Comparing and ordering numbers anchor chart
ChatGPT is actually very useful for balancing homebrew monsters
2023.06.09 00:22 xalchs ChatGPT is actually very useful for balancing homebrew monsters
 | Let me pre-face this by saying I know there is a large divide around using AI for creative aspects but for the specific purposes of balancing a monster or an encounter ChatGPT is actually very powerful, it is able to compare your stat blocks and give helpful and insightful feedback on balancing it based on the number and level of the party. submitted by xalchs to DungeonsAndDragons [link] [comments] Heres a snippit of me trying to balance a BBEG using ChatGPT for a Pathfinder 1E Game https://preview.redd.it/dknr64v0dv4b1.png?width=741&format=png&auto=webp&s=0a406333dd1d113b8d13b83e3ab393282883b3b4 |
2023.06.09 00:17 udrmo Ordering pizza
Today I ordered pizza over the phone for lunch at school. I was afraid but finally I found the courage to do it. Then, however, the man from the pizzeria was slightly angry because instead of the name of the school I said the address (I think cause it took more time saying the street and house number and he was in a hurry). But in the end I still managed to order
submitted by udrmo to socialanxiety [link] [comments]
2023.06.09 00:17 CoryTheBoss Package stolen from USPS truck - What to do?
 | So l got a knock on my door today hoping it was my package and it was my mailman letting me know that my package was stolen from the mail truck. He gave me this extremely brief piece of paper and told me to call the number. I called the number and they basically told me there's absolutely nothing I can do about this, and they don't have information for the package so they aren't able to give me any proof that the package was stolen from the mail truck. I then go to my local post office and they just direct me to another office that directs me to more phone numbers that simply won't answer. submitted by CoryTheBoss to CoutureReps [link] [comments] So I'm stuck in this position where my package was allegedly stolen from the mail truck, but the only proof of this is this very broad piece of paper that they gave me. Would this be enough to provide to my agent to get them to resend my order? I did also get insurance on my order if that helps. tldr: My haul was stolen from the mail truck and now I am trying to get any sort of record of it to show my agent that I didn't receive the package and that it was stolen fron the truck. PSA: Don't move to LA this is a lawless city - also USPS is essentially useless. |
2023.06.09 00:17 beenoc [Combat Robotics] Riptide: How one Battlebots team managed to just be the worst in every way
This drama is mainly about the events of Season 7/World Championship 7 (WC7), the season of Battlebots that aired in 2023. Big spoilers for the season inbound, including the overall winner, along with spoilers of the outcomes and winners of previous seasons.
I will try my hardest to be unbiased which is hard because I am extremely biased and any attempt to be unbiased could only come across as enlightened centrism. I will simply try to keep the bias to a manageable level.
If you watched Battlebots back in the late 90s when it was on Comedy Central, you might remember robots that were basically big wedges pushing each other around a square and maybe occasionally taking a bit of armor off. That's not how it is anymore. Bots are destructive, powerful, and great spectacles to watch fight. Seriously, you should watch Battlebots. It's on Discovery+ andHBO Max. If you don't want to spend the money, Norwalk National Havoc Robotics League (NHRL) has competitions every few months that are livestreamed for free on Youtube in the smaller weight classes.
In case it's not clear from the write-up, Battlebots is filmed usually in the fall, and the season airs spring the next year. So all of the events in this write-up occurred over a 2-week period in OctobeNovember 2022, but only were public drama as the episodes aired January-May 2023. Much like any reality/game show, all the builders, production, etc. knew the outcome of the season before anything aired, there's just millions of dollars of NDAs.
The classic example is in the 2021 season, when the iconic Witch Doctor's weapon disk kept breaking due to poor quality steel. They were scrambling to find material and resources to machine a new disk, when a ton of teams came together to save their season.
Team Sporkinok (yes, that's a trans Battlebot) lent them their pickup truck, to go pick up steel from a nearby supplier who was found by the captain of Team Blacksmith.
They needed to recreate the failure to figure out was wrong, so Team Shatter (the biggest, strongest hammer-bot in the competition) took their robot to the test box to try and break a disk.
They took the steel to the nearby build space of Team Chomp, who stayed up all night on their waterjet to cut new disks (the new disks worked well, by the way.)
After the season, they still didn't know for sure what the cause was, so they worked with Team Hypershock to create a dummy test robot, modeled after the very durable robot (and future 2022 champs) Tantrum, they could test the old disks on. They then sent the broken disks to a materials science lab run by a friend of the captain of Team Tantrum to perform materials analysis.
Many of these teams had fought Witch Doctor in the past, others would fight them in the future. But that doesn't matter - in robot combat, everyone is friends outside the box.
Right?
One of these 'new-to-heavyweight' rookies last year was Riptide, captained by Ethan Kurtz (the guy with the "you know I had to do it to em" pose.) Ethan had found a good amount of success previously with the beetleweight Rival, and Riptide was basically Rival writ 80 times bigger. Riptide had a pretty good first season, winning 2 out of their 3 qualifying fights and making it to the quarterfinals before losing to the extremely good SawBlaze.
No real controversy, aside from a false start and early hit on HUGE in their first fight - written off as "I'm fighting a heavyweight on Battlebots for the first time" nerves, no hard feelings from anyone, not even HUGE. They also gave fan-favorite (formerly) indestructible brick Duck! such a bad thrashing that Duck! permanently retired after that fight (Duck! was having a bad year anyway, that fight was just the icing on the cake.)
Their success led to them co-winning Rookie of the Year alongside Glitch, who won an amazing 7 fights in a row, a feat only done before by 3-time championship winner and undisputed GOAT Bite Force (Glitch had to bow out of the tournament because their bot had taken irreparable damage despite the victories, but it's possible they could have extended it even further.) Riptide became well known for Ethan screaming "LET'S GO!" (or sometimes, "LET'S F------ GO"!", giving the censors a bit of a workout and annoying production) after big wins.
So coming into season 8, their sophomore year, hopes are high for Riptide and people want to see this breakout star do well, right? After all, there's no big controversy in their funding or anything, is there?
Stan Kurtz was once upon a time the president of Generation Rescue. Yes, that Generation Rescue, the Jenny McCarthy 'vaccines-cause-autism' one. He was instrumental in getting the 'movement' off the ground in the first place - I even seem to recall seeing a link to a talk he did where he said he was backstage for McCarthy's interview with Larry King, but I'm not about to sift through hours of his horrid talks and speeches to find it.
Stan Kurtz sold lollipops that he claimed cured autism, autism that he and his organization claimed was caused by vaccines. In fact, he claimed they even cured his son Ethan's autism! Remember this when you read about Ethan's behavior - it's not an excuse, but "autistic but prevented from going to any kind of therapy or anything because it would make his dad look like a liar" is certainly an explanation.
Let me divest into opinion for a sec. Stan Kurtz is evil. There is a direct line between the actions of Stan Kurtz promoting vaccine denalism and snake oil cures, and dead children. Fuck Stan Kurtz. Every other problem with Team Riptide could be overlooked if they did not have this dude as their primary sponsor (which necessarily would require replacing Ethan as captain, because you can't separate him from his dad financially.) Okay, back to the writeup.
But put a pin in "Riptide's captain and his dad are antivaxxers" - it's a surprise tool that will help us later.
Team Glitch asked Riptide to hit them again try to flip them back over, maybe knock some life back into the bot. Not an uncommon thing, but sometimes it backfires. Riptide did, launched Glitch across the box, and now Glitch was super-dead. Instant, extremely decisive knockout for Riptide. No drama yet.
Of note is MaD CatTer's driver, Calvin Iba (guy beneath Martin's pointing hand.) Calvin Iba is one of the few builders better known for his smaller robot - his robot Lynx is the winningest beetleweight of all time, with an incredible 11 tournament wins, 8 undefeated, and an overall record of 86-11 as of December 2022 (and several events since then, but I can't find overall fight records of those events.) Now, Lynx is a very similar design to Rival (and therefore Riptide) - Lynx predates Rival by a few months, but the design is relatively generic and common at lower weight classes so it's not exactly plagarism.
This is relevant because Battlebots production tried to stir up drama, painting Calvin as angry that Ethan copied his bot and scaled it up to 250lb before Calvin could himself. For what it's worth Calvin did play into it a bit (he brought Lynx to the fight), but by all regards there aren't really any serious hard feelings about that. "Beater bars" (the weapon style of Riptide/Lynx/Rival) predate all three bots. Worth noting that Rival lost to Lynx in a brutal slugfest in the semifinals match of NHRL a few years ago, so maybe Ethan had a bit of a revenge arc more than anything.
On to the fight. MaD CatTer is a pretty serious bot - not most people's favorite to win it all, but a 'serious contender for semifinals' kind of bot - so nobody knew how this would go. It was back and forth for... about 10 seconds, then Riptide got one good hit and did not let up. MaD CatTer got taken apart like they never had before, left a smoking mess, stuck sideways against the arena wall, knocked out within a minute. Riptide then drove around a bit and punted pieces of MaD CatTer around the box, which got them a warning from the ref for being unsafe and for doing unnecessary damage to perfectly salvageable components of MaD CatTer. The team apologized later for that, saying they wouldn't do it again. Remember that.
Okay, two rapid knockouts against serious bots. Riptide is definitely not suffering from the sophomore curse. But in the post-fight interview, we did get a little taste of Ethan being a bit of a jerk - basically dismissed Calvin/Lynx as worse Riptide, and put his hand over Martin's mouth (without Martin's permission) as a way of saying "shut up wrestler man!" Could have been funny, but it came across as somewhat mean-spirited and Martin clearly was not cool with it (and Martin Mason is not a sore loser - he spends almost every post-fight interview gushing about how good the other robot is, even if MaD CatTer loses.) Production asked Calvin what he thought, and he said (while holding Lynx) "well, I designed this robot to be unbeatable, it's a great robot to base it off of. Good job." Good comeback.
So going in, everyone expects Riptide to win. Here's a bot that made MaD CatTer look like a middleweight, versus a team with, at the time, a 6-18 career record. Riptide can't be complacent because even Shrederator can do some damage if you let it (by some metrics, Shrederator may have the most powerful weapon in the competition), but it's their fight to lose. Ethan Kurtz explains his strategy in an interview before the fight - get some big hits that flip Shrederator over. Once they're upside-down, they can't self-right and they'll be counted out. Makes sense, a solid, quick, safe, easy way to win. Well, watch the fight here if you can.
If you can't, I will summarize: It starts off with Shrederator dodging Riptide and spinning up, until eventually Riptide gets a solid hit that breaks a piece of Shrederator's shell off and destabilizes them. One more big hit from Riptide and Shrederator lands upside-down - it's over. Well, no. Riptide then goes in and hits them again before they can be counted out. And again. And again. And again. At this point Shrederator is basically completely dead, but it's still able to spin. Shrederator's team calls over to Riptide "yo, stop it we're dead already." Riptide hits Shrederator again. Riptide's weapon operator tells Ethan to hit him again. And so he does. And one more time, as sparks fly out of Shrederator's pulverized electronics. Riptide leaves Shrederator dead on the floor, as they go and, you guessed it, punt shrapnel around the box. At this point the referee has to physically take the controller from Ethan (while the rest of team Riptide tries to stop the ref.)
Of course this is a KO for Riptide, but in doing so they did around $10,000 worth of extra, unnecessary damage to Shrederator, and almost the entire bot had to be thrown out and rebuilt from spares. Riptide was not apologetic (and in fact later Ethan would gloat to the camera over how Team Shrederator hadn't even tried to rebuild their bot.) No members of Team Riptide helped Shrederator rebuild either, though one did offer. (It wasn't Ethan, Stan, or the weapon operator Sid.)
To say this was controversial to the community would be lying. Controversy requires some argument or debate. There was none - everyone thought Riptide went way too far. Riptide later tried to say "we interpreted their spinning as intent to keep fighting, and we couldn't hear them asking us to stop." Which was seen by most of the community as a load of crap, since Ethan had said to the camera that he didn't need to do those late hits just before the fight, and teams are bantering with each other in fights all the time. Riptide was formally warned by the ref again for this fight.
At this point, the editors I guess realized that controversy sells. In almost every remaining episode of the season, even ones where Riptide didn't fight, they had some clip of Riptide, or Ethan, or something else to rub in "these guys are really mean and have a good bot, wHaT iF tHeY wIn???" Very much a 'whenver Riptide's not on screen, all the other robots should be asking "Where's Riptide?"' situation. It got old very fast (read: instantly.)
