Actual Size - Revision history

Paxmorningstar: Air and Armor. Awesome event venue, worst competitive performance Actual Size has ever produced

2026-07-06T18:43:37Z

Air and Armor. Awesome event venue, worst competitive performance Actual Size has ever produced

← Older revision		Revision as of 18:43, 6 July 2026
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	<!--
	===Air and Armor 2026===		===Air and Armor 2026===
			While historically it has been losses that were most impactful on Actual Size's design changes, the generally lackluster June 2026 NHRL event proved that even in victory Actual Size had deep design deficiencies. The robot was slow for the first time ever - while running Repeat Max motors, Morningstar had needed to dramatically limit Actual Size's drive speed via its controller. However, with the low output speed of the Repeat Mini Mk4s combined with the extra reduction between the motor and Actual Size's bigwheels, the robot felt sluggish even with all controller limits removed. The low closing speed, coupled with the unchanged weapon diameter, meant that Actual Size had not hit nearly as hard as it needed to at the June 2026 NHRL event. These changes though paled in comparison to the revelation that, if Actual Size was going to be competitive versus the proliferating archetype of the reach vert, its drive motors would finally have to be moved inside the chassis.
	robot was slow so switched to
	Size of the weapon is too small - couldn't do anything about it
	internal gear setup
	couldn't get CF in time
	printer issues

			Initially, Morningstar treated this redesign as being Actual Size V5, with totally different chassis shapes, bottom plates, and even new wheel geometry with ring gears instead of spur gears to provide extra protection to the drive motor gears. Since this would maintain the gear ratio between the drive motors and Actual Size's bigwheels, Morningstar swapped from High Reduction Repeat Mini Mk4s to standard Mk4s, thinking the RPM increase would be enough to boost the robot's top speed. However, with no way to get new carbon fiber bottom plates shipped in time for Air and Armor, the design was shelved as "Pre-V5" and replaced with Actual Size V4.3. This new minor iteration made use of the existing V4.2 bottom plates but still brought the drive motors inside the chassis, while also making use of the Pre-V5 wheel design. The smaller weapon blades, facing similar production times, would also have to be reused, though in the event that Actual Size faced a particularly low opponent Morningstar planned to run Actual Size in its stanced configuration to drop the weapon closer to the ground. With a week to go ahead of the competition, everything seemed poised for Actual Size V4.3 to come together without issue.
	-->

			Far from smooth sailing, the week immediately preceding the Air and Armor event would prove to be a tumultuous one. For starters, the 3D printer issues that had crippled Actual Size ahead of the UPJ Bot Bash once again appeared after just two of the Pre-V5 wheels were printed. To add insult to injury, Actual Size had lost so many of its spare wheels at the April and June NHRL events that there were just 3 intact copies of the older wheel design on hand, meaning that as it headed into the Air and Armor event Actual Size would have even fewer spares available than it did at the UPJ Bot Bash. This would ultimately be a minor hiccup in comparison to what Morningstar would realize about Actual Size only after showing up at Air and Armor on the day of the competition.

			Actual Size's two copies, one V4.3 and one V4.2 due to the limited wheels, both passed a twitch test in Morningstar's test box on the day prior to the competition. When the robots attempted to pass safety at the event though, it suddenly became painfully clear that while they could indeed pass a twitch test, the Repeat Mini Mk4s struggled to get the drivetrain moving without the benefit of the additional torque from the High Reduction gearboxes. This was initially not discernable because Morningstar's test box only offered a limited amount of space for movement anyway, but was immediately obvious once Actual Size tried to maneuver around the arena during testing. To add insult to injury, the voltage sag that would occur as the Repeat Mini Mk4s tried to get the bigwheels turning was so severe that Actual Size's weapon couldn't spin up unless the robot was stationary or at speed. The new Pre-V5 wheels also turned out to be less rigid than expected, which exacerbated the mobility issues even further and led to Morningstar exclusively running the older V4.2 chassis the whole day.

			Though it was able to pass safety, due to these electrical issues the event would prove to be an unmitigated disaster, with Actual Size barely functional in all three of its matches. Morningstar ranks it among the worst performances Actual Size has ever displayed, second perhaps only to the robot's debut event in 2024. This sentiment is reflected in the brevity of the following fight descriptions.

	====Actual Size vs Deadite====		====Actual Size vs Deadite====
			Actual Size's first match of the day was against Deadite, a saw robot that had become a lifter at the last minute due to the robot's only weapon motor burning out during testing. Deadite was equipped with a large TPU wall frontend to corral Actual Size, which proved to be highly effective. Though it would take the occasional hit from Actual Size's intermittent weapon, Deadite remained firmly in control of the match, and was awarded the JD win to knock Actual Size into the Loser's Bracket. The fight marked Deadite driver Henry's first ever win in the beetleweight class.

	====Actual Size vs Athanatos====		====Actual Size vs Athanatos====
			Actual Size's first opponent in the Loser's Bracket was Athanatos, a large horizontal spinner. As Athanatos was being turned on, its electronics began to smoke slightly, perhaps due to a short between its harness and the robot's metal frame. Despite this, the team decided to push ahead with the fight. Though its mobility was limited, Athanatos and Actual Size were able to exchange a few hits before Athanatos stopped being able to effectively move. With Athanatos' tapout, Actual Size limped to its first win of the day.

