Gruff as it appeared for the 2021 season of BattleBots.
Gruff is a heavyweight robot built by the team Ram Robotics which competed in ComBots and RoboGames events, as well as in the fourth and fifth seasons of the BattleBots reboot on Discovery and Science. It is a black or gray, six-wheeled, box-wedge shaped robot armed with a lifting arm and two flamethrowers, as well as other interchangeable weapons. Although Gruff didn’t win many matches early in its career, it slowly established itself as a mainstay before 2018, when it took home the Bronze medal in RoboGames. and then subsequently being selected for two consecutive seasons of BattleBots. Gruff established a name for itself through extreme durability and excellent driving.
Design[]
Gruff's early design.
Early in its career Gruff sported a relatively simple design, a stout silver box with sloped sides and a single lifting arm, largely reminiscent of BioHazard albeit without hinged wedges or a four-bar mechanism for the lifter. Gruff relied on this design for much of its career, until in 2018 when its design was revitalized.
Gruff as it appeared for the 2019 season of BattleBots.
Returning for RoboGames 2018, Gruff was itself in name only. It now was a longer, black box with orange detailing. The single arm had been swapped for two forks, and the sides were no longer sloped. This new design allowed them entry into the reboot of BattleBots in 2019, where they remained largely the same but with the notable exception of an incredibly powerful dual flamethrower setup, which remains the most powerful in the history of the sport, burning at up to 3500 degrees.
Gruff as it appeared for the 2020 season of BattleBots.
For the 2020 season of BattleBots, Gruff remained largely the same, but the team added a new drive system they dubbed “brushed more-or-less”, with one brushless and one brushed motor per side of the Bot. The new setup freed up 12lbs that the team were able to put into the flamethrower system. Gruff’s construction was also designed to be much smoother, as well as the addition of front wedgelets to the plow.
Robot History[]
ComBots Cup V[]
Gruff's first career fight was against Ragin Scotsman, for which it was also very first fight. Gruff lost this fight and was sent to losers' bracket where it faced Vlad the Impaler II next.
The fight started with both robots slamming into each other a bit before Gruff went underneath Vlad and pinned it against the wall. In the process, it got stuck, so the duel was paused to separate both robots. Vlad was initially stronger on the restart as it sent itself flying when it bounced off of Gruff at enormous speed. However, from that point on battle became even and dull, with Vlad missing a lot of occasions and Gruff missing most of its intended flips, mostly pounding itself with the lifter. Part of lifter's outer protection broke off but it had no affect on Gruff and both robots survived to a judges' decision without any damage visible. Gruff won this fight on a split 17-16 judges' decision and went through to next fight multibot Death & Taxes.
The multibot showed very good teamwork allowing them to take the lead in the fight. Gruff started to slam the multibots wherever they approached and eventually caused Death's drum spinner to be knocked slightly loose. Another collision tore pieces off the weaponless part of the multibot, Taxes. Gruff lost the fight on a 15-18 judges' decision.
RoboGames 2011[]
Gruff's first match on RoboGames was up against Vera. Gruff won this fight and advanced to the second round, where it would face RoboGames veteran and 3-time (as well as defending) champion Sewer Snake.
This fight started with Gruff taking Sewer Snake to the rails, Gruff then clamped down on Sewer Snake before releasing it. Sewer Snake then got under Gruff, and slammed it against the rails. Gruff quickly self righted before Sewer Snake slammed Gruff into the rails again, flipping Gruff yet again. Once again Gruff self-righted, Sewer Snake then slammed Gruff into the rails once more. This caused Gruff's arm to get stuck in the rails, Sewer Snake tried to get Gruff over the rails, this however only resulted in Gruff being freed. Gruff then righted itself and attempted a lift on Sewer Snake, this failed, which allowed Sewer Snake to ram Gruff into the rails.
