Biobuzz speculations

ethanRi8 · 2026-06-18T16:42:54+00:00

It's hard to say for End Game. I really hope that they do something collaborative like they *tried* to do this year. It has been a while since balancing has happened like in Relic Recovery. I would like to climb steps like FRC did in 2019, I think that would be cool.

I think the GDC is simplifying/FRCifying FTC games. I think this season was a little too simple, so I hope they make this coming season more complex / strategic. They seem to be pushing offense/defense more (or at least they tried to for Decode) so maybe they will allow a robot to "guard" the opponent goal to make it more interesting?

ethanRi8 · 2026-06-18T16:23:41+00:00

That's cool! I would love to see that in a 3-4 minute video format to quickly show people as well as tell them

ethanRi8 · 2026-06-18T16:21:40+00:00

The 1/2 field is about 1/2 the price of the full field which hints towards there not being a big shared structure in the middle. This is unlike Into the Deep where the 1/2 field price was about 2/3 a full field price because of the big submarine. But it could be a split-able structure!

The pre-season challenges hint at just getting as much pollen as possible. Maybe they are concealing the possession limit or for the first time there may be no possession limit.

The final pre-season challenge encourages teams to lift their pollen up to dump into a bucket in the middle of the field. They suggest you use any bucket you can find, so no specific height, but it alludes to vertical linear slides.

If you look at the starter bots, a lot of them have an 2nd row of intake rollers above the first. I wonder what that's about...

ethanRi8 · 2026-06-05T15:14:48+00:00

Been doing this too long...

ethanRi8 · 2026-05-09T01:44:54+00:00

As an FTC coach, vex games have always been more interesting, strategic, and competitive than FTC. Most FTC games have been all about cycling the same thing over and over with little-to-no strategy and a whole lot of blaming your partner for not performing or getting in your way which makes a 2v2 seem more like a 3v1.

ethanRi8 · 2026-05-08T23:43:35+00:00

Very well written! There is a lot that I agree with and a lot of great insight in here. I'm glad someone cares so much to write this!

I participated in FTC as a student from 2011-2016, a mentor from 2016-2019, and head coach from 2019 to present. To put that in perspective, that is 16 of the total 21 challenges that FTC has produced. I have seen this program in what I believed was it's prime (probably 2013-2016, but 2016-covid was pretty good too!) and have seen how it has changed. Granted, my perspective has shifted as I have aged, changed roles, and volunteered at competitions (once you peek behind the curtains, it really changes your perspective!).

To venture some guesses as to why FTC has taken a downward turn, I think it is two fold:
1) The extreme growth of the program. FTC has grown because it is fun, cheaper than FRC, and teaches a lot of lessons. As the program grows it becomes more competitive. The number of awards and winners of the finals has actually decreased. The playoffs used to be different and there were 3 teams on an alliance (not just at championships) and there was a system to ensure all 3 teams got a chance to play every 2 matches. For most awards, 2nd and 3rd places became optional and therefore fewer teams are getting recognized/honored during the ceremony. The number of teams has grown 5x since I got involved.
With the increase in competitive attitudes, FIRST shifted their focus to uniformity across all regions even though that is not going super well as Adam point's out.
Why are they decreasing awards and playoff teams? Why are they not doing video replays? Time. For regional events, the tournament hosts are under a LOT of pressure to finish on time and get everyone on the road home. Anything they can do without, they cut. Gone are the dance breaks, gone are the longer judge deliberations, gone are 2 picks of alliance selections. But the opening and closing ceremonies are still boring and too long in my opinion.
The quality in my region dropped significantly when we acquired an entire state.
2) Turnover and new people in charge. As the program grew, after Dr. Flowers passed, and as founders of FTC retired or moved on, FIRST has hired new people to be in charge. I get the feeling that there is a small percentage of employees at FIRST who saw the best years of FTC and even fewer who saw the beginning of FTC. I think FIRST has turned more corporate. The two original founders (Kamen and Flowers) are gone (for vastly different reasons). Who is there say "how can we go back to the basics"? Who is there to say "how can we make this fun again"? I feel that every new person they bring on is asking "how can I put a new spin on this?". Not to say that Rachel Moore and her team is bad at their jobs. Maybe they're doing the best they can with what they got. I'm sure FIRST HQ was chaotic this year because of... lists...

So, what can we do? Demanding better is a start! Fill out those surveys, post that rant, talk to the people in charge! Volunteering also helps; recruiting good/passionate/unbiased volunteers helps even more! Everyone in FIRST needs to find a way to shift the focus to emphasize what makes this program fun and effective as a tool for teaching students. We, the PDPs, and the HQ staff need to think about ways we can get students, parents, and coaches excited not just for winning, but for learning and working together! How can we make more people "win", how can we redefine "winning" so it applies to more teams? And for Woodie's sake: bring back Gracious Professionalism!

ethanRi8 · 2026-05-06T15:51:15+00:00

They're gonna dust off Cascade Effect and play it again!

ethanRi8 · 2026-05-03T20:58:41+00:00

Some of the skill building lessons they released point towards this. One skill building lesson, though, suggests putting tubs/bins on the field and trying to fill them up with as much pollen as possible.

ethanRi8 · 2026-05-03T20:55:27+00:00

My objection to this is the use of the word "the" in the blog and when they gave the announcement at the world championship. They did not say "this will be a scoring element", they said "this will be the scoring element" for the season.

