DECODE presented by RTX - Post-Kickoff Referee Insights
- Erik Orlowski
- Sep 16
- 6 min read
A message from the FIRST Wisconsin Senior Head Referee for FIRST Tech Challenge, Erik Orlowski!
Hi teams,
I hope you’re all excited for another great season of FIRST Tech Challenge in Wisconsin! All of our referees and I are excited to see your designs and how this game plays out on the field.
This is a very exciting game with lots of strategic depth, but it’s also a game that takes a lot of work to fully understand. In this blog, I’ll be sharing some helpful information to help you get your season off to a good start!
Of course, everything I say here is unofficial, it can change based on Team Updates and the Q&A. I've left out some critical updates due to space constraints, so there’s no substitute to reading the entire DECODE Competition Manual, available at ftc.game!
***NEW*** Bonus Ranking Points --> Section 10.5.4 - IMPORTANT TO GAME PLAY
A new addition that will be familiar to anyone with FRC experience is the concept of bonus ranking points. Now, in qualification matches only, you earn ranking points not just for winning or tying matches, but for other achievements in the game. This means that earning these bonus ranking points is just as important to your seeding as winning matches!
These bonus ranking points are described in detail in Section 10.5.4 and there are a few important things to note.
First of all, while the three types of bonus ranking points will stay the same throughout the season, the thresholds to achieve them can and will change as the season progresses. It’s important to fully study this as you design your robot.
For example, at the qualifier/league level, you achieve the Movement RP when your alliance score 16 points between Auto Leave and Base points (e.g. two Auto Leaves and one robot fully returned to Base), but at the regional championship level (e.g. the Wisconsin State Championship), this increases to 21 points (e.g. two auto leaves, one robot fully returned to base, one robot partially returned to base). Be sure to follow the team updates closely to learn about updates to the Pattern and Goal RPs!
Details on Scoring --> Section 10.5 - THE DETAILS MATTER HERE
There are a few important nuances for scoring this year that could make a big difference in your strategies. Be sure to fully read Section 10.5, the details matter here!
In Auto, artifact scoring is done at the end of the period. In other words, we score artifacts in Auto based on a snapshot at the start of the buzzer. For example, if you shoot an artifact toward the end of Auto, you could get that shot into the goal before the buzzer, but if the artifact isn’t on the Ramp before the start of the buzzer, it does not qualify for Auto Pattern scoring!
Another area where the details matter is Base scoring, described in Section 10.5.3. There are two important definitions here:
The key to these definitions is the word “supported”. At the time of writing, the Competition Manual does not have a glossary definition for support, so we’ll use the Oxford Languages definition: to “bear all or part of the weight of; hold up.”
Based on this definition, we can think of a few examples:
A robot is fully supported by its four wheels. Those four wheels contact the floor outside the Base Zone, but the robot does “break the plane” of the Base Zone. This robot does not qualify for any Base points.
Robot 1 is fully supported by its four wheels and those four wheels contact the floor fully within the Base Zone. Robot 1 is Fully Returned to Base. Robot 2 also has four wheels and nothing else touching the floor, but these wheels are all touching the floor outside the Base Zone, but the frame of Robot 1 is making contact with the frame of Robot 2. In this case, we ask ourselves “if we moved Robot 1, would that cause any part of Robot 2 to move?” If the answer is yes, Robot 2 is partially supported by Robot 1, and therefore transitively, partially supported by the tile in the Base Zone, and would be Partially Returned to Base. If the answer is no, then Robot 2 does not qualify for Base points.
Robot 1 is fully supported by its four wheels and those four wheels contact the floor fully within the Base Zone. Robot 1 is Fully Returned to Base. Robot 1 lifts Robot 2, such that Robot 1 bears all the weight of Robot 2. In this case, Robot 2 is transitively fully supported by the tile in the Base Zone, and is therefore Fully Returned to Base.
Finally, Auto Leave scoring is very important to your rankings (see the Movement RP), so what does it mean? Simply to qualify for Auto Leave points, your robot cannot be over any of the Launch Lines at the end of Auto. This includes the two V shaped lines in the front and back of the field as well as the two Depot Lines in front of each goal.
Where Does My Robot Start? --> G304 - MEET ALL CRITERIA
According to G304, your robot must meet all of these criteria at the start of the match:
Your robot must be fully on the side of the field with that has your goal and is opposite your Alliance Area
Your robot must be touching a playing field wall or goal
Your robot must be over a Launch Line (the Depot Line in front of the goal is also considered a Launch Line)
NEW: Your robot must be fully within the field (e.g. it cannot overhang the inside edge of the field perimeter wall).
One big change from previous seasons, you are now allowed to use alignment devices to set up your robots precisely for Auto, just don’t delay the match! Please see G301 and G302 for details.
Important Expansion Rules --> G414, G415 and R105 - STRICT LIMITS
This game has some very strict expansion limits that everyone needs to be aware of. Specifically, your robot needs to remain horizontally within an 18” x 18” square the entire match. Please see G414, G415 and R105 for details.
Let’s take an example robot with an intake that reaches close to the edge of that 18” x 18” limit. That intake has a flap which at the start of the match is rotated so it fits within the 18” x 18” footprint. However, during the match, when that flap spins, it moves outside the 18” x 18” footprint. This would not be a legal robot!
Please Don’t (Accidentally) Stab Your Opponents! --> G420 - SUBTLE BUT SIGNIFICANT
This year, there was a subtle but significant change to the rule about damaging opponents, G420. In the past, in order to receive consequences for functionally impairing an opposing robot, your actions would need to be deemed “deliberate”.
This year, a clause was added to G420 that states you can receive penalties for functionally impairing an opposing robot by “regardless of intent, by initiating contact, either directly or transitively via a SCORING ELEMENT CONTROLLED by the ROBOT, inside the opposing ROBOT’S CHASSIS.” (emphasis mine)
To break this down, if you have mechanisms such as an arm or intake, or you have a top heavy robot that does wheelies, you could potentially be liable for accidental impairment of an opposing robot. Let’s break down this rule:
Regardless of Intent: Most violations of this rule are accidental. Your early design decisions and attention while driving are crucial to avoiding some big penalties!
Initiating Contact: This means that your robot or some mechanism moves toward your opponent. This could potentially include driving toward them, turning toward them, lowering an arm into them, or even popping a wheelie & landing inside of them.
Inside the Opposing Robot’s Chassis: This concept is likely to see some traffic in the Q&A, but generally, if you initiate contact with anything inside an opponent’s drive base, you are liable to be penalized if that contact functionally impairs them.
The consequences for violating the rule are harsh, and it can be easy to violate unintentionally. Be sure you fully understand this rule and if you don’t, the Q&A is your friend!
Good Luck Everyone!
There’s a lot of new information in this year’s Competition Manual and I haven’t touched on half of it! Be sure to read it carefully, and follow the Team Updates and Q&A throughout the season.
If you have questions before your event after reading the Competition Manual, that’s what the Q&A is for. If you have questions at your event, feel free to ask in the drivers meeting or in the question box.
With that, I hope everyone has a great season and I can’t wait to see you all at your events!
EO
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