[wazateer1]

One thing I am really curious about is whether the GDC intended the boulders to be able to get stuck in so many ways. Obviously they get stuck on/under/in robots, but they can interfere with crosses in so many ways that the game would be different if they were bigger to avoid just that.

Low Bar: Even before the change, boulders still could have gotten stuck here, but with the new fabric you almost always risk a G38 if you are carrying another ball.

Cheval De Frise: The balls seem to be the perfect diameter and compress-ability for getting stuck under this

Rock Wall: Woe to those who try to cross the rock wall if a sneaky boulder is hiding on the flat of the defense, but behind the wall. Only a little bit will peek over, but the colors are so similar that a driver in a high intensity situation will probably not notice. A robot not trying to Dukes-of-Stronghold the defense will inevitably get stuck.

Moat: The moat is a little bit better then the rock wall, because you can see the boulder, but that doesn't mean the defense isn't much harder then it was without the boulder. (Making the boulder bigger wouldn't help here, but it is just another instance of the boulders interfering)

Drawbridge / Sally Port: Not seeing the boulder, not seeing your robot, getting stuck, and not knowing anything is wrong while you continue to try to open these defenses (from behind, of course, the most popular way) takes a lot of time. Especially when you already think it is going to take a lot of time and don't question whether you are stuck until you fail to open the door multiple times. The hard part is the boulders don't make much of a difference in your robots tippyness, they just keep the wheels off the ground.

It seems like if the boulders were bigger, or the rules were changed so you could "hold" one ball and "herd" another, a lot of these issues would have been avoided.

Also, I would have removed the brattice. I don't know about anyone elses experience, but I haven't seen it used once.