This time Gruff stayed on its wheels, and escaped, Sewer Snake then chased Gruff down and attempted to flip it against the rails again. However this only resulted in Sewer Snake flipping itself, Sewer Snake then flipped Gruff against the rails, resulting in the fight being paused for a free unstick. Sewer Snake then got multiple slams in on Gruff, however Gruff then managed to lift Sewer Snake, before attempting to slam iGruff-bot-2020.jpgt into the rails. This failed, which allowed Sewer Snake to go in and slam Gruff into the rails again. Sewer Snake then flipped Gruff again, this time however Gruff could not self right and was counted out. It then went to losers' bracket to face Double Rainbow Party.
Double Rainbow Party attempted to spin up but Gruff was quick in rushing it to the rails. Double Rainbow Party then reached decent speed and attacked Gruff's front, but only throwing sparks and itself into the air. Eventually Gruff took Double Rainbow Party into the corner where the full-body spinner got stuck. Fight was paused for a free unstick before it got going again. However, Double Rainbow Party didn't get going again, after which it was counted out and allowed Gruff to advance and face off against Preda Raptor. It is unknown what happened in this fight but Gruff was defeated and knocked out of competition.
ComBots Cup VI[]
Gruff's first fight on this event was against Black Widow!. This fight went the full distance with both robots slamming into each other. However, about halfway through the fight, Gruff's lifter had jammed upwards and remained in this state. Maybe this was one of the factors why judges scored this fight in favour of Black Widow! and sent Gruff to the losers' bracket in a rematch against Ragin Scotsman. Both robots got up to each other and Ragin Scotsman fired its flamethrower but Gruff hit it with its lifter and pushed it around. Eventually slamming the Scottish robot into the wall, where it stopped moving and was counted out leaving Gruff to advance. It then faced Touro Maximus. This was another fight that lasted for the full duration with neither robot bearing visible damage at the end, but Gruff's lifter once again jammed upwards. In another repeat of history, Gruff lost this fight and was eliminated.
RoboGames 2012[]
Gruff's first fight of the competition was a rematch against Sewer Snake. This match started in the same way as it did before with Gruff getting underneath Sewer Snake and slamming it into the rails. Gruff then got under Sewer Snake and lifted it a few times before Sewer Snake attempted to slam Gruff into the rails. Sewer Snake then got under Gruff again, and flipped it against the rails. Gruff promptly used its lifter to get out of this situation before Sewer Snake again slammed Gruff into the rails. After righting itself Gruff attempted to ram Sewer Snake into the rails again, however Gruff missed allowing Sewer Snake to flip Gruff against the rails again, this time getting Gruff stuck.
This caused the match to be paused to allow Gruff have its free unstick. Once the fight resumed, Gruff slammed Sewer Snake into the rails again, and used its arm to clamp down on Sewer Snake. After letting Sewer Snake go Gruff then wedged underneath its opponent but failed to lift it. Sewer Snake was unable to do anything with Gruff, as shortly after this Gruff got under Sewer Snake again, and delivered it to the rails. With 30 seconds left on the clock Sewer Snake then got under Gruff, and slammed it into the rails. Gruff then continued to grapple with Sewer Snake as the clock wound down. Judges scored this fight in champion's favour meaning Gruff was in the losers' bracket once again against Spartan.
This fight nearly went the full distance and consisted of both robots pushing each other in even fashion before Gruff managed to flip Spartan over. Spartan was unable to self-right and was counted out leaving Gruff to advance and next fight Serenus Cor. No known videos about this fight exist but it is known that Gruff was the winner and advanced to fight successful newcomer Electric Bogaloo. Fight started poorly for Gruff as they were sent very high into the air and thrusted upside down, laying practically idle for a moment. Gruff self-righted but its lifter jammed upwards again, meaning that they would not be able to self-right if flipped again. Gruff wasn't flipped again, but still unfortunately for it it was pushed around by Electric Bogaloo and sustained damage from the vertical spinner.
ComBots Cup VII[]
Gruff first faced The Great Pumpkin on this competition.