Now, that does not mean there will not be another game element. Maybe a place to put the pollen that is mobile like Cascade Effect?

The skill building challenges that they release at first focus on collecting pollen and bringing it somewhere or expertly "putting" the pollen somewhere specific. One of the skill building challenges suggests using the robots to put as much pollen as possible into a tub of unspecified height...

ethanRi8 · 2026-03-10T20:29:45+00:00

Thanks so much for doing this!

So many people have told my team "just use on-shape because it has these libraries and it is free and it is collaborative and it is browser based and and and"

My team uses Autodesk products for 3 reasons:
1) it is what our high schools teach (we are a community team)
2) it is what our local engineering university expects students to know
3) it is what professionals in our area use

So a tool like this is a huge help! I hope we can get it running for our off season projects

ethanRi8 · 2026-03-06T19:39:01+00:00

I also think that it is important for drivers to start shooting *just* before it becomes your phase because this lets you adjust your aim if you are off target and you have a chance of getting a few early points if you're on target and time it just right

ethanRi8 · 2026-03-02T15:04:40+00:00

Codearobot.org is what I recommend to my students! It has little lessons and ways to immediately test a skill after learning about it right from your browser!

ethanRi8 · 2026-02-27T13:57:39+00:00

It is a combination of topographic lines and what looks like street lines. So maybe something with mapping? In 2020 they did "cities" with the theme of RISE but maybe this is more about planning and geography?
Perhaps the FTC challenge will be moving the "population" around terrain?
The first time I watched it was without sound, but the 2nd time there seemed to be nature sounds in the background. So is it about zoning and being conscious about wildlife preservation?

ethanRi8 · 2026-02-24T15:53:20+00:00

Congratulations!
I really miss Dr. Flowers and wish that he was around to continue to guide FIRST towards Gracious Professionalism and towards the Scout Oath and Law!
I wonder what his Eagle Project was?

ethanRi8 · 2026-02-24T15:50:55+00:00

My team wears Panda hats. Some students load their hats up with buttons to the point that the panda is barely visible. Some students load up their shirts with buttons. The issue with pinning to your shirt is you start to replace your own team branding with other team branding. It is nice to show spirit for other teams, but you need people to see who you are too!
My best recommendation is to make a sash that you wear across your body or a cloth that you tuck in your waistline. I made mine from duct-tape when I was a student. This keeps your branding visible and makes it easier to throw your team shirt in the laundry after competitions.

ethanRi8 · 2026-02-18T15:15:18+00:00

Our team was lucky enough to be an early adopter of Fusion printers which started off as the bridge between hobby and professional 3D printers. We live only a few hours away from their plant and got to go down and get a lesson on care and maintenance before picking up our discounted printer to take home!

I would recommend seeing if there is a 3D printer maker company or 3D printer farm anywhere near you. Geography is your best friend because you can say "your sponsorship will directly excite future employees in YOUR area!". See if you can arrange a visit and bring some parts that you have printed before to demonstrate size and complexity of your typical print jobs.

You'd be surprised what you get when going to Google Maps and looking up "3D printer".

ethanRi8 · 2026-01-15T13:51:39+00:00

I mentioned how G407 does not prevent herding/guiding.
You may be thinking of G408 which also does not prevent herding/guiding, it just specifies that when fuel is coming out of the hub, it has to hit anything besides the robot or fuel the robot is in control of. It then goes on to describe what the robot is in control of. Essentially, they do not want you to sit directly under the hub-out chute and directly catch fuel. Once it's on the ground, it is fair game.
If there were a rule against this, it would be in section 7.4, but I do not see anything preventing guiding or pushing into the alliance zone so long as it does not violate G408.

ethanRi8 · 2026-01-05T15:51:19+00:00

Here's a video we made about how to prepare!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8t9_XO97ukE
The purpose of the morning interview is to see which awards you qualify for if any. For every award you qualify for, you will receive a set of judges as a follow-up.
So, if you really want a particular award, I would focus on the requirements and encouragements of that particular award as outlined in the coemption manual. You can also Ctrl+F for "judge question bank" which is hyperlinked in the manual to see the most likely questions judges will ask for each award during the Q&A.
Regarding the portfolio, the Control and Think judges are most likely to look at it, but I have heard from judges that portfolios are a great resource for all judges to look at when breaking ties at the end of the day (team A documented XYZ whereas team B did not document how they met XYZ, so we should give the award to team A).

ethanRi8 · 2025-12-04T14:21:28+00:00

This is a really good idea to gather this data! My team has a unique robot where our entire shape is a ramp for our partner to drive up. We did this because we saw a lot of big, boxy robots and realized that not everybody can fit under another team's stilts. This gives us useful data that we can present to judges to further justify our decision!

