Team Update: Drive Team Placement in Playoffs

[mmaunu]

This is something that I would like to ask in the Q&A but it also seems inappropriate for Q&A since the rule is incredibly clear. Is there a forum for asking "Why did this rule (about red placing robots on the field before blue) get made when it clearly gives a disadvantage to the higher seeded alliance even though they earned the right to have the advantage?"?

Did they, perhaps, give the advantage to the lower-seeded alliance in an attempt to balance the play? That seems particularly rough in the Finals matches and/or at high levels of play where both sides will be vying for the center containers.

[Rachel Lim]

Originally Posted by mmaunu

This is something that I would like to ask in the Q&A but it also seems inappropriate for Q&A since the rule is incredibly clear. Is there a forum for asking "Why did this rule (about red placing robots on the field before blue) get made when it clearly gives a disadvantage to the higher seeded alliance even though they earned the right to have the advantage?"?

I'm guessing that Q316 and Q317 ask your question:

Originally Posted by Q317

Sec 5.1 states that "...require ALLIANCES to alternate placement of their ROBOTS, starting with the Red ALLIANCE.", implying that the order of ROBOT placement is Red, Blue, Red, Blue, Red, Blue. Sec 5.4.4 states that during Playoff MATCHES "The higher seeded ALLIANCE will always be assigned to the Red side of the FIELD" This implies that the lower seeded alliance (blue) is given the advantage of placing last and reacting to their higher seeded opponent (red). Is this the intent of the rule?

[waialua359]

I'm not sure why these new rules came out in this update?
If anything, why not let teams decide which alliance station they want. Its been done before at offseason events and allows teams to comfortably choose where they want to be, optimizing vantage points for the entire alliance. To some extent it does matter. Some drivers are tall, some short and anyone that has ever coached behind the glass will tell you that the view is much different than for a spectator seeing the whole field.
The field isnt symmetrical with respect to each alliance.

The only reason I see that red places their bots first, is to level the playing field as others have suggested.