I've spent way too much time on this...
I am horrible with names, so I haven't thought of one. My game is played between two alliances of four(!) teams on a 27x54 foot field, with two extensions approximating 6' diameter semicircles known as "pit areas". The field is not carpeted; some kind of hard surface allowing sliding is used, possibly Regolith (
) or just concrete. An extremely poorly drawn diagram of said field can be found here:
Note that nothing is to scale or properly proportioned. All black lines are field elements or measurement lines; green lines are actually drawn on the field.
A: The Goal is an arch, approximately 6 inches tall (interior) and 10 feet wide, made of any appropriate material. It may (optionally) feature a sensor to determine when a puck has passed through it, and in what direction. Also, it should include some sort of broadcaster to aid autonomous navigation. Each alliance defends the goal in its color, closer to its own side.
B: There is one Goal Crease on each side, denoted by a line on the ground. Only one defending robot may be in this area at a time.
C: There is a Retrieval Zone behind each goal, denoted by lines. Several rules restrict this zone, which I will explain later.
D: Some sort of padded material is placed behind each goal, to prevent pucks from rebounding back through the goal.
E: There is one Pit Area for each alliance, where one robot in each alliance will generally reside. Robots in this zone can be serviced by human players.
I have gone over several ideas for this Pit Area. My current idea of it is a large turntable mounted on a lazy susan, raised slightly over field level, with three separators as shown above.
F: The Center Line is used for autonomous mode scoring.
G: The Puck is optimally an oversized field hockey puck (about 8" diameter?). As far as I can tell these do not actually exist, so an ordinary field hockey puck or a rubber or similar ball may be substituted, in which case the field can be carpeted. If possible, it should have some kind of transmitter (IR?) to aid autonomous tracking, or be painted some kind of contrasting color to aid optical tracking. In addition, the Human Players for each alliance begin the game with an additional puck (not shown).
H: Three robots for each alliance begin touching their own end wall; the fourth begins in the Pit Area.
J: Each team has a 2005-style pressure pad; if their human player is not standing on it, their robot is disabled. In addition, if all four pads of an alliance are being stood on, all four robots are disabled.
K: The corners of the field are rounded, so the Puck does not become stuck in the corners.
L: A semicircular (just pretend, OK) Protected Zone surrounds each Pit Area. Contact within this zone is strictly penalized.
The Game:
This game with a 15-second Autonomous Period, with the usual rules. Any goals (the puck passes through the Goal, moving away from the center line) scored during the Autonomous Period are worth 2 points; if the Puck is not on the Center Line at the end of the period, the alliance where the Puck is not scores 1 point. After this period, there is a 4-minute(!) Teleoperated Period. During this period, all goals scored are worth 1 point. Each alliance's human players must introduce their Puck to the field with between 3 and 1 minutes remaining in this period; failure to do so results in a Penalty for each 5 seconds the puck is not introduced. (All penalties in this game are 2 points)
There's no endgame. What, 3 pucks on the field isn't enough for you?
Notes on the Pit Area: At least one robot from each alliance will be in the Pit Area at all times, accompanied by its human player. When another robot enters the area, its human player will step off the pad, move to the Pit Area, and help turn the turntable; once the other robot has access to the field, its human player will return to the pad, allowing the robot to move. While in the Pit Area, robots may be serviced by the HP, including battery changes, as long as they are turned off (may need to change some programming stuff for this); of course, no HP may cause the robot to not be legal! (violation: Red Card and disabled)
Other rules:
(Attacking robots: Robots on the side of the field of the opposing alliance's goal. Defending robots: you should be able to guess...)
- As previously mentioned, only one defending robot can be in the Goal Crease. Violation: Penalty
- No defending robot can enter the Retrieval Zone if no Puck is there. Violation: Penalty
- 5-second pinning rule applies to both opposing robots and pucks. Violation: Penalty
- If a puck is in a Retrieval Zone, no robot can block another robot's entry to or exit from the Zone. Violation: Penalty
- Once a robot enters a Retrieval Zone, it must attempt to remove any pucks in the zone with reasonable speed. No other robot may interfere with this process. Violation: Penalty
- Intentional or prolonged violation of any of the above rules: Yellow Card
- Attacking robots may not intentionally cause the puck to travel through the Goal in the opposite direction. Violation: Penalty
- No robot may enter the other alliance's Pit Area. Violation: Penalty, Disabled, and Red Card
- No robot may contact another robot in a Protected Zone (of either alliance). Violation: Penalty and Yellow Card; Disabled and Red Card if dangerous
- No robot may block an opposing robot from leaving its Pit Area. Violation: Penalty, Yellow Card, and next rule is voided
- Each robot on each alliance must be on the field and enabled (via pressure pad) for at least two minutes of the match. Violation: Alliance DQ'd (including during qualifications)
The Robot:
Standard FRC robot rules will be followed in most respects; 28" x 38" x 60". At least 2/3 of each robot must be covered in bumpers, including each corner; teams are warned that this is a highly interactive game, and any un-bumpered parts may be vulnerable to damage. No part of the robot above the Bumper Zone may extend outside the robot's bumpers.
Robots must be on the field for each match; if not, they will be auto-Red Carded. A "stretcher" can be used, as in "some year I don't remember"; the robot on the stretcher must, like the others, be on the field for at least two minutes.
No part of the robot may extend more than 12" outside the bumpers. Robots that can do this shouldn't pass inspection; if they somehow do it anyway, violation: Penalty and Yellow Card.
Robots may not possess pucks (as defined in previous games), or allow them to incur into the bumper perimeter. Again, robots should be designed to not do this. If they do, it's a penalty; yellow card if done intentionally. If a robot cannot release a puck (e.g. it is stuck within the robot), a referee will enter another puck at the middle of the field.
The Tournament:
In eliminations, each captain picks three partners; third round picks go 1-8, maintaining the "serpentine" format. In regionals/competitions with less than 32 teams, alliances are removed and top alliances begin the eliminations with byes.
*sigh* I think I got everything. Of course, saying that I probably missed something... just ask if something doesn't make sense. I know aspects of this game are a little impractical, but I think it would be tons of fun to watch, at the very least... hopefully some of its weaknesses can be fixed. I've been thinking about aspects of this design for a while... I'd love to hear what people think about it!