	====Actual Size vs [[Lifeline]]====		====Actual Size vs [[Lifeline]]====
			Actual Size would next fight [[Lifeline]], a saw robot that Actual Size had narrowly defeated via JD at the September 2025 Barnyard Buzz Brawl. Despite a last-minute attempt to try and solve some of Actual Size's control issues with settings changes to its drive ESCs, Morningstar was not optimistic headed into the match.

			The fight was short and sweet. [[Lifeline]]'s frontend allowed it to easily control Actual Size, and its saw made quick work of Actual Size's hammerwalls and carbon fiber bottom plates. With a dramatic bisection of Actual Size's chassis, [[Lifeline]] got revenge for its Barnyard Buzz Brawl loss and sent Actual Size V4.3 to hell, where it belongs.


	<!--		<!--
	I literally cannot have competitions that close together		I literally cannot have competitions that close together

	-->		-->

Paxmorningstar: Finished June 2026 section

2026-07-06T16:54:17Z

Finished June 2026 section

← Older revision		Revision as of 16:54, 6 July 2026
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	Actual Size V4.2 debuted at the June 2026 NHRL event, with minor changes to the robot to increase its overall durability. The event was mediocre, with Actual Size's 2 wins overshadowed by 2 tough losses. The damage sustained to Actual Size in its fight against [[Hubris]], driven by Eric Randolph, led Morningstar to finally enclose the robot's drive motors in its chassis, changing what had been an iconic staple of Actual Size since the V2 design of September 2025. Since the loss to Eric's horizontal spinner [[Flashfreeze]] at the December 2025 MIT CRC House Battle had also prompted a major redesign of the robot (swapping the weapon mounting system from nutstrips on an aluminum baseplate to TPU on a carbon fiber baseplate), Morningstar has often remarked that "no competitor has had a greater impact on the design legacy of Actual Size than Eric Randolph."		Actual Size V4.2 debuted at the June 2026 NHRL event, with minor changes to the robot to increase its overall durability. The event was mediocre, with Actual Size's 2 wins overshadowed by 2 tough losses. The damage sustained to Actual Size in its fight against [[Hubris]], driven by Eric Randolph, led Morningstar to finally enclose the robot's drive motors in its chassis, changing what had been an iconic staple of Actual Size since the V2 design of September 2025. Since the loss to Eric's horizontal spinner [[Flashfreeze]] at the December 2025 MIT CRC House Battle had also prompted a major redesign of the robot (swapping the weapon mounting system from nutstrips on an aluminum baseplate to TPU on a carbon fiber baseplate), Morningstar has often remarked that "no competitor has had a greater impact on the design legacy of Actual Size than Eric Randolph."

	Actual Size V4.3 was designed and built in the two weeks between the June 2026 NHRL event and the inaugural Air and Armor 2026 event. Originally a total redesign of Actual Size, V4.3 ended up being a more modest iteration on V4.2, with drive motors moved inside the chassis and a slightly more robust weapon mounting setup. The event proved to be a disaster, with the robot, barely functional in all three of its matches due to electrical issues, finishing the day at 1-2. Morningstar ranks it among the worst performances Actual Size has ever displayed, second perhaps only to its debut event in 2024.		Actual Size V4.3 was designed and built in the two weeks between the June 2026 NHRL event and the inaugural Air and Armor 2026 event. Originally a total redesign of Actual Size, V4.3 ended up being a more modest iteration on V4.2, with drive motors moved inside the chassis and a slightly more robust weapon mounting setup. The event proved to be an unmitigated disaster, with the robot, barely functional in all three of its matches due to electrical issues, finishing the day at 1-2. Morningstar ranks it among the worst performances Actual Size has ever displayed, second perhaps only to its debut event in 2024.

	Actual Size V5 will debut at the Hive Hysteria 2026 event.		Actual Size V5 will debut at the Hive Hysteria 2026 event.
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	===NHRL June 2026===		===NHRL June 2026===
	Since Actual Size had just taken its first podium finish at the UPJ Bot Bash, builder [[Max Morningstar]] had only minimal changes in mind ahead of the June 2026 NHRL Open event. For the chassis, the only changes were to thicken the carbon fiber chassis bottom plates, which had nearly been torn through by [[Warp]] during the prior event, and to slightly change the geometry of the weapon rail, which had a tendency to bend on big weapon-on-weapon hits. For Actual Size's wheels, Morningstar had noticed that the 6 wheel cleats had a tendency to "pucker" and flex out of the TPU wheels, so to prevent this the size of the cleat was halved and the number of bolts securing them to the wheels was doubled.		Since Actual Size had just taken its first podium finish at the UPJ Bot Bash, builder [[Max Morningstar]] had only minimal changes in mind ahead of the June 2026 NHRL Open event. For the chassis, the only changes were to thicken the carbon fiber chassis bottom plates, which had nearly been torn through by [[Warp]] during the prior event, and to slightly change the geometry of the weapon rail, which had a tendency to bend on big weapon-on-weapon hits. For Actual Size's wheels, Morningstar had noticed that the 6 wheel cleats had a tendency to "pucker" and flex out of the TPU wheels, so to prevent this the size of the cleat was halved and the number of bolts securing them to the wheels was doubled.

