Crash & Burn: Mini-Tournament of Death 2

[kodster]

Crash & Burn: Mini-Tournament of Death 2

Hardy har har, Aaron. Now then, with all the comments out of the way, I will continue. :P

Eliminator 3
System Shock 4.0 vs. Under Pressure vs. Thanatos

System Shock 4.0 is a nice box wedge rammer, with a Hardox monocoque, titanium skirts, and extremely powerful drive. It uses the track advantage for 10kg extra weight, but can become a wheeled robot during battle. The wedge can be replaced by a Tornado-style disc and the rear spikes can damage armour as well. Shocking indeed.

Under Pressure is an unusual horizontal crusher, unusual in the fact that it can wedge opponents first using lower claws and then bring the damaging claws into play. Its Hardox armoured pretty much everywhere except 5mm titanium for the main body. Itll be putting Pressure on you.

Thanatos is a super spinner, utilizing a LEM170 Lynch motor to spin its Hardox FBS shell and the 4 teeth attached to 1500rpm. It also has a titanium srimech at the top. However, its Bosch drive could leave it behind in this battle, and Thanatos could get the death penalty.

Roboteers, stand by...

House robots for the bout will be Ancalagon the Black, and Renegade.

3...
2...
1...
ACTIVATE!

Right off the bat its System Shock with the wedge coming right into play on Under Pressure, and is able to get the wedge into play before Under Pressure can sneak in the claw wedges! Not that it does much good anyway, as the claws do activate before Martijns bot gets wedged, but they cant seem to get under the skirts! The result is System Shock taking Under Pressure across the arena, the huge pincer of a robot simply raised helpless into the air by the wedge, unable to even move! Despite all this. System Shock doesnt want to take Under Pressure to the wall, thats not in his game plan. Liam sees a much better place to put Under Pressure: in the path of the other competitor, Thanatos, whos definitely reached its top speed by now and wants to get in on some action! It comes towards System Shock now, who places Under Pressure in front of it, and lowers the wedge as Thanatos nears the two. The results wont look pretty...

CRASH!!!

Well...that could have been worse, but its left Under Pressure with a sizable dent in the rear of the right side claw. The impact has also sent Thanatos across the arena, the recoil actually propelling it away from its victim, as System Shock moves in again. Martijn tries to get the claw wedges working against Liam, but its not working, they cant penetrate the skirts and now System Shocks gotten under Under Pressure again! Unfortunately Liam cant quite flip him over due to the size of Under Pressure, nor has he completely lifted Under Pressure from the ground this time, hes oinly tipped him up, and Under Pressure is reversing, so Liam decides to take him to Thanatos again. Thanatos however is nowhere to be found...until Liam finally spots the spinbot...hes moved right behind System Shock! Liam tries to turn, but its too late!

CRASH!!!

Its the rear of System Shock thats taken the blow and sent him spinning away! Thankfully its not done much damage, however, and now Liams set his sights on Samuels spinner! Speaking of Thanatos, its been flung across the arena again and lies right on top of the pit. Thanking his stars it isnt open yet, Samuel gets his robots shell to spin up again, but he barely gets it up to speed before a 110kg box wedge comes flying at him from all the way from the other end of the arena! And the result is no big CRASH, but a spectacular display of acrobatics by Thanatos as the spinner hits the wedge of System Shock, rides up it through some sparks, and goes flying into the air while still spinning as System Shock halts in front of the wall, to land almost perfectly onto its wheels...and is greeted by Under Pressure!

CRASH!!!

But the greeting goes in favour of Samuel, as Martijn sees both machines flung away upon impact, the lower right side claw taking a bit more damage, but Thanatos is in a thick of trouble now itself as System Shocks slammed back into it before it could spin up, and now lifts the spinner up, up...and onto its back! However, up pops the srimech and Thanatos lands beside System Shock, and scoots away to spin up again. After it goes System Shock, and easily catches the spinner before it can get the opportunity, lifting it and pulverising it against the arena wall, narrowly missing one of the Discs of Death, as Under Pressure makes a gangway for the pit release button. ...uh, can he even - yes, of course he can. Seemed he fit right around it, but turning around a bit, and the buttons activated. Thanatos gets away again...but not for long, as System Shock flies after it. And Under Pressures right there! This time, Under Pressure opens the claws wide, and Thanatos spins right into them!

