Outside of the Box

In the spirit of innovation and silliness, I sat down with most of the builders responsible for a surprising 30lb entry at the October NHRL event - Beetle Swarm. We talked about the concept of this project and how it all came together as well as broke down the fights in this entry's nearly qualifying run. You have to see this one to believe it!

We've (sort of) seen this fish before, but Chaunacops tore it up at NHRL in completely epic fashion - swimming through the deadly ocean of robots and winning the Golden Dumpster! I talked to builder Luke Larzelere about his amazing run and working with Remy and Rachel Guzman to make it happen. Check out this amazing discussion as we break down all of the bracket fights!

Inspired by the comeback of The Mummy franchise, join us on an adventure featuring a team of knowledge and treasure seekers who may have bit off more than they can handle. This game features a heavily modified version of Scholars, Scoundrels and Saddlebacks by the amazing Omar Najam. Watch as this team of smarties, snakes and swashbucklers do their best to stay alive inside of an increasingly dangerous tomb. Will anyone beat the odds and survive?

Players: Giraffa, Joey, Dora, Ange, Nari & No One

On this episode, I spoke with some amazing makers and artists within the world of cosplay about how cosplay has many STEM applications and promotes innovation and creativity. My guests were creators Nerdy Blasian Cosplays, Sayakat Cosplay and Renna Cosplay who have all produced some amazing and whimsical creations. We delve into each of their journeys in this episode and why making it so important to them.

You can check these creators out on social media: @nerdyblasiancosplays @sayakatcosplay @rennacosplay

In an episode all about chasing your dreams and building a community, I talked with Banzainator - an amazing Twitch streamer and content creator who has built TWO PCs herself. We talked about taking the leap to pursue her passions full time, her love for her community and future goals both inside and outside of streaming.

Check out https://www.twitch.tv/banzainator

If you are ready for more bot talk - you're in the right place! Join me as I recap the last couple episodes of Round 2 and the beginning of Round 3 for Pro League. The fights are just getting better and better! Who will be out? Who will lock in their spot? I'll break it all down for you!

It is once again time to chat about STEM education and highlight some folks who are making big moves to provide the youth of New York City with a pathway to STEM. In this episode I chat with the Principal of the Middle School of Innovation and Keith Tam of Tam Robotics, whose son is a student. This is a great discussion on the broader need for young people to learn STEM skills as well as all of the wonderful programs happening at the school.

Special shout out to sponsors through Tam Robotics - Turnabot and Repeat...

Calling all lovers of TTRPG and board games - join me for my recap of GenCon 2026 with Indy local and valued member of the TTRPG community - CritHitTheGiant! We sat down and talked about GenCon as an experience, our favorite things about the Con this year and tips for newcomers. There is something for everyone in this episode!

Check out Sean's website at https://crithitthegiant.com/

Time for a crazy fun episode of Outside of the Box as I sat down with the Team Spectra - a new superteam within combat robotics made up of a group of friends who compete at NHRL and other local competitions. They talk about how the team was formed, a deeper dive into each of their builds and how they may already be a dominant force at NHRL with the upcoming Pro Tour event. Strap in for one wild episode!

Check out Team Spectra at https://www.youtube.com/@UCSImEfuL_YPu-weVGbLsC-g

It has been a minute BattleBots fans, but I have a massive episode for you this week covering FOUR episodes of Pro League! Hear me break down every fight and give my overall thoughts, plus hear from Alex Price of Team Calypso to talk about their unexpectedly entry into Pro League and their amazing fight against Disarray!

Check out Ray Billings' channel for more on what happened with Tombstone - https://youtu.be/GVN6JjFtx-c?si=QGLFo2eD6Ka-OE-q

This episode features nerd royalty as Christine talks to writer, actor and entrepreneur Felicia Day about the upcoming Guild Movie Kickstarter that launches on July 20th! Felicia talks about everything from her amazing relationships with her cast members to revealing which character she feels would best promote the Kickstarter. Learn about all of the details on how to support the #1 movie in Kickstarter history in this interview and by checking out https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/feliciaday/watchtheguild. Be there on July 20th!

BattleBots is back baby and so is Christine with a recap and interview covering the first two episodes of Pro League. She is first joined by James & Kyle Kirkpatrick of the new Team Copperhead to talk about the debut of the youngest driver in BattleBots! This episode also includes a recap of every fight from the first two episodes and Christine's overall thoughts on the show so far.

For this episode, I had the pleasure of chatting with Dr. Christian Hubicki who is not only an accomplished robotics professor, but has also competed on TV's Survivor - recently as part of Season 50. We chatted about everything from the incorportation of AI into bipedal robots, what movies got robots "right" and using critical thinking skills while playing the game of Survivor. This is one that should delight STEM and Survivor enthusiasts alike!

