model. Don't ask for a bottom view - ain't gonna happen.

A: Mark J. here: I've got CD video of Rat Amok at Da Vinci Days and in the antweight melee at BotBash. There isn't much to see; most times the trap snapping shut squirts the other 'bot across the arena like a pumpkin seed! Having only one shot is a problem in a melee fight.

The video files are too big to download. If you really want the video, send me your email and snailmail addresses and I'll see what I can do.

A: We won the televised Robotica competition with our first heavyweight -- Run Amok.

• Robotica Journal
• Run Amok FAQ
• Construction Log
• Competitor Gallery
• More Photos
• Robotica on Video

A: No need - the Team Run Amok website has all the info on our 'bots.

A: Nope. The last POP event was 3,161 miles from our workshop. That's a long way to go for an ant fight.

A: The Twin City MechWars is a great robot combat series! We've never competed at MechWars, but we were able to stop in at a builders' meeting and talk with some of the teams. If we lived closer to Minnesota we'd be regulars.

'Rat Amok' is operational, but has been retired because the servo drive is just too slow to compete with current speedy ants. I keep thinking about a new version with better motors. Maybe someday.

A: A picture and description of 'Rat Amok' is here - larger picture here.

A: We saw a UK antweight tournament at our first trip to Robot Wars in 2001. 'Mini Razor' wasn't there, but the full-size Razor was!

A: Team Run Amok never competed at BattleBots. It was too expensive, too crowded, and I'm told the food wasn't very good. After all the expense of building a 'bot and traveling to the event, half of the 'bots lost in the first round and went home. Pretty small fun.

A: Most schools (mine included) have very little money for such projects. We'll have to keep financing our own robots.

A: Sorry, but we don't use 3D modeling software for our 'bots. Try asking that question at the Delphi Forums RFL discussion.

A: Beats me. I don't.

Mark J. here: People fight robots for all sorts of reasons. Some people like to win matches -- they don't care what design that takes, and wedges are just fine in their book. Some builders just don't think that a wedge is the way robots should fight and like to show off their active weapons. They are embarassed when they lose to a simple but well-built wedge, so they hate wedges. It's all a matter of taste. Build what you like.

A: My favorite part is hanging out in the pits and talking to other builders -- but you gotta build to fight, and you gotta fight to get into the pits. I guess I like it all.

A: My last event was daVinci Days last July (2005). I'm a high school freshman this year and don't have as much spare time as usual, but I plan to be back at daVinci Days again this summer and maybe another event or two.

A: The Ask Aaron site is getting a lot more traffic, but I don't think there's a link between that and combat robots heading back to TV. If there are new robot shows, they aren't going to be like what we've seen before! I promise I'll let you know if producers start calling.

A: None of the classes are pushovers anymore, but the level of destruction seems to go up with the heavier classes. I'd guess that the heavyweights are the most brutal class at the moment, but competition is tough all the way from antweights thru the super-heavys.

A: Tough question. I think the toughest 'bot I ever fought was the beetleweight Trilocity -- a high-power thwackbot. He put some rips in my armor and eventually stuck his axe into my chassis so hard he couldn't get loose. I had enough pushing power to drag him around and get enough points for the win.

A: Zpatula uses a Sozbots dual motor ESC, plus a Team Delta dual-ended R/C switch for the lifter motor. Zpatula isn't based on the small custom-series BattleBot toy chassis, it's built on the larger pro-series chassis, and it uses a modified Biohazard gearbox for the lifter.

A: Could. Won't.

A: The Gap fought two great matches at the 'Oregon Clandestine Street Fight'. You can purchase a video CD of that event at The Run Amok Store or at The Robot Marketplace. The Gap also fought at Robot Wars Extreme Warriors II, but no video of that event is for sale.

I don't know of any fairy or flea matches for sale on video.

A: We were at the Robot Wars Extreme Warriors events in England twice. In 2001 we entered 'Run Away' and made it to the finals in the Tag Team competition with our friends from Team Jawbreaker. In 2002 we returned with 'Run Away' and 'The Gap' and fought in both the main tournament and the Tag Team event. I also got to drive 'Run Away' in the Nickelodeon Robot Wars series filmed in England in 2002.

