RABID Presents: Immersecon Invasion

Richmond Area Bot Instigated Destruction (RABID) is excited to announce our next event: RABID Presents: IMMERSECON INVASION, in partnership with ImmerseCon 2025, a thrilling STEM and gaming convention! Join us for an electrifying weekend of robot combat on August 30-31, 2025, at the Hilton Hotel & Spa/Short Pump.

We’ll be showcasing our 6ft x 6ft antweight arena for combat and the our 4ft x 4ft arena for demos allowwing the public to robots as part of this immersive convention experience!

Volunteers: If you or someone you know would like to volunteer, please email us at rabidrva@gmail.com or reach out on Discord. We are a 501(c)(3) organization and can sign off on volunteer hours.

Sponsors: A huge thank you to our sponsors: Turnabot, Itgresa, SpünSpoon and CAD Class! Use code RABIDRVA at checkout for 10% off anything in the CAD Class catalog.

Location:

Hilton Hotel & Spa/Short Pump 12042 W Broad St, Richmond, VA 23233

Event Schedule:

• Saturday, August 30: A standard, smaller-scale tournament featuring Plastic Antweights and Full Combat Antweights. Compete in our double-elimination format for a chance at victory and prizes!

• Sunday, August 31: SUNDAY FUNDAY! The arenas will be set up for open testing, grudge matches, and public demonstrations. Bring your robots to test or battle in front of the ImmerseCon crowd. No strict plans yet—share your ideas for Sunday activities on our Discord: https://discord.gg/H5wQnJXAVh.

Times:

TBD

Classes:

• Plastic Antweights

• Full Combat Antweights

Prizes:

TBD

Rules:

We will follow modified SPARC rulesets for all classes. Download the rules here.

• Approved materials for plastic ants: Printed PET, PETG, ABS, ASA, PLA, PLA+, and TPU.

• Motors, wheels, fasteners, and electronics do not need to be printed but must not be significant structural parts of the bot.

• Non-printed parts should not be exposed in a way that they can be hit or hit another bot. Bots should be as 3D-printed as possible.

• Prohibited weapons: No heat, fire, smoke, entanglement, or weapons that violate the spirit of the rules.

• Weight Bonuses:

  • Shufflers: 1.25x bonus (568g ant/plant, 188g fairy)

  • Non-traditional locomotion (e.g., gyro walkers, bristle bots): 1.5x bonus (681g ant/plant, 225g fairy)

  • True walkers (no continuous rotational movement, including vibration motors): Full bonus (908g ant/plant, 300g fairy)

• Battery Safety: Batteries must be protected at all times. If a battery becomes exposed during a fight, the match ends, and the bot with the exposed battery loses. Charge batteries in LiPo bags.

• Bots will have at least 20 minutes between fights for repairs. Later in the day, we may enforce this time strictly.

• Unsticks: One attempt at an unstick only if both bots are stuck. If they cannot be unstuck or get stuck again, the match goes to the judges.

• For rules questions, contact us before the event at rabidrva@gmail.com or on Discord.

 

Format:

• Double elimination tournament

• 2:30-minute matches

• Judging will be a panel of 3 judges (5 points damage, 5 points aggression, 5 points control)

• No unsticks unless both bots are stuck

 

Contact: Have questions? Email us at rabidrva@gmail.com or join our Discord: https://discord.gg/H5wQnJXAVh

Don’t miss this epic collaboration with ImmerseCon 2025, featuring tabletop gaming, esports, cosplay, and more! https://www.immersecon.com/