This fight was probably the least controversial Riptide fight of the season - you can watch it here. Riptide went in and did not let up, unrelenting, leading to the Brazilian bot suffering their first ever KO in under a minute. Riptide was actually pretty chill in the post-fight interview, very respectful towards Black Dragon - I guess that ref warning stuck. For now. With that, Riptide advanced to 4-0 in the qualifiers, and ended up securing themselves the #2 overall seed (behind the undefeated Brazilian monster Minotaur, a favorite to win it all every season and the season 3 runner-up.)
Now, for more info, the bots have rules that govern what you can do. There's a lot, but 2 are relevant - strict 250 lb weight limit, and the tip speed of a spinning weapon cannot exceed 250 mph. Bots are weighed before each fight to confirm the weight limit, and all bots with spinners have to do tip speed tests in the test box. After the weigh-in, you cannot modify or work on your bot in any way without the approval of production and safety. Not for anything. Maybe a sticker if you want.
So when a Shatter team member found Riptide working on their bot in the tunnel leading from the pits just before the fight, questions were had, and team Shatter demanded Riptide be reweighed and tip speed retested (there were rumors in the pits that they were spinning faster than 250mph.) The team later explained they were attaching a plastic hammer to the robot to mimic Shatter (teams doing funny decorative mods to their bot to mimic the other bot is a longstanding tradition.) All evidence seemed to point to that being the case, so nobody thinks they were lying about it, but it still warranted a reweigh. My opinion - that's fine, but tell production. If people think you're going to do something illegal, and you do something legal but in a way that looks illegal, don't be surprised when people think you're doing something illegal.
I will note that the show made a big deal out of how when Riptide was weighed before they were 'caught,' they weighed in at 250 lb, and the re-weighing said they were 248. There was some concern from Shatter about that, not helped by Stan Kurtz being kind of smug back to them. In response to one Shatter member asking "Why is it 248 now and 250 before?", Stan responded "You're right, there's something wrong. We made it lighter." Now, the thing with this is that there are multiple scales, they're not extremely precise, and if anyone has ever worked with industrial scales before you know how easily they come out of calibration. Some builders have said that whether or not the AC was on could add a pound of weight from the airflow. The "250lb" scale was not the same as the "248lb" scale as well. Generally, nobody really thinks there is something up with the weight, but working on the bot post-weigh-in absolutely warrants a reweigh, no matter who it is.
Riptide complained a lot about it, to the point where the word "whiney" comes to mind. You messed up, teams are meant to tell production before they add decorative stuff and you didn't, so you need to be reweighed. You've already pissed people off in the past so don't be surprised when they give you a bit more scrutiny. Take your lumps, apologize, act like adults, and maybe people will give you the benefit of the doubt next time. Instead, there was a lot of "oh boo is me, we're being discriminated against" - a direct quote from Ethan is "their paranoia is affecting our performance, I think it's really uncool that they did this." Granted, if the scale drifted the other way and they had to lose 2lb of armor to satisfy the arbitrary scale drift, I would get it more, but as it is they just look, well, whiney.
At this time, unbeknownst to anyone until they revealed it on a livestream, Team Whyachi (the team behind the powerful flipper Hydra, engine of (self-)destruction Fusion, and Comedy Central-era legend Son of Whyachi, who had the pit next to Riptide, was asked by production to put a spy camera up to make sure everything was above board. Allegedly they also began doing analysis of the audio and video of the actual fights, to make sure teams (read: one team) weren't cheating and spinning faster than the "maximum speed" they did in the test box.
However, aside from the (explainable, acceptable) scale drift, Riptide was not found to be cheating with tip speed or anything else. Shatter accepted this without complaint - they just wanted to be sure. So, that's out of the way. Ethan basically said "they are paranoid and are trying to ruin us so we will crush them" - fair enough, I suppose. Here's the fight (note: this video includes the entire 'weigh-in' drama before the fight if you want to watch it instead of just reading about it.) For what it's worth, Shatter lasted longer than anyone yet against Riptide - almost 2 minutes - but it went the way everyone expected. The most unexpected thing was in the post-fight, where Ethan basically said "Adam is a paranoid loser" (alongside, allegedly, some more personal insults that got cut), then went in for a "sporting" handshake. Unsurprisingly, Adam refused it.
Now, Adam is basically the "union rep" for the builders - he's the guy chosen (by the builders) to represent them when Battlebots is thinking about changing the rules. He is a very widely respected guy and is by all accounts very sporting and nice. So when you've pissed him off enough that he refuses the handshake (only the second refused handshake in modern Battlebots history, as far as I am aware), you know you fucked up. But either way, Riptide is on to the round of 16.
When I say Hypershock is a fan favorite, I mean they are the fan favorite - between their iconic style, aggressive driving, and captain Will Bales's humor and charisma, it's probably not wrong to say Hypershock is the most popular bot and team around. People love Hypershock, and people don't love Riptide, so this fight had a lot of "save us, O-Will Bales Kenobi, you're our only hope" energy with the community. Leading up to this, Will said in an interview that Riptide was good, but every team can't be good forever, and that someday Ethan will experience, in Will's words, a "humbling event."
But Hypershock wasn't the odds-on favorite here - Will Bales's flashy driving tends to lead to errors, and against something as nasty as Riptide, any error is death. The full fight isn't uploaded, but here's a clip of the post-fight highlight reel. Will started out doing a 'box rush' (charging straight at the other bot as soon as the fight starts), only to attempt to dodge to the side. Unfortunately, this led to him powersliding directly into Riptide's weapon, losing a wheel, and getting flipped over.
Now, the thing with vertical spinners in Battlebots is they spin 'up' - this means that the outer side goes up and the inner side goes down, so you can brace your own bot against the floor and send the other one flying. Now Hypershock is upside down, effectively spinning 'down,' so the energy from hits pushes the other bot down and themselves up. Riptide is spinning 'up' as normal. Both of these are extremely powerful weapons. Both want to send Hypershock into the air. So what happens when they collide? The energy of both weapons goes into sending Hypershock flying up over 25 feet and slamming into the ceiling of the Battlebox. Remember that that thing weighs 250 pounds. To quote Will in the post-fight interview, "nobody has ever been hit like that before." Much to the chagrin of Hydra captain Jake Ewert, who had the goal of being the first-ever bot to send another bot into the ceiling (and came within inches in their fight against Deathroll), Riptide made Battlebots history here.
The rest of the fight goes as expected at this point and Hypershock is KO'd, with Riptide moving into the quarterfinals. Sorry Will, you aren't the humbling event this time.
Luke has said that he was too focused on Copperhead to pay attention to the controversy, so he became aware of it when, leading up to this fight, builders kept coming up to him and whispering in his hear "dude, you have to beat Riptide. You have to beat them. You might be our last hope." He's just a first-year captain/driver, with the oldest bot in the competition (Copperhead has had the same two frames for its entire 4-year career - this is the longest any frame has competed in the history of modern Battlebots without replacement), who's had to have back-to-back fights against rookie of the year Ripperoni, 2018 Most Destructive winner ROTATOЯ, and End Game. No pressure.
Now, people have tried ways to beat Riptide. You can't just tank their hits with a durable bot (Black Dragon.) You can't outdrive them with fancy footwork (Hypershock.) But something nobody has beenman insane enough to try is to go weapon-to-weapon on purpose to break Riptide's weapon. Copperhead just went weapon-to-weapon with End Game and broke theirs. Copperhead is durable enough to take those huge hits Riptide deals out. So their strategy is to just go berserk until something breaks. But there's one major plot twist left.
Remember how I said the Kurtzes are anti-vaxxers? Well, the pandemic is still going on. In order to get into the pits, you either had to be double-vaxxed or test negative every day. Well, there's no confirmation that Ethan was or was not vaxxed (but let's be real), but guess what? In the greatest Chekhov's gun in Battlebots history, he tested positive for COVID the day of the Copperhead fight. Riptide is out their driver for their biggest fight ever.
Other builders have confirmed that this was not the first or only time that team members had to miss days due to testing positive, but previous times either 1) did not involve the drivers, or 2) were in the qualifying rounds where fights could be postponed to following days. But neither was the case this time. Now, this is really a shitty situation for Riptide, and I do feel some degree of pity for them - what a thing to happen. But at the same time, lmao.
Riptide has to spend most of the day deciding who would drive the robot in the fight. The first person they ask? Jack Barker, driver of End Game and 2021 world champion. Jack agreed - can you blame him? Riptide is a hell of a bot, probably super fun to drive, and who knows, maybe he could win another Giant Nut. This got as far as Jack driving Riptide around the test box, before Luke found out and was like "hang on, no. He's not on your team. It's not fair that you can just go to the best driver in the pits and ask them to drive for you." Production agreed and hastily made a new rule where the driver has to be a member of the team. This all was not in the episode, and was only revealed by Luke Quintal after the season aired.
Team Riptide then deliberated between the several members of the team who might stand a chance. They eventually decide on team member Felix Jing, who's an award-winning Vex Robotics driver but has never driven a heavyweight before. Felix seemed to be a nice enough guy, and pretty humble. However, in the deliberations over who would drive, they lose time and are unable to replace their damaged weapon from the Hypershock fight.
So the fight. Riptide box rushes Copperhead, and the first weapon-to-weapon sends Copperhead flying. Luke's bot is still going, though, and goes in for another clash. This goes on for a few hits, until a massive hit sends Copperhead flying up and Riptide flying back - but when they come to, Copperhead's weapon is spinning... and Riptide's weapon is cracked down the middle, exactly what Copperhead was aiming for.
Copperhead does not let up and keeps hitting, eventually ripping about a quarter of Riptide's weapon off completely. However, the damage from the last 4 years of fighting added up. Those big hits from Riptide were the final straw - one of Copperhead's two wheels just falls off. Copperhead can still move, just about, on just one wheel, but suddenly this fight got a lot closer. They keep hitting Riptide, but it goes to the judges after the full 3 minutes.
It's a split decision. Battlebots is scored on an 11-point system - 5 points for damage, and 3 each for aggression and control.
All three judges gave Copperhead three damage points to Riptide's two and Riptide two control points to Copperhead's one.
The first judge scored aggression 2-1 for Copperhead. 6-5 Copperhead.
The second judge scored aggression 2-1 for Riptide. 6-5 Riptide.
The third judge scored aggression 2-1 for the winner...
Copperhead!
They did it, they saved the goddamn universe. We will not have to live in a world where the ur-anti-vaxxer and his dickhead kid win Battlebots. Everyone is fucking ecstatic. I cheered. The audience cheered. God probably cheered. And boy, did the pits cheer - some builders have said this was the biggest celebration in the pits they had ever seen. Tim Rackley of Monsoon (big lad with the flag) apparently was picking Luke up and carrying him around the pits cheering. Riptide is out.
It's a pity Ethan wasn't there to experience his 'humbling event' in person, but it happened. He was there on a video call on a tablet - apparently, production did ask him how he felt and he went on a 5-minute rant about how the team was being forced to face jealousy and adversity because they had to get reweighed. The entire rant was cut from the episode that aired. I've seen conflicting reports if he said "if I was there we would have won," but it would be in character if he did.
Team Riptide used their appeal (each team gets one) to ask the judges to re-review the fight - they did (absolutely fair - you have nothing to lose, anyone should appeal in this situation), and as though to rub it in even more, the sole judge who ruled for Riptide changed his mind about Riptide's aggression, giving Copperhead a unanimous JD. The saga of Riptide in WC7 ends here.
Literally zero people were unhappy with this - both Jamison and HUGE captain Jonathan Schultz are some of the nicest, most genuine, humble builders in the sport, and going into the finals it was very much a "no matter who wins we all win" kind of thing. Both bots are also "non-meta" - "meta" being the general form of bot that Hypershock, Riptide, Witch Doctor, Copperhead, etc. are, a compact vertical spinner - seasons 3-6 saw meta bots win both first place and runner-up, so people were excited to see a finals match with something new on both sides.
This was very recent, so no news if Riptide will be invited back next year. I would be shocked if they weren't, though - controversy sells, and regardless of how bad the team is, the robot is a killing machine that makes for incredible spectacles. There is allegedly a "sportsmanship rule" being added next year - it's a pity that something that has gone unspoken for decades has to codified in rules because of the actions of one team, but hopefully it will help. Between unethical sponsors, destroying fan favorite bots, being rude both inside and outside the box, cheating allegations, and a stunning lack of humility, Riptide really checked all the boxes in the 'bad guys' field this year.
