So my team 7784N has been arguing about whether or not the flags are worth it pointwise to go after them? Is there more point value in flipping the caps or turning the flags to your color? And is it worth the time to build a ball launcher, vs. an arm mechanism that will flip the caps?
I can't say for sure since I don't have the field elements, but I would try to build a ball launcher. This is because a lot of teams are asking this same question as you, and most will opt for the easier-to-build option, that being the cap manipulator. As such, at early competitions, a robot with a ball launcher will have an advantage because they will *almost* always have a partner that can work with caps and will often have an opposing alliance without the ability to flip the high flags. As long as you feel comfortable with the idea of building a more complicated mechanism, I would argue that the ball launcher the better option.My team is making the flags top priority for now. We want to be the team good at doing what most teams aren’t. Coupled with a traditional team, we should be able to take advantage of more of the field than most alliances.
my teams trying to build a robot that can do all. So no matter who our partner is we can still function well.
Scoring all the flags represents more points than scoring all the caps (15 vs 14) so on paper a purely flag robot should beat a purely cap robot. However it is not too far fetched to argue that the bottom row of flags shouldn’t count as they can be toggled by a robot without a dedicated mechanism, and the 2 caps that are not scored on the posts could be in the same boat (albeit slightly harder to flip than the bottom flags).
That being said though, having capacity to do both will let you be a lot more flexible strategically, both with your alliance partner’s robot, and against robots fielded by the opposition.
Flags are worth one more point then cause, so if you have all the caps and park you should win, but less teams will be able to turn the flags early season, so it might be easy points. I think they are both equally important
Thanks, I will need to consult with my team, I was on the side of just going for caps. You all have given me some things to think about.
To be clear, If you are trying to pick one or the other, I’d pick flags. However, if you think you are capable, the best option is without a doubt to specialize in both. (If you manage your time well, this will not be as huge an undertaking as it sounds, even for a new team.) You can never fully count on a randomly selected alliance partner.
Yes it is worth going for the flags. Maybe early on you won’t need it depending on how competitive your region is, but over time, you will 100% need to be able to go for the flags. Both caps and flags will be scored during user control, but it looks easier to score flags during autonomous and you have more ability to score during autonomous for flags than caps, (can score 10 points in flags during autonomous potentially, but only 7 potential points from caps plus two if you reach the bottom flags for 9 points. Did not include your color for stairs in auton for both). Flags will be crucial to autonomous and you will find autonomous will determine a lot of matches this year.