Ranking points, ranking points, ranking points…owning your switch in auto and having 3 bots across those lines is of utmost importance. JOB 1. THEN owning the null zones carefully placing each following cube from center zones slowly cuts off both sides of the field, making it a defensive battle at each end to deny scale points to the opposition…This years defense. EVEN COMING CLOSE to a robot in the null zones will be very costly to those who dare. Just my predictions.
Stealing cubes, getting them behind the wall, filling your vault leading to possible use of Power Ups, while denying the other side points scoring or defending ammunition, not introducing your 14 game pcs unless they deny points on the opposing scale will be crucial, and the fastest robot to complete that task, and being able to consistantly score in the end game will be highly in demand…no matter where they actually qualify.
ONCE You have all the ammunition, or the majority of it, you control all game points flow, you then may re-receive it, deliver it to your own or opposing switch, or to your taller robot positioned in the null zone for placement and further ownership points on the scale.
Choke points in the game…auto due to the randomization by FMS leading to MANY collisions between robots, three delivery points of game pcs onto field each, 1 off field each. THOSE TEAMS and alliances that cannot quickly get pcs off the field cannot take advantage of the power ups no matter what, will lose often.
My theoretical robot would be lightning fast low swerve drive, that can pick up from floor or stacks, would be driven by the best robot contact avoidance driver on the planet, steal cubes like a thief, have a slamming fast intake and ejector, and never attempt the scale itself but deliver, ammunition like a rocket to those who can and can lift 2 robots or attach to any other robot on the fly for the engame. IT WOULD BE extremely powerful (to lift 2), but light to lift as 1.
MY Witholding Allowance would be strictly an attaching toolkit dedicated to cheesecaking the taller lifting bots that could not use my ramps and wish to be lead chain hangers. (Only a portion of the time would I need to use the toolkit as those planning on being the main hanger in the chain should have added a similar bar like hanging device to their bot). AND OF COURSE climb high to be able to get others in the chain above the line.
3 things (plus 1), it would do everytime without fail…Deliver in auto from any position to the switch and cross the line, steal & deliver as much onfield ammo getting it behind the wall as possible, and fill the vault with 9 cubes everytime, use as much of the leftover ammunition in our control as possible to score or deny points as the balance of time allows. AND either lift 1 or 2 above that 12" line, or latch on and go for a ride hoping for the best results praying that leadbot hero really is as strong as he (they)’ says he is!
If I demonstrate early that I can do those things consistantly, will you really care what drive I have under my chassis, or what position I actually qualified in this week personally?
Building the all around do everything perfectly in the game top dog 2 or 3 blocks on the scale in autobot and teleop master, and end game top dog chain high string climber I will personally leave to others this year, plenty of those will be present, some will master it, but be very few and far between…I and my imaginary robot will help them highly achieve the goals, and we would shine together!
Personally though, I’ll be that bald spotted guy, nose down to the carpet replacing the tape your robot just tore up scooping up those cubes repeatedly, and walking all 4 corners this year making sure each of those 4 stacks are consistantly the same. You will hardly notice I’m even there, but thankful I am. And on occasion, when I get to actually look up from my front row seat working the field, and see (or just catch a glimpse of is more like it), that imaginary robot I designed in my head the last 26 hrs, actually at work…I’ll smile to myself, and say quietly inside, good luck on Einstien my friend…& I hope you make it.
Now, the hard work is to get my team of affilliation to read the post and actually thoughtfully just consider it, we might have a chance to return to the oh so great glory years.