	Morningstar initially had some other ideas about increasing the robot's durability against reach verts, such as adding a UHMW top plate configuration, but the added weight of the changes to the chassis and wheels meant that these would have to wait for a future iteration of the robot.		Morningstar initially had some other ideas about increasing the robot's durability against reach verts, such as adding a UHMW top plate configuration, but the added weight of the changes to the chassis and wheels meant that these would have to wait for a future iteration of the robot. The robot would compete in June without them, under the new minor revision V4.2.

	====Actual Size vs [[Galumph]]====		====Actual Size vs [[Galumph]]====
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	Before the event, Morningstar took a jab at Galumph in his "Roast" video, stating that "When Actual Size beats [[Galumph]], it is I who will be chortling with joy," in a reference to the Lewis Carroll poem "Jabberwocky" from which [[Galumph]] gets its name. Tom responded by writing and reading a "counter roast" poem in the style of "Jabberwocky." Morningstar enjoyed the poem so much that he had it transcribed and signed by Tom. It now hangs on Morningstar's wall, next to [[Galumph]]'s chassis.		Before the event, Morningstar took a jab at Galumph in his "Roast" video, stating that "When Actual Size beats [[Galumph]], it is I who will be chortling with joy," in a reference to the Lewis Carroll poem "Jabberwocky" from which [[Galumph]] gets its name. Tom responded by writing and reading a "counter roast" poem in the style of "Jabberwocky." Morningstar enjoyed the poem so much that he had it transcribed and signed by Tom. It now hangs on Morningstar's wall, next to [[Galumph]]'s chassis.

	More sections coming soon.
⚫	<!--
	====Actual Size vs [[Hubris]]====		====Actual Size vs [[Hubris]]====
			Actual Size's Cusp matchup was against [[Hubris]], a hubmotor reach vert from WPI. Actual Size was fitted with its UHMW chin armor, with the focus being to attempt break the hubmotor through repeated weapon-on-weapon hits.

			Very quickly, [[Hubris]] was able to snipe one of Actual Size's exposed drive motors, obliterating it and reducing Actual Size to half drive. Morningstar did his best to keep Actual Size pointed at [[Hubris]] and was able to extend the match, but with severely limited mobility the damage on Actual Size soon became too much to manage and Morningstar tapped out, dropping Actual Size to 1-1.

			After the event, the damage sustained to Actual Size in its fight against [[Hubris]] would lead Morningstar to finally enclose the robot's drive motors in its chassis, changing what had been an iconic staple of Actual Size since the V2 design of September 2025. Since the loss to Eric's horizontal spinner [[Flashfreeze]] at the December 2025 MIT CRC House Battle had also prompted a major redesign of the robot (swapping the weapon mounting system from nutstrips on an aluminum baseplate to TPU on a carbon fiber baseplate), Morningstar has often remarked that "no competitor has had a greater impact on the design legacy of Actual Size than Eric Randolph."

	====Actual Size vs [[Zom-Bee]]====		====Actual Size vs [[Zom-Bee]]====
			Actual Size's Bubble matchup was against [[Zom-Bee]], driven by [[Cody Graham]] of [[Team Honey Cracked]]. A bread-and-butter 4WD eggbeater vertical spinner, [[Zom-Bee]] was the posterchild of the archetype that Actual Size was designed to beat. Morningstar went into the fight confident that the matchup would be a chance to get Actual Size back into its metaphorical groove and build up some momentum headed into the Eliminations Bracket.

			Actual Size did indeed take a tapout win over [[Zom-Bee]], but the fight was far from a dominant performance, due to both Cody's excellent driving, but also because of Actual Size's weapon diameter. Actual Size's weapon had not increased in size when the robot's wheels did with V4.1, which meant that it now stood nearly 3 centimeters off of the ground. Against the opponents at the UPJ Bot Bash, who were mostly reach verts, this distance had not mattered. However, now that it was facing a low vertical spinner, Actual Size found itself unable to land solid hits against [[Zom-Bee]]'s chassis. This was further exacerbated by Actual Size's low speed, which had similarly not appeared during the UPJ Bot Bash due to the event's smaller arena size, but became readily apparent in NHRL's larger boxes. Luckily, Actual Size's weapon was just low enough to nip at the top armor and weapon belt of [[Zom-Bee]], and was able to slowly accrue damage until Cody opted to tap out, granting Actual Size its third Eliminations Bracket berth of the year.