CRASH!!!

However, it did not spin down Thanatos shell, and some major sparkage results alongside a great dent in the left claw! But Thanatos is now caught in the grasp of Under Pressure whose claws squeeze in on the spinner, and System Shock slamming into both of them isnt helping matters! Martijn groans as Liams machine lifts them up, and this time Liam gets the desired effect; Under Pressure goes head over wheels with Thanatos still caught, and upside-down now. Samuel fires the srimech, and that loosens Under Pressures hold on his machine, thought not really righting it at first, and System Shock attacks it quickly! It drives the spinner into Renegades CPZ - wa-hey, thats new! Thanatos self-righted on top of System Shock, and now Liams gotten into the house robots face...and under it! It backs away quickly, but Renegade only comes out a bit to ward him off, then returns to the CPZ. Under Pressure, not wanting to be left out, goes for System Shocks rear, and clamps the now inverted wedges against its sides...only to be driven back easily by the rammer! Thanatos slides off System Shock as this occurs, and spins up again! Uh oh, not a good sign. System Shock turns, slower though with Under Pressure attached to its rear with the pointy claws now closing in, but Thanatos has already reached full speed and now dodges around the rammer, smacking into the left side skirt!

CRASH!!!

And just like that System Shock finds one of his sides deprived of a skirt as it now lies 10 feet away, but Thanatos has once again been flung across the arena by his own power! While System Shock is trying to line-up Thanatos in his sights, Under Pressure, having been shocked away from the rammer at that last hit, crashes in again at the rear, trying to do some sort of damage but its not working. System Shock pulls away from the grip and turning around shunts Under Pressure into the wall, collecting him fully on the lifting wedge and...Under Pressure slides down on top of him. First Thanatos, now Under Pressure? System Shock is no amusement park ride, fellas! And now the robot mistaken for an amusement park ride is right peeved and he carries Under Pressure straight over to Thanatos; the wedge sneaks under the blades of the spinner and sends it into Under Pressure!

CRASH!!!

Which sends them both flying! The power of Thanatos is not to be lightly thrown aside, so to speak! And Under Pressure definitely feels some damage now, as the right side claw is looking rather badly dented now, but Thanatos is the one System Shock wants to rid the arena of first! It crashes into Thanatos, but a bit too fast as Thanatos goes flying over top of it. System Shock turns around quickly, but not quickly enough as Thanatos has again reached top speed! Under Pressure, well...its coming at Thanatos, but a bit sheepishly now, as if its been knocked senseless...which it has! Surely not enough to cause internal damage yet, though? System Shocks neared Thanatos, but the uber-spinners already too near Under Pressure, and the crusher is coming towards the spinner to try and knock over to the pit!

CRASH!!!

And Under Pressure is living up to its name; the left top claw, now bottom-right since its inverted, has taken a major slashing, but sent the spinner itself spinning away. Samuel was wise to shock mount his robot, because by now, itd be believed that Thanatos would have self-destructed, but System Shock is simply not attacking Under Pressure, and wants Thanatos out of the way, pronto! OH! THANATOS NEARLY DROVE INTO THE PIT! WHOA!!! SYSTEM SHOCKS ON THE EDGE OF THE PIT, AND HE ALMOST WENT IN TOO! What a scare! Both drivers breathe a sigh of relief...but though Thanatos is getting shell spinning up, hes definitely not ready for the latest assault from Liam as Liams robot mashes him against the wall near the pit! Luckily the shell wasnt spun up to speed, and Thanatos is sent away a bit, but Under Pressure is there to capitalize on the stationary shell and...drives on top of it? Well Under Pressure cant wedge foes now, and its driven up onto the sloped sides of Thanatos, who is now again gotten under by System Shock, and both robots are driven all the way across the arena, and slammed into an empty CPZ! During this, System Shock raises the wedge...and though his main focus was to flip Thanatos, hes tossed Under Pressure back onto his proper side! Liam mentally kicks himself as Martijn comes against him now, and this time System Shock cant get away! Under Pressure smacks against his foes rear end; one of the wedges slides under the exposed side...but the other cant manage to get under the skirt, and now both bots are stuck together, both robots resting on one of Under Pressures claws, the one thats under System Shock, and Samuel looks on with glee as Thanatos makes sure to spin up to absolute full speed, before finding System Shocks other skirt, just past Under Pressures other claw and smashing into the skirt!