I could say "the viewing community is willing to give Riptide one more chance to apologize and redeem themselves" but that would be a lie. For the most part, the subreddit, main Discord, etc. are all sick and tired of ever seeing the team again, and would love nothing more than for some cool, nice builder to hijack the bot so we can have cool robots and cool people. I don't know how the builders feel - I imagine that they're probably not quite as vehemently opposed to the team on average, but there's probably no love lost.
I enjoyed writing this up quite a lot, because it really was a classic "villain defeats the main good guys, but then the underdog comes out of nowhere and saves the day" story. Also Battlebots rules. Feel free to ask me anything about the show, or any bots, or if you want to see some cool bots that I didn't include. And seriously, watch Battlebots, it's so good. Check out /battlebots - it's the off-season, so the shitposts are about to get real good. I'm running out of characters so the collection of miscellaneous facts I originally had stuck on the end of this writeup is going to be in the comments.
submitted by beenoc to HobbyDrama [link] [comments]
I will try my hardest to be unbiased which is hard because I am extremely biased and any attempt to be unbiased could only come across as enlightened centrism. I will simply try to keep the bias to a manageable level.
Battlebots
In case you don't know, Battlebots (well, combat robotics, but Battlebots is the most well-known and publicized event by an order of magnitude) is a... sport? Game? Hobby? Lifestyle? Where the goal is to throw two robots of a comparable weight against each other, with the goal to destroy each other. Battlebots itself is in the heavyweight category, with a 250 lb weight limit per robot. Other popular weight classes (relatively popular - heavyweight is the only televised one) are antweight (1 lb), beetleweight (3 lb), hobbyweight (12 lb), and lightweight (30 lb.) Battlebots itself airs on Discovery, generally with a main season and a spinoff season each year.If you watched Battlebots back in the late 90s when it was on Comedy Central, you might remember robots that were basically big wedges pushing each other around a square and maybe occasionally taking a bit of armor off. That's not how it is anymore. Bots are destructive, powerful, and great spectacles to watch fight. Seriously, you should watch Battlebots. It's on Discovery+ and
In case it's not clear from the write-up, Battlebots is filmed usually in the fall, and the season airs spring the next year. So all of the events in this write-up occurred over a 2-week period in OctobeNovember 2022, but only were public drama as the episodes aired January-May 2023. Much like any reality/game show, all the builders, production, etc. knew the outcome of the season before anything aired, there's just millions of dollars of NDAs.
The Culture
Something interesting about Battlebots that might surprise those unfamiliar with it is the culture. While teams work as hard as they can to reduce the other robot to splintered scrap in the box, back in the pits everyone is super awesome and nice and kind and helpful - a frequent occurrence is going to the pit of the bot you just took apart and seeing if there is any way you can help with the rebuild.The classic example is in the 2021 season, when the iconic Witch Doctor's weapon disk kept breaking due to poor quality steel. They were scrambling to find material and resources to machine a new disk, when a ton of teams came together to save their season.
Team Sporkinok (yes, that's a trans Battlebot) lent them their pickup truck, to go pick up steel from a nearby supplier who was found by the captain of Team Blacksmith.
They needed to recreate the failure to figure out was wrong, so Team Shatter (the biggest, strongest hammer-bot in the competition) took their robot to the test box to try and break a disk.
They took the steel to the nearby build space of Team Chomp, who stayed up all night on their waterjet to cut new disks (the new disks worked well, by the way.)
After the season, they still didn't know for sure what the cause was, so they worked with Team Hypershock to create a dummy test robot, modeled after the very durable robot (and future 2022 champs) Tantrum, they could test the old disks on. They then sent the broken disks to a materials science lab run by a friend of the captain of Team Tantrum to perform materials analysis.
Many of these teams had fought Witch Doctor in the past, others would fight them in the future. But that doesn't matter - in robot combat, everyone is friends outside the box.
Right?
Riptide
Every year there are of course rookie bots competing for the first time. Sometimes from veteran teams and builders, such as last year's Blip (from the creators of Tantrum), or this year's RIPperoni, from former members of the teams behind Uppercut and P1, but just as often from new builders, at least new to heavyweight (almost nobody starts out with with the robots that can cost as much as a new car.)One of these 'new-to-heavyweight' rookies last year was Riptide, captained by Ethan Kurtz (the guy with the "you know I had to do it to em" pose.) Ethan had found a good amount of success previously with the beetleweight Rival, and Riptide was basically Rival writ 80 times bigger. Riptide had a pretty good first season, winning 2 out of their 3 qualifying fights and making it to the quarterfinals before losing to the extremely good SawBlaze.
No real controversy, aside from a false start and early hit on HUGE in their first fight - written off as "I'm fighting a heavyweight on Battlebots for the first time" nerves, no hard feelings from anyone, not even HUGE. They also gave fan-favorite (formerly) indestructible brick Duck! such a bad thrashing that Duck! permanently retired after that fight (Duck! was having a bad year anyway, that fight was just the icing on the cake.)
Their success led to them co-winning Rookie of the Year alongside Glitch, who won an amazing 7 fights in a row, a feat only done before by 3-time championship winner and undisputed GOAT Bite Force (Glitch had to bow out of the tournament because their bot had taken irreparable damage despite the victories, but it's possible they could have extended it even further.) Riptide became well known for Ethan screaming "LET'S GO!" (or sometimes, "LET'S F------ GO"!", giving the censors a bit of a workout and annoying production) after big wins.
So coming into season 8, their sophomore year, hopes are high for Riptide and people want to see this breakout star do well, right? After all, there's no big controversy in their funding or anything, is there?
Stan Kurtz
Stan is the bald dude next to Ethan in the team picture. He's Ethan's dad, and also one of the main sponsors for the team through his company BeCourageous. Where did Stan Kurtz get his money to sponsor a big team? Well, he once had a company named RevitaPOP. RevitaPOP made vitamin B12 lollipops. If you know anything about 'alternative medicine,' this is where you say "oh no."Stan Kurtz was once upon a time the president of Generation Rescue. Yes, that Generation Rescue, the Jenny McCarthy 'vaccines-cause-autism' one. He was instrumental in getting the 'movement' off the ground in the first place - I even seem to recall seeing a link to a talk he did where he said he was backstage for McCarthy's interview with Larry King, but I'm not about to sift through hours of his horrid talks and speeches to find it.
Stan Kurtz sold lollipops that he claimed cured autism, autism that he and his organization claimed was caused by vaccines. In fact, he claimed they even cured his son Ethan's autism! Remember this when you read about Ethan's behavior - it's not an excuse, but "autistic but prevented from going to any kind of therapy or anything because it would make his dad look like a liar" is certainly an explanation.
Let me divest into opinion for a sec. Stan Kurtz is evil. There is a direct line between the actions of Stan Kurtz promoting vaccine denalism and snake oil cures, and dead children. Fuck Stan Kurtz. Every other problem with Team Riptide could be overlooked if they did not have this dude as their primary sponsor (which necessarily would require replacing Ethan as captain, because you can't separate him from his dad financially.) Okay, back to the writeup.
But put a pin in "Riptide's captain and his dad are antivaxxers" - it's a surprise tool that will help us later.
Riptide in WC7
Fight 1: Glitch
Aside from that, people didn't have that much of an opinion on Riptide going in to WC7 (and even that wasn't too widely known until partway through the season.) Generally, there was a feeling of "let's see if they can keep it up" - often a lot of very promising rookie bots have weak second seasons. They started the season fighting Glitch, to see who was truly better. One hit, weapon-on-weapon, and Glitch fucking died. Upside down, weapon not spinning, no way to self-right.Team Glitch asked Riptide to hit them again try to flip them back over, maybe knock some life back into the bot. Not an uncommon thing, but sometimes it backfires. Riptide did, launched Glitch across the box, and now Glitch was super-dead. Instant, extremely decisive knockout for Riptide. No drama yet.
Fight 2: MaD CatTer
Now on to the second fight. This one was against MaD CatTer, consisting of community college professor Martin Mason (goatee in the middle) and his students. Martin Mason is known for his intentionally cheesebally and over-the-top Macho Man imitation/homage, with lots of pointing at the camera and saying "Oh yeah!" Also by all regards the nicest man on planet Earth and one of the most beloved figures in combat robotics.Of note is MaD CatTer's driver, Calvin Iba (guy beneath Martin's pointing hand.) Calvin Iba is one of the few builders better known for his smaller robot - his robot Lynx is the winningest beetleweight of all time, with an incredible 11 tournament wins, 8 undefeated, and an overall record of 86-11 as of December 2022 (and several events since then, but I can't find overall fight records of those events.) Now, Lynx is a very similar design to Rival (and therefore Riptide) - Lynx predates Rival by a few months, but the design is relatively generic and common at lower weight classes so it's not exactly plagarism.
This is relevant because Battlebots production tried to stir up drama, painting Calvin as angry that Ethan copied his bot and scaled it up to 250lb before Calvin could himself. For what it's worth Calvin did play into it a bit (he brought Lynx to the fight), but by all regards there aren't really any serious hard feelings about that. "Beater bars" (the weapon style of Riptide/Lynx/Rival) predate all three bots. Worth noting that Rival lost to Lynx in a brutal slugfest in the semifinals match of NHRL a few years ago, so maybe Ethan had a bit of a revenge arc more than anything.
On to the fight. MaD CatTer is a pretty serious bot - not most people's favorite to win it all, but a 'serious contender for semifinals' kind of bot - so nobody knew how this would go. It was back and forth for... about 10 seconds, then Riptide got one good hit and did not let up. MaD CatTer got taken apart like they never had before, left a smoking mess, stuck sideways against the arena wall, knocked out within a minute. Riptide then drove around a bit and punted pieces of MaD CatTer around the box, which got them a warning from the ref for being unsafe and for doing unnecessary damage to perfectly salvageable components of MaD CatTer. The team apologized later for that, saying they wouldn't do it again. Remember that.
Okay, two rapid knockouts against serious bots. Riptide is definitely not suffering from the sophomore curse. But in the post-fight interview, we did get a little taste of Ethan being a bit of a jerk - basically dismissed Calvin/Lynx as worse Riptide, and put his hand over Martin's mouth (without Martin's permission) as a way of saying "shut up wrestler man!" Could have been funny, but it came across as somewhat mean-spirited and Martin clearly was not cool with it (and Martin Mason is not a sore loser - he spends almost every post-fight interview gushing about how good the other robot is, even if MaD CatTer loses.) Production asked Calvin what he thought, and he said (while holding Lynx) "well, I designed this robot to be unbeatable, it's a great robot to base it off of. Good job." Good comeback.
Fight 3: Captain Shrederator
Captain Shrederator is a longtime veteran, being one of the few robots (alongside Witch Doctor, Hypershock, and Lock-Jaw) who has competed in all 7 seasons of the reboot. And they've competed for even longer - under various names and throughout various small tweaks, Captain Shrederator is basically the same robot as Phrizbee, from original Battlebots Season 3.0 in 2001. They're not exactly good by any modern standard, to be honest, but they're fun and an institution of the show. Worth noting that leading up to this fight, Nick Nave (son of Shrederator captain Brian Nave and a member of the team) had been hinting at possible controversy around this fight for a few weeks beforehand on the subreddit, so people were ready for some shit.So going in, everyone expects Riptide to win. Here's a bot that made MaD CatTer look like a middleweight, versus a team with, at the time, a 6-18 career record. Riptide can't be complacent because even Shrederator can do some damage if you let it (by some metrics, Shrederator may have the most powerful weapon in the competition), but it's their fight to lose. Ethan Kurtz explains his strategy in an interview before the fight - get some big hits that flip Shrederator over. Once they're upside-down, they can't self-right and they'll be counted out. Makes sense, a solid, quick, safe, easy way to win. Well, watch the fight here if you can.
If you can't, I will summarize: It starts off with Shrederator dodging Riptide and spinning up, until eventually Riptide gets a solid hit that breaks a piece of Shrederator's shell off and destabilizes them. One more big hit from Riptide and Shrederator lands upside-down - it's over. Well, no. Riptide then goes in and hits them again before they can be counted out. And again. And again. And again. At this point Shrederator is basically completely dead, but it's still able to spin. Shrederator's team calls over to Riptide "yo, stop it we're dead already." Riptide hits Shrederator again. Riptide's weapon operator tells Ethan to hit him again. And so he does. And one more time, as sparks fly out of Shrederator's pulverized electronics. Riptide leaves Shrederator dead on the floor, as they go and, you guessed it, punt shrapnel around the box. At this point the referee has to physically take the controller from Ethan (while the rest of team Riptide tries to stop the ref.)