Maker Faire Orlando 2017[]
Videos of this competition exist but there is very little background information. The tournament was held in round-robin format. It is known that Gruff did not face Maulboard one-on-one despite the latter also being present in the competition. Eventually, Gruff finished the tournament as runner-up after defeating Fauxhawk, The Extinguisher, Flailure to Launch and Hype or Shock but losing its final head-to-head to the champion, Breaker Box. At the end of the tournament, Gruff also came for five-robot rumble against Maulboard, Fauxhawk, The Extinguisher, Flailure to Launch and Hype or Shock. The Extinguisher was immobilised at some point of the battle and Gruff performed impressively, ending the battle with two opponents at its lifter at once. Results of this battle are unclear but perhaps there was no winner as this was only exhibition.
Battlebots Discovery Season 4[]
Gruff lifts Marvin.
Gruff's first ever match in BattleBots was against Marvin and Gemini as part of a rumble. For this fight, Gruff came in with only one of its flamethrowers on, fearing both may get damaged badly by any of the spinners, and to give less striking positions. When the rumble began, Gruff struggled to get an effective lift on either Marvin or Gemini. However, they managed use their lifting arm to clamp on Marvin and lost some shavings from Marvin's disc. Gruff then started to take control of the fight by throwing the black Gemini twin onto its back. Gruff then took a shot from the red Gemini twin but no damage was dealt. Gruff took the black Gemini twin into the screws before shoving Marvin around again, almost flipping it over. Gruff righted the black Gemini and took a shot from the killsaws before time ran out. The judges awarded Gruff a unanimous 3-0 decision.
Gruff lifts Copperhead as sparks fly.
Gruff next found itself against the new robot from Caustic Creations, Copperhead. As the match got underway, Gruff was starting to take punishment from Copperhead, both to its lifting arm and from being tossed into the air. Gruff continued to attack and managed to shove Copperhead into the arena barrier. After taking more abuse from its opponent, Gruff shoved Copperhead against the arena barrier where Copperhead looked to be nearly stuck on its back end but Copperhead fell down and continued the fight. Gruff then took more hits from Copperhead before smoke began to pour out. Copperhead was also having drive issues linked directly to its drum's gyroscopic forces. Regardless, the match went to the judges, whom ruled a 2-1 split decision to Copperhead.
Gruff is tossed by End Game.
Gruff decided to take part in the Desperado Tournament for a shot at the Giant Bolt trophy and a slot in the Top 16 bracket. Since they were the No.5 seed, they were placed against Jack Barker and the No.4 seed, End Game. Gruff went in unchanged and when the match began, things were going well as Gruff wasn't taking much damage at all and managed to get End Game up on its back end, but Gruff was also thrown onto its back, but self-righted. Gruff managed to use its forks to get between End Game's chassis and its weapon, dislodging a weapon belt and pushing End Game into the screws. Unfortunately, in the last minute of the match, Gruff drove right into the slot for the killsaws and its fork got stuck under the polycarbonate cover where the robot had its wheels raised high enough to prevent it from moving. Gruff was counted out, giving End Game the win by KO with just 2 seconds left on the clock.
The first hit between Tombstone and Gruff.
Having little success in the Desperado Tournament, Gruff then went back into the fight night battles where it was placed against former champion Tombstone. Gruff was off to a good start as they threw Tombstone into the air where Tombstone landed with its weapon impacting the spot for the killsaws. Tombstone recovered so Gruff went back on the attack, pushing Tombstone around with its wedge and attempting to grab ahold with its lifting forks. Gruff then had its front forks bent a bit but was still able to withstand punishment dished out by its opponent. Gruff then took Tombstone to the pulverizer, which didn't really cause any damage but with Tombstone upside down, Gruff didn't take much damage from them either until Tombstone was flipped back over. As time ran down, Gruff got in a lift that had Tombstone pretty much completely off the arena floor before Tombstone slipped off and got in another hit. The judges awarded a unanimous 3-0 decision to Tombstone.
Railgun MAX hits Gruff's front.
