Autonomous Bonus | 6 Points |
Each Ring Scored on a Stake | 1 Point |
Each Top Ring on a Stake | 3 Points |
Ring Scored on the High Stake | See <SC9> |
Climb - Level 1 | 3 Points |
Climb - Level 2 | 6 Points |
Climb - Level 3 | 12 Points |
Each Ring Scored on a Mobile Goal Stake that has been Placed in a Corner | See <SC6> |
<SC1> All Scoring statuses are evaluated after the Match ends. Scores are calculated 5 seconds after the Match ends, or once all Scoring Objects, Field Elements, and Robots on the Field come to rest, whichever comes first.
- This 5 second delay is intended to be the only permitted “benefit of the doubt” for last-second scoring actions. If an object or Robot is still in motion and “too close to call” between two states at the 5-second mark, then the less advantageous of the two states should be awarded to the Robot(s) in question. For example:
- A Robot which has Climbed on the Ladder but is slowly drooping down, and crosses a Level threshold right at 5 seconds, would be considered in the lower of the two Levels.
- A Ring which slowly slides out of a Robot’s mechanism and lands on a Stake right at 5 seconds would not be considered Scored.
- At the end of the Match, the on-screen timer displayed by Tournament Manager will hold the current Match information and “0:00” for 5 seconds before moving to queue the next Match. This should be the primary 5-second visual cue used by Teams and Head Referees.
- This 5 second delay is only intended to be a “benefit of the doubt” grace period, not an extra 5 seconds of Match time. Robots which are designed to strategically exploit this grace period will receive a Minor Violation, and any post-Match movement will not be included in score calculation (i.e., the Match will be scored as it was at 0:00).
<SC2> Scoring of the Autonomous Bonus is evaluated immediately after the Autonomous Period ends (i.e., once all Scoring Objects, Field Elements, and Robots on the Field come to rest).
- Climb points and Corner modifiers are not included in the calculation of an Alliance’s score for the purposes of determining the Autonomous Bonus.
- If the Autonomous Period ends in a tie, including a zero-to-zero tie, each Alliance will receive an Autonomous Bonus of three (3) points.
- Any rule Violations, Major or Minor, during the Autonomous Period will result in the Autonomous Bonus being awarded to the other Alliance. If both Alliances violate rules during the Autonomous Period, no Autonomous Bonus will be awarded.
<SC3> A Ring is considered Scored on a Stake if it meets the following criteria:
- The Ring is “encircling” a Stake. In this context, “encircling” means that any part of the Stake is at least partially within the volume defined by the inner edges of the Ring.
- Each Ring can only be counted for points once, even in cases where the Ring qualifies as Scored on multiple Stakes.
- If multiple Stakes are encircled by the same Ring, Top Rings will not be awarded for those Stakes.
- If multiple Stakes are encircled by the same Ring and either of those Stakes is on a Mobile Goal that is Placed in a corner, that Ring should earn the points for the Stake that is not Placed in the Corner (i.e., that Ring should be Scored as 1 point, and not modified by the Corner). Intentionally causing a Ring to be Scored on multiple Stakes will, at minimum, receive a Minor Violation.
- The Stake does not exceed its total permitted number of Rings (see definition of Stake). In the event of too many Rings on a Stake, the "highest" Ring(s) will not be considered Scored on the Stake. If the "highest" Ring(s) cannot be determined, neither/none of those Rings will be considered Scored on the Stake.
Note: There is no requirement for a Mobile Goal to be upright in order for its Rings to be considered Scored. Contact with any other Field Elements or Rings is irrelevant.
Significant Q&As
Figure SC3-1: The six (6) green highlighted Rings would be considered as Scored, because they are “encircling” a Stake. The three (3) red highlighted Rings would not be considered as Scored, because they exceed the permitted number of Rings on the Mobile Goal Stake.
Figure SC3-2: Even though the Mobile Goal is not upright, the six (6) green highlighted Rings would be considered as Scored, because they meet all criteria listed above. The red highlighted Ring would not be considered as Scored because it is not “encircling” the Stake.
<SC4> A Ring is considered a Top Ring if it meets the following criteria:
- The Ring is Scored on a Stake (i.e., meets all criteria in <SC3>).
- The Ring is the furthest Scored Ring from a given Stake’s base (i.e., Mobile Goal base or Field Perimeter wall).
- There is no minimum number of Rings required; if only one Ring is Scored on a Stake, then it is still considered that Stake’s Top Ring.
Note: A Ring that is considered a Top Ring does not also receive points for being Scored on a Stake; i.e., that Ring is worth 3 points, not a total of “3 + 1” points.
Note 2: If a Top Ring cannot be determined, but the two Rings in question are of the same color, then either of them may be considered the Top Ring. If the two Rings in question are of opposite colors, then that Stake will have no Top Rings.
<SC5> A Mobile Goal is considered Placed in a Corner if it meets the following criteria:
- The Mobile Goal’s base (any part of the Mobile Goal that is not the Stake or the flexible top) is contacting the Floor and/or a white tape line.
- Some portion of the flexible top of the Mobile Goal's Stake is higher than the top edge of the Field Perimeter.
- The Mobile Goal base is breaking the plane of the Corner.
Note: Only one Mobile Goal may be considered Placed in each Corner. If multiple Mobile Goals meet the above requirements in the same Corner, the following criteria will be used as a series of “tiebreakers” to determine which Mobile Goal is Placed. If a Head Referee determines that a tiebreaker is visually too close to call, the Mobile Goals will remain tied and the Head Referee should move to the next tiebreaker.
- The Mobile Goal whose base extends farthest into the Corner is Placed. See Figure SC5-1.
