MN North Star Regional Teams & Scoring Trends

[Shrub]

Hi all! I had finals today at school but I also had a free hour, so I made a quick spreadsheet of teams attending North Star this April and their scoring trends. Many teams are attending North Star as their first/only competition, and their score is labeled as N/A (as well as teams who did not make it to Playoffs). Beyond that, it's in numerical order and there are three whole sheets (Qual scores, Playoff scores, and graphs).

I'll be updating it after Wisconsin and Central Illinois scores are up, as well as when I figure certain things out (usually highlighted in bright green). As of right now, I also don't have scoring trend graphs for playoff matches. I am a busy high school student. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

If anyone has any suggestions to add, it would be great to hear them! I might add a fourth sheet of teams who have won any awards and final seed ranking for teams who didn't make it to playoffs just so all the information is in one place. Also feel free to tell me if any data is wrong.

(also I'm not the best at Excel/Sheets so the Y-axis for the trend graphs do change on a team by team basis.)

So, without further ado, the largest spreadsheet I have ever made.

[Ginger Power]

Thanks for doing this! Maybe add a column for avg scores and OPR? Both would be interesting to see.

[Shrub]

I could whip up average scores real quick, but beyond TBA's OPR calcs, I can't find them myself. I am not good at any linear algebra of any kind. (Figure out how to find it using AP Stats jargon and I probably could though.)

Edit: got qual averages and most of the OPRs up. I'll calculate the other OPRs and do playoff averages after homework.

[Ginger Power]

[Shrub]

Ok, I added playoff averages and award winners.

Does anyone want to see one of these for 10KL? Or want to use my data thus far (which honestly I just took from TBA so it would be easier to start there instead)?

Also, I didn't add playoff score trend graphs because the most matches played was 7 (by two teams) so a 2-point graph isn't really useful unless it's for the aesthetic.

[Chief Hedgehog]

Nice job, Eric - wouldn't expect anything less from 3883!

[Shrub]

It has been updated. Boop.

I added "condensed" sheets (basically the normal sheets without all the N/As,) and more graphs. Gotta love graphs.

This week's matches were amazing. Congrats to all teams who participated!!! I am proud of you all.

[Ginger Power]

With North Star just 1 week away let's get the conversation going!

Here is a list of teams:
967 2129 2143 2175 2177 2207 2220 2225 2239 2450 2472 2491 2525 2531 2549 2606 2654 2667 2826 2957 2989 3018 3023 3042 3055 3090 3130 3134 3206 3275 3293 3610 3633 3690 3691 3699 3765 3848 3871 3883 3928 4239 4277 4607 4626 4632 4648 4663 4665 4687 4778 5275 5297 5339 5340 5449 5522 5576 5626 5637

Teams in bold have competed in a regional prior to North Star (and 2220 has competed in 2!)

Here is my analysis of what each team who has already competed:

967: 967 made the playoffs at Wisc. but was knocked out in the Quarterfinals. They had an average qual score of 63 points which could have been much higher if not for a slow start. According to their website they have some cool improvements planned for NS. This includes a tote chute ramp, and an autonomous canburglar. Expect a top 8 finish for the Iron Lions for the 3rd consecutive time at NS.
Notable Abilities/Tendencies: Based on what I could see from the Wisconsin webcast it looked like 967 tried the landfill early on in qualification matches but transitioned to the tote chute later on. They had good success there putting up as much as a stack of 6 and stack of 4 in a match at one point (correct me if I'm wrong on this).

2175: The Fighting Calculators struggled by their standards at Northern Lights this year. They ranked 27th after quals with a qualification average of 47 points. They were one of, if not the first team in FIRST to use an impromptu ramp and tether this year. I'm expecting some major improvements by 2175 for NS. It's hard to ever keep them out of the conversation for top 8 robot.
Notable Abilities/Tendencies: More tote chute oriented with their tethered ramp. Very good at COOP. Can cap a stack of 5 with a Recycling Container (RC).

2177: The Robettes ranked 43rd with a qual average of 32 points. They missed out on the playoffs at Lake Superior. Historically they are a team that makes the playoffs more than not. I'd be surprised if they don't have a better showing at NS.
Notable Abilities/Tendencies: The Robettes' robot has what looks like a mecanum drive this year. They seemed to prefer the landfill over the tote chute based on the times that I've seen them play.

2220: 2220 is the only North Star team who has now competed in 2 regionals. At Lake Superior they ranked 27 with a qual average of 41 points. At Central Illinois they ranked 21st with a qual average of 73 points. Obviously they improved greatly from regional 1 to regional 2. Expect that trend to continue into regional 3. Blue Twilight went on to win the Central Illinois Regional so they bring a potential wildcard spot with them to North Star!
Notable Abilities/Tendencies: Blue Twilight is a step container specialist. They grab 1 RC during auton any get another during teleop. In quals this tool may not be the most useful, but if they can get fast enough we could see RC Wars between with them during the Playoffs.