Gruff wasn't done though as they participated in grudge match against newcomer from China, Railgun MAX. Right off the bat, Gruff charged across the box and received a minor shot that popped it into the air a bit, but didn't hamper it much. Gruff then took a shot to the left side, then to its forks twice, but the damage wasn't massive. Gruff received a few more shots to the left side, but Railgun MAX began billowing out smoke as Gruff took a shot to the forks again, then drove the smoking bot into the corner, using its flamethrower and leaving Railgun MAX's right tire a bit smoky and singed. Gruff simply came back over, lifting its opponent, then flipping them over. Gruff than used his arm like a clamp, dragging Railgun MAX around, throwing some more fire onto it before shoving it into the screws. Railgun MAX was counted out, giving Gruff the win by KO.
Battlebots Discovery Season 5[]
Gruff pins Hypershock and roasts it.
Gruff's first fight of the fifth season was against Hypershock in the main event of the third episode. Gruff was not off to a good start as they were attacked and thrown into the air, nearly getting flipped over. Gruff was then attacked again and this time was flipped over near the arena barrier but righted itself. After another attack or two, Gruff started to take control as Hypershock was noticeably slower and had lost the use of its weapon. Gruff managed to slam Hypershock hard into the screws before Hypershock stopped moving near the pulverizer. Smoke began to pour out of Hypershock as it was counted out, giving Gruff the win by KO.
Gruff is attacked by Whiplash.
Gruff then took on Matthew Vasquez and Whiplash. Gruff started off okay as they were staying squared up to Whiplash but unable to do much as they were quickly shoved into the arena barrier and flipped over in the corner. Gruff righted itself and luckily, this corner had their team's pulverizer so they opted to use it on Whiplash. However, Gruff had little to counter against Whiplash's lightning fast attacks and took damage from Whiplash's lifter before being shoved again. Gruff attacked with its flame throwers but Whiplash escaped. Luckily, Whiplash's weapon motor began emitting smoke, leaving them with the same active weapon left. As the match wore on, Gruff began smoking too and it was noticeably slower, allowing it to be controlled for the remainder of the fight. Time ran out and the judges awarded Whiplash a unanimous 3-0 decision.
Gruff spews flame into Extinguisher.
Having lost to the quick and agile Whiplash, Gruff was now at 1-1 and faced Extinguisher. Gruff started off very well as they came at Extinguisher with flames and their lifter and were able to quickly flip their opponent over. With their opponent still upside down, Gruff sent them into the screws, where Extinguisher ended up on its nose. Unwilling to end the fight this way, Gruff righted them and brought their lifting forks into Extinguisher's weapon, leaving the two stuck together. Gruff however struggled to lift its extra 250 lb opponent but eventually succeeded in that and taking them back to the screws. With both robots stuck together, the match was paused (though the separation was cut from the TV airing). Extinguisher was able to escape and now it was Gruff's turn to have issues as the brushed motor half of their drive had failed, leaving the brushless half to pick up the slack. Unfortunately, these motors had been overworked and began overheating. This caused Gruff's drive to finally give out and they took one final shove from Extinguisher before being counted out, giving Extinguisher the win by KO.
Bloodsport bounces up onto Gruff.
Gruff barely made it into the Round of 32 as the No.31 seed and fought the No.2 seed, Bloodsport. Gruff was armed with only one of its two lifting forks and chunks of steel dubbed "chocolate bars" with the intent on sparing Gruff's front from some of the impact of Bloodsport's weapon. Unfortunately, this strategy didn't really come into play as the first impact broke off 1/3 of Bloodsport's weapon. Despite this being a favorable outcome, Gruff started being pushed around thanks to Bloodsport's front wedgelets. Gruff managed to get in a lift that cost Bloodsport one or two wedgelets. Gruff still didn't have the pushing power to strike back and ended up being sent under the pulverizer before showing signs of being noticeably slower in driving. Gruff managed to rip off Bloodsport's remaining wedgelets before time ran out but the judges awarded Bloodsport a 2-1 split decision and a spot in the Top 16.
Battlebots: Bounty Hunters[]
Gruff grabs the last half of Gemini and lights it up.
