summer showdown 2024 event report
been a hot minute since the last update, decided not to do one of rapture as i took no pictures and theres been no fight videos up yet, so may wait to do that when those release
anyway this event
before this event id had lots of teething issues with the new version of dolos, its biggest change was going from tpu to pp for the bodys, this saved loads of weight but they warped like a bugger and had lots of adjusting to do
this was going on until the night before the event haha
the other major changes included new front ends new weapon shaft (ti instead of steel) and new weapon esc being the bbb antweight esc, this seemed prefectly fine running dolos’s fairly low intensity weapon
the new front ends included this
a 3 pronged front wedge designed for verts and horizontals for those nightmare 3 way match-ups
and a new anti horizontal wedge,
much thicker tpu thanks for the hdpe fork rods over the ali offering much more protecting that the old wedges
as well as some anti hammer saw top amour. 3mm hdpe plates spaced 20mm off the top of the robot designed to let the hammer saw slow down before reaching the main lids, as well as mabye getitng stuck in the thin plastic allowing me to hit back
those are the main changes, onto the fights!
(all photo credits to ellie harrington)
first round: vs sniper vs Ray
before this fight i had a tricky time deciding on a set-up, the new 3 pronged set-up was specifically designed for these kind of situations but i felt that sniper posed a large enough threat that id rather sacrifice my ability to get under ray
the fight starts and sniper almost instantly eats on of my tires, hindering my drive and jamming his weapon. this was very fortunate since i was having some very weird arm issues, i can only assume i must of hit the trim during the fight as the arm kept creeping forward, and trying to fix this while constantly being thrown around by ray was no easy haha. managed a small shot on sniper after fixing the arm before ray disposed of them and the rest of my tire came off, this left me open for ray to control the match, i managed to line up 1 shot but this missed and left me tumbling. only able to score some superficial damage with the weapon in vert mode in the dying seconds of the fight, this rightfully went to ray
repairs after this fight were fairly minor, rebound the arm to the reciever to stop the movement and swapped out the tires for the old set and sharpended the blade after its meeting with the floor
second round: vs Delta V
a familiar one ive fought jake on 2 other occasions and managed to get the win, but they had been getting increasingly more difficult each time so i went in with confidence but also knowing it would be a tough fight
this time the set-up for delta V was very different. flat front parts no magnets and a carbon fibre additional lid. this would be interesting
the fight starts and almost immediately goes wrong
not ideal
he catches the edge of the fork at the start and keeps on me the whole time. i manage to break from the action and get under him sending him bouncing a couple times and then it dies? the link had come loose with all the impacts and i ended up with a very lucky win
fixes after this fight were thankfully minor, gifted the broken arm support to jake and depsite a few knicks on the base plate no critical damage
round 3: vs Wheely big lad
oh god, not another big wheeled bot. having thought stratus at rapture i looked at the competitors going to this event and though “theres no shot it happens again” but here we are. to prepare for this fight i fitted my anti hammer saw armour and my anti stratus armour to make an unholy concoction which i felt could let me survive the first few swings and get him over a wall or in the pit
fight starts and i imediatly try for the oota, and get one wheels to hover over the oota zone but not quite get it in and from then on what can only be described as manic driving ensued,
i didnt want to give him 1 clean swing at my top armour or forks so tried to stay as close in as possible and only swing when i had a clean shot. this worked well the first time catching wheel and pulling off some of its rubber the second pin however despite nearly getting his wepaon belt unplugged my weapon leaving me weaponless. at the same time he had ripped off the lower part of the tall forks leaving me more unstable. i knew by this point i needed to end the fight before a jd due to the weapon effectiveness of wheely big lad
after allot more struggling and a very close call which him hitting my underbelly i eventually wrestle it towards the pit and get it down on the second attempt after only getting the weapon to clip the edge in the first attempt
was a great fight that was, probably one of my favourites ive ever had against a very tricky machine to fight. it was like trying to grab a block of very melted butter
damage afterwards was fairly extensive to the anti big wheeled bot frames and top armour but the robot underneath was pretty much unscaved apart from a couple missing teeth on the arm gear and a unplugged weapon motor
Top 8: vs Jackhammer
jack hammer is a brutally efficient hammer saw/lifter vert which i was not looking forward to fighting. but it must be said im glad it beat wheely big lad otherwise id of had to ask shakey for my attachment back
anyway the set-up for jack hammer would mean reusing the battered anti hammersaw top armour and a pair of forks in the centre. the stratergy was to avoid front on attachs, jack hammer easily outreaches me and couple hits could destroy the arm gear disabling my weapon and my ability to self right. so i wanted to get to the sides of the fairly long jack hammer and hit it where it couldn’t strike back
despite a bit of issue with battery the first time round the fight starts and it goes semi to plan, jack hammer catches my forks a few times bending them up and also hitting my weapon gear. but not enough to disable it. my anti hammer saw top armour did its job. deflecting blows and not allowing for any critical damage. eventually his weapon died and i was able to take full advantage despite some great evasive driving from jack hammer i landed a flurry of blows eventually catching his link and tearing it out. resulting in a fortunate knockout as he had dominated the fight early on
after this fight i didnt have much to fix, I didnt have a spare arm gear and the rest of the damage was to the forks and the anti hammer saw armour. both of which i gave to jackhammer in return for there shattered link
top 4: vs Chucky
chucky is probably the toughest robot in terms of durability at beetle scale. twinned with allot of drive power and a lifter perfect for keeping you off kilter. so i was kinda nervos going into this fight especially when i saw them attaching a titanium plate to the top of there robot to prevent me punching the lids.
for this fight i decided to leave the blade dull as id only be hitting ti anyway.
fight starts and its clear its going to be a very fast paced battle. chucky is the faster machine but dolos’s width prevents it from capitalising. eventually i manage a pin right over the wheel and hit just between it and the frame. this didnt result in much damage but i was glad i was able to pin the very squirmy machine. the fight continues and he gets the upperhand by the pit button but doesnt manage to capitalise we then end up in a corner were i manage to prop it up on the forks and get it down the pit.
very very fun fight. and meant id finally managed a win over adam. so like 2:1 now i guess just takes him not to be driving icebreaker 
final: vs Baby deadbod
this is a fight id been looking forward to for a while. ive thought baby deadbod on a number of occasions with a few robots and so far with dolos we were 3:2 to him so i needed to even out. and this version of dolos had yet to right a large horizontal for an extended period of time and was intrested to see if it could take it
the set-up for this fight was fairly simple. big chunky wedge big chunky guards and crossed fingers i could survive to get a good pin. and to add to the fun tom had to be off for a train so this would be a rapid fight from both sides
fight starts and i manage to catch deadbod early preventing it from spinning up to its full speed. this continues with deadbod trying to make space and me tyring to my darndest to close it. he begins to chip away at the wedge but im keeping him towards the edges of the box forcing mistakes into the wall. eventually i manage a pin and fire the weapon before rushing into to deliver another shot. this shook his link free and dolos had won!
only took 2 years of sweating with the bot to finally get a dub. I believe this also makes it the first hammer saw to win a event in the uk, at beetle weight anyway
damage wise
the wedge got pretty beat-up but more alarmingly is that deadbod was pulling the entire front of the robot off. more screws needed next time!
as well as a hint of deadbod paint on the wheel guards. very glad i took the time to put those on
whats next for the bot? probably going to keep it as is for now to learn a little more about this design before making any more changes but overall im very happy with its adaptability and its durability as well as the weapon being able to get those good hits
probably going to be focusing on feathers for the foreseeable and ill probably keep dolos on the back burner till champs to let my other bots out to play