NHRL Information

From NHRL
Revision as of 15:53, 13 August 2021 by Josh Panos (talk | contribs) (added prize money amounts)

Our Goal

Norwalk Havoc Robot League is a world class robot fighting event located in the heart of Norwalk CT. Our primary goal is to help grow the sport of robot fighting by providing a safe, fun, and inclusive environment for all who wish to come. Our staff is dedicated to helping all members of our community with their robot combat questions and goals. Through our Discord server we host a weekly tech support group in which we are available for several hours every Friday to help members of the community with their robots. Currently we offer 3 Full Combat weight classes consisting of 3lb, 12lb, and 30lb brackets as well as a 12lb sportsman class. In order to bring as many people into the sport as possible we are no longer placing a cap on our 3lb weight class!

Growing the Sport

As stated above, one major goal of NHRL is to grow the sport and allow for new members to join the community and learn how to get started in combat robotics. One way we do this is by offering frequent events throughout the year to ensure everyone who is interested will have the ability to attend an event here in Norwalk. Currently we run six events throughout our season each year with each event providing up to $4,200 in total prize money. These events allow for anyone to register their robot and fight at NHRL. Since we have a diverse community of rookie and veteran bot builders we have set aside one event to be dedicated to first time bot builders or first time bots to ensure the new members of our community are able to learn the ropes of combat robotics. In addition to these six events we also host an invite only finals event at the end of the year in which we give away $50,000 in total prize money. In order to be invited to this event you must have competed in one of the main events throughout the season and finished in the top four of your bracket. Since robots may only qualify a single time in a year if a robot was to qualify again for the finals their qualification would pass down to the next highest person in the bracket. Not only does this ensure we have a full bracket for the finals event but this also gives everyone an equal chance to make it into this event to fight it out with the best of the best in the Norwalk Havoc Robot League.

Social Media

We have recently expanded our social media presence and invite you to follow us on all of the following platforms!

  • All events will be streamed live on our Youtube channel, and the live stream and fight videos will be posted there after the event.
  • Join our discord server to interact with our community of bot builders!
  • Our Instagram account
  • Our TikTok account
  • Our Twitter account

We are working hard to expand our community in order to bring as many people into the exciting sport of robot combat as possible. Through giving more people ways to see the exciting fights hosted here at Norwalk we hope to encourage a new generation of bot builders willing to innovate and test their designs in our arena!

Our Facility

Here at Norwalk Havoc we run the worlds largest combat robotics event. We routinely have over 100 robots in attendance at each event. To accomplish this we have built a facility that is not only capable of housing well over a hundred teams, but also able to allow for a near constant flow of fights to take place while maintain our high production value standards. Below are explanations of the different areas we have at our facility which can be seen in more detail on the map of our facility.

Production Area

To do this we have built three cages that stand on either side of the announcers within our production area. On one side we have two 8' x 8' 3lb cages which allows us to reach the break neck pace of 50 fights per hour! On the other side we have the massive 16' x 16' 12lb and 30lb cage where we are able to handle the largest bots that NHRL has ever seen. To maintain our high degree of production standards this production area has 30 separate cameras that are used to recorded everything from the fights taking place within the cages to the audiences astonished reactions.

Control Room

NHRL Control Room

However, with so many camera feeds in the production area alone we need some way to sort through all of these cameras in order to deliver the highest quality stream possible. To do this we created our control room, a suit designed to handle such an arduous task. In this room our team of switchers and operators control every aspect of the event. They are constantly switching through camera angles for the stream, preparing replays, and coordinating staff to ensure the event runs without issue. This control room can be seen by competitors and spectators alike as they enter our buildings main lobby to check in. While this room is visible to all who enter the building it is strictly limited to staff only and we ask that you let the individuals within the room do their work as they are without a doubt very busy preparing for the event to come!

Pits

The pits are located within the main space of our facility and allows for our competitors to set up and work on their bots with the provided table, power, and attached workshop. The pits are equipped with many different TV's to ensure the competitors have all of the information they will need for the day of the event. Not only are we presenting the stream throughout the day but we also post the brackets and upcoming fights so that the competitors are well informed as to who they will be fighting next, when their next fight is expected to be, and when they should be making their way into the green room with their robot in a fight ready condition.