On top of the main competition, Gruff also competed in the Tombstone Bounty Hunter tournament, starting off against Gemini. Due to damage sustained in the main season, Gemini had little choice but to beef up the one half to heavyweight level, giving it the "big boy pants". Gruff started off well, absorbing the impacts and taking red Gemini around the arena with the lifter. Gruff let go then proceeded to repeat the process, this time getting under Gemini from the rear. A bit of smoke began to pour out of the red Gemini but they continued to fight until Gruff grabbed them again and took them hard into the arena barrier, where the red Gemini landed on top of Team Gruff's pulverizer. With no way to get down, the red Gemini was counted out, allowing Gruff to advance to the next round.
Deadlift manages to pin Gruff on the wall.
Next up, Gruff faced newcomer Deadlift, fresh off a statement win against Jackpot. Gruff didn't start off that well as it was unable to get under Deadlift and was taking shots in return as a result, nearly getting flipped over against the arena barrier. However, Gruff got the flames going and Deadlift's weapon soon stopped working. Gruff then took a shot from the killsaws before managing to get under Deadlift and flip them over. With Deadlift's weapon disabled, they were unable to right themselves and were counted out. Gruff won by KO and moved on.
All that stood between Gruff and a rematch with Tombstone was Kraken and Matt Spurk. Gruff did not have a good start as they were grappled by their opponent and carried around the arena before eventually being released but not before taking it out on Kraken's minibot. Gruff then started to get the upperhand as they hit Kraken hard into the arena barrier, flipping them over, leaving Kraken struggling to right themselves long enough for a countout to begin. Gruff waited but Kraken was now in a position where it could right itself and Gruff was taken to the Screws before flipping Kraken again. Kraken righted itself much more quickly and both robots survived to a judges decision. The judges awarded Gruff a unanimous decision and a rematch with Tombstone for a piece of the prize money.
Gruff had reached the final stage where it met Tombstone in a rematch from 2019. Gruff was able to absorb the impacts it was given from Tombstone, but little bits were flying off and its lifter was starting to suffer damage. Gruff managed to slam Tombstone into the arena barrier, but Tombstone recovered and continued its assault. Gruff's lifter was getting all bent out of shape and its flamethrower's tank was ruptured before Gruff's movement was noticeably reduced. Gruff continued to take punishment, even as it was being counted out, giving Tombstone the win by KO and a piece of its own bounty.
Battlebots Discovery Season 6[]
Gruff returned for the 2021 season, with its first fight confirmed to be against newcomer Switchback. They came into the fight with little in the way of alterations, though Switchback had purposely aligned their 6.5lb AR500 steel discs in the drum to evade Gruff's forks. Switchback captain Greg Needel had watched all of Gruff's previous fights in preparation for the fight. As it began, Switchback immediately spun up and delivered a shot as Gruff tried to slide underneath the rookie bot. Gruff successfully breached their ground clearance from the side and pushed Switchback against the barrier before allowing their drum to pop make contact with the floor and free their opponent. Gruff returned to the middle of the BattleBox and activated their flamethrowers as Switchback was momentarily held up in the killsaw slot, but this largely served to obstruct the view of Switchback's team as they lined up an attack with the drum. Gruff got underneath Switchback again and sent them to the pulverizer before freeing them, all while evading their primary weapon. Switchback was able to spin back up and naively charged in, flipping themselves over on impact. For unknown reasons, Switchback could not self-right and was counted out as Gruff charred the rookie bot with their flames. Gruff took the knockout, beginning the season with a win.
After a dominating win over rookie Switchback, Gruff's next opponent was Hydra. As the match started, both bots quickly met in the center of the box and tried to best the other’s ground clearance. Hydra fired two flipper shots that ultimately missed. Hydra was then finally able to get under Gruff and only slightly pop it on its rear but when Gruff landed, was able to toss Gruff towards the screws and upside down. Hydra was then finally able to get under Gruff and only slightly pop it on its rear but when Gruff landed, was able to toss Gruff towards the screws and upside down. Hydra followed this up with two more flips before Gruff was able to get away in an attempt to regroup. However, Hydra quickly pursied its opponent and flipped Gruff upside down again, followed by two more with the last one almost sending Gruff onto the Upper Deck. Gruff’s flamethrower appeared to start malfunctioning as flames were now coming out of the bottom of the robot. Hydra meanwhile was able to once again toss Gruff upside down before getting caught on the killsaw slots, but was able to quickly meet Gruff again and this time flipped Gruff onto the screws. Hydra fired its flipper again but only brushed against the side of Gruff as it continued to be chewed by the screws. Hydra’s flipper, which appeared to be much weaker than in previous fights, was still able to land a flurry of flips on Gruff, tossing a few feet in the air each time. As Gruff was trying to regroup, Hydra got underneath Gruff again and flipped it towards the corner near the out of the arena zone. Hydra fired its weapon once more, and threw Gruff out of the arena, right by the entrance for the BattleBox. Gruff was counted out, falling to 1-1 for the season.
