Tactical Updates

BattleCry SITREP 4, dtg 18 May 09/2300Z

"Truce Declared!..."

  1. Dinner break on day one began with the BBQ and finished with the "Pilot Skills Challenge" mini-robot Special Operations contest. Many of the Challenger teams fielded competitors for this challenge. Amid the carnage of 6 mini-robots simultaneously trying to navigate around Lunacy trailers while slipping on the regolith, a Team 1100 driver prevailed.
  2. The lunch break contest on day two saw 40+ Challenger teams attempt the "Air Superiority" contest. Payload Specialists had 15 seconds to toss up to ten orbit balls into a trailer 12-ft away.  After a large single ball shoot-off with all teams tied at six balls, the final six competitors were determined and rookie team 2713 prevailed, hitting 9 out of 10 balls!

    1. After 2 days and 56 qualifying skirmishes, the challengers had settled into the following seeded order (for details see http://www.wpi.edu/News/Events/BattleCry/rankings.html):

      1. 40 - Checkmate
      2. 121 - Rhode Warriors
      3. 2648 - Infinite Loop
      4. 1153 - Robo-Rebels
      5. 1468 - Hicksville J-Birds
      6. 238 - Cruisin Crusaders
      7. 20 - The Rocketeers
      8. 529 - The Mansfield Hornets
      9. 562 - SPARK - Students Pursuing Applied Robotics Knowledge
      10. 1729 - Plan B
      11. 1073 - The Force Team
      12. 467 - Duct Tape Bandits
      13. "2589" - 126 x 2
      14. 1519 - Mechanical Mayhe
      15. 131 - C.H.A.O.S.
      16. 839 - Rosie Robotics
      17. 190 - Gompei and the H.E.R.D.
      18. 228 - Team "Gus"
      19. 195 - Cyber Knights
      20. 175 - Buzz Robotics
      21. 1991 - Dragons
      22. 2523 - Lab Rats
      23. 271 - Mechanical Marauders
      24. 2104 - The Colonels
      25. 2713 - iRaiders
      26. 126 - Gael Force
      27. 88 - TJ(Squared)
      28. 2342 - Team Phoenix
      29. 181 - Birds Of Prey
      30. 172 - Northern Force
      31. 1058 - PVC Pirates
      32. 1660 - Harlem Knights
      33. 263 - Sachem Aftershock
      34. 173 - R.A.G.E. (Robotics & Gadget Engineering)
      35. 176 - Aces High
      36. 1100 - The T-Hawks
      37. 2079 - ALARM
      38. 571 - Team Paragon
      39. 230 - Gaelhawks
      40. 2423 - The KWARQS
      41. 125 - NU-TRONS
      42. 2262 - Hoppin Pantherz
      43. 1735 - Green Reapers
      44. 166 - Chop Shop
      45. 809 - The TechnoWizards
      46. 2168 - CyberFalcons
      47. 1474 - Titans
      48. 1721 - Tidal Force

      Final alliance selections followed with these results:

      • 40, 121, 172
      • 2648, 126, 1660
      • 1153, 190, 2168
      • 1468, 1100, 2423
      • 238, 176, 2079
      • 20, 175, 809
      • 529, 125, 2262
      • 562, 131, 230
      • 1729, 2523, 1058
      • 1073, 571, 1474
      • 467, 228, 173
      • 2589, 1991, 2713
      • 1519, 195, 1721
      • 839, 166, 2342
      • 271, 88, 1735
      • 2104, 181, 263
  3. With all Warriors in the finals, the room lights dimmed, the spot lights came on and the fun began! The finals saw the #1 alliance of 40, 121, and 172 face up against the #3 alliance of 1153, 190, 2168.  Chock full of regional winners, finalists, semi-finalists, and award winners, the final had the makings to be a spectacular one.  After two hard-fought matches, in a climatic moment punctuated by blasts from the BattleCry confetti cannons spewing some 10 pounds of custom BC10 confetti over the entire field, the final outcome was announced:

