With the very first MRCA event, Wisconsin Robot Combat (WRC), just one week away, we asked a number of builders to share their thoughts. Who are the favorites? Who are the dark horses? Who is too interesting to ignore? Read on to find out.
Top 3
- Theseus
- Gowron's Glory
- Rules of Acquisition
Also receiving votes:
Immortal Crixus, Weird Flex, Nosferatu
Favorite - Theseus
"This time around is definitely horizontal Armageddon. We have the ever dangerous Theseus that is only really ranked lower because of sticking in the wall, I still expect a high rank run from him."
"Theseus is far and away the bot to beat. I don't know what his win/loss tally was in MN but I know that he won it. He won the last WRC and I believe that he would've won Michigan Mashup #1 if he didn't get stuck in the walls. Theseus has a very powerful weapon and is overall incredibly reliable."
Killa Bees - Gowron's Glory and Rules of Acquisition
"Yeah, Gowron's Glory is too highly ranked to be my dark horse, for sure, but is less of a known commodity. It hit really hard at the MM2 grudge match but lost drive early on."
"I think Gowron's Glory will have an impressive debut. Built by the master builder Brendan Metz, Gowron has a heavy weapon, with a high tip speed, and that usually amounts to danger for the other robots."
"The latest version of Rules of Acquisition showed massive potential at the last Michigan Mashup, but had a few teething issues. With time for Brendan to further refine the design, RoA might finally go all the way."
Other Favorites - Immortal Crixus, Weird Flex
"Immortal Crixus is due. With many top 3 finishes, and a driver that gets better every event, The always powerful hitting Immortal Crixus could come away with its first ever event win at WRC."
"Weird Flex is another bot I think is a good pick to win it all after their dominant performance at Michigan Mashup #2. However it'll be interesting to see if they can still smother their opponents in an arena that is three times the size."
Sleeper - Lasty
"Lasty is one of the most promising control bots on the MRCA circuit. Its lifter/clamper arm is perfectly suited for allowing Brent to deposit robots in the WRC lipped pit."
"I think Lasty is poised to make a deep run this time, they've done well with horizontals in the past and WRC has no shortage of them this time around. With the rumored changes giving easier access to the pit I can see them doing very well."
Other Sleepers - Ripper Smasher, Specture, Karen
"Ripper smasher is likely to be a scary contender, as well as Specture."
"My sleeper picks for WRC are Specture and Karen. 2 new horizontal spinners that look amazing and with a large arena that gives them room to spin up, can cause some serious damage and go deep in the bracket."
Interesting - Wrangle Tangle the Noodle Bot
"Wrangle Tangle for the dark horse win!"
"The robot I am most interested in seeing is Wrangle Tangle. A multi bot with multiple bots that can be attached to each other is a unique and potentially dangerous combo for a number of competitors."
"Wrangle Tangle looks very sturdy and is chaotic to fight against. I'd love to see what it can do with a good plan and coordinated driving."
Other Interesting - Pirithous, Flying Uppercuts and Cool Kinematics
"It took Ethan some serious engineering to pack a pneumatic flipper into the antweight class, so I hope Pirithous gets a good chance to show us what it can do."
"Dark horse is Flying Uppercuts and Cool Kinematics. If he can keep that weapon spinning he will be able to out reach every other bot in the comp."