Robots

This article is about Gray Mann's mechanical army. For the music track, see ROBOTS! For other uses, see Robot.

“

The robots are at our doorstep, men, and trust me – they are not going to be asking for a cup of sugar. No! These monsters are going to break down our doors, take our sugar, and sprinkle it on our graves! — The Soldier

”

Gray Mann's mechanical army. Pictured here from left to right are robot Demomen, Soldiers, Pyros, Medics, Heavies, Snipers, Scouts, and Spies.

Robots are the enemies fought in Mann vs. Machine, during missions. They were created by Gray Mann in order to destroy everything created by Mann Co.

Gameplay

Regular robots function nearly identically to the players, being operated by bots, whilst special robots exist that use non-Stock weapons, and other forms of robots exist with abilities and directives that no class normally possesses. Unlike players, robots can notably be sapped, temporarily disabling them often in groups, or in the case of giant robots, slowing them. As noted by Miss Pauling, they run on money, and they drop it when destroyed, allowing players to use that money to upgrade their weapons or buy a Power Up Canteen. Robots follow a set path to the bomb hole, marked by glowing blue arrows before each wave, though they may stray off that path if the bomb carrier is pushed away or to pursue a player. Robots will occasionally taunt after killing a player, and the bomb carrier will always taunt to receive its buff. Robots have an infinite supply of ammo, do not drop their weapons as pickups on death, and cannot collect health and ammo pickups. Robots also never randomly Crit, although some have a means of gaining the Critboost effect.

One robot per wave will enter the field armed with a bomb. The primary directive of the robots is to transport this bomb to the hatch at the end of the map, and the Defenders must stop them. After the bomb is dropped, another robot can pick it up. Any robot can carry the bomb, excluding the Sentry Buster and the Tank (although the Tank carries a separate bomb). Spies and Snipers won't actively try to pick up the bomb, but will if forced on to it via knockback. Carrying a bomb will slow a robot to about half speed, except Giant Robots. After all robots in a wave are killed, the wave is completed, while if the bomb is transported to the hatch and detonated, the wave is lost.

Robots have rudimentary behaviour. Their main objective is to either pick up the bomb and follow the preset path to the bomb hatch, or escort whichever robot is already doing so. On the whole, they do not take alternate routes to the bomb unless the sub-wave is programmed to flank, or the bomb has been dropped in a location off the main path. Robots generally do not care about destroying Dispensers and Teleporters if they are not in the way. They are also completely oblivious to cloaked and disguised Spies: they ignore flickering cloaks, collisions with "teammates", uncloaking noises, and possible Dead Ringers. They can detect if a nearby teammate has been backstabbed, but not with regularity. They do, however, always notice when a Spy is on fire.

Robots receive certain buffs after a period of time carrying the bomb, with new buffs stacking with the previous ones. A graphic on the HUD indicates which stage the bomb carrier is on and how long until it receives the next buff. Upon receiving a buff, the robot carrying the bomb will taunt with an accompanying sound cue, and surrounding robots will halt to wait for the carrier. The defending team can and should use this as a window of opportunity to kill the bomb carrier, especially if the robot is getting the third upgrade. These buffs will not occur if the bomb carrier is a Giant, though the HUD graphic shows a full meter.

Stages	Upgrades	Time Interval (Seconds)
First stage	Defensive buff, shared with all nearby robots	5
Second stage	45 health regenerated per second	15
Final stage	Full crits all the time	15

In each map there are areas, inaccessible to players, where the robots spawn and make their way into the playable area. While in this area, the robots are invulnerable (showing an ÜberCharge-like effect if attacked), immune to knockback, are unable to attack (although they may use their support items such as the Buff Banner), and the bomb carrier's meter will not charge.

Types

The standard robot set is designed off of each of the mercenaries employed under Blutarch and Redmond Mann and share their basic abilities. Regular robots are equipped with the stock loadout of the classes. Über Medics are not noted as regular robots, despite the fact that they use their Stock weapons.