Of course this is a KO for Riptide, but in doing so they did around $10,000 worth of extra, unnecessary damage to Shrederator, and almost the entire bot had to be thrown out and rebuilt from spares. Riptide was not apologetic (and in fact later Ethan would gloat to the camera over how Team Shrederator hadn't even tried to rebuild their bot.) No members of Team Riptide helped Shrederator rebuild either, though one did offer. (It wasn't Ethan, Stan, or the weapon operator Sid.)
To say this was controversial to the community would be lying. Controversy requires some argument or debate. There was none - everyone thought Riptide went way too far. Riptide later tried to say "we interpreted their spinning as intent to keep fighting, and we couldn't hear them asking us to stop." Which was seen by most of the community as a load of crap, since Ethan had said to the camera that he didn't need to do those late hits just before the fight, and teams are bantering with each other in fights all the time. Riptide was formally warned by the ref again for this fight.
At this point, the editors I guess realized that controversy sells. In almost every remaining episode of the season, even ones where Riptide didn't fight, they had some clip of Riptide, or Ethan, or something else to rub in "these guys are really mean and have a good bot, wHaT iF tHeY wIn???" Very much a 'whenver Riptide's not on screen, all the other robots should be asking "Where's Riptide?"' situation. It got old very fast (read: instantly.)
Fight 4: Black Dragon
You want to talk about beloved teams, you have to mention Black Dragon. This Brazilian team is known for two things - their plush duck, which they won in a claw machine the first time they came to the US for a competition and have kept as a good luck charm ever since, and their durability - they had gone a near-record 24 matches without ever getting knocked out, winning all of those fights or losing by judge's decision. Leading up to this fight, Battlebots kept having segments showing how Black Dragon had almost surpassed Bite Force for the "most fights without a KO" streak (Bite Force was never KO'd in its entire 4-season career, going 26-1 with 1 lost JD.) Of course, then they had to fight Riptide.This fight was probably the least controversial Riptide fight of the season - you can watch it here. Riptide went in and did not let up, unrelenting, leading to the Brazilian bot suffering their first ever KO in under a minute. Riptide was actually pretty chill in the post-fight interview, very respectful towards Black Dragon - I guess that ref warning stuck. For now. With that, Riptide advanced to 4-0 in the qualifiers, and ended up securing themselves the #2 overall seed (behind the undefeated Brazilian monster Minotaur, a favorite to win it all every season and the season 3 runner-up.)
Round of 32: Shatter
For those who don't know, Battlebots has a series of qualifying fights (this year, 4 fights per bot) to determine, out of the contenders (50 this year), which 32 get to compete in the tournament for the Giant Nut, and where they will be seeded. As the #2 seed, Riptide got to fight the #31 seed - hammer-bot Shatter, who you saw earlier helping Witch Doctor. Now, let me not mince words - Shatter was fucked. To paraphrase a comment I saw, "If Shatter drives like a god, gets the most perfect hammer shots ever, and in general is the best a hammer has ever looked in the history of hammers... they will still lose." There was no way Shatter could ever, ever win, barring some kind of catastrophic self-induced failure from Riptide. But damn it, Shatter captain Adam Wrigley was sure as hell going to try.Now, for more info, the bots have rules that govern what you can do. There's a lot, but 2 are relevant - strict 250 lb weight limit, and the tip speed of a spinning weapon cannot exceed 250 mph. Bots are weighed before each fight to confirm the weight limit, and all bots with spinners have to do tip speed tests in the test box. After the weigh-in, you cannot modify or work on your bot in any way without the approval of production and safety. Not for anything. Maybe a sticker if you want.
So when a Shatter team member found Riptide working on their bot in the tunnel leading from the pits just before the fight, questions were had, and team Shatter demanded Riptide be reweighed and tip speed retested (there were rumors in the pits that they were spinning faster than 250mph.) The team later explained they were attaching a plastic hammer to the robot to mimic Shatter (teams doing funny decorative mods to their bot to mimic the other bot is a longstanding tradition.) All evidence seemed to point to that being the case, so nobody thinks they were lying about it, but it still warranted a reweigh. My opinion - that's fine, but tell production. If people think you're going to do something illegal, and you do something legal but in a way that looks illegal, don't be surprised when people think you're doing something illegal.
I will note that the show made a big deal out of how when Riptide was weighed before they were 'caught,' they weighed in at 250 lb, and the re-weighing said they were 248. There was some concern from Shatter about that, not helped by Stan Kurtz being kind of smug back to them. In response to one Shatter member asking "Why is it 248 now and 250 before?", Stan responded "You're right, there's something wrong. We made it lighter." Now, the thing with this is that there are multiple scales, they're not extremely precise, and if anyone has ever worked with industrial scales before you know how easily they come out of calibration. Some builders have said that whether or not the AC was on could add a pound of weight from the airflow. The "250lb" scale was not the same as the "248lb" scale as well. Generally, nobody really thinks there is something up with the weight, but working on the bot post-weigh-in absolutely warrants a reweigh, no matter who it is.
Riptide complained a lot about it, to the point where the word "whiney" comes to mind. You messed up, teams are meant to tell production before they add decorative stuff and you didn't, so you need to be reweighed. You've already pissed people off in the past so don't be surprised when they give you a bit more scrutiny. Take your lumps, apologize, act like adults, and maybe people will give you the benefit of the doubt next time. Instead, there was a lot of "oh boo is me, we're being discriminated against" - a direct quote from Ethan is "their paranoia is affecting our performance, I think it's really uncool that they did this." Granted, if the scale drifted the other way and they had to lose 2lb of armor to satisfy the arbitrary scale drift, I would get it more, but as it is they just look, well, whiney.
At this time, unbeknownst to anyone until they revealed it on a livestream, Team Whyachi (the team behind the powerful flipper Hydra, engine of (self-)destruction Fusion, and Comedy Central-era legend Son of Whyachi, who had the pit next to Riptide, was asked by production to put a spy camera up to make sure everything was above board. Allegedly they also began doing analysis of the audio and video of the actual fights, to make sure teams (read: one team) weren't cheating and spinning faster than the "maximum speed" they did in the test box.
However, aside from the (explainable, acceptable) scale drift, Riptide was not found to be cheating with tip speed or anything else. Shatter accepted this without complaint - they just wanted to be sure. So, that's out of the way. Ethan basically said "they are paranoid and are trying to ruin us so we will crush them" - fair enough, I suppose. Here's the fight (note: this video includes the entire 'weigh-in' drama before the fight if you want to watch it instead of just reading about it.) For what it's worth, Shatter lasted longer than anyone yet against Riptide - almost 2 minutes - but it went the way everyone expected. The most unexpected thing was in the post-fight, where Ethan basically said "Adam is a paranoid loser" (alongside, allegedly, some more personal insults that got cut), then went in for a "sporting" handshake. Unsurprisingly, Adam refused it.
Now, Adam is basically the "union rep" for the builders - he's the guy chosen (by the builders) to represent them when Battlebots is thinking about changing the rules. He is a very widely respected guy and is by all accounts very sporting and nice. So when you've pissed him off enough that he refuses the handshake (only the second refused handshake in modern Battlebots history, as far as I am aware), you know you fucked up. But either way, Riptide is on to the round of 16.
Round of 16: Hypershock
You saw Hypershock earlier. They're quite good - definitely a contender, though generally not going to be anyone's main pick to win it all. This year, they were the #18 seed after a rough set of qualifiers, fighting 2021 champs End Game, 2021 runner-up Whiplash, perennial contender SawBlaze, and the confusingly fast Claw Viper (seriously watch this, look how fast that boy is.) But after a solid win over #15 seed Lucky, they were on to the round of 16.When I say Hypershock is a fan favorite, I mean they are the fan favorite - between their iconic style, aggressive driving, and captain Will Bales's humor and charisma, it's probably not wrong to say Hypershock is the most popular bot and team around. People love Hypershock, and people don't love Riptide, so this fight had a lot of "save us, O-Will Bales Kenobi, you're our only hope" energy with the community. Leading up to this, Will said in an interview that Riptide was good, but every team can't be good forever, and that someday Ethan will experience, in Will's words, a "humbling event."
But Hypershock wasn't the odds-on favorite here - Will Bales's flashy driving tends to lead to errors, and against something as nasty as Riptide, any error is death. The full fight isn't uploaded, but here's a clip of the post-fight highlight reel. Will started out doing a 'box rush' (charging straight at the other bot as soon as the fight starts), only to attempt to dodge to the side. Unfortunately, this led to him powersliding directly into Riptide's weapon, losing a wheel, and getting flipped over.
Now, the thing with vertical spinners in Battlebots is they spin 'up' - this means that the outer side goes up and the inner side goes down, so you can brace your own bot against the floor and send the other one flying. Now Hypershock is upside down, effectively spinning 'down,' so the energy from hits pushes the other bot down and themselves up. Riptide is spinning 'up' as normal. Both of these are extremely powerful weapons. Both want to send Hypershock into the air. So what happens when they collide? The energy of both weapons goes into sending Hypershock flying up over 25 feet and slamming into the ceiling of the Battlebox. Remember that that thing weighs 250 pounds. To quote Will in the post-fight interview, "nobody has ever been hit like that before." Much to the chagrin of Hydra captain Jake Ewert, who had the goal of being the first-ever bot to send another bot into the ceiling (and came within inches in their fight against Deathroll), Riptide made Battlebots history here.
The rest of the fight goes as expected at this point and Hypershock is KO'd, with Riptide moving into the quarterfinals. Sorry Will, you aren't the humbling event this time.
Quarterfinals: Copperhead
It's the final episode of the season - the quarterfinals, semifinals, and finals are all in one episode. People are spooked because Riptide is a incredible, powerful bot built and driven by shitty people, and nobody wants them to win but they might. But to go any further, they have to beat Copperhead.. This snake-themed bot is probably best known for getting a new captain almost every year, and this year it's Luke Quintal in charge for his first time. They just came off of an insanely dominant upset over 2021 champs End Game.Luke has said that he was too focused on Copperhead to pay attention to the controversy, so he became aware of it when, leading up to this fight, builders kept coming up to him and whispering in his hear "dude, you have to beat Riptide. You have to beat them. You might be our last hope." He's just a first-year captain/driver, with the oldest bot in the competition (Copperhead has had the same two frames for its entire 4-year career - this is the longest any frame has competed in the history of modern Battlebots without replacement), who's had to have back-to-back fights against rookie of the year Ripperoni, 2018 Most Destructive winner ROTATOЯ, and End Game. No pressure.
Now, people have tried ways to beat Riptide. You can't just tank their hits with a durable bot (Black Dragon.) You can't outdrive them with fancy footwork (Hypershock.) But something nobody has been
Remember how I said the Kurtzes are anti-vaxxers? Well, the pandemic is still going on. In order to get into the pits, you either had to be double-vaxxed or test negative every day. Well, there's no confirmation that Ethan was or was not vaxxed (but let's be real), but guess what? In the greatest Chekhov's gun in Battlebots history, he tested positive for COVID the day of the Copperhead fight. Riptide is out their driver for their biggest fight ever.
Other builders have confirmed that this was not the first or only time that team members had to miss days due to testing positive, but previous times either 1) did not involve the drivers, or 2) were in the qualifying rounds where fights could be postponed to following days. But neither was the case this time. Now, this is really a shitty situation for Riptide, and I do feel some degree of pity for them - what a thing to happen. But at the same time, lmao.
Riptide has to spend most of the day deciding who would drive the robot in the fight. The first person they ask? Jack Barker, driver of End Game and 2021 world champion. Jack agreed - can you blame him? Riptide is a hell of a bot, probably super fun to drive, and who knows, maybe he could win another Giant Nut. This got as far as Jack driving Riptide around the test box, before Luke found out and was like "hang on, no. He's not on your team. It's not fair that you can just go to the best driver in the pits and ask them to drive for you." Production agreed and hastily made a new rule where the driver has to be a member of the team. This all was not in the episode, and was only revealed by Luke Quintal after the season aired.
Team Riptide then deliberated between the several members of the team who might stand a chance. They eventually decide on team member Felix Jing, who's an award-winning Vex Robotics driver but has never driven a heavyweight before. Felix seemed to be a nice enough guy, and pretty humble. However, in the deliberations over who would drive, they lose time and are unable to replace their damaged weapon from the Hypershock fight.
