Only 2 robots of 36 remain... Who will be the last to leave the arena, and who will finally triumph within it? It€™s been a ravaging road to armageddon, ladies and gentlemen, but after almost 2 years of competition ( :P ) we€™re here!

From Pontefract in West Yorkshire, representing Team Picus, the winner of Annihilator 1, Nidhogg Cubed!

From Lincolnshire in England, representing Team ???, the winner of Annihilator 4, PsycloniZer!

Roboteers, standby!

Booth Red: Team ???
Booth Blue: Team Picus

3...
2...
1...
ACTIVATE!

This is IT! The end of Annihilation. And with these two bots, it€™s sure as hell going to go out with a bang! The arena is immediately filled with a deathly whir as PsycloniZer€™s spinning ring gets up to speed, the three meaty hammers quickly becoming a blur! Nidhogg Cubed on the other hand heads straight for the pit release button and bumps against it, releasing the pit. It seems to be a clear tactic - Nidhogg obviously wants this match over ASAP, and who can blame Team Picus for that? They also look intent on hugging the arena wall, as they don€™t stray from it, but PsycloniZer isn€™t taking the bait and sits patiently in the middle of the arena with the hammers spinning menacingly. Joey realises that he€™s fighting a losing battle staying by the walls, as PsycloniZer looks far more impressive with the weapon spinning, and trys a new tactic.

Joey guns the hydrostatic drive of N^3 in the direction of PsycloniZer, who comes forward to meet the attack, and there€™s a huge impact as both machines are thrown away from each other! Nidhogg€™s forks bore the brunt of the hit, and they look a bit buckled. The bulk of them is concealed inside the wedge however so they should still be reasonably effective, and Joey looks to use them if he can, going straight back on the attack as soon as he regains control of his machine! PsycloniZer however has a very fast spin up time of 3 seconds, and that€™s just for full speed. Nidhogg does actually reach PsycloniZer in about 2 seconds, but the ring is spinning at well over 1500rpm by the time he gets there and another huge impact takes place! This time the attack has consequences for both machines, as the hammer of Psy catches the side of Nidhogg€™s wedge this time, buckling the side panel somewhat and spinning Nidhogg around. However, they were horribly close to the arena wall and Andy flies into it, dissipating some of the kinetic energy from the hit into PsycloniZer itself! It looks to be OK for now though, and quickly escapes across the arena with the magmotor drive, spinning up as it does so and U-turning around to face Nidhogg in the centre of the arena.

Joey is relentless with his aggression here and collides with PsycloniZer again, but still he€™s not lucky. As the hammer makes contact with the front of Nidhogg one of the damaged forks is ripped clean off the machine and the side panel is buckled even further, now hanging limply from the machine! It drags on the arena floor when Nidhogg moves now to chase down PsycloniZer, and this isn€™t good news for Team Picus as it slows Nidhogg down enough so that Team ???€™s ring spinner is back up to full speed before Nidhogg can get another attack in, and the hammers make contact again... SLAM! It€™s a huge impact in which PsycloniZer rammed in so hard it almost mounted the wedge of Nidhogg before impact, sending the damaged side panel flying off across the arena and actually flipping PsycloniZer over in the process! Joey€™s machine as to be hurting right now but as PsycloniZer is delayed in spinning up by being flipped Nidhogg takes its chance and rams in on the attack, managing to breach the ground clearance of PsycloniZer and slam Team ??? into the spike strip before it can get that deadly weaponry going again! The forks are ineffective now but the crusher swiftly comes into play, not managing to reach the 3.25mm hardox top armour of PsycloniZer, but hooking into the supporting cage of the weapon! Andy struggles against the attack, but Joey has a good hook here and now begins to drag PsycloniZer across the arena towards the pit! They€™re right on the opposite side of the arena and with PsycloniZer struggling against the pull of Nidhogg coupled with the damage already done to the machine this is no easy tug of war bout! However, even with the damage Nidhogg Cubed€™s hydrostatic power is too much for PsycloniZer and Team Picus€™ entry slowly but surely drags PsycloniZer across the arena towards the pit!

Andy€™s heart is in his mouth as this sudden turn of events looks to potentially eliminate PsycloniZer from the competition, but he struggles at the controls of both drive and weapon, trying to find anyway to break free of Nidhogg€™s deadly embrace! The clock on the time for pinning robots is ticking down though and Team Picus need to end this quickly! 10 seconds left... Nidhogg is dragging, dragging... but PsycloniZer is putting up a hell of a fight, spinning the cage so as to move left to right like a crazed fairground attraction, making things as difficult as possible for Team Picus! 5 seconds remain, and Nidhogg finds itself with its back to the pit, Joey turns, but the movement is slow and Andy spins the cage the right way so that PsycloniZer is side on to Nidhogg, and the wrong side to the pit! 3... 2... 1... Joey turns to try and dump Andy into the pit, and they€™re right on the edge now, but the alotted time is up! The judges instruct Joey, to release PsycloniZer... Can he end it quickly anyway? He lunges forward as the crusher goes up, getting underneath PsycloniZer again, but the hammers turn around and knock PsycloniZer off Nidhogg€™s wedge and away from the pit - the tension has passed! A lifeline thrown to Team ??? and Andy breathes a huge sigh of relief! Nidhogg isn€™t finished yet though and reverses into Psy now, anything possible to stop that ring getting up to speed. Team Picus push their cylindrical adversary onto the kilsaws, which spring up and flip PsycloniZer, who quickly dashes away and spins up to speed before coming careering back in and colliding with Nidhogg€™s exposed side! This could be it Annihilation fans, as the internal workings of N^3€™s hydrostatic drive are splayed out over the arena... Unfortunately it would seem the game is up! The power€™s gone, and Nidhogg sits immobile next to the arena wall. A real shame, as Joey and Team Picus put up an absolutely fantastic fight, nearly pitting PsycloniZer, and we hope to see both these machines back next season, but for now it€™s all over and the crowd count down Nidhogg Cubed, as well as the season!
10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1!

CEASE!

That is IT! Time is called on the match, and another brutal KO for PsycloniZer! Commiserations to Joey, Nidhogg Cubed and Team Picus - truly a magnificent fight was put up and Nidhogg should return to Pontefract proud of its achievements here today.
However, the grand champion of Mechanical Maelstrom: Annihilation is PsycloniZer! It€™s smashed its way through ten gruelling annihilator rounds to get here, and the trophy is well deserved... Andy is grinning as the championship trophy is awarded to him, with Joey standing proudly on the podium and receiving a silver medal while Steven is awarded the the impressive bronze for Traffic Warden€™s performance... And the battleboard flashes up onto the screen for one last time.

Battleboard
Traffic Warden [#8] vs. Nidhogg Cubed vs. Gehenna vs. Jinx vs. PsycloniZer vs. Still Hurting

Thanks to everyone who competed, commiserations to Joey and congratulations to Andy. I€™d like to invite you all to compete in Mechanical Maelstrom Season 3.0, which will be opening right now in order to capitilise on the sudden influx of activity around these parts

Until next time robot fans!

*curtain closes*