Regular Robots

Machine Class	Equipped with	Abilities/Notes	Health
Scout	Scattergun Bat	Runs faster than other robots (133% speed). Attacks in groups. Can use Bat or Scattergun, but only one. Cannot switch weapons.	125
Soldier	Rocket Launcher	Can fire rockets. Runs slower than the majority of robots (80% speed). Attacks in groups.	200
Pyro	Flame Thrower	Uses Flame Thrower to attack up close. Can deal afterburn damage with flames that have made contact with players. Can airblast rockets back at players, including Sentry Gun rockets.	175
Demoman	Grenade Launcher	Uses Grenade Launcher to kill multiple enemies from a distance. Runs slightly slower than other robots (93% speed).	175
Heavy	Minigun	Uses Minigun to deal large amount of damage to nearby players. Runs slower than all robots (77% speed).	300
Engineer	Shotgun Wrench	Spawns by teleporting onto the map near the bomb. Builds a teleporter exit that acts as a forward spawn for the other robots. Builds and maintains a Sentry Gun to guard the teleporter. Support role only. A notification is always shown when an Engineer enters the map or its teleporter is built, and its entrance is announced by the Administrator. Killing one results in being notified if its teleporter is still active. Other Engineers also exist that have less health, do not teleport in, and in some cases do not build Teleporters.	500 or 275
Sniper	Sniper Rifle Kukri	Uses Sniper Rifle to deal a large amount of damage (and possibly an instant kill) to players. Uses Kukri to deal damage to nearby players. Cannot headshot. Sniper Rifle emits a laser to give away the Sniper's position. Support role only. A notification is always shown when a Sniper enters the map.	125
Spy	Revolver Sapper Knife Disguise Kit Invisibility Watch	Spawns from the players' side of the map. Disguises as players to fool them. Backstabs players from behind, usually while disguised. Cloaks with the Invisibility Watch to avoid detection. Saps Engineer buildings with the Sapper. Uses the Revolver to shoot at players when discovered. Support role only. A notification is always shown when a Spy enters the map, and its entrance is announced by the Administrator. Killing one results in being notified of how many Spies are left.	125

Variants

A number of variants based on the standard robots exist; their defining characteristics are based on other unlockable weapons rather than the signature Stock weapons. They are represented by a unique name and icon. Each special robot has the advantages and disadvantages of the original class it is based on, unless noted.

