[EricH]

Originally Posted by XXShadowXX

I like to actually read the rule book, because in the end kickoff gives a nice overview but you really don't understand all the do's and don'ts until you read the complete rule book see and the stuff that will be changed and all the stuff and will keep me (and some other people) glued to this forum until a team update comes out.

And you don't know how often people come on here asking for clarification of something at Kickoff that is covered in the rules. Hence the quote, "I don't care what Dean, Dave, Woodie, or whoever says at kickoff--if it isn't in the rules, it isn't in the rules." (For the context, click the link.) There have occasionally (once) been "mistakes" in the animation or the demonstrations that are quickly clarified by rules. In the interests of time, they can't go into every rule, so they just have to hit the high points (basic structure, critical rules, shipping reminders, that sort of thing).

To all the rookies out there that read this: Please, please, please, please, do not come on here asking rules-related questions until you have read the Manual, especially the sections on the Arena, the Game, the Robot, and the Tournament. It wastes your time and ours when you ask manual-answered questions, because inevitably there is a response saying to READ the Manual, possibly providing the reference, but it almost always takes longer than it would have taken you to open to the right section and read. At 12:00 EST on Kickoff day, there is no way you've read those sections yet. Later in the day, you might be able to say that you have. Hopefully you have by the time Q&A opens later that week...


At any rate, whatever Dave is doing, only he knows the real meaning. For the record, I'm pretty sure he explained it once for the single dot--something about wanting more white space at the end of a post, and that being the only way to do it. Not sure why he switched to Morse Code, though. Saying something about the game being communication-themed, perhaps?