2472: The Centurions placed 40th with a qualification average of 34 points at Lake Superior. Their low ranking isn't indicative of their robot quality. They work the larger half of the landfill to stack totes with their U-shaped robot. I've watched them make a single stack of 4 and 2 stacks of 2 from there. They made it to the final of Superior with KnightKrawler and FRED. If they speed up their elevator look out for 2472 to make a pretty good dent (4-6 totes) in the landfill at NS.
Notable Abilities/Tendencies: Their internal stacking system prevents them from doing COOP from what I've seen. 2472 is running a mecanum drive and it looks like they have a good driver.

2491: No Mythic ranked 46th with a qual average of 39 points at the Northern Lights Regional. They seem to have specialized on the RC's and do a good job with them.
Notable Abilities/Tendencies: From pictures it looks like they have a Step container grabber. It also appears that they can cap a stack of 5. No Mythic is using a hook and elevator system to stack totes. They're low to the ground frame prevents litter from slowing them down.

2531: The RoboHawks ranked 12th with an average qual score of 48 points at the Lake Superior Regional. They surprisingly missed out on the playoffs despite their very high rank. They seemed to be very good at COOP.
Notable Abilities/Tendencies: 2531's strategy seemed to be, grab a tote from the large side of the landfill and use it to start stacking from the tote chute. They have forklift arms that are perfect for doing COOP.

2826: 'Nuff Said...Wait now 'Nuff said I want to talk about them anyways. Wave has to be the favorite coming into North Star. Anybody have a noodle rocket launcher to slow them down? No? Wave will be tough to stop.
Notable Abilities/Tendencies: Yes.

3042: Cobalt Catalysts ranked 56th with an average qual score of 25 points. Those numbers aren't at all representative of their robot quality or potential. Don't rule out 3042 by a long shot. Their robot stacks internally from the tote chute up to 5 totes. I saw them do 2 stacks of 3 at LS but I'd expect that number to skyrocket for NS. The only thing holding them back from being a top 8 robot is a smooth transition from the tote chute to their robot. With over 5 weeks to figure this out, I'm sure you will see them do well at NS.
Notable Abilities/Tendencies: They don't seem to care about doing RC's at all. They can't do COOP by the looks of it. However, they have the potential to become a tote stacking machine (get it, because robots are machines and the purpose of the game is to stack totes).

3055: Furious George ranked 13th with an average qual score of 58 points at Northern Lights. They have a really impressive robot design with multiple hooks which each grab 1 tote. They had a match in which they scored 3 stacks of 3 and a stack of 2. That tote production is one of the highest from the landfill at NS. I expect 3055 to be in or near the top 8 at NS.
Notable Abilities/Tendencies: Furious George likes to work the larger side of the landfill zone where they grab 4 totes in the wide orientation and stack them. They then go back and grab 4 more totes by driving parallel to the step. I've seen them cap a stack of 4 and I'd be surprised if they couldn't cap a 5 stack.

3130: The ERRORs ranked 1st at Northern Lights with a qual average of 96 points. They are the top landfill robot who we have seen so far, by far. They make 2 stacks of 6 with RC and Litter. If not more. If they aren't in the top 8 at the end of quals it means they forgot to bring their robot. They along with 2826 both have regional wins coming in and are both the heavy favorites at NS.
Notable Abilities/Tendencies: Oh yeah they also have an autonomous 2 RC grabber. Such an amazing robot.

3206:[b] The Royal T-Wrecks ranked 30th with an average qual score of 59 points at Wisconsin. Although I haven't seen them in a live match their reveal video demonstrates some impressive abilities. An average of 59 is pretty high despite their rank and it would have placed them in the top 8 at Lake Superior. Don't discount 3206 from making an impact at NS.
Notable Abilities/Tendencies: They (somewhat like 3055) have a hook that grabs each container. I haven't seen their strategy in a match but I imagine it's similar to 3055. They can cap a 4 stack as well as do COOP.

3633: Catalyst ranked 55th with an average qual score of 34 points. I can't find videos on them so if anybody has information to contribute it would be appreciated.
Notable Abilities/Tendencies:

3883: Data Bits Ranked 14th after quals with an average score of 57 points. They (like usual) had an impressive robot. According to inside information 3883 has completely remade their intake arms, so expect them to be even more efficient in the landfill.
Notable Abilities/Tendencies: At NL they were making 2 stacks of 3 from the short side of the landfill. They seem to have trouble doing COOP due to their U-shaped robot. They have a very good driver.