    VICTORS: Checkmate (40), Rhode Warriors (121), Northern Force (172)
    RUNNERS-UP: Robo-Rebels (1153), Gompei and the HERD (190), CyberFalcons (2168)

    After all teams received their Campaign Medals, the following additional awards were distributed:

    AWESOME OFFENSE (people’s choice): 121
    DOMINATING DEFENSE (people’s choice): 181
    SPECIAL OPERATIONS (Pilot): 1100
    AIR SUPERIORTY (Human Player): 2713
    BEST BATTLECRY (emcee’s choice): 1073
    NONCOMBATANT SERVICE (judge’s award): 1991
    PURPLE HEART (judge’s award): 839
    MEDAL OF HONOR (judge’s award): 529
    GENERAL STAFF - Paul Kane "Preserverance in the Face of Adversity" (judge’s): 20
    GENERAL STAFF - "We'd Like to Hire Them" (judge’s): 467
    GENERAL STAFF -  "Mean Time to Repair" (judge’s): 571
    ENGINEERING EXCELLENCE (judge’s award): 190
    TOP GUN (#1 seed): 40

    Finally

    BATTLECRY STAR (Special Team Appreciation & Recognition):
    Awarded to Gordon Morrison by members of Team 228 for his outstanding leadership, mentorship, commitment, and enduring support of GUS..

  4. Well done all BattleCry Warriors! WPI, SolidWorks and BAE Systems thank you all for coming to BC10 and are anxious to get your feedback on how to make BC11 even better. Please take a moment to fill out this feedback form.  Teams who do will make themselves eligible to be considered for early bird registration next year! Please send in only one response per team!

BattleCry SITREP 3, dtg 5May08/2300Z
"Arrival Info, etc."

  1. Upon arriving to campus, any vehicles with materials to drop off should proceed to Harrington Auditorium and to the unloading zone in front. Quickly unload your items and proceed as directed byBattleCry Staff. Please be aware of your surroundings and do not block through traffic.
  2. Free BattleCry Warrior parking is available on WPI property and some surrounding streets. Please consult our event map for details or ask a staff member to direct you to parking. Parking IS NOT allowed on the Quad on Friday as it is reserved for another group.
  3. One adult member from each team should enter the lobby of Harrington Auditorium to begin your registration process.
  4. Upon check-in, your team and robot may then proceed outside Harrington toward the athletic fields then to the right, down the ramp and through the doors to the pit area. To avoid congestion, please do not drive vehicles down this ramp.
  5. Upon Arrival:
    • Check your team in
    • Pay any remaining balance due (check preferred: "WPI/BattleCry")
    • Receive your information packet with pre-purchased event t-shirts and dinner tickets
    • Sign up for "Special Operations Contest" (optional)
    • Sign up for campus tours (optional)
    • Bring your robot to the Pit Admin table to update your WPA key before going on the field.
  6. Report to Pit Boss table in pit area for any needed pit assistance, directions to machine shop, and to sign up for your team’s practice time.
  7. Pay-as-you-go breakfast items are available Saturday in the snack bar (on gym level, by pit area).
  8. There will be a limited number of BattleCry 10 T-shirts for sale @ $10 at the registration table.
  9. There will be a very limited number of 10-year anniversary T-shirts for sale @ $15 at the registration table.
  10. There is a limited number of additional Battle Ration lunches (for Saturday) may be purchased in the snack bar area. NOTE: The campus Food Court will NOT be open on Saturday.

 

BattleCry SITREP 2, dtg 24Apr09/1200Z

"Deals, Meals, Games, etc."

  1. Territory Reconnaissance

    For your advance scouts to get the "lay of the land", campus tours will be available departing from the registration area at 1615 and 1630 on Friday.  Tours departing from the Bartlett Center are available at 1100 and 1400 on Saturday. Sign up at registration table.