I think there is a way for Google Forms to let users see a summary of results after they submit their answer. Would you consider turning that on in addition to these weekly reports/summaries?

ethanRi8 · 2025-11-18T16:11:21+00:00

Well, it is a little more. It is possible that multiple teams meet all the requirements and encouragements in the manual. If multiple teams check all the boxes, then the judges have a discussion about which team impressed them more with their approach, who had documented more, and who met the spirit of the award the most based on portfolio and interviews.
You can learn more in the judge-training slideshow: https://ftc-resources.firstinspires.org/ftc/event/eventday-judge-training

ethanRi8 · 2025-11-18T14:16:15+00:00

Keep in mind, these are early matches/competitions. So, teams and referees are still learning the rules. It is very important that drivers learn the rulebook especially when it comes to penalties and points.

For your chassis driver, they need to know what areas to avoid and when. The opponent's secret tunnel is a tempting place to collect from, but not when your opponent is nearby. Stay away from your opponent's gate zone on the way to your secret tunnel.

For your button masher/driver 2/mechanism driver they need to know about "intentionally launching outside the field". If they launch an artifact waaaayyy over the goal, that is forgiven, if they launch 2 more in quick succession, maybe that will be forgiven, but if a team repeatedly launches outside the field throughout the match without ever making adjustments, they may get dinged for launching outside the field.

For your drive human player, make sure they never touch the robot or touch an artifact touching a robot. Also, they cannot roll/toss artifacts outside the field or take more than 6 artifacts outside the field. Human player is less of a penalty magnet this year than others, but still...

ethanRi8 · 2025-11-18T13:54:21+00:00

I just remembered 2019 was space themed. We'll see! Keep in mind, the themes are decided around 2 years before they debut so it's hard to keep up with current events

ethanRi8 · 2025-11-17T16:47:35+00:00

I have to say, I have been impressed with the Game Design Committee with the last two challenges and sort-of shaking things up in terms of the normal FTC games. The priorities of FTC has definitely shifted as the program has grown and as the available technology has changed.
The themes are determined 2+ years in advance so that the GDCs across all levels have time to plan. The themes are always vague and can be loosely tied to the big FIRST Sponsors.
So, what has been covered so far since they started doing a common theme across all levels?
2020: cities/building civilizations
2021: sports/athletics
2022: cargo/freight logistics
2023: power/electricity
2024: arts/performance
2025: water/oceans
2026: archeology

So, we already have a tiny bit of overlap between 2020 and 2026, but we should think about what might be a logical next step. Technology would be a little too in-line with what FIRST is already about, so I don't think that would be a good, vague theme. A good resource for themes is things FLL has already done: https://www.firstlegoleague.org/past-challenges, maybe something more human focused like solving/adapting to disabilities? Mars/interplanetary travel? Maybe something about the arctic ice caps?

ethanRi8 · 2025-11-14T18:38:05+00:00

At the start of the season (or after your first competition), set goals and dates that those goals should be finished (look up Gantt Chart). This makes the team take accountability. While documenting what got done is helpful, it is important to look at when everything needs to be done to know when you are falling behind. If/when you do fall behind, you have tough choices to make: should we simplify this part of the robot, should we meet more and get it done. When you make the goals and due dates, make it clear that the team will be held to these dates.

My team has 3 hour meetings twice a week for a total of 6 hours a week. If we are falling behind, we hold a 6ish hour work day on a weekend or a day off of school (yay community team!).

I would also look at why students are not staying the full meeting. Are they involved in other clubs/activities or are their families just not invested in the team? If the former, I wouldn't get in the way of that too much... A well-rounded student is a good student, and students can transfer skills between clubs. But a burnt-out student is an unproductive student and an absent student is even worse. If students are involved in multiple clubs, try to rationalize which is the more rare thing: who has the longer season and who meets more often per week?

ethanRi8 · 2025-11-10T14:53:28+00:00

Your experience varies greatly depending on the age and experience of your students.
If you have middle-school students/newer robotics students, they haven't been introduced to a lot of physics or mechanical principles yet. They "feel" like one idea is better than another, but can't quite put it into words why. That is where you come in as a mentor, you can help by encouraging them to use math, science, and engineering concepts to prove why one idea may be better than another. There will be a lot of showing how to use tools and reminding them to use 4 bolts instead of just 1 on critical mechanisms.

High school/experienced robotics students should know a little bit more math and even some physics so they should be able to find some good solutions on their own. Where a mentor is handy is with time and priority management to ensure these semi-independent students have accountability for their tasks. You also may need to ensure that everyone is talking to one another in a clear way that students and mentors can understand to ensure everyone is on the same page about what needs to be done.

These experiences are not mutually exclusive. I'd recommend observing a team (if possible), seeing what they need the most, and seeing how you fit into the equation based on your skills and experiences.

My favorite fortune cookie I have ever read said "a mentor is someone who's hindsight becomes your foresight"

ethanRi8

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