[EricH]

Originally Posted by Diriye

After this first week, it seems as though the shooters were clearly better than the arm-bots. When you matched up the best shooters vs. the best arm-bots, the shooters were much more efficient at hurdling, and if they had a decent pickup system, they were usually one of the best teams there (i.e. 1625, 1114)*. Having said that, there were many more arm-bots or "looks-like-an-arm" bots at the regionals, and the average arm-bots were usually better than the average shooters, as shooting the trackball seems to be much harder than using an arm.

*Yes, I'm quite aware that there are very few, if any, teams like 1625 or 1114.

P.S. Taking 20 seconds to pick up a trackball tends to screw you over...

Are you also aware that 1625 and 1114 could both fit into either the arm category or the shooter category?

I think the robots that dominate will be a combination of arm and shooter. Call it an "arm-mounted shooter", if you will. Varying angle for different shots, quick pickup and raising to fire, and higher shooter distinguish this class of robots.

They also effectively end the "arm vs. shooter" debate by having both.