Your job is to make winning decisions. Know the game, know the opponents, know the plan. You win matches before the robot is turned on.
📊 Your role on the team
The progression above builds your strategic toolkit. This section explains where that toolkit gets used — which squad you support, what you're responsible for at each event, and what competition readiness actually means for a strategist.
Strategist role pair
Qualifier Squad
📊 Qualifier Strategist
League Squad
📊 League Strategist
What training partners develop together
In-class responsibilities — every strategist, every session
Event assignments
Scout lens — what the League Strategist watches at qualifiers
The League Strategist at qualifiers is running the full scout operation. Every match is active observation work — the data you collect directly shapes the team's alliance decisions and elimination strategy.
Compile notes
Fill the scouting sheet for every match — auton, cycle time, mechanism reliability, end-game, defense
Identify alliance fit
Track which teams complement your robot — not just who scores highest, but who coordinates well
Track trends
Which teams improve across the day, which fade, and what the overall field meta looks like by match 8
Build recommendations
Rank alliance candidates before eliminations open. Have the list ready — not in-progress — when selections start
Pre-match briefs
Between matches, give the Qualifier Strategist a short brief on what you saw — opponent auton, threats, openings
Post-match reflection
Help the drive team debrief after each match — what the data shows, what to adjust, what held up
Your scouting sheet and alliance tracker — the tools already on this page — are your primary instruments. Use the full scouting section below for the complete workflow.
Notebook connection
Strategist thinking belongs in the notebook
The notebook is not just an engineering document. Judges want to see how the team made decisions — and strategists own a significant part of that evidence.
The Notebook section below this page and the Notebook Pathway → guide cover the full entry process. Your job as a strategist is to make sure the reasoning is documented.
How class work prepares you for either assignment
Game analysis
Working through scoring math and scenario modeling in class builds the decisions you'll make in the queue
Scouting practice
Filling the scouting sheet in practice matches trains the eye and speed you need at a real tournament
Notebook entries
Documenting decisions and analysis all season means you're ready for the judge interview regardless of squad assignment
Tournament roll call
Before every tournament, the team holds a tournament role roll call. Every strategist is expected to be ready to cover scouting, match planning, notebook, or interview support. Tracking every match you watch and keeping your scouting sheet current is how you stay ready.
Describe your robot and the match situation — get a 3-sentence match brief ready for your drive team.