	====Actual Size vs [[0-0]]====		====Actual Size vs [[0-0]]====
			Actual Size's first bracket fight of the day was against [[0-0]], a unique meltybrain-gyrowalker hybrid built by Jason Vasquez, of BattleBots fame. Since [[0-0]] was also 2-1 on the day with an earlier tapout loss, Morningstar believed the best strategy would be to go for as many weapon-on-weapon hits as possible to try and damage the internals of one or both of [[0-0]]'s drive pods, without which its ability to move would be at a minimum severely hindered.

			The first several exchanges seemed relatively even between the two bots, but one hit flexed Actual Size's chassis enough that the wire leads to the weapon ESC tore, disabling Actual Size's weapon. Simultaneously, one of Actual Size's drive gearboxes, perhaps with lingering damage from a previous match, came loose enough that the motor pinion no longer interfaced properly with the gearbox. This effectively disabled half of Actual Size's drive, and forced the robot to limp around with only one wheel for the remainder of the match. While Actual Size was able to make it to the bell, the weapon loss and impaired drive meant that the Judge's Decision was quickly returned as a win for [[0-0]]. With this loss, Actual Size's day ended for the third consecutive NHRL event at 2-2.
	With a JD loss, Actual Size's day ended for the third consecutive NHRL event at 2-2.


		⚫	<!--
	===Air and Armor 2026===		===Air and Armor 2026===
	robot was slow so switched to		robot was slow so switched to

Paxmorningstar: NHRL June intro and Galumph section

2026-06-24T19:17:35Z

NHRL June intro and Galumph section

← Older revision		Revision as of 19:17, 24 June 2026
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	Actual Size initially was quite successful at executing this strategy, winning a flurry of exchanges and causing Calinaga Buddha to somersault around the arena, but as the match progressed Calinaga Buddha began to fight back, winning some exchanges of its own. In one close exchange, Calinaga Buddha came down on top of Actual Size, striking its top plate and once again denting its battery significantly. This time though Actual Size's weapon kept working, and after another flurry of blows Calinaga Buddha's weapon stopped working, leaving it stranded face-down doing the Thing. The match was paused and an unstick carried out, but as the match resumed Calinaga Buddha's weapon remained disabled, and Actual Size was able to get the robot high-centered on its face once again to take a tapout revenge win and climb to 5-1.		Actual Size initially was quite successful at executing this strategy, winning a flurry of exchanges and causing Calinaga Buddha to somersault around the arena, but as the match progressed Calinaga Buddha began to fight back, winning some exchanges of its own. In one close exchange, Calinaga Buddha came down on top of Actual Size, striking its top plate and once again denting its battery significantly. This time though Actual Size's weapon kept working, and after another flurry of blows Calinaga Buddha's weapon stopped working, leaving it stranded face-down doing the Thing. The match was paused and an unstick carried out, but as the match resumed Calinaga Buddha's weapon remained disabled, and Actual Size was able to get the robot high-centered on its face once again to take a tapout revenge win and climb to 5-1.

	====Actual Size vs Warp====		====Actual Size vs [[Warp]]====
	Actual Size now stood one match away from a guaranteed podium finish. Its opponent was no slouch: Warp, another reach vert, had been similarly stomping its way through the Consolation Bracket after also starting the day at 0-1. By this point in the competition Actual Size had been through a lot: its UHMW chins were scarred and pockmarked from its two fights with Calinaga Buddha, several of its wheels had been retired due to damage, and it was out of batteries for its weapon half. Graciously, the driver of Warp lent Actual Size a spare battery so that the robots could fight.		Actual Size now stood one match away from a guaranteed podium finish. Its opponent was no slouch: [[Warp]], another reach vert, had been similarly stomping its way through the Consolation Bracket after also starting the day at 0-1. By this point in the competition Actual Size had been through a lot: its UHMW chins were scarred and pockmarked from its two fights with Calinaga Buddha, several of its wheels had been retired due to damage, and it was out of batteries for its weapon half. Graciously, the driver of [[Warp]] lent Actual Size a spare battery so that the robots could fight.

	The fight was a slugfest, with the large diameter weapons of each robot dealing out major hits. Warp was able to snipe one of Actual Size's drive motors and disable a wheel, but Actual Size was able to disable Warp's weapon and later one of its drive sides. Both robots limped to the bell, and for the first time all day Actual Size had the fight go to a Judge's Decision. The JD came back as 10-7 for Actual Size, giving Actual Size its sixth consecutive win, advancing its score to 6-1 and pushing it to the Consolation Bracket Finals.		The fight was a slugfest, with the large diameter weapons of each robot dealing out major hits. [[Warp]] was able to snipe one of Actual Size's drive motors and disable a wheel, but Actual Size was able to disable [[Warp]]'s weapon and later one of its drive sides. Both robots limped to the bell, and for the first time all day Actual Size had the fight go to a Judge's Decision. The JD came back as 10-7 for Actual Size, giving Actual Size its sixth consecutive win, advancing its score to 6-1 and pushing it to the Consolation Bracket Finals.