  2. Friday Evening R&R (Rest and Relaxation)

    The Friday night campaign ends and the pits close at 2100, but then the teams can enjoy the evening from 2100-2300 by jumping into any of the following FREE activities centered in and around the Campus Center (CC)--participants in the asterisked items can compete for raffle tickets and win prizes to be given out on Saturday.
    • Ice Cream Sundae Bar: Make your own ice cream creations and take them around to any of the other activities.
    • Bowling*: The WPI bowling lanes (all 6 lanes!) will be open exclusively for BC Challengers. Shoes and bowling balls are provided and we can accommodate 30 players at a time on a first-come/first-serve basis.
    • CRUD*: Play Team 190's post-battle favorite on 3 CRUD tables in the CC's 1st floor Game Rm. Rules and training will be provided to teams who want to learn to play.
    • Celebrity Squares*: Test your knowledge against FIRST "celebrities" in the CC.
    • Guerrilla Improv*: WPI's own improvisational comedy troupe, watch and participate in the Odeum after the Ice Cream Sundae Bar.
    • BC Hall of Fame: Stop by a check out robots from all 10 years of BattleCry, as provided by teams who have attended all 10 BC events!
    • DDR*: Dance the night away in the Class of 1946 Lounge.
    • Karaoke*: Show your "Gracious Amateurism" in front of the mic on the Forkey Commons Stage.
    • Wii Bowling*: Bowling for those who prefer (slightly!) less exercise.
    • Wii Tennis*: Play tennis with your fellow team members or other teams.
    • Guitar Hero*: Outplay everyone else while showing off your rock star moves.
    • Mario Kart Wii*: Find out who really is the best driver on your team.
    • Darts: Borrow equipment from the CC staff, play in the Game Rm.
    • Foosball: Two tables in the Game Rm.
    • Pinball: Machines in the Game Rm - ok, you do have to bring quarters here if you want to play.
    • Campus Book Store: Ok, gotta bring money here also, but they will be open for your shopping/browsing pleasure from 2100-2300!

  3. Field Rations.

    As part of your entry fee you get:
    • 10 Free Friday night BBQ dinner and Ice Cream Sundae Bar
    • 10 Free Saturday team lunches
    • Teams may order additional lunches or dinners by logging into their accounts and changing the order. The cutoff time for meal changes is 0700 Monday, 4 May. Then the order must go to our caterer. There will also be a concession stand operating from 0700-1600 on Saturday on the main floor of the gym offering light snacks and beverages.

    • The Field Ration Kit

      • BBQ Dinner (Friday)
        • You get a choice of two hamburgers, veggi-burgers, or hot dogs. In addition there are rolls, potato chips, watermelon, salad with dressing, and your choice of drinks.
        • BBQ meals will be available from 1800-1930 with 10 free meals for each participating team. Additional dinners (with later ice cream sundae bar) are $13.00; to guarantee their availability you need to preorder them. We cannot guarantee that there will be unreserved dinners available for purchase.
      • Ice Cream Sundae Bar (Friday)
        • Ice cream and assorted toppings will be served starting at 2100 during the evening R&R activities. The cost of the sundaes is included with the dinners so anyone getting a BBQ dinner will also be entitled to ice cream.
      • Lunch (Saturday)
        • You get a choice of ham, turkey, roast beef, or vegetarian sandwich on a fresh-baked bulky roll, a bag potato chips, fresh whole fruit, two fresh-baked cookies and your choice of beverage. The first 10 lunches for each team are free! There will also be a limited supply of these selections (quantity/selections cannot be guaranteed) available on Saturday in the snack bar in Harrington. Pre-ordered meals will be delivered to each pit table at 1130 on Saturday.

  4. Robot Drivers Contest (Special Operations Award):

    During the Friday dinner break, there will be a special robot operations contest. Each round, multiple teams will go head-to-head on a specially designed obstacle course. Drivers must maneuver their Vex robot down the starting ramp, around tight corners, and into narrow openings while on the regolith. The first driver to cross the finish line, or the driver that is the farthest along after one minute, will move on to the finals. Identical Vex robots will be provided, and drivers will have their choice of arcade-style or tank steering. All teams that wish to participate must sign up at check-in

  5. Payload Specialist Contest (Air Superiority Award):

    During the Saturday lunch break, there will be a special on-field contest for payload specialists. Each team will have 15 seconds to toss up to 10 moon rocks into a trailer. The top eight scoring teams will compete in the finals. In the event of a tie, the teams will throw one moon rock at a time into their trailer. If a team misses the trailer while any other team successfully scores a moon rock, that team will be eliminated. This process will continue until one team remains and breaks the tie. All teams that wish to participate must sign up at check-in.

