The Brown Crown Goes To Rlbabits! R7 posted anyways...

[rianbay812]

Maybe he's sending a subliminal message...he solved it with a "right hook"????? hmmmmmmmmmmm

I got really close a couple days ago but that last part is difficult. I'm actually doing fine on pieces, I just don't know how to fit that extensive of an extender/super catapult up there amongst the other stuff.

At any rate, I'll probably try and build it from scratch this afternoon between swim practices. This is hard. But I have an idea.

[rlbabits]

give rianbay so much crap? but dad, he started it! look at his avatar for pete's sake

no i didn't give you any hints in that post..haha i'd actually like to help. im hoping my poking fun at ya is not being taken seriously its more of a motivational tool/just fun..well imo. but yea id give you a few hints if we didn't have that little bet going on rianbay although the only reason i wouldn't wanna see you solve this monster is i dont wanna have to solve another like it...haha it was a lot of work/time at least for me.

also schmittd..that was actually not on purpose :S but it is well placed anyway haha

[rianbay812]

I literally have the craziest most insane idea for weight distribution ever. It's so crazy it just might work.

[Error-QM]

I literally have the craziest most insane idea for weight distribution ever. It's so crazy it just might work.

Brian this post is made of win. This would go in my sig if FC had them.

[rianbay812]

I have a headache. Stupid ball phasing through the bridge....
It'll be close, I dunno if I can make the deadline, but it's definately possible with this design. Just gotta find the right tweak

[Pawel.Anikiel]

lol i have NO idea how do you do that...

[rlbabits]

yea rianbay i got stuck in a position like that too...the suspense is killing me tho! and i wonder how insane r7 will be if you manage a solve..not sure i wanna find out lol.

[Wafflekins]

Did I mention I can't even get the ball to where the first ghost dynamic piece is? I think I might be out

[rianbay812]

Did I mention I can't even get the ball to where the first ghost dynamic piece is? I think I might be out

The retrieving is the easiest part. Well...it would be. But I decided to make everything one machine, so we all know how much of a tweakfest that can be.

I'm praying my last catapult will work by the end of tonight.

[schmittd]

i wonder how insane r7 will be if you manage a solve..not sure i wanna find out lol.

yall are gonna hate me

But I decided to make everything one machine, so we all know how much of a tweakfest that can be.

good luck

[rianbay812]

Sorry babits, looks like time ran out for me.
Just couldn't find the right tweak on the last catapult, and even then I wasn't sure if it was going to work anyway.

Since it's passed the deadline here's where I got:
http://www.fantasticcontraption.com/?designId=11770292

Excuse the ugliness, check out that one weighted machine which sprawls out two arms and a retriver!

[jdccdj1]

Sorry babits, looks like time ran out for me.
Just couldn't find the right tweak on the last catapult, and even then I wasn't sure if it was going to work anyway.

Since it's passed the deadline here's where I got:
http://www.fantasticcontraption.com/?designId=11770292

Excuse the ugliness, check out that one weighted machine which sprawls out two arms and a retriver!

Awesome try, rianbay!...and that is a COOL machine!...wish you found the right tweak, but there is always next time

i accidentally erased my progress days ago and tried again from scratch last night, but i still could not figure out how
to do the right side goal area with the limited workspace...but, all-in-all, it was a good comp---thx schmittd

[Jyo]

Sorry babits, looks like time ran out for me.
Just couldn't find the right tweak on the last catapult, and even then I wasn't sure if it was going to work anyway.

Since it's passed the deadline here's where I got:
http://www.fantasticcontraption.com/?designId=11770292

Excuse the ugliness, check out that one weighted machine which sprawls out two arms and a retriver!

the underarm-retriever combo is super impressive. kudos

[rlbabits]

Wohoo! im da winner!
great comp schmittd! lots of fun! ..can you post r7 anyway haha id like to see if all of us can solve that badboy (:
Wow that was a pretty good shot tho rianbay! There is somthing startlingly interesting about this round that i suspected might happen, because the level is pretty close to impossible. I too had to make multiple machines connected at the base as well under one weight, but i did it earlier in the week because i knew it had to be done and i would need much time to tweek (plus i knew i was gonna party wed thur fri and saturday for the fourth of july with friends ) ...so i didn't do much experimenting with separate mechanisms. and rianbay if you look at your design vs. mine, the reason i could tweak mine to victory quicker was even tho multiple mechanisms were attached, the way i did it held a few of these variables constant, so i had less to worry about when tweaking (although it was still hell)

