Bone Dead Robotics

The 2024 robot season begins with the Vorion (running under Phenomenon’s name), Fracas, and the debut of Mind Flayer.

After arriving at Motorama on Friday, the tables were organized and the robots were unloaded. The only fear going into the competition was not being formally registered online with Mind Flayer as the decision to bring it directly resulted from its waitlist status for NHRL’s March event. The good news is because of all the previous testing for each machine (which you can see flashes of on the Instagram page) the machines were all assembled and ready for combat. After returning on Saturday and getting through safety it was time for combat!

Mind Flayer

Mind Flayer vs. Torrent

Mind Flayer and Torrent were both machines that took advantage of NERC‘s generous day-of registration to enter the bracket so the bracket software paired them up together. Though Torrent is a golden dumpster winner at NHRL, Mind Flayer is specifically designed to beat this type of machine so it was the best kind of match for it to fight.

This fight went extremely well for Mind Flayer as the blade’s high angle and chaotic nature allowed it to cleave straight through the top armor and weapon system. Within the first minute of the fight, Mind Flayer was able to cleave through some wires in the top, generating an internal fire in Torrent. After a series of attacks including Mind Flayer driving over the top like a buzz saw and exploding the top weapon system. The weapon motor was a great trophy of war!

Mind Flayer vs Axis of Evil

The next fight for Mind Flayer was against Axis of Evil, a smaller version of Starchild from Battlebots. Compared to other big wheel robots, Mind Flayer is smaller as the blade’s front facing orientation allows the body to be more compact and the overall height of the wheel is small as the body’s tilt allows the weapon height to naturally change during motion. Fighting another big wheel robot was odd and AoE’s offset blade could allow it to strike the main body which is very lightly armored. Even so, I was confident if Mind Flayer’s blade were to strike the tail it would do considerable damage as the weapon’s power level is far higher.

Unfortunately in this fight, having three robots at an event caught up as there was little time to test and troubleshoot between fights. Going into the fight, half of the drivetrain was mysteriously dead, meaning its only fighting with half drive power.

Though eventually both drive sides went out, the weapon proved itself incredibly resilient as it delivered incredible damage to the tail of AoE. After the fight it was clear that the shots AoE did get on the body was enough to knock the drive motor on the working side off the gearbox which then ate its own wires as it twisted around internally. Its a subtle thing that was invisible during combat, but a killer in the pits.

Mind Flayer ends its time with a final record of 1-2. It served its purpose of learning its limitations and the design shows lots of potential!

Fracas

Going into Motorama, I wanted to test the new Repeat Magnum gearboxes connected to 3536 outruner motors in a 30lb drivetrain as a more compact solution over the Vex Versaplanetaries that were run in Vorion and Fracas previously. In addition, custom Vytaflex 40A wheels were cast over the Vex hub mounts as a more native wheel solution too.

Fracas vs Serket

Fracas’ first fight was against Serket who was driven by good friends of mine so naturally that meant I drove Fracas as hard as possible against them! The fight was a great exhibition of Fracas’ drive and lifter systems.

At the end of the fight the lifter assembly gave out leading me to stop playing with my opponent and letting the bot rest. Once opened up in the pit, the locker compound and set screw that held the sprocket attached to the shaft, resulting in the lifter to give up as it failed. Certainly annoying problem, but there was a second system ready to go so it was a quick swap before the next fight.

Fracas vs THE BEEESSS?!!

Fracas vs THE BEEESS?!! is a quintessential Sportsman fight: long forks and lifters. Unfortunately during the fight as the two forks meshed and I tried to lift it burned out the motor leading to the lifter dying and BEEEESS ultimately taking the fight. Through some pit labor, Fracas was ultimately reassembled and back for the next fight.

Fracas vs Major Axe E Dent

This epic photo (courtesy of JCRB Photography!) showcased Fracas during one of its multiple suplexes against Major Axe E Dent.

Though Fracas had a rough time against full combat featherweights, it is an excellent sportsman machine! Unfortunately, the top panel was broken through and though it missed all critical components it did manage to cut one of the drive wires, killing drive on one side. At the very end of the match, the lifter gearbox was able to strip its own threads from torque which would have killed the machine anyway.