Machine Class	Name	Special Weapon	Abilities/Notes	Health
Scout	Minor League Scout	Sandman Batter's Helmet	Uses baseballs to temporarily stun players.	125
	Hyper League Scout	Sandman Batter's Helmet	Much faster recharge rate than Minor League Scouts.
	Bonk Scout	Bonk! Atomic Punch Bonk Helm	Able to bypass defenses without taking damage.
	Force-A-Nature Scout	Force-A-Nature Fed-Fightin' Fedora Bolt Boy	Knock back players to advance the front lines.
	Jumping Sandman Scout	Sandman Hanger-On Hood Flight of the Monarch	Jumps when hitting a baseball to temporarily stun players. Jump very high to dodge enemy attacks and stun players.
	Shortstop Scout	Shortstop	Smaller head size. Moves 25% faster than other Scouts.
Soldier	Buff Soldier	Buff Banner	Will start with full rage and buff immediately.	200
	Extended Buff Soldier		Will start with full rage and buff immediately. 9x buff duration.
	Extended Backup Soldier	Battalion's Backup
	Extended Conch Soldier	Concheror
	Black Box Soldier	Black Box	Fires 3 rockets at once which have a larger blast radius and heal 60 HP each. Less damage and 2 degree rocket spread.
	Liberty Launcher Soldier	Liberty Launcher	Fires 2 rockets at once that knock back enemies. Less damage and clip size, slower reload speed, and 2 degree rocket spread.
Pyro	Flare Pyro	Flare Gun, Detonator	Able to attack outside of flamethrower range. Deals crits and Mini-Crits against a burning target.	175
	Pyro Pusher	Scorch Shot	100% crit chance. 25% faster reload time. Flares are only 35% of normal speed.
	Fast Scorch Shot	Scorch Shot	100% crit chance. 25% faster reload time. 50% faster projectile speed.
Demoman	Demoknight (Type 1)	Eyelander Chargin' Targe	Can cover large distances very quickly by charging. Has longer melee range. Upon killing, receives 3 seconds of guaranteed critical hits.	150
	Demoknight (Type 2)	Ali Baba's Wee Booties Splendid Screen Persian Persuader Sultan's Ceremonial	More health and faster shield recharge rate than Type 1	200
	Burst Fire Demoman	Grenade Launcher	Much faster firing speed. 50% smaller clip size.	175
	Samurai Demo	Splendid Screen Half-Zatoichi Samur-Eye	Longer shield recharge rate and charge time. Very high jump height and does a lot more damage. Attacks with only secondary and melee.	650
Heavy	Heavy Shotgun	Shotgun	Faster reload and more pellets per shot. Less damage and slower firing speed. Attacks only with secondary. Attacks in groups.	300
	Deflector Heavy	Deflector U-clank-a	Similar attributes to regular heavy. Can shoot down projectiles such as rockets and grenades.
	Heavyweight Champ (Type 1)	Killing Gloves of Boxing Pugilist's Protector	Upon killing, receives 5 seconds of guaranteed critical hits. Attacks in groups. Attacks only with melee.
	Heavyweight Champ (Type 2)	Gloves of Running Urgently	Runs faster than other Heavy robots, at 99.67% speed. All damage taken is in the form of mini-crits. Attacks alongside Heavyweight Champs (Type 1), in smaller quantities. Attacks only with melee.
	Steel Gauntlet	Fists of Steel	Resistant to ranged damage. Weak to melee damage. Attacks only with melee.	900
	Steel Gauntlet Pusher	Fists of Steel Carl	50% damage bonus and deals knockback upon hitting an enemy.
	Heavy Mittens	Holiday Punch	Runs faster than other Heavy robots, at 100.1% speed. Attacks alongside Heavyweight Champs, in smaller quantities. Permanently critboosted, forcing players to laugh helplessly on a hit. Attacks only with melee.	60
Medic	Quick-Fix Medic	Quick-Fix Syringe Gun	Heals other robots. Heals quicker than with the normal Medi Gun. Cannot use ÜberCharge. When separated from its healing target, it will pull out a Syringe Gun and fire at players.	150
	Über Medic	Medi Gun Syringe Gun	Can heal other robots, building up ÜberCharge at a far faster rate. Can ÜberCharge, or make a robot and itself invincible for a limited period of time, when the ÜberCharge meter is filled. Spawns with nearly full ÜberCharge and will activate it as soon as either it or the healing target are reduced to 35% of their maximum health. When separated from its healing target, it will pull out a Syringe Gun and fire at players.	150
Sniper	Bowman	Huntsman	Can fire arrows that quickly charge to do more damage and deal large amounts of damage in headshots. Inaccurate from a distance. Can appear in a primary role, unlike other Sniper robots.	125
	Rapid Fire Bowman	Huntsman	Fires arrows much faster than regular Bowmen.	1200
	Sydney Sniper	Sydney Sleeper	Shoots Jarate-coated darts, which covers the player in Jarate, making all damage taken from enemies to be a mini-crit. Cannot headshot.	125
	Razorback Sniper	Razorback	Shares the same attributes from normal Sniper bot, but cannot be backstabbed.

Giant Robots

Giant Robots are notably larger than other robots. They can only be slowed by a Sapper rather than destroyed by it, and they cannot be killed or even damaged by a backstab unless the knife is upgraded. They sport significantly more health than other robots, but move at half speed. Unlike regular robots, they are not slowed at all while carrying the bomb. Their presence in a wave is noted by a red background behind their class symbol in the pre-wave overhead. Giant Robots that carry the bomb do not receive buffs for it. All Giant Robots also have resistance to knock back.

Giant Robot versions exist of the Scout, Soldier, Pyro, Demoman, Medic, and Heavy. Multiple Giant Robots can occur in a single wave, either of the same class or not.