For this episode, I sat down with Marifer of Reinvented Magazine. Our discussion centers on their Princesses with Power Tools program which adds a bit of whimsy to teaching kids real life skills and show them that they are capable of more than they think! We also spoke about Marifer's background and other things that Reinvented is working on to help spread a love of STEM and get more women and girls opportunities to pursue a career in STEM fields.

In this special episode, get ready for an incredible conversation with the amazing Xyla Foxlin. We sat down to chat about her love of aviation, her STEM journey, her passions and more! As a STEM creator, it was truly a pleasure to talk to someone who has really paved the way and you're in for an incredible discussion in this episode.

Check out Xyla! https://www.youtube.com/@xylafoxlin

We're diving into some archetypes that will leave your head spinning as they are some of the most complex to build. I spoke with the teams behind The Greatest Challenge, Chonkiv and Event Horizon/Singularity about each of their robots and how they stack up against each other. If you ever wanted to learn more about these archetypes or if you are thinking of designing one yourself - this is a perfect episode to check out!

On this episode, I talked with National STEM Champion Elle Saleeby who took a scary situation and turned it into an innovative opportunity to help fellow young people. Kids are frequently in danger of being hit by a vehicle while walking to school. When Elle experienced this herself, she recognized a need to have better protection and developed a backpack insert. Hear all about her amazing project and what she is looking forward to at the National STEM Festival.

It is once again that time of year for the National STEM Festival and this episode is all about incorporating recycling into 3D Printing technology. I sat down with Champion Levi Dunn whose passion for both recycling and 3D printing came together in his amazing project to reduce waste. Kari Byron joined us to give her thoughts on this project and share insights about the upcoming National STEM Festival.

This is a golden episode featuring all of the Golden Dumpster winners from NHRL's April Open Event! I talked to those builders who all came with designs they had put time and iteration into which led to success in this very entertaining and competitive event. Check out my conversations with Corey Nason of Synthesis, David Dreyer of Xenomorph and Evan Rosenblatt of Blunder!

Get ready for an amazing lesson on combat robotics as I was joined by Brandon Young, Liam King, Brian Jackson & Matt Lantry to celebrate the many types of robots in the sport. Learn about the differences between similar archetypes and why certain robots aren't as common. This is an extremely educational episode whether you're new to the sport or just want to learn about other archetypes.

For this episode, I sat down with Sean Becker whose Thagomizer robot design has introduced a new archetype to combat robotics. We talked about his capstone project that led to the introduction of this type of robot, why we don't see more thagomizer style robots right now and thoughts on where he might take his designs in the future.

For this episode, I sat down with Ben Howard of Team WPI whose robot Showtime! went all the way at the March NHRL event to claim the 3lb division Golden Dumpster. He spoke about exceeding his expectations at this event and we went through every fight including the very close final versus Chainsaw Kitty.

Bonus mini episode for you featuring an interview from combat robotics fan JediTrainee aka Norma with Team USA! Hear all about their amazing first run at Robot Rampage!

During the Olympics, robot builders from across the globe also gathered for their own international event in beautiful New Zealand called Robot Rampage! I was able to chat with representatives from every team about their experiences and the friendships they built during this amazing event. Hear from Team New Zealand, Team Australia, Team USA & tournament winner Team Brazil!

In this episode I am joined by some amazing people in the community - Ariel, TJ, Myles and Jamison to talk about the importance of a community mindset and good sportsmanship. We talk about staying humble, having fun and being a good example for new members of the community.

If you happened to catch the February NHRL event, you may have seen a crab dancing in the box. Crab Rangoon firmly cemented itself in the hearts of combat robotics fans and I talked to builder Eli Davis about his amazing design. We also talked about the importance of innovation and creativity in the sport at all levels.

We're going international in this episode and with the Olympics currently going on, it is a great time to talk about the Robot Rampage World Cup event coming up in New Zealand February 19-22. I spoke to Jack Barker and Connor Benton about this unique team-based event where design diversity is a key component of the matches. Hear all about what you can expect from this event both this year and plans for the future.

For more information visit https://www.robotrampage.co.nz/

The year just began and already there is so much to talk about in the world of combat robotics! I sat down with a group of builders including Tayshaun, Brian, Corey, Seth, Dan, George & Ryan to talk about how they feel in 2026. We discussed the overall outlook and focused in some hotter topics including the future of BattleBots as well as the rules and regulations changes for NHRL. See what everyone has to say!