	====Actual Size vs [[IMPAKT]]====		====Actual Size vs [[IMPAKT]]====
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	===NHRL June 2026===		===NHRL June 2026===
			Since Actual Size had just taken its first podium finish at the UPJ Bot Bash, builder [[Max Morningstar]] had only minimal changes in mind ahead of the June 2026 NHRL Open event. For the chassis, the only changes were to thicken the carbon fiber chassis bottom plates, which had nearly been torn through by [[Warp]] during the prior event, and to slightly change the geometry of the weapon rail, which had a tendency to bend on big weapon-on-weapon hits. For Actual Size's wheels, Morningstar had noticed that the 6 wheel cleats had a tendency to "pucker" and flex out of the TPU wheels, so to prevent this the size of the cleat was halved and the number of bolts securing them to the wheels was doubled.
⚫	<!--

	MISC: chassis sags when too much damage taken
			Morningstar initially had some other ideas about increasing the robot's durability against reach verts, such as adding a UHMW top plate configuration, but the added weight of the changes to the chassis and wheels meant that these would have to wait for a future iteration of the robot.
	cleats pucker

	Top plate vulnerable to reach verts
⚫	-->
	====Actual Size vs [[Galumph]]====		====Actual Size vs [[Galumph]]====
			Actual Size's first match was against [[Galumph]], a shuffling overhead horizontal driven by NHRL icon [[Tom Farkas]]. This was a tough matchup to start the day against: horizontals are already a classic counter to bigwheel robots, and while going through safety [[Galumph]]'s weapon, which weighed well over a pound, had been clocked as spinning over 300 miles per hour. However, Morningstar was confident Actual Size's robust build would allow it to survive weapon-on-weapon exchanges, and decided that the optimal strategy would be to box rush [[Galumph]] once the match started to try and keep the weapon from reaching its full speed. If Actual Size could survive the impacts from [[Galumph]], Morningstar believed that not only would it be able to win the fight, but that he could then have a high degree of confidence in Actual Size's internal components for the rest of the competition.

			The match began with a "box rush" in name only - while Actual Size drove to meet [[Galumph]], it was slow out of the gate and took several seconds to reach its opponent. After a few weapon-on-weapon exchanges, [[Galumph]]'s blade stopped being able to spin up, allowing Actual Size to pin its opponent, then flip it on its back. Another hit self-righted [[Galumph]] (a move the NHRL announcers took as good sportsmanship, but which was unintended), which then put Actual Size in a position to strike [[Galumph]]'s power switch, killing the robot and leading to a tapout victory.

			Before the event, Morningstar took a jab at Galumph in his "Roast" video, stating that "When Actual Size beats [[Galumph]], it is I who will be chortling with joy," in a reference to the Lewis Carroll poem "Jabberwocky" from which [[Galumph]] gets its name. Tom responded by writing and reading a "counter roast" poem in the style of "Jabberwocky." Morningstar enjoyed the poem so much that he had it transcribed and signed by Tom. It now hangs on Morningstar's wall, next to [[Galumph]]'s chassis.

			More sections coming soon.
		⚫	<!--
	====Actual Size vs [[Hubris]]====		====Actual Size vs [[Hubris]]====
	====Actual Size vs [[Zom-Bee]]====		====Actual Size vs [[Zom-Bee]]====
	====Actual Size vs [[0-0]]====		====Actual Size vs [[0-0]]====

			With a JD loss, Actual Size's day ended for the third consecutive NHRL event at 2-2.

	===Air and Armor 2026===		===Air and Armor 2026===
			robot was slow so switched to
			Size of the weapon is too small - couldn't do anything about it
			internal gear setup
			couldn't get CF in time
			printer issues

		⚫	-->

	====Actual Size vs Deadite====		====Actual Size vs Deadite====
	====Actual Size vs Athanatos====		====Actual Size vs Athanatos====
	====Actual Size vs [[Lifeline]]====		====Actual Size vs [[Lifeline]]====

			<!--
			I literally cannot have competitions that close together

			-->

	{{Bot Stats\|bot=Actual_Size\|class=3lb}}		{{Bot Stats\|bot=Actual_Size\|class=3lb}}

Paxmorningstar: /* Overview */

2026-06-24T17:59:11Z

Overview

← Older revision		Revision as of 17:59, 24 June 2026
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	Inspired by the loss to [[Chaos Upright]], Actual Size V4.1 trialed a series of changes to make the robot more durable against reach verts, including switching from Repeat Max V2 motors to Repeat Mini MK4s, and the swap to a new "180-style" outrigger that held the chassis at an angle relative to the ground. Actual Size V4.1 fought in April 2026 at the University of Pittsburgh Johnston Bot Bash event, initially falling to 0-1 but fighting all the way back to 3rd place through the Loser's bracket, earning Actual Size its first ever podium finish.		Inspired by the loss to [[Chaos Upright]], Actual Size V4.1 trialed a series of changes to make the robot more durable against reach verts, including switching from Repeat Max V2 motors to Repeat Mini MK4s, and the swap to a new "180-style" outrigger that held the chassis at an angle relative to the ground. Actual Size V4.1 fought in April 2026 at the University of Pittsburgh Johnston Bot Bash event, initially falling to 0-1 but fighting all the way back to 3rd place through the Loser's bracket, earning Actual Size its first ever podium finish.