3928: Neutrino ranked 17th with a qual average of 79 points. Year in and year out they are a top team at NS. This year shouldn't be any different. From watching the Illinois livestream they look like they might be the most versatile robot at NS. Their intake rivals 3130 for the best at NS. Their ramp allows them to make stacks from the tote chute almost as quickly as 2826. They are a dark horse to unseat one of those 2 teams as the top seed.
Notable Abilities/Tendencies: They're biggest downfall for quals will be acquiring the RC. However, I'm sure Neutrino will fix this issue in their time between regionals. If they stick to totes and get paired with a great capping robot, Neutrino could go very far.

4239: WARPSPEED ranked 21st with an average of of 44 points at Lake Superior. They have a forklift design which sticks outside their frame, making them good at COOP. They seem to focus on COOP and then work the landfill using a hook at the end of their fork to manipulate totes.
Notable Abilities/Tendencies: Good at COOP with a good mecanum drive.

Notable 1st Event Teams:
Disclaimer: I have some bias here...
4607: I'll just leave this here. 4607 is the only robot I've seen that builds stacks from the top down. CIS prefers to work the large half of the landfill and has been making 2 stacks of 4 from there with the practice robot. Watch out for a late edition Step RC grabber to put CIS in a good position come Saturday.

4778: I know literally nothing about the Stormbot's robot, but they are typically a strong competitor who I expect to do well at NS.

5637: Polar Vortex has a cool name and a cool looking robot. I expect big things from this rookie team.

Thus ends the longest post I've ever made.

[Jon Stratis]

Originally Posted by Ginger Power

2177: The Robettes ranked 43rd with a qual average of 32 points. They missed out on the playoffs at Lake Superior. Historically they are a team that makes the playoffs more than not. I'd be surprised if they don't have a better showing at NS.
Notable Abilities/Tendencies: The Robettes' robot has what looks like a mecanum drive this year. They seemed to prefer the landfill over the tote chute based on the times that I've seen them play.

I can tell you one thing... North Star is going to be very different from Lake Superior for us! The team is going to finish all the parts for a significant re-design of our pickup mechanism. The redesign will make it much easier for us to pick up totes from anywhere on the field and much easier for us to work on the coopertition points, something I don't think we ever even attempted on the field at Lake Superior. In short, the new mechanism will solve all of our problems with precision and speed.

Now, lets just hope we can get it installed and fully functional next thursday! This will mark the first time in 9 years that the team has done any sort of significant redesign mid-season, and aside from testing and minor tweaks, the first time they've really had significant work to do on the robot on practice day!

[jvdiv]

The Stormbots are really looking forward to competing at North Star! We have made a teaser video for our robot here. Can't wait for the competition!

[Ginger Power]

Originally Posted by jvdiv

The Stormbots are really looking forward to competing at North Star! We have made a teaser video for our robot here. Can't wait for the competition!

Suspicion confirmed.

[Ginger Power]

Originally Posted by Jon Stratis

I can tell you one thing... North Star is going to be very different from Lake Superior for us! The team is going to finish all the parts for a significant re-design of our pickup mechanism. The redesign will make it much easier for us to pick up totes from anywhere on the field and much easier for us to work on the coopertition points, something I don't think we ever even attempted on the field at Lake Superior. In short, the new mechanism will solve all of our problems with precision and speed.

Awesome to hear you are making improvements! I don't doubt that you'll get everything finished and inspected in time. I hear there are some pretty cool Inspectors at North Star this year.

[Chief Hedgehog]

Originally Posted by jvdiv

The Stormbots are really looking forward to competing at North Star! We have made a teaser video for our robot here. Can't wait for the competition!

My sons and I went to your Week Zero Event - after watching about an hour or so 4778 was the most complete team that I saw there. I love the teaser - and if you improved from 6 weeks ago, holy crap look out North Star!

Nice Job Stormbots!

[Chief Hedgehog]

Northstar is going to be a bloodbath. This is why 4607 loves competing here. It is not dominated by 1-2 teams, but so many come ready to have it out.

2826, 3130, 2175, 967, 3883, 2220, and this list can go on. There is no 'given' team - no true 'favorite' that will walk through Northstar - alliance selection will be interesting.

Minnesota may have been late to the FRC dance, but seeing the robots this year at NorthStar only exemplifies the arms race that is happening in Minny. No slight to the other Minnesota Regionals - but as Iron sharpens Iron, so be it with NorthStar!

I look forward to what will become in week six in Minneapolis! No wonder this regional tags out so early...

[Shrub]

OH MY GOSH. THIS IS SO GOOD. I'm glad I was able to help with this!!!

Our driver been having a rough time lately (similar to the predicament that ended with him in a wheelchair at State) and this will most definetely cheer him up. He enjoys not only really good analysis, but compliments.

Let's hope for no actual [bad] blood in this bloodbath of a regional though.