CRASH!!!

Which rips it clean off! Under Pressure drops its pressure and drives forward, System Shock unable to find any traction on the ground but now being released tries to drive away, but Under Pressure continues its advance on System Shocks rear end and manages to trap it against the arena wall. The rear spikes of System Shock finally come into play and try to puncture Under Pressures front end and hopefully push the robot out of the grip, but nope, theyre not doing a damn thing, and now Martijn has the game in the bag! The pointy claws come in now...oh, but one of them is bent slightly! Thanatos work? Quite possibly, but Under Pressure cant seem to use its piercers properly now as theyre not piercing that armour of System Shock! Could be the armour, though, but its definitely not working now, so what can it do? Easy guess: go for the pit, which it does, and for all its excellent work, System Shock is the first to exit this fight as Under Pressure sends it down the pit, and Liam shakes his head.

However, there is a Thanatos needing seeing to, and Under Pressure comes against the low spinner as Samuel directs his robot away from the incoming crusher. However its invertible that they will meet, and Martijn is just coming too fast for Samuel to avoid him, so Thanatos turns and moves sideways...

CRASH!!!

The right thing to do, obviously! Another dent appears on Under Pressures right side claw as its spun across the arena, yet Samuel sees his own bot fly across the arena for what must be at least the 10th time tonight, and hes not feeling too happy about the amount of airtime hes getting. However time is ticking down in this match and Under Pressure really is under pressure to pit his opponent quickly...

10...9...8...7...

Under Pressure flies across the arena as Thanatos moves away to spin up, but Martijn is just too fast. A bit too fast as one of the claws bump against Thanatos and, while not quite getting under Thanatos, push it away.

6...5...4...

Thanatos actually tries to push back, but its getting pushed away, and slides off the side of Under Pressure and pushes it that way.

3...2...1...

Under Pressure turns and pushes Thanatos - TOWARDS THE PIT!!! CAN HE -

CEASE!

DO IT - NO! Thanatos lands on top of System Shock too late, and the judges will have to decide! What a fight!

Under Pressure - Thanatos

Strategy = 1/5 - 4/5
Style = 3/10 - 7/10
Control = 13/15 - 2/15
Aggression = 15/20 - 5/20
Damage = 4/25 - 21/25

TOTAL = 36/75 - 39/75

It was close, but Thanatos advances to the Semis!

Next battle: The Punisher vs. Nitro-Gene 5.0 vs. Spin Dash Unleashed

[kodster]

Crash & Burn: Mini-Tournament of Death 2

And the final Round 1 fight is here!

Eliminator 4
The Punisher vs. Nitro-Gene 5.0 vs. Spin Dash Unleashed

The Punisher is one of the new boys here, taking most of its body shape from Bigger Brother, and its weapon and srimech from Warhead. That said weapon can be adjusted to hit at different heights, and it has decent armour. The baseplate not so much, and its not the most powerful robot. Has the time come for The Punishers repentance?

Nitro-Gene 5.0 is kinda new but has had some glory in the main Crash & Burn 3 major. It competed last time with version 4.0, but got knocked out in Round 1. Its got a powerful flipping arm, good armour, and power through overvolted S28-400 motors, plus its invertible. The clearance under the skirts can be exploited though. Will Nitro-Gene need more time in the gene pool?