So the fight. Riptide box rushes Copperhead, and the first weapon-to-weapon sends Copperhead flying. Luke's bot is still going, though, and goes in for another clash. This goes on for a few hits, until a massive hit sends Copperhead flying up and Riptide flying back - but when they come to, Copperhead's weapon is spinning... and Riptide's weapon is cracked down the middle, exactly what Copperhead was aiming for.
Copperhead does not let up and keeps hitting, eventually ripping about a quarter of Riptide's weapon off completely. However, the damage from the last 4 years of fighting added up. Those big hits from Riptide were the final straw - one of Copperhead's two wheels just falls off. Copperhead can still move, just about, on just one wheel, but suddenly this fight got a lot closer. They keep hitting Riptide, but it goes to the judges after the full 3 minutes.
It's a split decision. Battlebots is scored on an 11-point system - 5 points for damage, and 3 each for aggression and control.
All three judges gave Copperhead three damage points to Riptide's two and Riptide two control points to Copperhead's one.
The first judge scored aggression 2-1 for Copperhead. 6-5 Copperhead.
The second judge scored aggression 2-1 for Riptide. 6-5 Riptide.
The third judge scored aggression 2-1 for the winner...
Copperhead!
They did it, they saved the goddamn universe. We will not have to live in a world where the ur-anti-vaxxer and his dickhead kid win Battlebots. Everyone is fucking ecstatic. I cheered. The audience cheered. God probably cheered. And boy, did the pits cheer - some builders have said this was the biggest celebration in the pits they had ever seen. Tim Rackley of Monsoon (big lad with the flag) apparently was picking Luke up and carrying him around the pits cheering. Riptide is out.
It's a pity Ethan wasn't there to experience his 'humbling event' in person, but it happened. He was there on a video call on a tablet - apparently, production did ask him how he felt and he went on a 5-minute rant about how the team was being forced to face jealousy and adversity because they had to get reweighed. The entire rant was cut from the episode that aired. I've seen conflicting reports if he said "if I was there we would have won," but it would be in character if he did.
Team Riptide used their appeal (each team gets one) to ask the judges to re-review the fight - they did (absolutely fair - you have nothing to lose, anyone should appeal in this situation), and as though to rub it in even more, the sole judge who ruled for Riptide changed his mind about Riptide's aggression, giving Copperhead a unanimous JD. The saga of Riptide in WC7 ends here.
Aftermath
There was zero drama of any kind for the rest of the season (all 3 fights of it.) All the fights were great, clean fights between respected and respectful teams and robots. Copperhead ended up losing to HUGE in the semi-finals - no surprise or shame there, HUGE is designed to be invincible to bots like Copperhead. HUGE ended up facing the mighty SawBlaze in the finals, and in probably the best finals match in combat robotics history, SawBlaze managed to win a unanimous JD, giving SawBlaze captain Jamison Go the Giant Nut.Literally zero people were unhappy with this - both Jamison and HUGE captain Jonathan Schultz are some of the nicest, most genuine, humble builders in the sport, and going into the finals it was very much a "no matter who wins we all win" kind of thing. Both bots are also "non-meta" - "meta" being the general form of bot that Hypershock, Riptide, Witch Doctor, Copperhead, etc. are, a compact vertical spinner - seasons 3-6 saw meta bots win both first place and runner-up, so people were excited to see a finals match with something new on both sides.
This was very recent, so no news if Riptide will be invited back next year. I would be shocked if they weren't, though - controversy sells, and regardless of how bad the team is, the robot is a killing machine that makes for incredible spectacles. There is allegedly a "sportsmanship rule" being added next year - it's a pity that something that has gone unspoken for decades has to codified in rules because of the actions of one team, but hopefully it will help. Between unethical sponsors, destroying fan favorite bots, being rude both inside and outside the box, cheating allegations, and a stunning lack of humility, Riptide really checked all the boxes in the 'bad guys' field this year.
I could say "the viewing community is willing to give Riptide one more chance to apologize and redeem themselves" but that would be a lie. For the most part, the subreddit, main Discord, etc. are all sick and tired of ever seeing the team again, and would love nothing more than for some cool, nice builder to hijack the bot so we can have cool robots and cool people. I don't know how the builders feel - I imagine that they're probably not quite as vehemently opposed to the team on average, but there's probably no love lost.
I enjoyed writing this up quite a lot, because it really was a classic "villain defeats the main good guys, but then the underdog comes out of nowhere and saves the day" story. Also Battlebots rules. Feel free to ask me anything about the show, or any bots, or if you want to see some cool bots that I didn't include. And seriously, watch Battlebots, it's so good. Check out /battlebots - it's the off-season, so the shitposts are about to get real good. I'm running out of characters so the collection of miscellaneous facts I originally had stuck on the end of this writeup is going to be in the comments.
2023.06.09 00:16 CoryTheBoss My package was stolen from USPS truck - what to do?
 | So l got a knock on my door today hoping it was my package and it was my mailman letting me know that my package was stolen from the mail truck. He gave me this extremely brief piece of paper and told me to call the number. I called the number and they basically told me there's absolutely nothing I can do about this, and they don't have information for the package so they aren't able to give me any proof that the package was stolen from the mail truck. I then go to my local post office and they just direct me to another office that directs me to more phone numbers that simply won't answer. submitted by CoryTheBoss to sneakerreps [link] [comments] So I'm stuck in this position where my package was allegedly stolen from the mail truck, but the only proof of this is this very broad piece of paper that they gave me. Would this be enough to provide to my agent to get them to resend my order? I did also get insurance on my order if that helps. tldr: My haul was stolen from the mail truck and now I am trying to get any sort of record of it to show my agent that I didn't receive the package and that it was stolen fron the truck. PSA: Don't move to LA this is a lawless city - also USPS is essentially useless. |
2023.06.09 00:16 Drshoes11 Has anyone tried the partner guidance number and how helpful you think it is compared to actual therapy
Im going through a lot of stuff at one time that’s really affecting my motivation and focus at work. I’m usually the type that just trys to ignore it but it’s not helping anymore. I’m autistic too, so very little people in my actual life to talk about it with. It sucks because this company has been the best I’ve worked for yet as far as culture, pay, benefits etc but all of my motivation is just seeping away.
submitted by Drshoes11 to HEB [link] [comments]
2023.06.09 00:16 some1_kill_me_pls I have documented every drink I drank
On the 14th of August 2021 I started using an app to keep track of how much alcohol I drink. Since then I documented every single drink I had. Here are some stats:
-top 3 drinks: Beer (514) Wodka(392) Korn(220)
-i average 27.65 grams / 35ml of pure alcohol each day.(equivalent to 1 bottle of wodka per week) [Including days I didn't drink]
-the weekday I drink the least is Tuesday (42ml/day) whilst the day I drink most is Friday (71ml/day) [not including days I didn't drink]
-highest BAC was 4.19‰ on 20th of July 2022 (confirmed by calibrated breathalyzer)
-month with highest alcohol consumption was October 2022 with 2.2 Litre of pure alcohol (equivalent to 10 bottles of wodka)
-month with least alcohol consumption was November 2022 with 370 ml of pure alcohol (equivalent to 1.4 bottles of wodka)
These numbers may seem very high (and they are) but compared to what most people would call an alcoholic, these numbers aren't even that high. Many people do match or surpass my level of alcohol consumption, without thinking that may be problematic. But it is a concerning level of consumption. Please keep track of your alcohol consumption, and get professional help, if it's too high.
submitted by some1_kill_me_pls to alcohol [link] [comments]
- Out of the 664 days I had drinks on 406 days, that's 61% of the days.
-top 3 drinks: Beer (514) Wodka(392) Korn(220)
-i average 27.65 grams / 35ml of pure alcohol each day.(equivalent to 1 bottle of wodka per week) [Including days I didn't drink]
-the weekday I drink the least is Tuesday (42ml/day) whilst the day I drink most is Friday (71ml/day) [not including days I didn't drink]
-highest BAC was 4.19‰ on 20th of July 2022 (confirmed by calibrated breathalyzer)
-month with highest alcohol consumption was October 2022 with 2.2 Litre of pure alcohol (equivalent to 10 bottles of wodka)
-month with least alcohol consumption was November 2022 with 370 ml of pure alcohol (equivalent to 1.4 bottles of wodka)
- I consumed 130.344 kCal worth of pure alcohol. (equivalent to 95kg of cooked noodles)
These numbers may seem very high (and they are) but compared to what most people would call an alcoholic, these numbers aren't even that high. Many people do match or surpass my level of alcohol consumption, without thinking that may be problematic. But it is a concerning level of consumption. Please keep track of your alcohol consumption, and get professional help, if it's too high.
2023.06.09 00:15 CoryTheBoss Haul Stolen From Mail Truck - What to do?
 | So l got a knock on my door today hoping it was my package and it was my mailman letting me know that my package was stolen from the mail truck. He gave me this extremely brief piece of paper and told me to call the number. I called the number and they basically told me there's absolutely nothing I can do about this, and they don't have information for the package so they aren't able to give me any proof that the package was stolen from the mail truck. I then go to my local post office and they just direct me to another office that directs me to more phone numbers that simply won't answer. submitted by CoryTheBoss to Pandabuy [link] [comments] So I'm stuck in this position where my package was allegedly stolen from the mail truck, but the only proof of this is this very broad piece of paper that they gave me. Would this be enough to provide to my agent to get them to resend my order? I did also get insurance on my order if that helps. tldr: My haul was stolen from the mail truck and now I am trying to get any sort of record of it to show my agent that I didn't receive the package and that it was stolen fron the truck. PSA: Don't move to LA this is a lawless city - also USPS is essentially useless. |
2023.06.09 00:14 squirrel_mom Restraining Order
Hello, I am needing some peace of mind and a bit of help figuring out possible course of action.
I’m in Florida and am going through a pretty tumultuous break up. This was part of a series of mental health crises where I experienced some very unsafe thoughts. As a result, I lashed out at him in the midst of a crisis. He proceeded to post text messages where my phone number is visible and screenshots with my full name in the caption. As a result, I got an injunction for a restraining order. I have been screen recording and screenshotting everything. The order has not been served yet but he is still posting. Background is that he is currently on probation for domestic violence, strangulation, and currently working through a custody agreement to gain custody back of his child.
Will it be likely my order is granted and what does that possibly mean for his current probation?
Thank you in advance.
submitted by squirrel_mom to legaladvice [link] [comments]
I’m in Florida and am going through a pretty tumultuous break up. This was part of a series of mental health crises where I experienced some very unsafe thoughts. As a result, I lashed out at him in the midst of a crisis. He proceeded to post text messages where my phone number is visible and screenshots with my full name in the caption. As a result, I got an injunction for a restraining order. I have been screen recording and screenshotting everything. The order has not been served yet but he is still posting. Background is that he is currently on probation for domestic violence, strangulation, and currently working through a custody agreement to gain custody back of his child.
Will it be likely my order is granted and what does that possibly mean for his current probation?
Thank you in advance.
2023.06.09 00:12 lorenita91 Hmm have I even ovulated🧐😄
 | Hi Everyone, so my chart has been looking weird. My past charts usually have had a rise so I kinda can pinpoint when ovulation happened but this cycle is just been off so maybe I haven’t ovulated. I ordered OPKs so they won’t arrive until tomorrow. My feeling is I probably ovulated cycle day 15 or 16th just based off my CM, my symptoms and my cervix. My cycles are regular so this is interesting. I have been waking up at different times also submitted by lorenita91 to TFABChartStalkers [link] [comments] |
2023.06.09 00:12 LeagueOfChesster Unlock Your Potential with a Friendly and Affordable Coach - Over 1,000 Successful Sessions in 2022 Bundle Discounts Available Free Consultation, Analysis, and Sessions Limited Openings for June.
About me
Hello there, my name is Coach Chesster(Yes, an obvious Chess reference, which is, by far, my favorite game). I've been playing League of Legends since season one, I've experienced everything from full AP Yi one-shotting my entire team to Tryndamere mains spinning around with a needlessly large rod instead of a sword. You could say I've been there during all the important historical moments of the game. I've been at the top of the ladder in Season 6 (Going between high Diamond and Challenger, based on how much time I've had to invest). I've competed in various tournaments, even being able to win a number of them, before I decided to get myself into coaching.
Coaching
I started the entire coaching thing during season 7 when one of my friends asked if I wanted to help him get out of that Diamond 4 hell. Ever since then, I was having a consistent number of sessions on a weekly basis, with my network of people slowly increasing(One of them actually gave me the idea to advertise on Reddit, which I did eventually accept!) I've coached more than 700 individuals ever since I started and I can proudly say I've had more than 500 sessions this year alone! So, if you are looking for someone who is around for more than 5 days actually add me.
