[AmyPrib]

Here's the other question on the mind.

Question:
Redbot is serving as their alliance backbot. It dies and is a sitting duck, still in legal backbot position.

Bluebot comes over and decides to use a strategy of pushing dead redduck into a non-legal backbot position in order to get penalties assessed to RedAlliance every 5 seconds.

Is this a legal strategy on BlueBots part?

The debate comes from the implication of G26 in that Bluebot would be wasting their time in trying to prevent RedBot from getting to their backbot position. It implies that because Bluebot is causing the "infraction", there is no penalty assessed to Redbot.

Would the same concept of "cause of infraction" imply in the dead duck case?
Thanks in advance.

Answer:
It is contrary to the intent of the game to gain advantage by using a dead robot as a tool to force the other alliance to incur penalties. A backbot that is prevented by another robot from crossing the center line - or is pushed off-sides - will not incur a penalty.

Also note that each alliance gets to choose which robot is assigned as their backbot. In this example, the red alliance gets to choose which robot is assigned as the backbot. They cannot be forced into making this decision by blue alliance attempts to move the dead red robot.

HOWEVER:

Question:
Clarification from here: http://forums.usfirst.org/showthread.php?t=732

In this instance, would RedAlliance have to either move the dead redbot back into backbot position or have another robot become backbot, or would they no longer be responsible to do this since BlueAlliance pushed the dead bot across the line?

Answer:
The red alliance would not be penalized, but they would have to act to restore a valid backbot. In this instance, once the blue robot stopped pushing the dead red robot, the red alliance would have to either push the dead red robot back across the center line or move another red robot across the center line to become the backbot. The choice of these options is up to the red alliance. The red alliance would not be penalized for the momentary period when three red robots are on the same side of the field between the time the blue robot stopped pushing the red dead robot and the red alliances attempts to position their backbot, for the reasons cited in this question/answer.

So, no penalty as long as you're showing the intent to make a backbot, no matter how you do it. If opponent pushed your robot across the line, it should be doable to push him back. Just make sure your bot dies near the glass, so it takes them forever to push them across.

I sure hope this situation won't happen. Waste a bunch of time for both alliances.