*interesting theory under construction.. if you wanna read thru the following b.s*

*edit: yea wow a lot of this is directionless babble but you can use it to reach some interesting conclusions


here's my solve http://www.fantasticcontraption.com/?designId=11769153 LOOK AT HOW SIMILAR THIS IS TO RIANBAY'S. completely nuts. here is a theory for why our designs were so similar (unless rianbay peeked at my design id's but i really doubt it) : as a level approaches a number of designs that will work of 0, regardless of difficulty, the number of solutions approaches zero...this leads to some interesting insights; when the number of concepts that can solve a level reaches 1, that level has reached its maximum potential for difficulty. (excluding tweaking and disregarding speed and badges) and is as close to being impossible as possible

now, with this in mind, i see two variables left to determine the difficulty. size of the build area and the environment. these are variables for a calculation of difficulty because they determine how many different concepts can be made, and how many can be ruled out (via environment). for example, a proven solved level with a build area the size of a long wood rod is very close to impossible, because you can only place down a wood rod to solve the level (only one mechanism works). but it is also very easy because the number of possible mechanisms is only 2, wood rod or water rod. environment matters as well, because sometimes its obvious what will work and what won't, for example some levels can only be solved with a pult, ruling out most arm mechanisms that cant pult well. so, if you have a very large build area like in this level, with nearly infinite choices for mechanisms, and you have to find one that will work, your only choice is to use what you can gain from your environment to solve the level, which defines the solving abillity of the player in this game- how well the contraptioneer can rule out what wont work based on the environment. the designs needed to be both very complicated and very specific because the level was nearly impossible and rianbay and i drew up what we could based on the environment we were put in..

our deisgns were similar beacuse of the environment and build area size only allowed one or two different methods for solving, and the level was very difficult because it was hard to rule out what would and wouldn't work based on the environment

so keeping these variables in mind:
number of solves that will work
environement
build area size
difficulty


roll with me here a lot is wrong with this theory and i did not articulate my thoughts very well but im gonna fix it up..just really tired today there is also a lot of interesting things that i will soon be able to explain...

also rianbay...na na na bo bo im better than you stick your head in do do.

[Wafflekins]

Holy butts guys! rianbay you were super close... and rl I bet you cheated

I'm curious to see what round 7 would have been!

[rianbay812]

Good theory! I've found that hard corners, extenders/machines that require more weight, and dynamic obstacles are usually qualities of a high difficulty level. That was quite a book you wrote there, can't wait to read the later chapters

[rlbabits]

Holy butts guys! rianbay you were super close... and rl I bet you cheated

I'm curious to see what round 7 would have been!

rianbay posted he had a new idea for weight distribution and a completely new design after i solved the level, otherwise yes it would seem suspicious look through the posts :P

thanks rianbay haha i hope that you and some other people can help me out i think we can figure out quite a bit about this game and make things that used to be intuitive into logical steps...and perhaps learn how to easier solve tough levels and save time lol..


also i would really like to see if remy would have solved the level in a similar way..or somthing else..i can see maybe 2 other ways that would work

[rianbay812]

I found out a way in the beginning...
If you throw the ball hard enough at the bottom of the tipping static, it will tip it over and roll in

[rlbabits]

yea i did that too in a test but you needed to make almost a full arm for that to work with a good angle anyway and a pretty heavy weight..you wouldn't have enough pieces to actually make that work IMO...only way else i could see of solving would be to have the retriever throw the ball all the way to the other side without the little booster pult. then you would be able to do the end part differently

[jdccdj1]

congrats rlbabits!...and i agree with parts of your theory...the ball retriever i came up with in the beginning: http://www.fantasticcontraption.com/?designId=11766766 looks similar to yours where the structure also
becomes the pull back weight...this was an early idea and about the only idea i could come up with given
the workspace...i managed to get it to the bottom using as much independent mechs as possible, but like
i said earlier, i erased it by mistake..i tried again to recreate it but gave up 'cause it was just gonna take too
many pieces: http://www.fantasticcontraption.com/?designId=11770236 ...i guess what really discouraged
me was not knowing how to make a delayed drop weight for the final pult or how to get rid of that yellow
dynamic at the goal...congrats again and looking forward to reading more of your thoughts