Workshop

Adjacent to the pits we have a fully stocked and staffed workshop designed to assist the competitors in the repair or rework of their bots on site. No matter the issue our team of technicians will be there to assist in any way they can.

Green Room

Directly attached to the pits we have the green room. In order for us to reach the rate of fights that we do we ask all of our competitors to wait in a comfortable pre-production area with their robots. In this area we have battery chargers, couches, and the live stream of the event so that the competitors waiting to fight do not have to miss a minuet of the action. This area allows us to know exactly where the next fights are so that when it is there time to load them into the cage there is no delay in the fight process. This area is also staffed by a member of the NHRL staff who is able to answer competitor questions and provide assistance should any issue arise.

Lounge

Finally, we also have our lounge area and merch desk. This area enables our spectators to take a break from the action inside of the production area, rehydrate, look at custom made NHRL merch, and look at past robots from previous seasons to see how they have iterated on their designs. This area is similarly out fitted with the stream so that any spectator or competitor needing a break or looking for merch will not miss a moment of the action taking place within the production area.

Spectators

We are currently allowing for spectators at our NHRL events starting at 10:00 AM the day of the event. A spectator pass can be purchased for $10.00, giving all day access for spectators over the age of 4. Robot combat is a dangerous sport, there will be weapons and dangerous things around. We may ask you to sign a release prior to entering the facility. Spectators will be limited to the lounge space and production area during their time at NHRL unless accompanied by a member of NHRL staff into the competitor only regions. Some of the benefits we are exited to off our spectators can be seen below.

  • Premier live access to robot fights.
  • On site food trucks and concessions.
  • A collectable badge to allow for all day re-entry.
  • Staff guided tours of the pits.
  • Time to hangout with competitors after their fights.

Looking to Get Involved

For the members of our community who are looking to get more involved in NHRL we are always looking for volunteers to help us improve the experience we can offer to both our spectators and competitors. For more information on the crew roles we have here at NHRL please go to our event staff page for a detailed explanation on all of the roles we currently have. If you find yourself interested in volunteering here at NHRL please go to this link to fill out a survey of positions you are interested in and we will reach out to you about opportunities that are available at upcoming events. Without the support of our community events like these would not be possible. As a result we are always very thankful for our past, present, and future volunteers and the work that they do to ensure we provide the best experience possible.

COVID-19

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic Norwalk has continued to operate under the guidelines set out by the state of Connecticut. Currently the state of Connecticut maintains one of the highest vaccination rate and lowest COVID rate in the country. However, as of August 13th the city of Norwalk has reinstated a mask mandate. This means that regardless of vaccination status all members of our community are required to wear masks when in doors at our facility. We encourage members of our community to get vaccinated so that we can continue to have the exciting in person events our community has come to enjoy. As this is a rapidly developing situation we will be keeping this information up to date as the guidelines are changed. For the latest updates on COVID-19 in the state of Connecticut please go to the States website on their response to COVID-19.

Prizes

The May Golden Dumpsters
Prizes
Weight Class Tournament Winner Tournament Runner Up Finals Winner Finals Runner Up
3lb $1,000 USD $400 USD $10,000 USD $4,000 USD
12lb $1,000 USD $400 USD $12,000 USD $4,000 USD
12lb Sportsman A Handshake A Pat on the Back - -
30lb $1,000 USD $400 USD $15,000 USD $5,000 USD

First-place in 3lb, 12lb, and 30lb at each regular season event also gets a custom golden dumpster. First-place trophies for the finals will be custom made here at NHRL!


Generalized Day Of Schedule

We look to start early so we can end early. The following is a tentative schedule that we try to stick to, but listen to announcements the day-of for the most up-to-date information.

07:30 Doors Open for Competitors.
9:30 All teams must be present.
9:45 All competing robots must have been photographed, passed safety, and weighed in.
10:00 Stream begins and first fights occur.
18:00 We should be down to the final 8 robots in 3lb and 4 robots in 12 and 30lb. NHRL Prime will begin.
22:00 Last fight of the day + Winners ceremony.