Spin Dash Unleashed took 3rd place in the last tournament. Its still the same invertible 6WD rammer with a frontal sawblade on the bottom of the robot to tear at wheels. Its skirts protect it and it has some good armour. Nonetheless, itll have a bit of a tough time manoeuvring around. Can Steven Spin Dash to win...cash? And more?

Roboteers, stand by...

The house robots performing their usual duties today are Triple Whamlet and Damocles.

3...
2...
1...
ACTIVATE!

Say goodbye to Round 1, and all 3 robots have said their goodbyes to their starting areas! Nitro-Gene and The Punisher make a beeline for the 3rd seed, who seems peturbed by this sudden gang-up on him and is crashed into immediately! Thing is, The Punishers slammed into Spin Dashs sawblade, and it shaves some sparks off the blow while not really making much noise. Nitro-Gene however is going to make some noise and slides the flipper under Spin Dash while its busy, sending it careening into an empty CPZ...not really what Paul had in mind, but mayhems on the way as Triple Whamlet screams out of the CPZ at the side, barreling both The Punisher and Nitro-Gene aside as it slams into Stevens machine before it can make a move away from the danger zone, and collecting it on the scoop starts to mercilessly pound and hack it with the axes! Now thats definitely what Paul had in mind, but what Lewis has in mind is exposed parts, and thats what he wants! Nitro-Gene turns much too late!

CRASH!

That side skirts not looking too good, but its not completely off either; Lewis brushing the bowl up against it again is unable to rip it off and now the bowls stopped entirely on the skirt. Nitro-Gene responds to this by turning and sliding the flipping arm under the bowl, finally gaining enough leverage as it roars forward to properly toss The Punisher...and toss is what he does! That must have been a good 10 feet from the look of it, and ouch! The Punisher lands straight onto the bowl, upside-down and unable to get away from Nitro-Gene as Paul presses his luck and goes to the arena wall...its good! The impressive-looking newcomer doesnt have a chance to shine as it sails over the fence and onto the camera tracks, and Lewis sighs at his fairly disappointing end. However, Pauls not out of the woods yet. Spin Dash Unleashed has finally gotten away from Triple Whamlet, with a badly dented top and possibly a punctured tire as its moving awkwardly, yet is coming in on the flipperbot quickly! Nitro-Gene doesnt wait for any seances, but goes for the gold and slams straight into the sawblade straight away!

CRASH!

Now the sawblade makes noise, but its not done well for Steven at all, as Spin Dash has been sent up onto the flipping arm of Nitro-Gene, and Paul takes him straight back into the waiting axes of Triple Whamlet, who resumes whacking the crap out of Spin Dash without hesitation! Nitro-Gene backs all the way over towards the pit release button...and gets nailed by the arena saws. BZZT! Whoa! Nitro-Gene gets flung a bit by them! It has, however, almost sent Nitro-Gene flying into the pit release button, so he gets there quicker thanks to the saws, and the pit opens...slowly...slowly...there, opened. Triple Whamlet...seems to be having trouble bringing the axes back down...has our house robot used up his CO2 supply already? Nevertheless, it looks like Spin Dash has been neatly tenderized...or not. There are now a few holes in even the Hardox amongst all the major dents in the top panel, and there is definitely some tire damage too, but incredibly the sawblade is still spinning, and at full speed too! Steve did a good job on the weapon reliability, I must say, but how can he use it now? Triple Whamlet shoves Spin Dash Unleashed away from the CPZ, only for Steve to get greeted by an incoming Nitro-Gene as it stuffs into the saw, the angle of the flipper deflecting the blow in a drizzle of sparks as it fires, Spin Dash sent high over top of Triple Whamlet...and gone! That is some power! Steven cant believe it as his machine crashes outside of the CPZ on the camera tracks, and Nitro-Gene gains a round higher than it did last time as Paul punches the air in delight!