Some of my personal coaching achievements include
Getting a player from Silver 1 to Platinum in just 5 weeks
Getting D2 to Masters in 2 weeks
Bronze 1 to Diamond, yes, this one happened as well, though it took slightly more time
Helping Duo players on NA reach Gold(They were actually stuck in Bronze 2 prior!)
Creating a coach from hard-stuck D2 after he got GM
Community
In addition to my services, I am proud to present to you our Educational community, which is steadily growing on a daily basis. Aside from Coaching, it is an amazing place to connect with other people, find friends and talk about the game all of us love and enjoy. Various events are held on a weekly basis, from 1v1 tournaments to Team Contests, with nice rewards being given out! Hint, you might win a free session!
All of our coaches have been vetted and verified, being certain all of you guys get the best service available! Every single one has peaked at least Grandmaster, with a minimum of 250 Coaching Hours to their name.
Discord Community: CLICK HERE
- Upon joining, message me in order to have a Role assigned!
Prices?
Prices for my sessions are negotiable and I can guarantee, they fall onto the affordable part of the specter!
My coaching sessions are oriented and tailored to each student's specific needs, and they do cover everything from theory to live coaching, in-game mentality, etc.
submitted by LeagueOfChesster to LeagueCoaching [link] [comments]
Hello there, my name is Coach Chesster(Yes, an obvious Chess reference, which is, by far, my favorite game). I've been playing League of Legends since season one, I've experienced everything from full AP Yi one-shotting my entire team to Tryndamere mains spinning around with a needlessly large rod instead of a sword. You could say I've been there during all the important historical moments of the game. I've been at the top of the ladder in Season 6 (Going between high Diamond and Challenger, based on how much time I've had to invest). I've competed in various tournaments, even being able to win a number of them, before I decided to get myself into coaching.
Coaching
I started the entire coaching thing during season 7 when one of my friends asked if I wanted to help him get out of that Diamond 4 hell. Ever since then, I was having a consistent number of sessions on a weekly basis, with my network of people slowly increasing(One of them actually gave me the idea to advertise on Reddit, which I did eventually accept!) I've coached more than 700 individuals ever since I started and I can proudly say I've had more than 500 sessions this year alone! So, if you are looking for someone who is around for more than 5 days actually add me.
Some of my personal coaching achievements include
Getting a player from Silver 1 to Platinum in just 5 weeks
Getting D2 to Masters in 2 weeks
Bronze 1 to Diamond, yes, this one happened as well, though it took slightly more time
Helping Duo players on NA reach Gold(They were actually stuck in Bronze 2 prior!)
Creating a coach from hard-stuck D2 after he got GM
Community
In addition to my services, I am proud to present to you our Educational community, which is steadily growing on a daily basis. Aside from Coaching, it is an amazing place to connect with other people, find friends and talk about the game all of us love and enjoy. Various events are held on a weekly basis, from 1v1 tournaments to Team Contests, with nice rewards being given out! Hint, you might win a free session!
All of our coaches have been vetted and verified, being certain all of you guys get the best service available! Every single one has peaked at least Grandmaster, with a minimum of 250 Coaching Hours to their name.
Discord Community: CLICK HERE
- Upon joining, message me in order to have a Role assigned!
Prices?
Prices for my sessions are negotiable and I can guarantee, they fall onto the affordable part of the specter!
My coaching sessions are oriented and tailored to each student's specific needs, and they do cover everything from theory to live coaching, in-game mentality, etc.
2023.06.09 00:11 MrWigggles [Online][Mongoose 2e Traveller][Campaign][Paid][20 USD][Thursday PDT 3 hour session between 4pm and 7pm PDT.][LGBT+ Friendly PoC Friendly]
Traveller! One of the grand dads of the RPG industry. You get a space ship, you have to pay down its mortgage. And you have to traveller. Wanna do some trading? Yea. Wanna explore odd places? Yea. Do you ever dream of playing a middle age person, just decide to up end their life, get in a space ship and try that for a while? Yea! Will trade provide enough money to pay for your goals and the ship? Better start taking on odd jobs.
Oh no, those odd jobs have gotten you all into a delicate and deep web of adventure.
Traveller at its base level, is a space adventure and trade game. Similar to games to like Elite. Its inspired shows such as Firefly and games such as Bethesda upcoming Starfield. You make a character with a life path system. Operate a space ship. Try to trade to get rich. And hopefully the adventures dont ruin you financially.
This is a sandbox Traveller game, restricted to 4 sub sectors around Mora. Each player is encourage to set up their own goals. As the PC traveller through the area, they'll start forming friendships and flesh out planets and sophonts living there.
Why restrict the area of play? Well some games can claim a very large playable areas, most games dont come close to how big Traveller is.
The default setting that Mongoose uses is Third Imperium in year 1105. The Third Imperium alone has over 15k solar systems. Each of them named, many of them having a wikia entry on them.
Travellermap.com and just zoom out. Its a big place. And if you continue to zoom out, you'll see how how small it is compared to Milky Way. To see where the game is taking place, there is a search box. Type in Mora. They'll be a planet with that name in the Mora subsector.
Beyond the nearly weekly adventure per planet, there will also be a larger storyline that can be followed and be explored and played through. And I hope to really get to know the characters and players. The Traveller by its nature is a large world, and Players and GM will be jointly helping to make and fill out NPCs.
There are number factions already formed at play, to help give players the type of experience they want. Space pirates? We got space pirates. Want to do social intrigue? There are 4 Noble families all bickering with themselves trying to one up and covet each other holding. Wanna go military? The Sword Worlder love to raid into Lunion! And if they just wanna be guys in a space truck, trying to get make ends meet, then we can do that. Because its in space, even mundane fetch quests can just get weirder.
The Details!
No prior experience needed. New to Traveller and New to roleplay games friendly.
LGBT+ friendly. PoC friendly.
20 USD per session. 3 hours sessions.
Time: Thursday 4pm - 7pm PDT. With a 15m-30m break. (Or shorter!)
Player Count: Looking for 2-5 players. Currently have 1 players.
System: Mongoose 2e Traveller. They have an Explorer Edition on drivethroughrpg.com that costs a dollar that offers enough to get to know some of the systems and make some characters.
Platform: Mostly discord, with some use of roll20 if combat requires tactical grid.
Link to the discord!: https://discord.gg/DXheY7xrDs Come on by and take a look around.
submitted by MrWigggles to lfgpremium [link] [comments]
Oh no, those odd jobs have gotten you all into a delicate and deep web of adventure.
Traveller at its base level, is a space adventure and trade game. Similar to games to like Elite. Its inspired shows such as Firefly and games such as Bethesda upcoming Starfield. You make a character with a life path system. Operate a space ship. Try to trade to get rich. And hopefully the adventures dont ruin you financially.
This is a sandbox Traveller game, restricted to 4 sub sectors around Mora. Each player is encourage to set up their own goals. As the PC traveller through the area, they'll start forming friendships and flesh out planets and sophonts living there.
Why restrict the area of play? Well some games can claim a very large playable areas, most games dont come close to how big Traveller is.
The default setting that Mongoose uses is Third Imperium in year 1105. The Third Imperium alone has over 15k solar systems. Each of them named, many of them having a wikia entry on them.
Travellermap.com and just zoom out. Its a big place. And if you continue to zoom out, you'll see how how small it is compared to Milky Way. To see where the game is taking place, there is a search box. Type in Mora. They'll be a planet with that name in the Mora subsector.
Beyond the nearly weekly adventure per planet, there will also be a larger storyline that can be followed and be explored and played through. And I hope to really get to know the characters and players. The Traveller by its nature is a large world, and Players and GM will be jointly helping to make and fill out NPCs.
There are number factions already formed at play, to help give players the type of experience they want. Space pirates? We got space pirates. Want to do social intrigue? There are 4 Noble families all bickering with themselves trying to one up and covet each other holding. Wanna go military? The Sword Worlder love to raid into Lunion! And if they just wanna be guys in a space truck, trying to get make ends meet, then we can do that. Because its in space, even mundane fetch quests can just get weirder.
The Details!
No prior experience needed. New to Traveller and New to roleplay games friendly.
LGBT+ friendly. PoC friendly.
20 USD per session. 3 hours sessions.
Time: Thursday 4pm - 7pm PDT. With a 15m-30m break. (Or shorter!)
Player Count: Looking for 2-5 players. Currently have 1 players.
System: Mongoose 2e Traveller. They have an Explorer Edition on drivethroughrpg.com that costs a dollar that offers enough to get to know some of the systems and make some characters.
Platform: Mostly discord, with some use of roll20 if combat requires tactical grid.
Link to the discord!: https://discord.gg/DXheY7xrDs Come on by and take a look around.
2023.06.09 00:09 vampiric_bs School is finally over this year for me
I was at a new school this year and it was great compared to my last one and I made new friends and did everything I wanted except for one thing which was talk to a girl I think I like who’s pretty and nice to me. I wish I’d asked for her number but there’s always next year, right?
submitted by vampiric_bs to teenagers [link] [comments]
2023.06.09 00:09 JulieMalic Need a pattern testers😊
 | Name of pattern: Slouch summer beanie submitted by JulieMalic to PatternTesting [link] [comments] Needles/hooks required: 2.5 mm crochet hook Yarn requirements: cotton yarn 50 gr / 150 m (1.76 oz / 164 yd); sport; elastic thread Level of skill required: beginner Written, charted or abbreviated pattern: written (US abbreviation), charted Tester requirements: whether the pattern is written correctly and clearly; does it work correctly; this is my first crochet beanie so I would like to get feedback, what other information needs to be added; I would like a photo of the finished product Testing deadline: 14.06. Number of testers needed: 3 For testing please message me |
2023.06.09 00:08 Spiritual-Vehicle590 Help on dispute/refund process
Hello,
I recently made a purchase of 2 items, which were supposed to ship from France to CY until the 9th of June. I tried to contact the seller to no avail, which is when I decided to open a dispute on the order. After the dispute these things have happened.
submitted by Spiritual-Vehicle590 to Aliexpress [link] [comments]
I recently made a purchase of 2 items, which were supposed to ship from France to CY until the 9th of June. I tried to contact the seller to no avail, which is when I decided to open a dispute on the order. After the dispute these things have happened.
- The seller put up a tracking number, which clearly says that the items have NOT been received by the courier server. In this tracking number the origin is Russia and NOT France.
- The seller has declined my refund in the dispute and countered by saying " I'm very sorry, dear friend, due to the serious global epidemic, the logistics has been delayed, but please rest assured that we have sent the package. It is on the way and is about to reach your location."
- The seller has DM'ed me in Aliexpress chat saying "Estimado, como estamos temporalmente fuera de stock, ¿Puede esperar un tiempo? No te preocupes, hay algo mal con la logística. Sus productos están a salvo. " which translates to " Dear, as we are temporarily out of stock, can you wait for a while? Don't worry, there is something wrong with the logistics. Your products are safe. "
2023.06.09 00:07 refusefailures WNBA Play of the Day
Aces played the Suns this past Tuesday and play again tonight. The line has already moved from +5.5 to +4.5 for the Suns tonight; on Tuesday it opened at +6.5 dropped to +5.5, the Suns lost by 6.
The Aces play fast paced and are an offensive powerhouse compared to other teams in the league. Few can keep up with that pace in the first half (and the Aces themselves can't seem to maintain that pace in the 2nd half either). The opposing teams either find themselves missing lots of shots, becoming extremely turn over prone, or give up freethrows through foul shots.
If the game play follows anything like 2 nights ago and the Suns can't keep up, they'll find themselves down by A LOT early on.
Best play - LIVE BETTING: IF the Aces pull away and the live line is +13 or greater (ideally 15 or more - to make it a no-sweat win) I recommend absoutely Hammering that double digit + spread on the Suns. 2 days ago, the Suns were down by 17 at half to the Aces and then closed within 2 in the final minutes; they wound up losing by 6 and covered the opening spread but could have won had it not been for free throws at the foul line.
Taking the Suns ML and/or the Under: if the Suns make adjustments, the Aces may not have the opportunity to pull away in the first half. Its going to come down to pace of place. In which case the Suns may take on the early lead and have that +ML shift sides. If the Suns are to win or in the lead (may want to live bet this), the game has got to go under because they'll need to contain the Aces early on. 2 ways to play this: you can take the Under before gametime (the line has already dropped from 168.5 to 167.5) or if the Aces take the lead, wait for that number to inflate to 172-174 and again BET the Under.