  6. Video Opportunities:

    There will be multiple video cameras running throughout BC10 that will be under the control of our mixing crew. The entire competition will be available on live streaming video and should be archived and available at this site, match-by-match for at least nine months after the event.

  7. NEMO Meeting:

    Non-Engineering Mentor Organization (NEMO) is hosting a free workshop on Team Organization from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon in the Hagglund Room in the Campus Center. Take home suggestions to work on over the summer.  The workshop is open to adult and college-age mentors from all FIRST programs.

    For more information contact Kathie Kentfield, kathiek@firstnemo.org.

BattleCry SITREP 1, dtg 10Apr09/1200Z

  1. Registration

    Please confirm your plans as soon as possible. We have many teams on the ready reserves list and out of courtesy to them, would like to update their status ASAP. All payments are due by 20 Apr to hold your spot. If there are any teams that can't accommodate this please contact the staff at battlecry@wpi.edu.

    All registered BC10 Challengers need to completely fill out their registration information ASAP. To help with this process you should log into your team account and fill in all the remaining information on all the pages.  Payment information can be found on the Invoice page of the registration web site.

    Note

    BC10 is a 2-day tournament. We encourage all teams to come both days and take advantage of the Friday barbeque, ice cream social, and team party, as well as the 2 or 3 qualifying matches on Friday. Unlike some previous years, we will NOT run a separate (and painfully-derived) tournament schedule for each day-the match schedule will assume that all teams will be here for both days.

  2. Housing

    Due to changes in the WPI academic schedule, on-campus housing is not available for BC10.  Please consider utilizing any of the large number of hotels within a short drive of campus.  Several discounted hotels have been secured but the rates are available for a limited time only!  Teams are also welcome to arrange their own stay at other hotels in and around Worcester.  Cities like Auburn and Shrewsbury are within a 10-minute drive of WPI and may open up a wider variety of options.

  3. Game Tweaks

    See Rules of Engagement

  4. Awards and Decorations

    By Battlestaff decry, the following have been established for BC10:

    • Campaign Medals - One per each team that arrives on scene
    • Medal of Honor - Judges' award to team that does the "most with the least"
    • Purple Heart - Judges' award to team that becomes most grievously injured through valiant campaign effort
    • Engineering Excellence - Judges' award for best overall robot design in terms of quality, creativity, and control
    • Noncombatant Service - Judges' award for most outstanding team spirit displayed during the finals by a team eliminated during the eighth- finals
    • General Staff - Judges' special recognition awards (3), criteria TBD
    • Awesome Offense - People's choice award to team with most scoring potential/performance
    • Dominating Defense - People's choice award to team with best score-neutralizing or score-denial potential/performance
    • Best BattleCry - Emcee's award for best spirit shown by a team during combat
    • Special Operations - To the team that fields the best Pilot in the Friday mini-robot contest
    • Air Superiority - To the team that fields the top Payload Specialist in the Saturday contest
    • Top Gun - To the number one seed in qualifying
    • Runners-Up - To each team on the three-team alliance defeated in the final match
    • Victors - To each team on the three-team alliance that wins the tournament
    • BattleCry STAR - Special Team Appreciation & Recognition award, adult mentor award presented by team selected by STAR reviewers (see below)

  5. BattleCry STAR

    Student team members are encouraged to submit nominations for their outstanding adult mentor. These nominations are due by 1 May (electronic format preferred to stafford@wpi.edu, 500 words or less) and will be reviewed and judged by past STAR winners. Student members of the winning team will be notified by 5 May and offered the opportunity to publicly announce their champion during the awards ceremony.

  6. Robot Photos

    Please upload photos of your robot using the photo upload page at the registration site. The photos should clearly show your robot and be full resolution .jpg images from your camera.

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Last modified: May 18, 2009 15:36:45