CEASE!

Nitro-Gene 5.0 advances to the Semis!

[kodster]

Crash & Burn: Mini-Tournament of Death 2

And so our Round 2, or Semi-final line-up, looks like this:

----

Nitro-Gene 5.0 vs. Hypertension Mk 3
Do Or Die vs. Thanatos

Soooo...tactics? Predictions? Sarcasm and/or witty remarks and in return a cuff around the head?

[matty_haka]

Crash & Burn: Mini-Tournament of Death 2

great fights as ever Kody

Nitro Gene eh? should be a good fight, but Im hoping the fact that were a low to ground wedge well give us the upper hand against a more box like flipper. The idea will be to keep the front facing at all times. If he then makes a straight charge at the front, back off at the last second and hope that he fires the flipper. If he does so, get underneath it before it hasd a chance to close. A Little Tornado-esque against Anarchy. Plan B will just be to stick to the sides an dnibble away at the skirts and keep trying to get under should he go over an undulation that lifts the skirts up slightly. No skirt is invincible.

Good luck Paul

[paulc]

Crash & Burn: Mini-Tournament of Death 2

WOOT! Cool round Kody, nice to see you writing some very wootiful, very brilliant and some VERY suprising battles again.

Nitro-Gene 5.0 vs. Hypertension Mk 3
This is why I dont like Friday The 13th (except the film series cause thats awesome ) At least its better than PsycloniZer, but thats not saying much, as Ive already fought Hypertension in Mechanical Maelstrom where I offered to team-up, but Matt still flipped me OOTA! Needless to say, I want to get revenge

We are similar in terms of power, except Ive got 12hp and hes got 9hp, Ive got more flips than him, but hes got MORE power and he looses power at a less rapid rate than me. One advantage I do have though is, as well as the more pushing power, Ive got a lower centre of mass, making me easier to control than him, if I get him on the front he cant get away from my flat front whereas I can if Im on his wedge, and my flipper doesnt freeze, and isnt delayed in returning back down and his is.

Basic plan is to keep on pursuing him around the arena and try to get underneath the sides of him and push. If he tries to get at my side, get out of trouble with my greater speed. Limit my flips to self-righting and OOTAing in this battle, as it MAY go to judges or it may end with an OOTA - and I hope to score it :wink:

Seriously though, good luck Matty :wink:

Do Or Die vs. Thanatos
Do Or Die to easily stop the FBS and put Thanatos down the pit.

I look forward to these fights Kody - they should be good :wink:

(Message edited by paulc on February 13, 2009)

[samuel3764]

Crash & Burn: Mini-Tournament of Death 2

HOLY GOD! Chezza, we meet at last.

Basic Tactix are to avoid the front like the plague, and try to shock kill it. Go for the back or sides ONLY!

[matty_haka]

Crash & Burn: Mini-Tournament of Death 2

why does my flipper get stuck Paul? :S or freeze as you put it?

[paulc]

Crash & Burn: Mini-Tournament of Death 2

CO2 flippers sometimes take a long time to come back down. Nitrogen comes back down quite quickly.

[joey_picus]

Crash & Burn: Mini-Tournament of Death 2

...Paul, that is nothing to do with gas types

[rainism]

Crash & Burn: Mini-Tournament of Death 2

Hmm tactics. I guess Ill have to attack Thanatos straight on.

Good look Samuel!

[samuel3764]

Crash & Burn: Mini-Tournament of Death 2

Revised tactics

- Spin up, and use superior power to shock kill Do or Die. Avoid the front at all costs, Go for the back and sides ONLY!!!!

Good luck, Chezza.

[kodster]

Crash & Burn: Mini-Tournament of Death 2

And after finishing the HRR3, I feel like writing some more MToD2 fights! Presenting the very latest!

Semi-Final 1
Nitro-Gene 5.0 vs. Hypertension Mk 3

Roboteers, stand by...

House robots for this battle will be Damocles and Renegade, the two €˜new€™ additions last time.

