gametechmods
Robot Arena => Discussion => Topic started by: infiniteinertia on November 10, 2008, 05:29:38 PM
-
Hey everyone, I would like to organize all of the more active DSL builders onto one forum to discuss 'advanced DSLing' between each other and share ideas.
It's a lot easier to talk about general things here when it's organized rather than around various showcases.
Heres my first topic that should really be discussed:
What makes a great wedge? Is it independent of the actual bot? Does it depend on weight distribution? Axles or Hinges? Share your thoughts.
-
Hmmmmm. Wedges not independent, by which I mean part of the chassis, seemed to be the least effective. Weight distribution definatly matters, it seems the more weight on the wedge, the more effective. Both axles and skirt hinges make good wedges, and certain designs made by each can beat each other. I personally like using axle wedges, but suprisingly their main weakness suprisingly seems to be bots using chassis wedges.
-
Things i know wedges depend of:
-ground clearance.
-weight distribution.
-angle between the wedge and the ground.
And still, I believe double wedges with at least a hinge are the best. But they must be built carefully or else you block your opponent between the two wedges.
-
I think the small wedges in DSL are under-rated. the new obZen uses them, and nothing I've built or in the AI has got under them ever. I'm also a big fan of what I call two-stage wedges, being one main wedge that gets under the bot, then a secondary wedge that scoops the bot up (see Enfilad3). One other thing I've discovered is that the hinge wedges need to be at a relatively low angle. If they are too high, they tend to spring off of any opponents.
-
For a decent wedge, I'd like to take the Spinner from the west entry, FIRST ROUND FINALE!. It had a good wedge, (Losing when it raced into a wall and OOTA'd itself.) and decent power. I think a good wege depends in how fast the bot is. Who has seen a slow bot out wedge a fast bot with the same wedge, eh?
-
Usually fast bots throw themselves.
ex. FRF!, Lu-Tze, InfCon.
-
I completely agree with R0B0, and i would add that stock style wedges (attached on burst motors) are very good if well built.
-
I once had a lightweight called Flash Flood on DSL, it had 2 90' axled emergency wedges, and in th DSL tournament arena, i either flipped bots over or they went out of the arena!
I used to have a clip of him fighting Bob, but its gone.
I got lucky because 1 wedge stayed to the ground, and the other went in the air, got to his side (thing went up when charging) and flipped him on his back!
Maybe it helped that i had put things like batteries at the front.
-
Another question for the community to debate:
Is there anything you would add to the current version of DSL? Remove? Change?
-
Some type of component that could make a trap bot (cage or claws maybe), and I would fix the problems.
-
Yeah, and make sure to have strong servos that have enough power to lift other bots.
-
Another question:
Last bot type we gave a name to is the TS (top spinner)
There is one bot type) that doesn't have a name and it's SlashBack.
It's designed like a flipper, but not really because it isn't powerful enough to throw bots OOTA and the main wedge isn't attached on the snappers like most flippers. More like a popup, but reverse engineered, firing upwards rather than like a hammer.
Any ideas?
-
External popup? After all, the weapons are outside the chassis, last time I remember.
-
Could it be called a "flipper-popup hybrid"?
-
Flopup?
No.
How about US, or UnderStriker?
-
S32: doesn't means anything if the weapons are outside the chassis or not. What I'm talking about is the way the weapons travel. Upwards, in that case.
Reier: Well, maybe
SB: Flopup => epic fail. Understriker is actually cool, but a popup could be called like that.
I had the simple idea of Inverted Popup (because the weapons go upwards like a flipper and not like a hammer), but i would need some moar backup.
-
How about UpperStriker, seeing that the weapons go up. Popup weapons go out and down.
-
I think it is just a flipper. Look at Insanity in the DSL AI. It has upwards-moving iron spikes too, and it is still a flipper.
-
Another question:
Last bot type we gave a name to is the TS (top spinner)
There is one bot type) that doesn't have a name and it's SlashBack.
It's designed like a flipper, but not really because it isn't powerful enough to throw bots OOTA and the main wedge isn't attached on the snappers like most flippers. More like a popup, but reverse engineered, firing upwards rather than like a hammer.
Any ideas?
call it a popup. then call the normal popups popdowns, cause thats what they really do.
-
Hmm, what about BB (Bottom Beaters)?
-
Well. the design isn't a flipper of spikes, it is a wedge with spikes in it that has the spikes come through the wedge to hit the bot. I like Wham's Idea!
-
I like that inverted popup idea.
UnderStriker: Sounds like the NAME of a popup.
Flopup: *Snigger* *Ahem* No.
UpperStriker: Lame.
Bottom Beaters: Sounds like a drum under a wedge.
-
In theory Sage is right, popups are popdowns and this is a reeal popup. But we called popdowns popups for 5 years now...
EDIT: i agree with S32 and i will add that bottom beaters is unappropriate.
-
Ok then...
Well, why not just keep it pop-ups?
Rather than change our langauge of RA2, and change all of our normal pop-ups into pop-downs, just call both the same, makes life easier!
-
Well I don't think that it qualifies as a popup, maybe what Reier said was good?
-
SlashBack was designed to be a realistic popup.
Up, down, it doesn't matter which way the burst motors fire, it's still a popup in my book. Just like the direction of a flipper--Firestorm-style or Toro-style--doesn't matter; they're still both flippers.