Happy holidays and merry bloodshed! We have a new batch of Twitch Streamers battling in out in a fight between good and evil playing Blood on the Clocktower! This is a special home brew game featuring a variety of standard roles re-skinned for this game. Who is Hans Gruber? Is there a Sandy Claws in the game? So many questions to answer! Ring in your holidays with a little murder mystery! Check out the featured Twitch Streamers:

https://www.twitch.tv/cdutson

https://www.twitch.tv/mesmerchair

https://www.twitch.tv/geeandwizz

It was an incredible Finals event this year at NHRL with some expected wins and some robots flying under the radar. In the end, 3 Golden Bretts were awarded and I spoke to the builders who reached the peak and ended up just missing the win but having incredible runs in the process. I talked to one of the nicest guys in combat robotics Myles Sim about his undercutter Coldsnap, chatted with the Business Cat himself Brendan Steele about the highs and lows of the event and finally spoke to driving phenom Matt Vasquez about Lil Lash taking down the...

Finals are completed in the Midwest and I am joined by a handful of the builders who made deep runs in this tournament during a day filled with amazing fights. I talked to 2-time MRCA Beetleweight Champion Ian with Pipeline Punch, a trio of the antweight builders behind Ampere, Onyx & Poison, two of the most feared competitors in the midwest (and also two of the nicest) Remy & Rachel DeGuzman and then finally a bonus segment with an amazing young driver Lily Schorr and her brother Michael talking about the history and future of Carmine. Check it all out here!<...

It is that time of year again when I am joined by a bunch of amazing builders from all weight classes who managed to qualify for World Finals at NHRL. We talked about each of the robots and got everyone's predictions on who could walk away with the Golden Brett in each weight class.

What an incredible event in the final opportunity to qualify for the world championships - and I got to be joined by some of the builders who made deep runs in the bracket! First, I spoke to the youngest Golden Dumpster winner ever at 13 - Evan of Sir Slicey and his dad Sal as they reflected on some incredible wins on their path to the finals vs Mako. I also sat down with veteran builders including David Small who qualified with Son of Kram while getting some good wins with Puca as well and got to hear all about...

For lovers of innovation and creativity, this is the episode to watch. We kick off with an amazing interview with literal robot master Mark Setrakian, learn all about the development of the Creature Combat event from BattleBots co-creator Trey Roski, builder Donald Hutson & software engineer Arthon Greenspan, and then chat with a couple of the teams who brought their creatures to Vegas - the teams behind Arachnophobia and Armageddon.

We're twitchy and we're spooky for this Halloween special I'm affectionately calling Twitch Streamer Demon Hunters as I am joined by almost a dozen amazing gamers to play Blood on the Clocktower! Check out my first foray as the Storyteller while my friends try to sus out the Demon among them. Can you guess who is good and who is evil before our players do? #bloodontheclocktower #ttrpg #gaming

Check Out Our Players:

https://www.twitch.tv/totally_kaal

https://www.twitch.tv/bankenheim

https://www.twitch.tv/amara_lynne

...

We are fast approaching the final round of qualifiers with NHRL and I was excited to finally get the chance to chat with Brooks and John from Gator Robotics. They are bringing a swampful of robots with them to the November event including Termigator and Steggy. We chatted about their robotics club and what we can expect out of their crew at this last event before finals!

Welcome to my #OopsAllVerts episode where I chatted with some of the hard-hitting competitors at the most recent October NHRL qualifying event. I talked to Tristan whose robot Elytra has been tearing it up in the midwest and went nearly all the way for this event, then David whose new massive vert Xenomorph certainly put a scare into some builders and finally got to chat about Maccabot with Max, Jordon and Ilan about their promising new 30lb robot. It is an exciting episode you won't want to miss!

I had the pleasure of sitting down with Luke Horwath, a contestant on the most recent season of LEGO Masters and an engineering student at Notre Dame. We talked about his passion for engineering which was fueled by his love for LEGO and how his mom got to be so involved in that journey culminating in their appearance on the show together. We talked about some of his impressive builds outside of the show and so much more.

You can check out more about Luke at https://www.luke99studios.com/.

Welcome back to a brand new episode of Outside of the Box. We preview the October NHRL event with a promising young builder named Nathan who attends Rose Hulman and hopes to bust some brackets with his robot Erbert. This robot has made its presence known at events over the summer in the midwest and is my personal pick as a dark horse contender for this event. Hear about his building and iteration process as well as why he loves antweights. 

Prepare for an episode full of energy as we broke down the SEMO July Jamboree event at QuadCon in Peoria, Illinois. We first chat with Christopher who is the builder of Fingers Crossed and his team is here to have fun! We talk about his background and why it is so important to keep fun at the top of mind when fighting robots. I also talked to SEMO's Mike Mueller about the growth of his organization, how the July Jamboree went and future events.