TLDR;
Live Bet the + spread on the Suns if the Aces take the lead by a lot and if the live + spread hits double digits (Conversely if the Aces find themselves trailing by double digits (+13.5 or greater - HAMMER that line).
Play 1 - wait for either team to go up big and hammer the + spread if it hits double digits.
Play 2 - Bet the Under IF the line inflates to 170+ or higher.
submitted by refusefailures to sportsbetting [link] [comments]
The Aces play fast paced and are an offensive powerhouse compared to other teams in the league. Few can keep up with that pace in the first half (and the Aces themselves can't seem to maintain that pace in the 2nd half either). The opposing teams either find themselves missing lots of shots, becoming extremely turn over prone, or give up freethrows through foul shots.
If the game play follows anything like 2 nights ago and the Suns can't keep up, they'll find themselves down by A LOT early on.
Best play - LIVE BETTING: IF the Aces pull away and the live line is +13 or greater (ideally 15 or more - to make it a no-sweat win) I recommend absoutely Hammering that double digit + spread on the Suns. 2 days ago, the Suns were down by 17 at half to the Aces and then closed within 2 in the final minutes; they wound up losing by 6 and covered the opening spread but could have won had it not been for free throws at the foul line.
Taking the Suns ML and/or the Under: if the Suns make adjustments, the Aces may not have the opportunity to pull away in the first half. Its going to come down to pace of place. In which case the Suns may take on the early lead and have that +ML shift sides. If the Suns are to win or in the lead (may want to live bet this), the game has got to go under because they'll need to contain the Aces early on. 2 ways to play this: you can take the Under before gametime (the line has already dropped from 168.5 to 167.5) or if the Aces take the lead, wait for that number to inflate to 172-174 and again BET the Under.
TLDR;
Live Bet the + spread on the Suns if the Aces take the lead by a lot and if the live + spread hits double digits (Conversely if the Aces find themselves trailing by double digits (+13.5 or greater - HAMMER that line).
Play 1 - wait for either team to go up big and hammer the + spread if it hits double digits.
Play 2 - Bet the Under IF the line inflates to 170+ or higher.
2023.06.09 00:05 yuki_hara I don't know which matrix destiny chart is right.
So I downloaded two matrix destiny charts from different websites and one thing about them is different. Where as, one chart got number 6 under the heart, other one got 21. Idk what's going on. And I have no knowledge about these so I am real confused. Any help please?
submitted by yuki_hara to numerology [link] [comments]
2023.06.09 00:03 digitallancers01 5 Tips to Choose the Right Digital Lead Generation Agency
 | When you're looking for a Lead Generation Company in Gurgaon, it's important to choose one that can provide the services you need. Here are five tips to help you choose the right agency. submitted by digitallancers01 to u/digitallancers01 [link] [comments]
If you're looking for a job in a specific field, ask people who work in that field. They can give you advice on what to look for in a job and what kind of salary you can expect. They can also tell you about the job market in that field and what the prospects are for finding a job. If you're not sure what you want to do, ask people who work in a variety of fields. They can give you a sense of what different jobs are like and what kind of training you need. They can also tell you about the job market in different fields. No matter who you ask, make sure you take their advice with a grain of salt. They might not have the most up-to-date information, or they might be giving you biased advice. But, overall, talking to people who have been in the job market can be a great way to get started in your job search. https://preview.redd.it/0nwrlk74av4b1.jpg?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=5c2325424e8a7d41173d16788d3fed872ce0f72d
The first way to compare prices is to use a price comparison website. These websites allow you to enter the details of the product that you are looking for, and they will give you a list of the best deals from a variety of different retailers. This is a great way to get a quick overview of the prices that are available for a particular product. The downside of price comparison websites is that they can be a little bit overwhelming. There are usually a lot of different results, and it can be difficult to figure out which one is the best deal. Additionally, not all retailers are included on these websites, so you may have to do a bit of extra research if you want to find the best price. The second way to compare prices is to use a price comparison app. These apps work in a very similar way to price comparison websites, but they are designed to be used on mobile devices. This makes them perfect for when you are out shopping and want to quickly compare the prices of different products. The downside of price comparison apps is that they are not always as comprehensive as price comparison websites. They may not include all of the retailers that are available, or they may not have as many products as a full-fledged price comparison website. The third way to compare prices is to simply ask around. This is probably the oldest way of comparing prices, and it still works today. If you know someone who has recently bought a product, ask them how much they paid for it. This is a great way to get a feel for the current market prices for a particular product. The downside of this approach is that it can be a
You can usually find reviews on the product's page on the website where you're buying it from. Sometimes, the website will have a section for reviews, and other times, the reviews will be underneath the "Related Products" section. If there are no reviews on the product's page, you can try doing a Google search for the product name + reviews. There are a few things to look for when reading reviews. The most important thing is to make sure that the reviews are real. Sometimes, scammers will post fake reviews in order to make a product look better than it is. You can usually tell if a review is fake by checking to see if the reviewer has left any other reviews. If they haven't, it's probably fake. Another thing to look for is whether or not the reviewer had a good experience with the product. If they didn't, you might not want to buy the product. However, you should still read the review to see what went wrong. Finally, make sure that the reviews are recent. Products can change over time, so a review from a few years ago might not be relevant anymore.
By following these tips, you should be able to find the right digital lead generation agency for your business. Call: +91–7042233412 |
2023.06.09 00:03 call24comm Order-Taking Services: Unleash the Power of E-commerce Success
 | submitted by call24comm to u/call24comm [link] [comments] https://preview.redd.it/t62kd8z1av4b1.png?width=720&format=png&auto=webp&s=975f549da5d2c5208c3bc6e1315c889cd134e1ed In the fast-paced world of e-commerce, your business’s heartbeat lies in the order-taking process — a vital connection between your customers and the products they crave. To ensure your online retail operation thrives, you need efficient and accurate order-taking services that guarantee customer satisfaction, foster loyalty, and drive long-term growth. Join us on a journey through the intricacies of order taking services, as we explore their essential components, the advantages of outsourcing, and real-life examples of exceptional and subpar experiences. Get ready to optimize your order-taking process and elevate your business to unprecedented heights, as we uncover the secret weapon for e-commerce success. Understanding the Essence of Order-Taking ServicesOrder-taking services encompass the systems and procedures that manage customer orders from initial inquiry to final delivery. This integral component of e-commerce operations ensures accurate order processing, handles customer inquiries, and guarantees timely fulfillment. Acting as a bridge between customers and your business, order-taking services provide a seamless experience that cultivates customer satisfaction and loyalty.Key Components of a Seamless Order-Taking Process Accessible and User-Friendly Ordering Channels To offer customers a frictionless experience, provide multiple ways to place orders — through your website, mobile app, phone calls, or emails. By catering to various preferences, you ensure ease of use and accessibility, enhancing customer convenience. Well-Trained and Knowledgeable Staff Whether in-house or outsourced, your order-taking representatives must possess a comprehensive understanding of your products, services, and processes. Their expertise allows for efficient and accurate assistance, ensuring a seamless customer experience. Integrated Systems for Streamlined Operations To maintain accuracy and efficiency, it’s essential to connect your order-taking system with other critical e-commerce platforms, such as inventory management and payment processing systems. This integration enables seamless information flow, reducing errors and delays. Clear and Transparent Communication Providing customers with timely updates on their orders, including shipping notifications and tracking details, fosters transparency and trust. Clear communication throughout the order journey contributes to customer satisfaction and loyalty. Efficient Issue Resolution Establishing a robust system for handling customer complaints, returns, or cancellations promptly and fairly is crucial. Effective issue resolution prevents dissatisfaction and mitigates the risk of negative reviews, safeguarding your brand reputation. Types of Order-Taking Services: In-House vs. Outsourced When it comes to order-taking services, businesses have two options: in-house or outsourced. In-House Order-Taking: Pros: Greater control over operations. Cons: Higher overhead costs, increased management responsibilities, and potentially limited scalability. Outsourced Order-Taking: Pros: Access to experienced professionals, reduced overhead costs, and increased scalability. Cons: Potential communication barriers and reliance on third-party service quality. Therefore, choosing a reputable and experienced third party is crucial. Unleashing the Advantages of Quality Outsourced Order-Taking ServiceElevating Customer Experience and Satisfaction Quality order-taking services prioritize customers’ needs, offering a seamless and convenient shopping experience. Prompt responses, accurate order processing, and transparent communication contribute to a positive customer journey, resulting in increased overall satisfaction.Streamlining Operations and Boosting Efficiency By entrusting order-taking tasks to a dedicated team or provider, businesses can streamline their operations and allow their staff to focus on core areas. Specialization leads to increased efficiency, faster order processing times, and ultimately, better customer service. Ensuring Order Accuracy and Minimizing Errors A well-structured order-taking process ensures accurate order processing and minimizes errors. This reduces the likelihood of shipping wrong items or facing delays due to miscommunication, ultimately enhancing customer satisfaction. Fostering Customer Retention and Repeat Business Positive order-taking experiences encourage customers to return for future purchases. By nurturing customer loyalty through effective order-taking services, businesses can cultivate repeat business and secure a steady revenue stream. Scalability and Adaptability for Business Growth Whether you choose an in-house team or an outsourced provider, order-taking services can be scaled up or down to meet your business’s changing demands. This flexibility allows you to accommodate fluctuations in order volume, seasonal trends, or long-term growth, ensuring your e-commerce operations can adapt and thrive. Showcasing Outstanding Phone Order-Taking Service ExperienceImagine the following exemplary phone order-taking service experience:Jane, in search of new running shoes, discovered an online sports store offering phone order placement. Dialing the provided number, she was swiftly connected to a friendly and knowledgeable representative. The agent expertly guided her through the available options, helping her find the perfect pair tailored to her needs. During the call, the representative explained payment methods and shipping options with utmost clarity. Once Jane provided her details, she received an immediate confirmation email, complete with her order number and the expected delivery date. The next day, Jane received a text message containing a tracking number and a link to track her order. True to their promise, her new running shoes arrived within the estimated delivery window, securely packaged and exactly as she had ordered. Throughout the entire process, the call order-taking service demonstrated clear communication, accurate order processing, and timely delivery. The result? A satisfied customer who would undoubtedly choose to shop from the online store again. Highlighting a Poor Call Order-Taking Service ExperienceNow, let’s delve into an unfortunate call order-taking service experience:John wished to purchase a birthday gift for his friend and found the perfect gadget on an e-commerce website offering phone order placement. Upon calling the provided number, he endured long hold times before finally reaching a representative. To John’s dismay, the agent appeared disinterested and uninformed, making it challenging to locate the desired product. During the call, the checkout process proved slow and convoluted, with limited payment options and unclear shipping information. After placing his order, John received a vague confirmation email lacking any details about the expected delivery date. Over the following days, he received no updates on his order status, prompting him to contact customer service again. Sadly, the representative he spoke with proved unhelpful and unable to provide any information about the order. Eventually, the gift arrived two days after his friend’s birthday, only to find it damaged. In this case, the call order-taking service failed to deliver clear communication, accurate order processing, and timely delivery. The result? A disappointed customer who is unlikely to choose the e-commerce website for future purchases. Introducing Call24: Your Partner for E-commerce SuccessAt Call24, we understand the crucial role of order-taking services in shaping exceptional customer experiences and optimizing your e-commerce operations. Our mission is to empower ambitious online retailers, enabling them to dominate their markets and fulfill their customers’ desires without the headaches and frustrations of inefficient order management. Our highly skilled professionals are committed to providing unparalleled order-taking services that enhance customer satisfaction, foster loyalty, and drive repeat business. We recognize that every detail matters in the world of e-commerce, and we pride ourselves on our unwavering dedication to accuracy, efficiency, and personalized service. Partnering with Call24, you can expect:Accessible and User-Friendly Ordering Channels We ensure your customers have a seamless experience placing orders through various channels, making it easy and convenient for them to do business with you. Expertly Trained and Knowledgeable Staff Our order-taking representatives possess a deep understanding of your products, services, and processes. This enables them to provide quick, accurate, and reliable assistance to your valued customers. Integrated Systems We seamlessly connect our order-taking platform with your existing e-commerce infrastructure, maintaining accurate and up-to-date information throughout the entire order journey. Transparent Communication We prioritize keeping your customers informed, providing them with timely updates on their orders and ensuring they feel valued and respected at every step of the way. Efficient Issue Resolution Our robust system allows us to address customer concerns, returns, or cancellations promptly and fairly. By safeguarding your reputation and maintaining high levels of customer satisfaction, we help you build long-lasting relationships with your clientele. Experience the Call24 Difference Unleash the full potential of your e-commerce business with Call24. With our support, you can confidently pursue your dreams of growth and success, knowing that your order-taking process is in the hands of true professionals. Let Call24 be your secret weapon in the quest for e-commerce dominance. Together, we will redefine the standards of customer service and satisfaction, setting new benchmarks in the industry. Embark on this transformative journey with Call24 today and unlock the hidden potential of your e-commerce enterprise. Contact us now and discover how our exceptional order-taking services can revolutionize your business. source: https://www.call24.com/blog/2615/order-taking-services-secret-weapon/ |
2023.06.09 00:02 blkswn09 some helpful advice on manifesting with intent:
At the end of the day, intent is all you need right? But how are supposed to …intend? Shifting is easy because it only requires one thing-intention. Actually focusing intention correctly, from a good headspace, for long enough to experience physical results can sometimes be difficult. I struggled with this too, but since shifting accidentally Ive had a lot of click moments and downloads from my higher self. Here is some channeled advice I have regarding this! ;
In order to manifest or shift you need to KNOW yourself. Know what you want, TRULY. be HONEST and be very precise when asking (clarifying) the universe (yourself). Write it down. You WILL get exactly what you ask for whether that is today or down the line. Either way, doesn’t matter because time is a construct nor is it linear. It is done. It already happened- if you thought about it and said yes, I want that, yeah that feels good then You clarified your intent.
