Quote:
|
Originally Posted by jarowe
I also find that different opinions on other teams is actually more beneficial. The variation in opinions of a team actually can lead to a more thorough understanding of another team's abilities. People interpret things differently, and might spot a weakness or strength a team has that another person might not see.
|
Scouting in many ways is exactly what you describe, it is another "brainstorming" session that you go through during the season. Part of it is theoretical (statistics), and part of it is practical (gameplay).
Theoretically, if I pick the highest statistically rated teams at a regional, I should win. But too often that doesn't happen, and that is the gameplay portion. Two great robots may not work together well,
because they are so identical, or as you indicated, they may get in each others shooting positions, or maybe one team isn't very good as an "alliance" player, etc. There are many robots who are very good at playing this game alone, but who have difficulty playing as an alliance.
It is fun, as an observer, to watch a group of students and mentors, on Friday evenings, scour over the scouting data collected that day. So much brainstorming and "what if's" are flying around, and possibilities emerge seemingly from nowhere. Everybody working to get the statistical portion and the practical portion married into the best possible alliance. (Get a cup of coffee, disengage from the group, and sit back and watch all those wheels turning in those engineering minds. You'll swear that sometimes you can smell smoke!)
There is no "EASY" button when it comes to scouting, despite the many efforts to create one.