- The Mobile Goal whose Stake is most vertical (perpendicular to the Floor) is Placed.
- The Mobile Goal whose flexible top extends farthest into the Corner is Placed.
- If multiple Mobile Goals are still tied for the above criteria, then no Mobile Goal is considered Placed in this Corner.
Significant Q&As
Figure SC5-1: Per the first tiebreaker, and as shown by the arrows in the image, the base of the left Mobile Goal extends farther into the Corner. Therefore, the left Mobile Goal would be considered Placed in this Corner. Referees should assess this criteria by looking straight down onto the corner and tape line. The distance represented by the arrows is evaluated perpendicular to the tape line.
<SC6> A Mobile Goal that has been Placed will result in the following Corner modifiers to its Scored Rings:
-
Placed in a Positive Corner
- Values of all Scored Rings on the Mobile Goal will be doubled. Scored Rings will receive two (2) points, and Scored Top Rings will receive six (6) points.
-
Placed in a Negative Corner
- Values of all Scored Rings on the Mobile Goal will be set to zero points.
- For each Ring, an equivalent amount of points will be removed from that Alliance’s other Scored Rings. Scored Rings will remove (1) point, and Scored Top Rings will remove three (3) points.
- This negator only applies to an Alliance’s “Ring points.” Points received for Climbing and the Autonomous Bonus cannot be removed.
Note: The impact of Corner modifiers is subject to change in any of the major Game Manual updates (June 25, 2024; September 3, 2024; January 28, 2025; and/or April 2, 2025).
Example | Before Negative Corner | After Negative Corner | Notes | ||
1 |
Stake 2 was initially worth 5 points for the Blue Alliance, but is now worth negative 5 points after being moved into the Negative Corner. |
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Blue: +6 Points | Blue: +5 Points | Blue: +6 Points | Blue:-5 Points | Blue: +1 Point | |
2 |
Even though the net total is -1, you cannot have negative total points. |
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Blue: +4 Points | Blue: +5 Points | Blue: +4 Points | Blue:-5 Points | Blue: 0 Points | |
3 |
Even though the Blue Alliance has no Top Rings, the negative Top Ring still removes three points. Because none of the red Alliance’s Rings are Scored in the Negative Corner, their points are not affected. |
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Red: +3 Points Blue: +4 Points | Blue: +4 Points | Red: +3 Points Blue: +4 Points | Blue: -4 Points |
Red: +3 Points Blue: 0 Points |
|
4 |
Corners do not affect Climb or Autonomous Bonus Points. |
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Blue: +3 Points | Blue: +5 Points | Blue: +3 Points | Blue:-5 Points | +3 Points |
<SC7> A Robot is considered to have Climbed to a Level if it meets the following criteria:
- The Robot is contacting the Ladder.
- The Robot is not contacting any other Field Elements, including the gray foam tiles.
- The Robot’s lowest point is past that Level’s minimum height from the gray foam tiles.
- Each Level corresponds to a vertical section of the Ladder. For example, a Level 1 Climb represents a Robot whose lowest point is above the foam tiles, but not higher than the black rung of the Ladder.
Significant Q&As
Figure SC7-1: A depiction of the different Levels and Planes of the Ladder
Figure SC7-2: This Robot is still in contact with the top of the first Ladder rung. Therefore, it would receive credit for a Level 1 Climb.
<SC8> An Autonomous Win Point is awarded to any Alliance that ends the Autonomous Period with the following tasks completed, and that has not broken any rules during the Autonomous Period:
- At least three (3) Scored Rings of the Alliance's color
- A minimum of two (2) Stakes on the Alliance's side of the Autonomous Line with at least one (1) Ring of the Alliance's color Scored
- Neither Robot contacting / breaking the plane of the Starting Line
- At least one (1) Robot contacting the Ladder
For events which qualify directly to the World Championship (e.g., Event Region Championships and Signature Events), the following tasks must be completed for an Alliance to receive an Autonomous Win Point. The standard criteria above still apply to all other events.
- At least four (4) Scored Rings of the Alliance's color.
- A minimum of three (3) Stakes on the Alliance's side of the Autonomous Line with at least one (1) Ring of the Alliance's color Scored.
- At least one Ring of the Alliance's color Scored on the Alliance's Wall Stake.
- Neither Robot contacting / breaking the plan of the Starting Line.
- At least one (1) Robot contacting the Ladder.
Significant Q&As
- 2077 - Neutral Wall Stakes don’t count toward the AWP
- 2117 - The expanded AWP criteria for World-qualifying events do not apply to the VEX U or VEX AI Robotics Competitions
- 2147 - All Scored Rings count toward the AWP criteria, regardless of where they’re Scored
- 2248 - Contacting the Ladder with a non-functional decoration (including a license plate) doesn’t meet the AWP criterion
- 2261 - Each Stake used to meet the 2nd criteria must include at least one Scored Ring of the Alliance’s color
- 2325 - Transitive contact with the Ladder (e.g., with a Ring) doesn’t meet the 4th criteria
- 2327 - For the 2nd criteria, Mobile Goals cannot be overhanging the Autonomous Line
- 2332 - It doesn’t matter which Alliance/Robot completes these tasks, just that they’re completed
- 2364 - Contacting the Ladder with any functional Robot part (not decoration) meets the 4th criteria
<SC9> A High Stake bonus is available to an Alliance that ends the Match with a Ring Scored on the High Stake. Each Robot from that Alliance which has earned points for a Climb will receive an additional two (2) points for that Climb. A Ring Scored on the High Stake will also earn a bonus three (3) points in addition to the standard three (3) points earned for a Top Ring, for a total of six (6) points.