Meanwhile, be cognizant of where and what you are putting your precious energy (spiritual mental physical) into during your daily life. Where is your attention and intention focused? Are you a creator OR are you a consumer? Choose wisely.
WORDS are spells, words hold power. Be intentional with what you say. Incorporate symbols, color, numbers, associations, read between the lines and make this world work FOR you rather than against you- through the power of intent.
Side note: You never NEED tools to manifest, but they are just that- a tool. Tools, such as vision boards (or as a techy person and long-time sims player, i like to remake my dr and scenes in the sims and bring it to life in 3D. I make a lot of use of mods and cc to fully immerse myself.) Scripting is also a tool, not a requirement. As someone with ADHD who gets overwhelmed with all the ideas running around in my brain, scripting helps me empty my brain and organize my thoughts. On top of that, it’s a form of manifestation and even spell work if you want it to be. I script in a way that fits my DR. On this side, (void reality as I like to call it, or current reality/waiting room), I imagine that I am re programming (rescript) my life, how it goes and all the rules of the reality. I use my script as a way to manifest in this reality as well. These are all tools to help amplify your manifestation/quantity jumping power. It’s up to you to decide to use it or be creative with how you use it. You are a CREATOR so go ahead and create your world and immerse into it!
💡🗝️ be writing more advice as I get the inspiration! ~ open to discussion in the meantime:
submitted by blkswn09 to shiftingrealities [link] [comments]
In order to manifest or shift you need to KNOW yourself. Know what you want, TRULY. be HONEST and be very precise when asking (clarifying) the universe (yourself). Write it down. You WILL get exactly what you ask for whether that is today or down the line. Either way, doesn’t matter because time is a construct nor is it linear. It is done. It already happened- if you thought about it and said yes, I want that, yeah that feels good then You clarified your intent.
Meanwhile, be cognizant of where and what you are putting your precious energy (spiritual mental physical) into during your daily life. Where is your attention and intention focused? Are you a creator OR are you a consumer? Choose wisely.
WORDS are spells, words hold power. Be intentional with what you say. Incorporate symbols, color, numbers, associations, read between the lines and make this world work FOR you rather than against you- through the power of intent.
Side note: You never NEED tools to manifest, but they are just that- a tool. Tools, such as vision boards (or as a techy person and long-time sims player, i like to remake my dr and scenes in the sims and bring it to life in 3D. I make a lot of use of mods and cc to fully immerse myself.) Scripting is also a tool, not a requirement. As someone with ADHD who gets overwhelmed with all the ideas running around in my brain, scripting helps me empty my brain and organize my thoughts. On top of that, it’s a form of manifestation and even spell work if you want it to be. I script in a way that fits my DR. On this side, (void reality as I like to call it, or current reality/waiting room), I imagine that I am re programming (rescript) my life, how it goes and all the rules of the reality. I use my script as a way to manifest in this reality as well. These are all tools to help amplify your manifestation/quantity jumping power. It’s up to you to decide to use it or be creative with how you use it. You are a CREATOR so go ahead and create your world and immerse into it!
💡🗝️ be writing more advice as I get the inspiration! ~ open to discussion in the meantime:
2023.06.09 00:01 Taperwolf "Breakout", a MIDI to CV box
 | For some time, getting MIDI from a controller or computer into my Eurorack system has involved either using my Minibrute 2S or the LittleBits Arduino module; neither was a great solution. I finally ordered the CV-12 ORAC kit from Midimuso and assembled it into a standalone box, breaking out all 18 possible outputs to jacks. submitted by Taperwolf to synthdiy [link] [comments] The build was straightforward, but I had some problems receiving MIDI once it was together; discussion with the creator turned up a problem with the 4N35 optocoupler, so I ordered a replacement. (They offered to reimburse me for this.) I did some interim testing with a spare MOC8101 until the 4N35 arrived; it now works beautifully with every device I have that does MIDI output. I decided to build the board with the power and MIDI jacks on it and connect those to the panel-mount jacks with short extension cables. This was mostly for ease of testing before the case was finished, but as a bonus, having the 12V jack off board meant I could more easily also connect it to the USB power adapter (salvaged from an old cigarette-lighter socket adapter), and use that to power keyboard controllers like the Alesis QX25 that I have. As a bonus, the USB adapter has a power LED, so it provides that "oh, I left it plugged in" feedback. The panel graphics and labeling are on printable vinyl; I used my Silhouette Cameo to cut it and the holes for the jacks out, and covered everything in a clear acrylic spray for protection. The jacks are labeled both with their pin numbers and their function in the default 1A mode that I plan to use most of the time. (For some reason I've gotten into the habit of drilling holes in these kinds of enclosures by hand — punch the center, center drill with a thin bit in a pin vise, and bore out the larger hole with, variously, a twist drill bit with a hex shank or a step drill bit in a screwdriver handle, or a T-handle reamer. I have power drills, I just didn't use them. Huh.) The ORAC board has three 2×04 headers for connecting the jacks, but I couldn't quickly find any IDC connectors in that size. (I'd already placed the order for the optocouplers, and didn't want another wait.) So I used the 2×05 IDC connectors I already had for Eurorack power. To orient them, and to key out the two unused spaces, I filled those holes with polymorph (a thermoplastic with a melting point around 140°F/60C, also sometimes called friendly plastic). At any rate, I can now run MIDI and USB cables from my keyboard to the Breakout and control all manner of things in my Eurorack system with it. Pitch and gate, the mod wheel, different knobs and sliders. Map the drum pads to send notes 60-63 on channel 16 and they're drum triggers on Aux gate 1-4. The Pitch Bend is a little weird to set up; like the other analog outputs, it sends between 0 and 10.6 volts, so I had to attenuate and offset it with my attenuverting mixer to get it to send -1V to +1V and thus get an octave on my VCO. But otherwise, it's a very straightforward and useful device. |
2023.06.09 00:01 Shard_Heart Automotive Lemon
Not sure if this is the appropriate placing for the question I have.
Recently on 14APR23 I purchased a Honda Accord 2012 with a local dealership in Virginia using an autoloan from the bank. The vehicle had only one incident reported on CarFAX for a minor rear accident which looked fine from first view. After my cousin who is a mechanic said the car was good to go, test drove it and had a look under the engine we went through with the paperwork, the car is bought "As Is"
After getting it off the lot, that's where my issues started, 20m After driving and pulling into a parking lot to gain my nerves driving for the first time I tried starting the engine which failed, the battery was bad. I managed to get the car back to the dealership on Friday and they replaced the battery on Monday. Cool! Then after I drove off, roughly two days later my TPSM system light went off, apparently its bad since my tires are still good to go, not a major concern. Ended up spending $200+ in oil and filters as I learned how to fix another issue which was an oil leak, the old filter placed in the vehicle was the one it was supposed to be installed per VIN number, swapping it for a smaller filter so it fit in the cradle I refilled the oil and now good to go. I deemed my headlights too dim to see the road when it rained so I went to a buddies and he helped me replace them for a brighter set, after getting the vehicle to his place on 13MAY23 he immediately informed me that I'd purchased a lemon car. We started changing the lights on 14MAY23 and discovered the Fog Lights which I asked at the dealership if it came with any and was informed primarily by my cousin but neglected to be corrected by the dealer that the car didn't come with any. The left fog light was missing and the right one hung loose in my bumper, not a big deal I can replace them. Checking the paint my buddy said the whole vehicle had been repainted and he ripped up the carpet in the back of the car to discover the back right side of the vehicle had been completely crumpled in, the forward side of the rear right wheelwell to part of the bumper under the tail light is completely made of Bondo, repainted so you can't tell. The side with the bondo is also surprisingly held in by wood screws and so is the rear bumper.
So the big problem and the reason deemed it's a lemon and even totalled is there is no structural integrity in the rear right of the vehicle.
Here comes the extra problems I am dealing with, being in the Navy I was stationed in VA, now I'm transferring to TX due to new orders. I didn't have the time to go through legal with the military to help my situation and detached from my command. The car originally had around 124k miles and now I'm running close to 130k due to traveling from VA, to CA for leave and back to TX. I do not know if the added miles and the time frame is extremely bad but I know it isn't good. As of now, I have refrained from informing the Bank or the insurance company and am waiting for a go ahead to do that as I start figuring how to take legal action or if I am stuck with the vehicle.
Side note, if I am stuck with the vehicle would I be able to install the metal guards that police cruisers have to try to protect what little I have left?
submitted by Shard_Heart to legaladvice [link] [comments]
Recently on 14APR23 I purchased a Honda Accord 2012 with a local dealership in Virginia using an autoloan from the bank. The vehicle had only one incident reported on CarFAX for a minor rear accident which looked fine from first view. After my cousin who is a mechanic said the car was good to go, test drove it and had a look under the engine we went through with the paperwork, the car is bought "As Is"
After getting it off the lot, that's where my issues started, 20m After driving and pulling into a parking lot to gain my nerves driving for the first time I tried starting the engine which failed, the battery was bad. I managed to get the car back to the dealership on Friday and they replaced the battery on Monday. Cool! Then after I drove off, roughly two days later my TPSM system light went off, apparently its bad since my tires are still good to go, not a major concern. Ended up spending $200+ in oil and filters as I learned how to fix another issue which was an oil leak, the old filter placed in the vehicle was the one it was supposed to be installed per VIN number, swapping it for a smaller filter so it fit in the cradle I refilled the oil and now good to go. I deemed my headlights too dim to see the road when it rained so I went to a buddies and he helped me replace them for a brighter set, after getting the vehicle to his place on 13MAY23 he immediately informed me that I'd purchased a lemon car. We started changing the lights on 14MAY23 and discovered the Fog Lights which I asked at the dealership if it came with any and was informed primarily by my cousin but neglected to be corrected by the dealer that the car didn't come with any. The left fog light was missing and the right one hung loose in my bumper, not a big deal I can replace them. Checking the paint my buddy said the whole vehicle had been repainted and he ripped up the carpet in the back of the car to discover the back right side of the vehicle had been completely crumpled in, the forward side of the rear right wheelwell to part of the bumper under the tail light is completely made of Bondo, repainted so you can't tell. The side with the bondo is also surprisingly held in by wood screws and so is the rear bumper.
So the big problem and the reason deemed it's a lemon and even totalled is there is no structural integrity in the rear right of the vehicle.
Here comes the extra problems I am dealing with, being in the Navy I was stationed in VA, now I'm transferring to TX due to new orders. I didn't have the time to go through legal with the military to help my situation and detached from my command. The car originally had around 124k miles and now I'm running close to 130k due to traveling from VA, to CA for leave and back to TX. I do not know if the added miles and the time frame is extremely bad but I know it isn't good. As of now, I have refrained from informing the Bank or the insurance company and am waiting for a go ahead to do that as I start figuring how to take legal action or if I am stuck with the vehicle.
Side note, if I am stuck with the vehicle would I be able to install the metal guards that police cruisers have to try to protect what little I have left?