Rules
2016 STEMley Cup Championship – Stronghold
The 2016 STEMley Cup Championship will follow the rules established by FIRST for Stronghold with the following modifications (credit goes to the Indiana Robotics Invitational for rule 3 and rules 7-11):
1. TOWER Strength: 10 in qualification and elimination rounds.
2. No Portcullis: this DEFENSE is not being shipped to off-season events due to safety issues.
3. No Drawbridge: this DEFENSE has been removed to allow improved performance by improving driver sight lines.
4. DEFENSE Selection: DEFENSES will be static from MATCH to MATCH to reduce set up time and maximize the number of MATCHES we can run. There will be no audience selection of DEFENSES. The arrangement of DEFENSES will change every 6 to 8 MATCHES. The Low Bar will always be in position 1. During the qualification matches, DEFENSES will be randomly selected from: Cheval de Frise, Frozen Moat (see #6 below), Ramparts, Sally Port, Rock Wall, and Rough Terrain. There are no DEFENSE categories; any four of the six will be present in positions 2 to 5 of the OUTER WORKS. During playoff matches, each ALLIANCE will select four of the six DEFENSES and choose their placement in positions 2 to 5 of their own OUTER WORKS.
5. The evolution of the BOULDER – the CANNONBALL: one red and one blue CANNONBALL (i.e., coloured BOULDER) start the match behind their respective alliance walls and may be introduced to the field by the HUMAN PLAYER only in the last twenty seconds of the MATCH. CANNONBALLS, being more destructive than ye BOULDERS of olde, are worth double the value of a regular gray BOULDER when scored in a tower GOAL (i.e., ten points in the HIGH GOAL and two TOWER STRENGTH POINTS, four points in the LOW GOAL and two TOWER STRENGTH POINTS).
6. (Frozen) Water Game Element: being that this is the STEMley Cup, moats to the north of the border have frozen over. These DEFENSES will include a central flat surface intended to mimic the low friction characteristics of ice. Samples of this slippery surface will be available at the milder Fall Fiesta for teams to view.
7. G21 Revision: a ROBOT contacting carpet in the opponent’s SECRET PASSAGE may not contact opposing ROBOTS who are in contact with the carpet in the SECRET PASSAGE, regardless of who initiates the contact.
8. G38 Clarification: Driving over or getting stuck on a boulder while holding another boulder will not be a violation of G38.
9. R5 Revision: a +5 pound weight allowance is provided. There is no formal inspection, however if a REFEREE questions a ROBOT weight it will be verified.
10. G13 Exception: G13 applies, however, after a ROBOT has fully crossed a DEFENSE and returned to the mid-line, a ROBOT may cross the mid-line with no FOUL. Contact with an opposing ALLIANCE ROBOT will not be an additional FOUL.
11. 5.4.4 Revision: In ELIMINATIONS, up to THREE tied MATCH SCORES between two ALLIANCES will be re-played. If the 4th re-play results in an additional tied MATCH SCORE, the published FIRST tie-breakers will be used.
12. Alliance selections: Playoff alliances will consist of three or four teams. Alliance selection draft order is 1-8, 8-1, 8-1 until there are no teams left. There are no standby robots. On four-robot alliances, alliance captains will choose which three of their four robots will play in each match and the opposing alliance will be notified as described in T33/T34/T35 of the 2016 game manual.
Archived:
2015 STEMley Cup Championship – Recycle Rush
The 2015 STEMley Cup Championship will follow the rules established by FIRST for Recycle Rush with the modifications incorporated by the Indiana Robotics Invitational. Details of the IRI rule updates can be found at http://www.indianaroboticsinvitational.org/rules-update/
However, we are introducing one additional twist:
Each alliance receives one (1) additional coloured bonus TOTE. This TOTE, which starts the MATCH in the ALLIANCE STATION, can only be introduced to the field through the TOTE CHUTE in the final twenty (20) seconds of the MATCH. This coloured TOTE doubles the point value of any scoring TOTE stack of which it is a part. (ie. a six-TOTE stack with RECYCLING CONTAINER and LITTER would normally score 42 points. If the coloured TOTE is present as one of the six TOTES, the stack will now count for 84 points).
Update:
Playoff Structure: now that we have more than 23 teams registered, we can confirm that alliance selections and the playoff rounds will proceed as at the 2015 Regionals. In other words, eight alliances of three teams each. Alliance selection draft order is 1-8, 8-1.
The coloured TOTE is used in PLAYOFF rounds in the same way as in the QUALIFICATION round.