A: Mark J. here: my retired antweight Rat Amok was made from a genuine Victor rat trap - larger than a mouse trap. The trap mechanism is fully functional and is controlled by a tiny servo that holds the trap open `til the weapon is fired. Rat Amok won the 2002 Western Allied Robotics daVinci Days antweight tournament. The servo drive is too slow to be competitive against faster modern `bots, but I keep thinking about a new, faster version.

Aaron had his own antweight back then called 'Mini Maxbot' that he and I built together. Aaron and Mini Maxbot won the first Antbotica competition in 2004.

A: The funniest robot I ever saw was `Psycho Chicken'. In one match at Robot Wars, it laid an egg that `hatched' into an R/C mini-bot. Funny!

A: Our team has both my dad's and my antweights on buildersdb.com -- along with my beetle, dad's hobbyweight, and our two heavyweights. Search for 'Run Amok' as a team name.

We haven't run antweights at an RFL qualifier for a few years now -- but I fought my beetle 'Zpatula' at nationals in 2004. It's ranked in the top 30 historic beetles at botrank.com.

A: Technical question - Mark J. here: I've gone into detail about the design decisions for Run Amok at the Run Amok FAQ page. In short, Run Amok was built for the four challenges in the first season of Robotica: The Speedway, The Maze, The Gauntlet, and The Fight to the Finish (details on the challenges). Tank steered robots have trouble making smooth turns as needed for The Speedway, and many had difficulty climbing ramps in The Maze. Also, a car-style differential as used by Run Amok can deliver a lot of pushing power in poor traction conditions for the Gauntlet.

I knew that the maneuverability of tank steering would be an advantage in The Fight to the Finish, but I wanted my best chance to at least get that far. It all worked out for us!

A: Yep, Zpatula has a lifter with a 4-bar linkage. Zpatula's drive motors are 6 volt Mabuchi 130s -- a Mabuchi 180 powers the lifter.

Q: Don't you think 130s are a bit small for a beetle? I use 300s in my ant. [Alex U., Pittsburgh, PA]

A: Mark J. here: Let me take this one, Aaron.

The maximum amount of drive power you can effectively use in a 'bot is limited by the weight on the drive wheels and the grip of the tires. Additional torque just spins your wheels. You can 'gear up' to trade torque for speed -- but how much speed can you effectively use in a 5 or 6 foot square ant/beetle arena?

Zpatula is 6-wheel drive and can easily spin it's wheels to avoid motor-destroying stall. The twin, mildly over-volted 130 motors give good controllable speed and deliver about 4 watts of power per pound of robot -- just about the same ratio as our Robotica winning heavyweight 'Run Amok'.

Many People believe that Team Run Amok's 'bots are underpowered, but we have championships from half the events we've entered. Not many teams can match that record.

A: No question about it, I like heavyweights! There's just something about the noise and feel of two BIG 'bots crashing into each other that you don't get in the lighter classes.

A: Well, homework and my household duties do take a lot of time. When I'd done with them, I decide what I really should be doing -- an hour watching a TV show I don't really care about is an hour I could have been working on a robot, practicing my basketball, or preparing my Yu-Gi-Oh decks. If you really look at what you do with your spare time, you might be surprised at how much you could be doing. Remember to save some time to just kick back!

A: I count seven competition robots in all:

• Rat Amok - antweight combat - retired, but operational;
• Mini Maxbot - antweight combat & Antbotica competitor - operational;
• Mini Maxbot 2 - Antbotica competitor - operational;
• Zpatula - beetleweight combat - operational;
• Nasty Glass of Water - hobbyweight - retired and dismantled;
• Run Amok/Run Away - Heavyweight combat - retired, but operational;
• The Gap - Robot Wars heavyweight - operational.

A: Sure! I play basketball, I have a weekly Yu-Gi-Oh tournament, and I'm an assistant manager for my high school football team.