			Actual Size V4.2 debuted at the June 2026 NHRL event, with minor changes to the robot to increase its overall durability. The event was mediocre, with Actual Size's 2 wins overshadowed by 2 tough losses. The damage sustained to Actual Size in its fight against [[Hubris]], driven by Eric Randolph, led Morningstar to finally enclose the robot's drive motors in its chassis, changing what had been an iconic staple of Actual Size since the V2 design of September 2025. Since the loss to Eric's horizontal spinner [[Flashfreeze]] at the December 2025 MIT CRC House Battle had also prompted a major redesign of the robot (swapping the weapon mounting system from nutstrips on an aluminum baseplate to TPU on a carbon fiber baseplate), Morningstar has often remarked that "no competitor has had a greater impact on the design legacy of Actual Size than Eric Randolph."
⚫	Actual Size ~~V4.2~~ will debut at the ~~June~~ ~~NHRL~~ event.

			Actual Size V4.3 was designed and built in the two weeks between the June 2026 NHRL event and the inaugural Air and Armor 2026 event. Originally a total redesign of Actual Size, V4.3 ended up being a more modest iteration on V4.2, with drive motors moved inside the chassis and a slightly more robust weapon mounting setup. The event proved to be a disaster, with the robot, barely functional in all three of its matches due to electrical issues, finishing the day at 1-2. Morningstar ranks it among the worst performances Actual Size has ever displayed, second perhaps only to its debut event in 2024.

		⚫	Actual Size V5 will debut at the Hive Hysteria 2026 event.

	Actual Size's name and angry eyes are both references to [https://battlebots.fandom.com/wiki/HUGE HUGE], the robot that pioneered the modern bigwheel vertical spinner design. The name itself comes from the song She's Actual Size by alt rock group They Might Be Giants. Morningstar prefers the live version of the song, which he grew up listening to on CD with his family. That version of the song can be found on YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6d5vLcgyiWA here].		Actual Size's name and angry eyes are both references to [https://battlebots.fandom.com/wiki/HUGE HUGE], the robot that pioneered the modern bigwheel vertical spinner design. The name itself comes from the song She's Actual Size by alt rock group They Might Be Giants. Morningstar prefers the live version of the song, which he grew up listening to on CD with his family. That version of the song can be found on YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6d5vLcgyiWA here].

Paxmorningstar at 17:03, 24 June 2026

2026-06-24T17:03:35Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 17:03, 24 June 2026
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	\| Power \|\| 3S Lipo		\| Power \|\| 3S Lipo
	\|-		\|-
	\| NHRL record \|\| 9-7		\| NHRL record \|\| 11-9
	\|-		\|-
	\| Lifetime record \|\| 24-17		\| Lifetime record \|\| 27-21
	\|}		\|}

Paxmorningstar: /* Gallery */

2026-06-24T16:59:32Z

Gallery

← Older revision		Revision as of 16:59, 24 June 2026
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	==Gallery==		==Gallery==
	<gallery widths=350px heights=200px>		<gallery widths=350px heights=200px>
⚫	File:Actualsize-Mar26.png\|Actual Size V3.1, in its half-stanced configuration, in March 2026
⚫	File:Actualsize-Nov25.png\|Actual Size V3 in November 2025
	File:Actual Size.png\|Actual Size V1, in its stanced configuration, in June 2025		File:Actual Size.png\|Actual Size V1, in its stanced configuration, in June 2025
		⚫	File:Actualsize-Nov25.png\|Actual Size V3 in November 2025
		⚫	File:Actualsize-Mar26.png\|Actual Size V3.1, in its half-stanced configuration, in March 2026
	File:Actualsize-April26.png\|Actual Size V4 in April 2026		File:Actualsize-April26.png\|Actual Size V4 in April 2026
	</gallery>		</gallery>

Paxmorningstar: Adding sections for new fights

2026-06-24T16:58:24Z

Adding sections for new fights

← Older revision		Revision as of 16:58, 24 June 2026
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	===Robot Facts===		===Robot Facts===
	[[File:Actualsize-~~April26~~.png\|thumb\|Actual Size V4 in ~~April~~ 2026]]		[[File:Actualsize-June26.png\|thumb\|alt=Actual Size V4.2 in June 2026\|Actual Size V4.2, in its stanced configuration, in June 2026]]
	{\| class="wikitable" style="width: 60%"		{\| class="wikitable" style="width: 60%"
	\|-		\|-
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	Despite this loss, there was much to be happy about. All told, Actual Size finished the event at 6-2, with more fights on the day than any other robot in the competition and all but 1 of its wins coming from either a knockout or tapout. The event marked Actual Size's first ever podium finish and best-yet performance of its career, coming in 3rd place out of 21 robots.		Despite this loss, there was much to be happy about. All told, Actual Size finished the event at 6-2, with more fights on the day than any other robot in the competition and all but 1 of its wins coming from either a knockout or tapout. The event marked Actual Size's first ever podium finish and best-yet performance of its career, coming in 3rd place out of 21 robots.