Machine Class	Name	Equipped with	Abilities	Health
Scout	Super Scout	Holy Mackerel Bonk Boy	Moves at nearly double the speed of a normal Scout.	1200
	Force-A-Nature Super Scout	Force-A-Nature Fed-Fightin' Fedora Bolt Boy	Greater knockback power which can repel attacks. Moves slightly faster than a normal Scout.
	Giant Jumping Sandman Scout	Sandman Hanger-On Hood Flight of the Monarch	Significantly higher damage and ball recharge rate Increased jump height Has a larger head than normal
	Major League Scout	Sandman Batter's Helmet Essential Accessories	Can use the Sandman's stun ability. Moves as fast as a regular Scout.	1600
	Giant Bonk Scout	Bonk! Atomic Punch Bat Bonk Helm	Use their bonk to run through the area while invincible for a few seconds. Their bonk's recharge rate is increased by 45% Moves as fast as a regular Scout.
	Armored Giant Sandman Scout	Sandman Batter's Helmet	Very fast recharge rate Move 25% slower	3000
Soldier	Giant Soldier	Rocket Launcher	No special abilities.	3800
	Giant Buff Banner Soldier		Will start with full rage and buff immediately. 9x buff duration.
	Giant Battalion Soldier
	Giant Concheror Soldier
	Giant Rapid Fire Soldier		Fires rockets continuously at a faster rate than regular Giant Soldiers. Rockets move 35% slower
	Giant Burst Fire Soldier (Type 1)		Fires extremely fast Improved clip size and reload rate Rockets move 35% slower
	Giant Charged Soldier	Original	Rockets fired are always critical hits. Rockets travel 50% slower. Fires two times slower
	Giant Blast Soldier	Liberty Launcher	Improved blast radius, reload rate, clip size, and firing speed. Rockets knock players back very far.
	Colonel Barrage	Rocket Launcher	Releases a slow-moving wall of rockets at players Increased damage, clip size, reload rate, and firing speed.	4000
	Giant Black Box Soldier	Black Box	Fires 3 rockets at once. Rockets have a large blast radius and heal 1000 HP each.	4200
	Giant Burst Fire Soldier (Type 2)	Rocket Launcher	2.0x damage dealt 100% crit chance Improved firing speed, reload speed, clip size
	Sergeant Crits		Extremely large Regenerates health 100% crit chance Improved damage, firing speed, reload speed, projectile speed, clip size	60000
	Major Crits		Extremely large Regenerates health 100% crit chance Improved damage, firing speed, reload speed, projectile speed, clip size. Releases a slow-moving wall of rockets at players.
	Chief Blast Soldier	Liberty Launcher	Extremely large Improved damage, firing speed, reload speed, projectile speed, clip size, and blast radius. Rockets knock back players very far.
Pyro	Giant Pyro	Flamethrower	Can, and will whenever possible, airblast incoming projectiles.	3000
	Giant Flare Pyro	Detonator Old Guadalajara	Shoots deadly accurate shots with the Detonator.
Demoman	Giant Rapid Fire Demoman	Grenade Launcher	Two types; Fires grenades at either (Type 1) 25% or (Type 2) 50% faster than a regular Grenade Launcher. Type 1 has a faster reload time	3300 (Type 1) or 3000 (Type 2)
	Giant Burst Fire Demo		Increased clip size Fires extremely fast	3300
	Giant Demoknight	Ali Baba's Wee Booties Chargin' Targe Eyelander	Restricted to melee range, but gains 3 seconds of 100% critical chance on a kill.	3300
	Major Bomber	Grenade Launcher Prince Tavish's Crown	Extremely large Regenerates health 100% crit chance Improved firing speed, reload speed, projectile speed, clip size	40000
	Sir Nukesalot	Loose Cannon	Extremely large Increased damage and 100% crit chance Explosion is larger, knocks back players and uses a larger explosion effect Decreased clip size, projectile speed and reload rate Fires two times slower	50000
Heavy	Giant Heavy	Minigun	50% Damage Bonus 70% Knockback resistance Moves at half speed Limited sight range	5000
	Giant Shotgun Heavy	Shotgun	Faster reload speed and 9x more pellets per shot Can instantly kill a player in one shot Can shoot down projectiles Moves at 70% speed Less damage and slower firing speed
	Giant Deflector Heavy	Deflector U-clank-a	In addition to regular Giant Heavy abilities, can shoot down projectiles such as rockets and grenades.
	Giant Heater Heavy	Huo-Long Heater	Nearly identical to the regular Giant Heavy, but has unlimited sight range. Impossible to get close to without getting set on fire.
	Captain Punch	Fists of Steel War Head	Extremely large Regenerates health Resistant to ranged damage, weak to melee damage 100% crit chance Deals 5.0x damage, improved firing speed	60000
	Giant Heal-on-Kill Heavy	Deflector Tungsten Toque	Extremely large Can shoot down projectiles +8000 health restored on kill	70000
Medic	Giant Medic	Quick-Fix	Two Types Both heals at a rapid rate. Type 1 can ÜberCharge to heal health at an even quicker rate while being immune to movement impairing effects. Type 2 regenerates health but is unable to ÜberCharge.	4500