A: All of my 'bots are built for combat or head-to-head competition. No humanoid 'bots -- but I think that 'bots like Robo-One are way cool!

A: By the time we're thru with a robot it's either a champion or a pile of scrap. We don't sell our champions, and nobody would want the pile of scrap.

A: We made lots of friends at Robotica and I don't want to pick out just one 'bot as my favorite. I really liked JuggerBot, Jawbreaker, and Kritical Mass. My dad says he liked Pandora for the cool way the builder used the parts he had available.

A: Propellerhead hit one of The Gap's wheels so hard it broke the gearbox. That was a freak hit and we haven't had any trouble since then, but before The Gap competes again, there will be wheel guards! We have plenty of weight allowance left.

[Drawing of 'Run mok 2' by A.J. Hamilton]

A: Yes! Combat robots are very dangerous -- that's why they usually fight inside bulletproof plastic boxes. Most robot builders have a scar someplace that their robot gave them. You must be very careful when working with rotating weapons, exposed gears and chains, high-pressure pneumatic systems, and heavy 'bots running around at speed.

A: The last match of Robotica happened at about 3 o'clock in the morning. It was a very busy day and I was really tired. The photo was taken in the pits after our win, and I was about half asleep.

A: There are a couple of 'bots I'd like another chance to fight, but not exactly for revenge. Sir Killalot did try to throw us out of the arena for no reason, and I'd love to catch him with his back turned for a little payback. We didn't really have much of a chance to battle with General Chompsalot 'cause we were so badly damaged in an earlier fight -- I'd like to do that again.

Q: But I thought you & General Chompsalot were Tag team terror partners, you've even got his link on your web page. So why do you want to battle him?

A: Yes, the guys on Team Jawbreaker are our friends. They are really nice guys. We met them at Robotica and we were tag team partners at Robot Wars. When we met them in a battle at the next Robot Wars, Run Away had been badly damaged in an earlier match by Destructive Criticism and we just couldn't show off much. General C. even had to grab us and pull us away from the house 'bots to save us!

Fighting robots is fun. You play baseball and football with your friends, so why not battle robots with them?

This section is tucked away and not listed on the main page because, with few exceptions, I'm not really willing to answer technical questions about Robot Arena 2. Try these other resources first:

• The Robot Arena Forum hosts an active discussion.
• YouTube has several good Robot Arena tutorials.
• The Robot Arena 2 Wiki is new and not very useful - yet.

A: I've played quite a bit of 'Robot Arena: Design and Destroy', but my favorite PC robot game is 'Robot Wars - Extreme Destruction'. My dad has a virtual version of our robot 'Run Amok' for Robot Arena. You can download it here: Virtual Run Amok.

A: I guess you found our Virtual Run Amok for Robot Arena 2. The mechanical components available in the game are not well suited for building an accurate model of the chain-driven 'paddlewheel' spinner weapon on Run Away or the multi-pivot pneumatic platform on The Gap. You might get them functionally operable, but they wouldn't look right.

A: I like to play with 'Tail Whip' in the lightweight class. With a little practice and strategy, it can be a very effective 'bot. I agree that 'Coal Miner' is the toughest computer 'bot to beat.

A: I'm not active on the Robot Arena forum, and did not enter the tournament.

A: The basic shape of the robot body doesn't have to be a rectangular box. The first step in chassis layout sets the size and shape of the base plate. Click on 'Step 2' to set the top plate, click on a front corner, and pull it toward the rear to make it smaller than the bottom plate. Repeat with the other front corner. Instant wedge!

A: I stay away from Robot Arena tech questions, but I'll make an exception this time.

Motors cannot be mounted directly to the baseplate in a horizontal orientation. You must make a motor mount that provides a mounting surface at a right angle to the baseplate. The mount may be made from an angled base and extenders. The motor will snap to the mount when brought close and may then be rotated into position with the shift/mouse combination. See the diagram at right for examples.

A: The tutorial files included on the program disk have the basic information you're asking about. For additional help with Robot Arena 2, use the resources at the top of this section.