Though Fracas ended with a 1-2 record as well, the Repeat drivetrain proved itself very effective in combat leaving it as a firm option for use in future machines.

Vorion (running as Phenomenon)

Due to the registration for Motorama opening in November 2023, I registered Phenomenon as I was still considering it as an entry for competition though by competition it was clear Vorion was going to run. Nevertheless, the name was used officially (which did prove helpful in its Robot Combat Events ranking) despite no change. Even so, two Vorions were prepared for battle in different configurations.

In addition, the blade hub was swapped over from needle roller bearings to ball bearings which should avoid shaft bending and even smoother running on the blades.

Vorion vs Crimson Snow

Phenomenon fought Crimson Snow at Motorama 2023 so it was a nice rematch contrasting it to Vorion’s progress. Though Crimson Snow had to postpone since its drive wasn’t working, it was able to make it into the box.

Ultimately the fight against Crimson Snow was brief as Vorion was able to deliver a few quick shots to bend the chassis and knock it out. Overall no damage to the machine so the battery was charged and put back into the machine.

Vorion vs Lil Rip

Lil Rip has a 1-0 record against Fracas and 0-1 against Phenomenon for an overall 1-1 record against the team. Its time for a tie breaker!

Vorion did very well by outmaneuvering the pizza and getting lots of clean shots. Even so, there was some damage onto the left fork mount and some chipping of the weapon tooth. Remarkably the weld held on the fork mount but the material itself was sheared off, resulting in an impressive failure mode. Even so, Vorion took home the win and keeps going with minimal repair work.

Vorion vs Pepe Silvia

Pepe Silvia’s massive 20lb drum and 45lb total weight marked a huge challenge to Vorion. The plastic exterior (especially the TPU drum) marked a huge challenge for grabbing and tearing into anything besides the teeth.

Pepe’s odd shape resulted in making it impossible to tell if the machine was spinning up or down. This odd orientation allowed it to sometimes spin over the top, bending the normal blocker forward and completely destroying the motor for the lifter gearbox. It also bent the arm mount itself. It was definitely among the best fights of the weekend and I’m very pleased to say that Vorion was still in great shape!

Vorion vs Nautilus

Nautilus, Huge, and Pepe Silvia were the machines I was most worried about in the event which of course meant that fighting them was inevitable. Nautilus’ 45lb frame (weight bonus made by shufflers) and larger weapon made it an incredibly daunting opponent to fight. Though Vorion was faster and had great forks, Nautilus had well-earned its rep as a terrifying machine.

All in all, the machine was in pretty good spirits despite the very violent matchup. The forks proved to be a weak point as the side of the fork was a good anchor point for Nautilus to hit and bend. Once bent, the forks become not only useless for ground game but incredibly crippling as they block the weapon from continued interaction and just adding more damage. With broken welds, bent front mount, and torn wheelguards the body looks rough but once again the body is very functional. Though a cold solder joint resulted in the lifting arm being unable to move, the spinner and drive were fully functional so all in all I’m pleased with durability on both Vorion machines and the 2-2 finish! The new ball bearing hubs were also flawless as the blade was smoother than ever with no issues.

Ultimately Pepe and Nautilus were the two finalists of the event with Pepe walking away (literally) with the win. Though there is something to be said about the top two 30lbers being 45lb machines, I focus on the design progression of shufflers as time has gone on to create such machines. While Nautilus plays a much more balanced game, Pepe’s full-body drum is a rare creation that could not exist the way it does without that weight bonus. Its a creative idea that I’m glad was able to reach fruition. Though I lost to them, I still think Vorion could come back to fight these with some tweaks and potentially win so I don’t advocate the downplaying or removal of the weight bonus. Rather, I welcome the challenge and look inward to see what I can do to meet the new level set before me. To be the best you must beat the best!

Final Thoughts

Overall, I’m quite pleased with the machines. Though only Vorion made it to a fair record, the learning that I wanted to occur happened especially with Fracas and Mind Flayer then was pleasantly surprised by Vorion’s resiliency. Motorama is not as serious as NHRL events so I am far less worried about success. However, Motorama is the very first fighting robot event I attended way back in 2010 so I’ll always be keen to win a title there. Even so, I am very grateful for the best driver award so I was able to take home some hardware. All in all, I would call Motorama 2024 a success and solid start to the year!