Sentry Buster

The Sentry Buster is literally a bomb on legs. It is never predetermined to spawn during a wave, and only spawns if an Engineer is doing significant damage with his Sentry Gun to the robot horde. Its arrival is announced by a ticking theme, a HUD notification, and an announcement from the Administrator. If the team has multiple Engineers with Sentry Guns, a Sentry Buster can spawn for each problematic Sentry Gun. An exploding Sentry Buster damages everything within range, including other robots.

Machine	Based on	Notes	Health
Sentry Buster	Demoman	Detects Sentry Guns that are dealing significant damage to the horde and runs at the offending Sentry Gun, exploding two seconds after deploying. Cannot carry bombs like ordinary robots. Will always explode: either upon reaching the Sentry (even if the Engineer hauls it) or upon running out of health.	2500

Tank

Noted as "???" in the official Mann vs. Machine update page, the tank is a rare enemy that usually appears for one or two waves per mission, rarely more than once in one wave. It has a large amount of health, but no attack method (though it can kill players and other robots via crushing between walls or props while turning). It does, however, carry a bomb, and it cannot be stopped by any means other than its destruction. The final tank in every mission features black and white stripes.

Machine	Notes	Health
Tank	Extremely large amount of health. Deals no damage. Will deploy a bomb once at the bomb hatch.	Anywhere between 10000 and 60000 on official maps, based on the length of the path the tank must travel and its intended difficulty

Related achievements

Mann vs. Machievements

.executioner In a single wave, kill 15 bomb-carrying robots in a row before they level up. Balls-E Destroy the tank during the final seconds of the bomb being deployed. Ctrl + Assault + Delete Destroy a sentry buster before it reaches its target. Clockwork Carnage Destroy two tanks within 5 seconds of each other. Clockwork Conqueror Destroy a tank within 20 seconds of its arrival. Do Androids Dream? As a Scout, use the Sandman to mark 15 robots for death in a single wave. German Engineering Use a canteen charged with 'ÜberCharge' to destroy 15 robots. Ghost in the Machine Use a canteen charged with 'Teleport to Spawn' and then kill the bomb carrier within 5 seconds. Heavy Mettle During a wave, use rage as a Heavy to push a robot about to deliver the bomb.

Kritical Terror Use a canteen charged with 'Crit Boost' to destroy a giant robot. Metal Massacre Destroy 1,000,000 robots. Negative Charge Kill 5 Medics that are ready to deploy an ÜberCharge in a wave. Real Steal As an Engineer, escape with your sentry as a sentry buster is about to detonate. Silicon Slaughter Destroy 100,000 robots. Sly Voltage As a Spy, sap 10 robots at once. Spam Blocker During a wave, defend the hatch 10 times from robots about to deliver a bomb. Spark Plugger As a Sniper, kill 4 enemies simultaneously.

Gallery

• 

  The full Mann vs. Machine Day 1: Machines update page.

• 

  Giant Robots, seen on the Mann vs. Machine Day 1: Machines page.

• 

  A diagram of a robotic Scout, seen in the Engineer Update.

Unused content

• RED versions of all of the robots (besides the Tank and Sentry Buster) can be found in the game files.
• There is an unused Gatebot helmet in the files, which resembles a Payload bomb with lights on the eyes, sides and on top. There are also three Gatebot lights specific to the Medic Robot. One adds a light to the chest and the back of the head, one adds a similar set of lights, but with more metal around them, and the other one adds two lights to the ear section of the head. The final Gatebot light also puts a light with a small cable hanging off of it, made to resemble a fez, on top of the head.
• Below is the list of all robots that appear in the game's files, but are unused.