3...
2...
1...
ACTIVATE!

It€™s a flipper frenzy, and both of our competitors mean business! Nitro-Gene is slightly the faster and manages to slide around Hypertension...which is just fine by Matty! Hypo€™s flipper hits the side of Nitro-Gene, but doesn€™t quite manage to breach the side skirt. He does manage to push Nitro-Gene around, but Nitro-Gene drives around as well, meaning Hypo pushes Nitro-Gene in an arc around the arena. I€™m not sure where the battle will go if the robots keep going like this...a circle has no beginning or end, you see. Eventually Hypo breaks the circle by halting his push suddenly...which sends Nitro-Gene into the nearby arena wall! Quickly Matty seizes his chance before it escapes...not that it matters, he still can€™t get under the side skirt! He can, however, pin Nitro-Gene against the arena wall...and slightly push him towards the Disc of Death, turning and pushing towards the rear skirt! Nitro-Gene - OH! That...was close. Nitro-Gene nearly got his side gouged down by the hazard on the arena wall, but barely manages to avoid it, and Matty growls. Now Paul, mopping his brow, can come back on the attack, as the robots face each other again. However, Paul wants no such head-on collisions in this battle, and directs his machine away from Hypertension€™s incoming charge, not quick enough to fully avoid it, but Hypertension is only able to clip the rear of the side skirt and is deflected away as Nitro-Gene turns around. Paul zooms in, but Hypertension is agile on its own wheels and spins around quickly. There€™s only a split second however before Nitro-Gene collides with the wedge...and Matty backs off! Umm...no. Paul hasn€™t taken the bait and fired the flipper, so Hypertension stops reversing and drives at him again...his opponent does likewise! BANG!!! Huge, huge collision. Both flippers smack into each other, and because of both ground clearances, the impact sends both bots backwards! They collide again, much less noticeably sound-wise, and then they push...and push...and Nitro-Gene gans the upper hand! It slides under Hypertension€™s flipper and entire wedge...but whoa! It€™s smoking! Trying not to appear too concerned, Paul drives Hypertension up onto the flipping arm, and moves towards the arena wall! Matty fires his own flipper, to try and force himself off, but it does nothing other than jolt him up a bit, and a second later, he€™s airborne, right off the flipper arm of - WHOA! Nitro-Gene€™s stopped moving, and is smoking very badly! And it€™s coming directly out of the wheel holes, which means the motors have been damaged! Someway, somehow, but Hypertension€™s left the arena and has made a date with the camera tracks, so he€™s out! Nitro-Gene€™s won, but...he€™d better repair his bot, and fast!

CEASE!

Hypertension Mk 3€™s adrenaline rush ends, and now comes a long period of withdrawal.
Nitro-Gene 5.0 advances to the Final!

(in the pits, Paul finds out what€™s happened; the overvolted S28-400 Magmotors have finally blown. Panicked, he hurries to rectify the problem as the 2nd semi-final battle starts)

----

Semi-Final 2
Do Or Die vs. Thanatos

Roboteers, stand by...

House robots for this bout will be Exa-Gore-Ic Evo and Taki III, golden oldies? Possibly.

3...
2...
1...
ACTIVATE!

Do Or Die is straight off the mark like a shot, the extreme acceleration kicking in, and even with the 11mph top speed Thanatos can€™t get out of the way in time! Plus, it€™s not fully spun up, and the resultant shot does absolutely zilch to the scoop as it slides under Thanatos and Chezza throws him over! Samuel hits the self-righter button, popping the spinner back up and over, but that€™s right in front of the rammer! Do Or Die mashes it into the arena wall, and lifts it against the wall, where the self-righter can do nothing as it€™s pegged in there! Eventually, Do Or Die lets him free, and Thanatos€™ wheels again meet the arena floor, but it can€™t get away, as Chezza keeps the pressure fueled up, ramming the spinner once more and this time pushing him into the nearby vacant CPZ, and then simply leaving him there as Taki III shoots out of her own CPZ to ram the spinner...which is actually spinning up to speed! Do Or Die waits on the border of the nearby flame pit as Taki collides with the spinner at almost sonic speeds!

