Astral Excavation
Sponsored By:

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Flapjack Challenge 2018

Game Field:
(see figure 1.1 for Field Zones)
(All Dimensions have a ± .500 inch tolerance)​​
  • The game will be played on a 16ft x 12 ft carpeted field.
    • The carpet will be similar to standard FRC carpeting
  • Driver stations will be along the 12 ft sides of the field
    • Drivers are not confined to a specific area within the station, and may move anywhere along the given side of the field.
  • In the opposite left corner from a teams driver station, there is a Refinery
    • The Refinery is an ring of 1 inch PVC pipes extending 2 feet tall, with a inner diameter of 3 feet.
  • In the near left corner from a teams driver station, there is a Mining Drone
    • The Mining Drone is a 2 ft tall, 1 inch PVC pipe capped with a basket
      • The basket on top consists of a 7 inch diameter plywood circle with four 1 inch diameter PVC pipes each 2.5 inches tall
      • The pipes are placed in diametrically opposed pairs offset by 90 degrees with their perimeters tangent to the inside edge of the plywood circle
    • The Basket is a ring of 2.5 inch tall, 1 inch PVC pipe ring with an inner diameter of 5 inches
  • In the center of the field, there is a rectangular box made of standard 2x4 boards laid broad side down, with an inner size of 50 in x 50 in called the Mine.

figure 1.1

Game Pieces:

  • The game pieces will be Ore, Platinum, and Pyrite
  • All three game pieces are 5 in. nominal diameter wiffle balls
    • They are the wiffle balls used in the 2017 FRC Game: Steamworks
  • The Ore is the nominal color of the wiffle balls
    • 30 Ore are in the Mine at the start of the match
  • The Pyrite is colored black
    • 10 Pyrite are mixed in with the Ore in the Mine at the start of the match
  • The Platinum is colored silver
    • 1 Platinum is in each Mining Drone at the start of the match

Objective/Scoring:

  • Teams must retrieve Ore from the Mine and deliver it to the Refinery
    • Teams may drive into the Mine to retrieve Ore
    • Teams have no limit on the amount of Ore they can control
  • Each Ore in the Refinery at the end of the match is worth fifteen (15) points
  • Each Pyrite in the Refinery at the end of the match is worth negative ten (-10) points
    • Teams may place Pyrite in the opposing team's Refinery
  • In the last 30 seconds of the match, teams may retrieve the Platinum from the Mining Drone and score them in the Refinery.
    • Each Platinum in the Refinery is worth an additional 100 points
    • Teams may score both Platinum.

Robot Rules:

  • R1. Robots may not exceed 16 in. x 16 in. x 16 in. at the start of the match.
  • R2. Robots may not exceed a weight of 25 lb., excluding the robot battery.
  • R3. Robots may only use 1 battery to provide power.
  • R4. Robots may use a 12V FRC approved battery or a VEX EDR battery or equivalent.
  • R5. Robots may not use CIM, Mini CIM, 775Pro, or non-FRC compliant motors.
  • R6. Robots must be safe to operators and spectators alike
    • Any part of the robot that is deemed unsafe by the referees must be modified to become safe before it is allowed to play​

Gameplay Rules:

Gameplay:
  •     Matches will be 150 seconds long, with a 30 second end game period
Penalties and Cards:
  • A Tech Foul is a 25 point penalty
  • A Foul is a 5 point penalty
  • A Yellow Card is a warning system, two Yellow Cards result in a Red Card
  • A Red Card results in disqualification if it occurs during the elimination bracket. If it occurs during qualification matches, the offending team receives no points or Ranking Points for that match.
 
  • G1. Robots may not intentionally launch or drop any game pieces outside of the field.
  • G2. If game pieces are unintentionally launched outside of the field, they may be reintroduced into the Mine by any bystander or Referee.
    • If a game piece is scored by a bystander while reintroducing it into the field, it is considered dead and does not count for any points.
  • G3. Robots may not intentionally damage game pieces
    • Violation: Warning for first offense, foul for each offense after. If considered malicious or egregious behavior, a Yellow Card may be assessed
  • G4. Robots may not intentionally harm another Robot
    • Violation: Tech foul, multiple offenses may rapidly escalate to a Yellow or Red Card
  • G5. Robots may not pin another robot for longer than five (5) seconds. For a pin to be considered over, the offending Robot must back away at least one (1) foot from the other Robot.
    • Violation: Foul after five (5) seconds of a pin and an additional foul for every three (3) seconds after the initial foul.
  • G6. Operators may not reach into the field during the match for any reason.
    • Violation: Yellow Card
  • G7. Robots may not contact Platinum until the last 30 seconds of the match.
    • Violation: Foul. The Platinum is also considered void ONLY IF scored in the offending Robot's Refinery
  • G8. Robots may not remove any game piece from the Refinery once it is scored.
    • Violation: Tech Foul per Ore or Pyrite descored, five (5) Tech Fouls and a Yellow Card per Platinum descored
  • G9. Robots may not extend more than fifteen (15) inches outside of their frame perimeter.
    • Violation: Foul for every five (5) seconds overextended
  • G10.  Robots may extend infinitely upwards, provided they are not violating G9.

Match Outcome and Ranking:

  • The Alliance with the most points at the end of the match will be declared the winner.
  • Ranking is determined by Ranking Score.
    • Ranking Score is calculated as the average number of Ranking Points (RP) earned per match.
  • There are a total of 4 RP available to each team per match.
    • A win is worth 2 RP.
    • A loss is worth 0 RP.
    • A tie is worth 1 RP.
    • Scoring at least 1 Platinum in the Refinery is worth 1 RP.
    • Scoring at least 15 Ore in the Refinery is worth 1 RP.
  • Ties in Ranking Score will be broken by average number of points per game.
    • Further ties will be broken, if necessary, by coin toss​​

Playoffs:

At the conclusion of the Qualification matches, the top ranked teams will pick teammates to join their alliance.
  • Alliances will consist of two (2) teams.
  • If a team declines an invitation to join an Alliance, they may not join another Alliance and must form their own.
  • The number of Alliances formed and the Playoff bracket will be determined on the day of the event, once the number of competing teams is confirmed.​​

Game Updates/FAQ:

  • Further game updates may be made until the day of the event
  • Game Updates will be released every Wednesday until further notice
  • A FAQ will be opened on team1625.org by Monday, October 22.​