⚫	<!--

	===NHRL June 2026===		===NHRL June 2026===
		⚫	<!--

	MISC: chassis sags when too much damage taken		MISC: chassis sags when too much damage taken
	cleats pucker		cleats pucker
	Top plate vulnerable to reach verts		Top plate vulnerable to reach verts

	-->		-->
			====Actual Size vs [[Galumph]]====
			====Actual Size vs [[Hubris]]====
			====Actual Size vs [[Zom-Bee]]====
			====Actual Size vs [[0-0]]====

			===Air and Armor 2026===
			====Actual Size vs Deadite====
			====Actual Size vs Athanatos====
			====Actual Size vs [[Lifeline]]====



	{{Bot Stats\|bot=Actual_Size\|class=3lb}}		{{Bot Stats\|bot=Actual_Size\|class=3lb}}
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	File:Actualsize-Nov25.png\|Actual Size V3 in November 2025		File:Actualsize-Nov25.png\|Actual Size V3 in November 2025
	File:Actual Size.png\|Actual Size V1, in its stanced configuration, in June 2025		File:Actual Size.png\|Actual Size V1, in its stanced configuration, in June 2025
			File:Actualsize-April26.png\|Actual Size V4 in April 2026
	</gallery>		</gallery>

Paxmorningstar: /* REMATCH: Actual Size vs Calinaga Buddha */

2026-05-24T19:05:11Z

REMATCH: Actual Size vs Calinaga Buddha

← Older revision		Revision as of 19:05, 24 May 2026
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	====REMATCH: Actual Size vs Calinaga Buddha====		====REMATCH: Actual Size vs Calinaga Buddha====
	Actual Size now faced a rematch against the robot that had sent it into the Consolation Bracket at the start of the day, Calinaga Buddha. Actual Size once again armored up with UHMW, and prepared to fight Calinaga Buddha once again. Actual Size was running the same A chassis as it had against Calinaga Buddha originally. The differences this time around were that Actual Size would be forced to run its shorter November wheels, but Morningstar also wisely chose to just run a single 1/8" UHMW outrigger to avoid the wheel issues that had inhibited Actual Size's driving in the first match. Actual Size also had a momentum advantage: Its last 4 matches had been straightforward wins with minimal damage, while Calinaga Buddha had just taken a tough loss to [[Pinevictus]] in the Winner's Bracket semifinals and had been forced to rebuild on short notice. As with the first fight, Morningstar planned to try and keep Calinaga Buddha unstable and use that as an opening to damage its weapon and chassis.		Actual Size now faced a rematch against the robot that had sent it into the Consolation Bracket at the start of the day, Calinaga Buddha. Actual Size once again armored up with UHMW, and prepared to fight Calinaga Buddha once again. Actual Size was running the same A chassis as it had against Calinaga Buddha originally. The differences this time around were that Actual Size would be forced to run its shorter November wheels, but Morningstar also wisely chose to just run a single 1/4" UHMW outrigger to avoid the wheel issues that had inhibited Actual Size's driving in the first match. Actual Size also had a momentum advantage: Its last 4 matches had been straightforward wins with minimal damage, while Calinaga Buddha had just taken a tough loss to [[Pinevictus]] in the Winner's Bracket semifinals and had been forced to rebuild on short notice. As with the first fight, Morningstar planned to try and keep Calinaga Buddha unstable and use that as an opening to damage its weapon and chassis.

	Actual Size initially was quite successful at executing this strategy, winning a flurry of exchanges and causing Calinaga Buddha to somersault around the arena, but as the match progressed Calinaga Buddha began to fight back, winning some exchanges of its own. In one close exchange, Calinaga Buddha came down on top of Actual Size, striking its top plate and once again denting its battery significantly. This time though Actual Size's weapon kept working, and after another flurry of blows Calinaga Buddha's weapon stopped working, leaving it stranded face-down doing the Thing. The match was paused and an unstick carried out, but as the match resumed Calinaga Buddha's weapon remained disabled, and Actual Size was able to get the robot high-centered on its face once again to take a tapout revenge win and climb to 5-1.		Actual Size initially was quite successful at executing this strategy, winning a flurry of exchanges and causing Calinaga Buddha to somersault around the arena, but as the match progressed Calinaga Buddha began to fight back, winning some exchanges of its own. In one close exchange, Calinaga Buddha came down on top of Actual Size, striking its top plate and once again denting its battery significantly. This time though Actual Size's weapon kept working, and after another flurry of blows Calinaga Buddha's weapon stopped working, leaving it stranded face-down doing the Thing. The match was paused and an unstick carried out, but as the match resumed Calinaga Buddha's weapon remained disabled, and Actual Size was able to get the robot high-centered on its face once again to take a tapout revenge win and climb to 5-1.

Paxmorningstar: /* Actual Size vs Voidling */

2026-05-24T18:55:41Z

Actual Size vs Voidling

← Older revision		Revision as of 18:55, 24 May 2026
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	====Actual Size vs Voidling====		====Actual Size vs Voidling====
	Actual Size's next fight was against Voidling, a 4WD vertical spinner and scaled down version of the 12lber [[Void]]. Morningstar once again chose to run the B chassis, the A chassis was still being repaired and the B chassis had not taken any damage in the previous match.		Actual Size's next fight was against Voidling, a 4WD vertical spinner and scaled down version of the 12lber [[Void]]. Morningstar once again chose to run the B chassis, since the A chassis was still being repaired and the B chassis had not taken any damage in the previous match.