Gruff's third and final Fight Night opponent was fellow 1-1 bot Cobalt. As Gruff charged at its opponent, Cobalt had already spun up and Gruff found itself flipped it upside-down. Gruff had its fork caught in the killsaw slot for a moment, but was soon free and threatened with their flames. However, Gruff ran right into the front of Cobalt again and was launched high into the air, buckling a lifting fork on impact. Gruff took a hit from the 100lb pulverizer before hitting Cobalt's disc head on once more, again flying across the BattleBox. Cobalt continued its relentless assault as Sam McAmis' machine appeared to have lost drive on one side, throwing it against the arena barriers. Smoke began to emit from the underside of Gruff after the next impact damaged their propane tank, and it burst into flames soon after. Unable to show translational movement, Gruff was counted out and Cobalt advanced to 2-1 for the season.
BattleBots: Champions I[]
Gruff returned for BattleBots: Champions I and fought Glitch in the first round of the bracket. To combat Gruff's fire, Glitch covered the gaps in its armor in aluminum foil in order to protect its internal components. As the fight began, Gruff drove at Glitch, who drifted off to its left to spin up its weapon. Glitch spun around to face its opponent, but got its fork stuck in a killsaw slot. It then escaped and dealt a glancing shot to the front of Gruff, who retaliated by firing its flamethrower. Glitch appeared to be struggling to drive, but delivered a shot to Gruff's lifter and bent the forks. The two robots kept their distance for a moment until Glitch got underneath Gruff, throwing it over before Gruff self-righted. Glitch strafed around the BattleBox, keeping its vertical spinner pointed at its opponent as Gruff gave chase. Glitch eventually threw Gruff over again, but Sam McAmis' bot bounced back onto its wheels. Gruff managed to push Glitch into the short corner in the final ten seconds, but the last hit of the fight came from Glitch, who threw Gruff high into the air just as the clock hit zero, landing upside-down. The fight went to the judges, who awarded the fight unanimously in favor of Glitch, eliminating Gruff from the competition.
Results[]
- Wins: 19
- Losses: 23
| Competition | Wins | Losses |
|---|---|---|
| ComBots Cup V | Vlad The Impaler II | Ragin' Scotsman
Death & Taxes |
| RoboGames 2011 | Vera
Double Rainbow Party |
Sewer Snake
Preda Raptor |
| ComBots Cup VI | Ragin' Scotsman | Black Widow! |
| RoboGames 2012 | Serenus Cor
Spartan |
Sewer Snake
Electric Boogaloo |
| ComBots Cup VII | Great Pumpkin | Electric Boogaloo |
| RoboGames 2015 | Whiplash | Counter Revolution (Forfeit)
Ragin' Scotsman |
| RoboGames 2018 | Swamp Thing
Cataclysm |
Original Sin |
| BattleBots Discovery Season 4 | Marvin & Gemini (Rumble) | Copperhead |
| BattleBots Discovery Season 5 | Hypershock | Whiplash
Extinguisher |
| Battlebots: Bounty Hunters | Gemini
Deadlift Kraken |
Tombstone |
| Battlebots Discovery Season 6 | Switchback | Hydra |
| BattleBots: Champions I | None | Glitch |
| BattleBots World Championship VII | TBA | TBA |
Trivia[]
- Gruff was the one of two Bounty Hunters to have faced its boss before, having clashed with Tombstone a year prior.
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