Scout Robot

Scout

Icon	Name	Melee	Attributes
	Scout	Holy Mackerel	—

Wrap Assassin

Icon	Name	Melee	Attributes
	Wrap Assassin	Wrap Assassin	—

Giant Scout

Icon	Name	Primary	Attributes
	Giant Scout	Scattergun	1,600 HP  +30% knockback resistance

Major League

Icon	Name	Melee	Hat	Misc 1	Misc 2	Attributes
	Major League	Sandman	Cockfighter	Summer Shades	Boston Boom-Bringer	10,000 HP  +800% move speed

Pyro Robot

Giant Airblast Pyro

Icon	Name	Primary	Hat	Attributes
	Giant Airblast Pyro	Degreaser	Dead Cone	3,000 HP  +400% airblast force  +40% knockback resistance  -99.5% damage penalty  -50% move speed

Chief Pyro

Icon	Name	Primary	Attributes
	Chief Pyro	Flame Thrower	55,000 HP  +100% airblast force  +40% knockback resistance  Regenerates 500 HP per second  -50% move speed

Demoman Robot

Chief Tavish

Icon	Name	Primary	Secondary	Melee	Hat	Attributes
	Chief Tavish	Ali Baba's Wee Booties	Chargin' Targe	Eyelander	Prince Tavish's Crown	55,000 HP  +40% knockback resistance  Regenerates 500 HP per second  -50% move speed

Heavy Robot

Heavy Mittens

Icon	Name	Melee	Hat	Misc	Attributes
	Heavy Mittens	Holiday Punch	Point and Shoot	All-Father	35% smaller in size  100% crit chance  +30% faster move speed  60 HP

Giant Heavy

Icon	Name	Primary	Attributes
	Giant Heavy	Natascha	5,000 HP  +70% knockback resistance  +50% damage bonus  -50% move speed

Giant Heavy

Icon	Name	Primary	Attributes
	Giant Heavy	Brass Beast	5,000 HP  +70% knockback resistance  +50% damage bonus  -50% move speed

Super Heavyweight Champ

Icon	Name	Melee	Hat	Attributes
	Super Heavyweight Champ	Killing Gloves of Boxing	Pugilist's Protector	5,000 HP  +70% knockback resistance  +20% damage bonus  +40% attack rate  -50% move speed

Sniper Robot

Jarate Master

Icon	Name	Secondary	Hat	Attributes
	Jarate Master	Jarate	Desert Marauder	+90% recharge rate  Game files indicate it was cut for not having working animations

Bugs

• When a robot is forced to laugh from the Holiday Punch, the player can hear the laughter, but there is only an animation for the Engineer Robot. When laughing, they still have the ability to move, but cannot fire their weapons.

Trivia

• Unlike the regular classes, who face the direction they're aiming and walk sideways or backwards, most robots are split across the waist so that their top half is facing the way they're aiming but their bottom half is facing the way they're moving.
• All robots have voice lines, robotic versions of the voice lines used by the class they are modeled on. All lack facial animations while doing so, say for the Heavy Robot, whose jaw moves up and down.
  • All voice lines added to the game before the Mann vs. Machine Update are available in robotic form, despite many of them being impossible to hear (e.g. lines relating to capping points or Payload carts).
• The Soldier, Demoman, and Sniper robots appear to use the regular human idle animations when they use melee, rather than the jittery idle animations used by the other robots.
• The programming for the Bomb is similar to that of the Intelligence, and the robots will perform responses based on this. The human players, however, have specific voice responses related to the bomb.
• Robots wearing robot hats (such as the Scout robot and Sniper robot) wear the RED version of their headgear. If set to equip the actual headgear (in these cases, Robot Running Man and Bolted Bushman respectively), they will have a bluer tint on their hats.
• Giant robots, with the exception of the Giant Medic, use different models with slightly skewed proportions (most notably a smaller head and larger torso) and more detail to make up for their larger size. The models themselves are the same size as the normal robots' but are scaled up 1.75X in-game. All hitboxes are the same for these gigantic robots despite these proportions.
  • They also have separate, more heavily-distorted voice lines, which are notably deeper and more mechanical-sounding than their human-sized counterparts. The Sniper, Spy, Engineer, and Medic robots, however, do not have these voice lines.
• Engineer Robots appeared in the game files since the Mann vs. Machine Update, but were initially unused by Valve until the Mecha Update.

External links

• Mann vs. Machine Day 1 - The Machines