CRASH!

No problem - Taki€™s thrown it right up against the corner! Thanatos€™ teeth deflected off the shallow wedge of the house robot and sent it flying further into the CPZ - oh! Taki smacked herself against the corner, and the spinner€™s on top of her! Chezza seems to be enjoying this less, and in a display of boredom goes for the pit release button...but goes nicked by the arena - saws?! Nicked isn€™t it, absolutely tossed across the arena is a better description! With sparks to boot! And unfortunately for Chezza, it was the opposite direction of the release button, and Do Or Die turns away from the pit release button to have a go at Thanatos...which is now stuck off the side of Taki and can€™t seem to get off...Exa-Gore-Ic Evo€™s had enough and comes out now, himself. Do Or Die gets to Taki€™s side and lifts Thanatos...along the -

CRASH!!!

- side! That€™s smacked the polycarb base of Thanatos, me mateys, don€™t underestimate Taki€™s rear cutting blade! Has it done any damage? We€™ll see as Do Or Die€™s rammed into the spinner again, and - ouch! Right into the claws of Exa-Gore-Ic, who€™s NOT in a CPZ and should get back in one...ah, but Do Or Die€™s in there with another lift, and there€™s some damage for ya! Look at that, just a beautiful gash right in the center of the base! And...Do Or Die€™s keeping Thanatos down and inverted, in-between the house robot€™s claws...with the scoop? Unusual tactic, but it€™s working, and Exa-Gore-Ic€™s spike shoots out...and doesn€™t really do much to the shell. Chezza, confident now that the match is going completely in his direction, leaves his opponent, and heads for the pit release button, this time making sure to dodge the saws before slamming into the pit release...opening it. Exa-Gore-Ic gets his common sense back and leaves Thanatos in the middle of the floor...where it self-rights! Okay, nothing too major€™s done to the spinner, and Do Or Die hurriedly gets back in there...only to find the spinner€™s halfway up to speed, and managing to evade that initial charge! Do Or Die chases after the spinner, but Thanatos is a good distance away now and manages to turn away, where it finally smacks the side of Do Or Die!

CRASH!!!

However, it€™s nothing much, just a small dent. It has sent Do Or Die flying across the arena though, and given Thanatos time to spin up again! Do Or Die hurtles across the arena again, desparate to vanquish the new life found in Thanatos, but the slippery spinner dodges again...and Do Or Die pulls back! Thanatos however hasn€™t tried to attack the side and so tries to move around the rammer to attack...but Chezza€™s having none of it. The scoop rotates round to face the spinner...as the spinner retreats! Do Or Die pursues, now, and this time Thanatos can€™t pull away in time! The scoop partially deflects the blow, but Thanatos has hardly stopped spinning as it€™s flung back a bit, with a shower of sparks grazing the scoop as it advances on Thanatos again. Samuel moves his machine aside again but he just can€™t move aside fast enough, and the scoop catches the blades and deflects the spinner aside, and onto the flame pit! Wow! That€™s a sight for seein€™! The flames have licked around Thanatos, and as a result have spun themselves around the spinner making it look like a fiery whirlwind! It does not, however, scare Chezza as Do Or Die hammers into the spinner as Samuel looks on this sight, distracted by the flames!

CRASH!!!

And that€™s caught the side of the scoop, and flung both bots away...Thanatos a bit shaken as it€™s hit by the arena saws right afterwards, and shunted off amid countless sparks. Do Or Die however has taken some heavy damage; a gash has appeared in the side of the scoop as it tries to turn and hit Thanatos again with that wounded scoop. It might not have much more to do, though, as Thanatos isn€™t really spinning now...in fact, it€™s not moving at all. Do Or Die rams it head-on, lifts it up onto its back, and I think we know why Samuel€™s bot has stopped, now, look inside the gash in the polycarbonate and you can see smoke coming out of it! And Thanatos isn€™t able to self-right...well, that€™s ironic. The bot that smoked last battle won, and the way this battle is going, the bot that smokes this time will lose...Do Or Die however isn€™t waiting for the countout, as it€™s under Thanatos, and shoving it...down the pit, for great justice!

