Stalker

**潜行者** (**Qiánxíng zhě**, meaning **Stalker**, alternately referred to by Zhejiang STV as **Lurker**) was a Chinese competitor robot which competed in *King of Bots II*. It fell somewhat under the radar during the first round, and Stalker was not selected by any celebrities for their teams, relegating it to the redemption rounds. There, it took significant damage from the spinners of Mr Hippo and White Tiger Guardian, losing the four-way rumble, and its place in the competition.

## Design

Stalker was a low-profile design using a four-wheel drive system, for high top speeds and pushing power. A very defensive robot, Stalker's armor was thick around all sides, protecting its internals well, and its primary weapon intended to resist spinning weapons while Stalker charges into them, and potentially inflict recoil damage onto its opponents. The primary weapon is a thick lifting plough, with three forks at the front to provide a low ground clearance with the arena floor, and the forks are also jagged to try and catch robots and hold them in place. The lifting plough boasted 360 degrees of rotation, which allowed the robot to self-right easily and even turn itself over when the robot is already upright, and also lift robots up to a fairly lofty height. Despite its effective self-righting mechanism, Stalker can also run inverted. However, the frame supporting its lifter was fairly weak, and was ultimately torn away in battle.

Stalker borrows core design cues from existing four-wheel driven box-lifters, such as Wrecker, while its visual design uses pink and camouflage textures to match its name.

## Robot History

### King of Bots II (Season 2)

Stalker was among the Chinese robots available for selection in the opening rounds of the competition. However, Stalker was largely overlooked by the celebrity captains, and ultimately the first round concluded without Tank being selected for a celebrity team. As a result, Stalker was knocked into the redemption rounds, where it faced Mr Hippo, Ouch Ouch and White Tiger Guardian in a four-way rumble, with only one robot able to win and earn a place on a celebrity team.

Stalker's first move was to drive behind the back of Ouch Ouch and was using its lifter, but instead threw itself over, and Mr Hippo charged into it with its drum at full pelt, throwing sparks and flipping Stalker over. Stalker's mobility seemed to be impaired by this hit, and it was left to use its lifter for any signs of movement, flipping itself over repeatedly until White Tiger Guardian closed in and struck it, which split one of the arms on Stalker's lifter, significant damage to the weaponry.

Stalker was able to drift forwards, but White Tiger Guardian chased after it, slamming Stalker into the Ouch Ouch minibot, which was pushed into the Grinder as a result. Only one of the Ouch Ouch minibot's wheels was turning, and it was high-centered by this slam, leaving it immobile. Stalker was also further breaking its own lifter by trying to use it. Stalker crept forwards a short distance further, but its movement was slowed enough for the referee to declare it immobile, bringing the field down to three. Stalker still lurched across the arena floor gradually for a period of the fight, and somehow lost its entire lifting scoop off-screen, but the battle would eventually be won by Mr Hippo on a Judges' decision, and Stalker was eliminated from the competition.

## Results

### Wins/Losses

* Wins: 0
* Losses: 1

## Series Record

 Season 2 | **Eliminated in Redemption Round**(0-1 record)

## Trivia

* Stalker was the second robot in *King of Bots* to use a 360 degree lifting plough, after Wrecker, the founder of this weapon type under its usual guise as Breaker Box.