Creepy Crawlies was a heavyweight multibot built by Team Creepy Crawlies which competed exclusively in BattleBots World Championship II.
It was made up of five individual machines, each with a different personality and name; Fearwig, Cogroach, Buzzbot, Ladybite and Stag. Each was armored in 5mm HARDOX 450 and painted to resemble an insect, hence the name. Four of the five robots were functionally identical, weighing exactly 50lbs, with the exception being the slightly lighter first build.
- "The motivation behind the design is that by sacrificing the concentration of having all your forces in the same place you gain the advantage of being able to attack your opponent from the back or sides."
- — John Frizell on the team's reason behind entering a multibot
Creepy Crawlies weighing in ahead of their debut.
Each robot was designed with a hydraulic horizontal crusher with independent vertical movement, with the ability to produce approximately 220lbs of pressure at the tips, which were also designed to resemble insect jaws.
The concept of a five-part multibot was the result of Ian Watts and John Frizell brainstorming, and the idea was pitched to several students at the University of Brighton where Ian Watts worked, who all agreed to come on board. Kelly Smith was elected team leader early in the process, and was the face of the team in pre-fight segments of the show. Ian Watts of Bigger Brother, Little Sister and Bull Dog oversaw the building of the Creepy Crawlies and designed the electrical and control systems.
John Frizell, who had vast experience of building robots from 1lb to 250lbs in weight, was also a builder for the team, but would not drive one himself. Both Ian Watts and John Frizell applied with Bull Dog in the 2015 season, but were consigned to be an alternate. Creepy Crawlies suffered a devastating defeat to Son of Whyachi in the first battle of World Championship II, as the Team Whyachi robot immobilized three of the five robots with its initial attack.
Creepy Crawlies and its team backstage.
After returning to the UK, the Creepy Crawlies robots were displayed outside Ian Watts' office at the University of Brighton and were for a short time displayed in the university's foyer. John Frizell took to Reddit for an AMA session in May 2016, stating he would like different weapons on each individual robot if he could redesign Creepy Crawlies. This would come to be, as Ian Watts and John Frizell would later enter The Four Horsemen in BattleBots, and The Swarm into Robot Wars.
When asked about the matchmaking for World Championship II, John Frizell shared a fan's sentiment Son of Whyachi in the rumble rounds was a harsh draw for Creepy Crawlies, stating it was "the most difficult draw possible".
- "Not only is it very powerful - they are running 32hp into that rotor - but its 360 degree angle of attack negates the advantages of a cluster. With a cluster you have an excellent chance of getting some of your machines behind or to the sides of your opponent, but SOW effectively has no back or sides."
- — John Frizell on facing Son of Whyachi in Creepy Crawlies' one and only fight
Robot History[]
World Championship II[] |
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Creepy Crawlies vs. Son of Whyachi vs. UltraViolent  Creepy Crawlies in their starting square.
  One shot from Son of Whyachi immobilizes three Creepy Crawlies.   UltraViolent tries to escape Son of Whyachi as the Creepy Crawlies are immobile.   One of the Creepy Crawlies begins smoking.
Son of Whyachi mercifully returned to the center of the BattleBox as only the yellow and black Buzzbot was able edge forward. Battery smoke poured from one of the destroyed bots and a countdown began against UltraViolent and Creepy Crawlies, eliminating both from the tournament. After this defeat, the Creepy Crawlies were repaired with materials available at the studios and at the end of the day, all but one were working again, having lost two hydraulic pumps and a LiPo battery, the battery having been damaged and caught fire in the melee with Son of Whyachi. Owing to the construction material of the Creepy Crawlies, structural damage was limited to the exact locations that Son of Whyachi hit the bots. Creepy Crawlies was scheduled to compete in an exhibition rumble against Nightmare and Mega Tento, but this was canceled due to time constraints.Citation? |
Results[]
| CREEPY CRAWLIES | ||
| World Championship II | ||
| World Championship Tournament Pre-Qualifiers | ||
| Pre-Qualifier | vs. Son of Whyachi, UltraViolent | Lost (KO) |
Wins/Losses[]
- Wins: 0
- Losses: 1
| Competition | Wins | Losses |
|---|---|---|
| World Championship II | None | Son of Whyachi |
Faruq Tauheed Introductions[]
"Fresh from the UK in the form of a swarm, it's the Itty Bitty Britty Committee. It's CREEPY CRAWLIES!"
Trivia[]
- In captaining Creepy Crawlies, Kelly Smith became the first black team captain in BattleBots history, as well as one of the first female captains of the reboot era.
- Team member and veteran builder John Frizell competed in Robot Wars with three different machines: Terror Turtle, Steel Sandwich and The Kegs.
- John Frizell was formerly a director of Greenpeace, and was a member of the organisation for almost 40 years.
- Creepy Crawlies' arena introduction was a reference to the 2007 comedy film Itty Bitty Titty Committee.
- The working project title of the project was "The Swarm", a name they would later use for their Robot Wars entry in Series 10.
- This name may have been changed to avoid conflict with the superheavyweight multibot entry of the same name from BattleBots.
- Painting only took place only once the robots had arrived in Los Angeles for filming.
- The hydraulic pumps used were all originally from car sunroofs and were sourced from Germany.
- Most team meetings took place at The Barley Mow, a pub in Brighton.
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