	This fight was short and sweet. On its first hit, Actual Size punched a hole in Voidling's weapon pulley and disabled its spinner, prompting a quick tapout and pushing Actual Size to 2-1.		This fight was short and sweet. On its first hit, Actual Size punched a hole in Voidling's weapon pulley and disabled its spinner, prompting a quick tapout and pushing Actual Size to 2-1.

Paxmorningstar: /* UPJ Bot Bash 2026 */

2026-05-24T18:29:40Z

UPJ Bot Bash 2026

← Older revision		Revision as of 18:29, 24 May 2026
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	The loss to [[Twisted Sister]] finally made a wheel redesign unavoidable. The design of the wheels had not been changed since November 2025, and Morningstar knew that the spokes and rim of the wheel had a tendency to tear when subjected to enough damage. Despite this, the wheels had proven they could sustain a great deal of trauma before such a match-ending failure would occur. In light of more pressing design issues (such as the changes needed to protect the weapon motor) Morningstar had opted to keep the same, trusted wheel design through the March and April events to keep from changing too many elements of the robot at once. However, the almost complete bisection of a wheel by [[Twisted Sister]] made it clear that it was time to improve Actual Size's wheel geometry.		The loss to [[Twisted Sister]] finally made a wheel redesign unavoidable. The design of the wheels had not been changed since November 2025, and Morningstar knew that the spokes and rim of the wheel had a tendency to tear when subjected to enough damage. Despite this, the wheels had proven they could sustain a great deal of trauma before such a match-ending failure would occur. In light of more pressing design issues (such as the changes needed to protect the weapon motor) Morningstar had opted to keep the same, trusted wheel design through the March and April events to keep from changing too many elements of the robot at once. However, the almost complete bisection of a wheel by [[Twisted Sister]] made it clear that it was time to improve Actual Size's wheel geometry.

	The desire to change the wheels also emerged as a solution to the factors behind Actual Size's other loss in April to [[Chaos Upright]]. In that match, Actual Size had "rolled over" due to the torque reaction of its weapon spinning up at the start of the match, and as a result took a direct hit in ~~it's~~ most vulnerable position by [[Chaos Upright]]. This tendency to go "belly-up" is not a new or unique phenomenon - it is a byproduct of how bigwheel chassis maneuver relative to their wheels, and appears in bigwheel robots of every weight class. Robots like Starchild even take advantage of this torque reaction in order to deliver their weapon. Typically, managing the chassis position to limit the amount of time in this position comes down to driving skill, but as part of the post-April changes Morningstar wanted to see if the problem could instead be mitigated through design changes.		The desire to change the wheels also emerged as a solution to the factors behind Actual Size's other loss in April to [[Chaos Upright]]. In that match, Actual Size had "rolled over" due to the torque reaction of its weapon spinning up at the start of the match, and as a result took a direct hit in its most vulnerable position by [[Chaos Upright]]. This tendency to go "belly-up" is not a new or unique phenomenon - it is a byproduct of how bigwheel chassis maneuver relative to their wheels, and appears in bigwheel robots of every weight class. Robots like Starchild even take advantage of this torque reaction in order to deliver their weapon. Typically, managing the chassis position to limit the amount of time in this position comes down to driving skill, but as part of the post-April changes Morningstar wanted to see if the problem could instead be mitigated through design changes.

	Morningstar's first thought was to armor the chassis all the way around, so that regardless of its orientation it would be able to sustain a hit. Morningstar had fantasized about a tube-shaped chassis to facilitate this as far back as his 2024 3lb bigwheel [[Jot]], but the number of design issues that shifting to such a tube raises outweigh the benefits. One such risk is that not all areas of the chassis are as likely to be hit, so using a tube to uniformly armor the chassis is inefficient. It is the same logic behind putting more weight into a strong forward wedge at the expense of armor on other portions of a robot: If you try to be strong everywhere, you'll actually be weak everywhere. This prompted Morningstar to start thinking about what portions of the robot are most likely to be hit, depending on whether Actual Size is belly-up or not.		Morningstar's first thought was to armor the chassis all the way around, so that regardless of its orientation it would be able to sustain a hit. Morningstar had fantasized about a tube-shaped chassis to facilitate this as far back as his 2024 3lb bigwheel [[Jot]], but the number of design issues that shifting to such a tube raises outweigh the benefits. One such risk is that not all areas of the chassis are as likely to be hit, so using a tube to uniformly armor the chassis is inefficient. It is the same logic behind putting more weight into a strong forward wedge at the expense of armor on other portions of a robot: If you try to be strong everywhere, you'll actually be weak everywhere. This prompted Morningstar to start thinking about what portions of the robot are most likely to be hit, depending on whether Actual Size is belly-up or not.