Scoops are a curved or bent piece of material typically mounted to the front of a BattleBots competitor to get underneath opponents or deflect attacks. They are often identified by a shovel-like blade and can also be designed into a robot's chassis.
They are functionally similar to wedges and plows, but differ in geometry as they tend to follow a concave shape. Like these, scoops can also be actuated by way of pneumatic, hydraulic, electric and spring mechanisms, and can also be paired with other weapons such as axes, hammers or spinners. Despite their subtle differences, terms such as 'plow', 'ramming blade' and 'wedge' are sometimes used interchangeably with 'scoop'.
History and Design[]
Scoops have been a staple of controlbots since the earliest robot combat events due to their relative simplicity and inexpensive nature. During the US Robot Wars events which predated BattleBots, 1996 middleweight The General and featherweight Arsenic would sport lifting scoops. Other robots would incorporate scoop geometry into their overall shape, with Team La Ma Motors redesigning La Machine to feature a scoop-like design in place of its steep wedge. La Machine's scoop combined with impressive drive power meant it could hold its own against heavyweight opponents. Perhaps inspired by La Machine's success, Tony Buchignani's Wedge of Doom swapped its flat wedge for a taller scoop-like shape for US Robot Wars 1997, and went undefeated following this design change. Punjar would also adopt a scoop design beginning with this 1997 event, but with less success.
In 1998, the launch of Robot Wars on the BBC saw robots such as Barry, Killertron and Vector of Armageddon adopting scoop weaponry, with eventual series champion Roadblock being wedge-shaped by design while also sporting a curved scoop towards the very front. House Robot Shunt paired a lifting scoop with an axe; a combination which proved effective in all ten series it featured in. Competitors such as Behemoth, X-Terminator, Diotoir and Shockwave used lifting scoops to good effect throughout their careers.
With the start of BattleBots in 1999, scoops remained a viable option for numerous competitors. Ramiro Mallari and Punjar continued to compete from Long Beach 1999 until Season 3.0, making the heavyweight semi-finals of the 1999 Las Vegas event and Season 1.0. Following a mixed career in UK Robot Wars, British entry Suicidal Tendencies entered Season 2.0 with a static scoop coupled with a small axe, but won just once before losing to BioHazard. Superheavyweight entry New Cruelty used an angled scoop to great effect, making the Season 4.0 title fight before losing out to Toro.
Scoop weaponry became scarcer as the sport evolved, with few examples in the modern era. However, Red Devil is known to have paired scoop weaponry with a actuated cutting saw in its defensive configuration, where the grappling arms are removed to accommodate the addition. Jim Smentowski of Nightmare fame rebuilt his middleweight Breaker Box, which previously fought in untelevised events, into a heavyweight robot for World Championship IV. Two of its configurations consisted of a 360-degree lifting scoop, which were used against Bloodsport and HyperShock.
Notable Competitors[]
| Robot | Seasons | Image |
|---|---|---|
| Breaker Box | Cisco Party 2006 Pro Championship 2009 World Championship IV |
 |
| Chinkilla | Season 2.0 Season 3.0 |
 |
| Electric Lunch | Season 3.0 Season 4.0 Season 5.0 |
 |
| Gammacide | Season 4.0 Season 5.0 |
 |
| Half Gassed | Season 3.0 Season 4.0 Season 5.0 |
 |
| La Machine | Season 3.0 (Exhibition only) |  |
| New Cruelty | Season 4.0 Season 5.0 |
 |
| Punjar | Long Beach 1999 Las Vegas 1999 Season 1.0 Season 2.0 Season 3.0 |
 |
| Suicidal Tendencies | Season 2.0 |  |
[]
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||