CEASE!

Thanatos gets sent back to Hades to play it all off for 3rd place.
Do Or Die advances to the Final!

[kodster]

Crash & Burn: Mini-Tournament of Death 2

And thats set-up our play-off and Final.

Play-off

Hypertension Mk 3 vs. Thanatos

Final

Nitro-Gene 5.0 vs. Do Or Die

Tactics and predictions, arr.

[andrewj]

Crash & Burn: Mini-Tournament of Death 2

Quality stuff as always, well done Kody.

I think Hypertension will finish 3rd here.

The final is tough to call. Do Or Dies invertibility is going to cause Nitro-Gene problems, but that might not matter if its the wrong side of the arena wall. Nitro-Gene for the win.

[kodster]

Re: Crash & Burn: Mini-Tournament of Death 2

Just a note that the play-off and final will take place in the new Battlegrounds 2.0 arena.

Play-off
Hypertension Mk 3 vs. Thanatos

Roboteers, stand by...

Sorry, Triple Big Mac and Exa-Gore-Ic Evo, but you can't be in the Final, only here in the play-off.

3...
2...
1...
ACTIVATE!

And just like that, they're off! Hypertension's on the box-rush on Thanatos, but a quick movement from the spinner with the now rapidly-accelerating shell foils the charge and allows that shell to reach its deadly speed! With 7mm Hardox armour, will Hypertension be affected, though? Matthew thinks not, and without fear and/or hesitation continues its charge as it spins around and bores towards the spinner. Thanatos moves the other way; sadly, not quite fast enough to avoid the speeding wedge, and we get our first big hit of the fight!

CRASH!!!

That...was a big hit. Both robots have been separated right across the arena; Thanatos collides heavily with the arena wall and moves away, shaken but not stirred ; Hypertension however has been shot straight into an empty CPZ, and Exa-Gore-Ic's on the move! ...only the house robot gets there long after Matty has his robot out! The earlier hit has hardly damaged Hypertension at all...in fact, there is no damage to the side Thanatos struck! That is a first! Samuel looks worried, even though his machine's back at full tilt again, and here comes the VFT6 Grand Finalist again, hunting down the spinner and not giving it a chance to get away!

CRASH!!!

But again, Thanatos catches the side of Hypertension, and another major hit sends both bots across the arena again in a shower of sparks! Thanatos goes over one of the arena spikes, who promptly shoots out and spears the underbelly...luckily, not flipping him, but Hypertension's recovered from his spinning spell, again with minimal damage, and Thanatos can't spin up fast enough! The wedge slides under the shell and with an almighty punch, the flipper explodes open sending Thanatos up and across, finally landing onto its back...but almost immediately it self-rights! That's too soon for Matty, though, as Hypertension barrels into it again before Thanatos can even register that it's right way up again, and carries it into an empty CPZ, tossing it against the corner - NO!!! It's over! Thanatos has been ejected from the arena! Look at that, just a beautiful toss right there, straight over the corner of the CPZ and onto the camera tracks! I did not expect that, and by the noise the audience is making, I doubt they did, too!

However, even with the bronze medal secured, Hypertension isn't done yet! It finds Exa-Gore-Ic Evo coming right at it! Obviously the house robots are getting wise to flippers attacking them after battles, but it makes no difference here: Hypo sneaks around the sluggish 400kg robot and just manages to lift it onto its side...before pushing it towards the other house robot! Triple Big Mac Isn't keen on attacking his matey and moves out of his CPZ, but...

CEASE!

Thanatos is smitten to ashes; Samuel is forced to settle for 4th!
Hypertension Mk 3 wins 3rd place!

Coming up: The final