Selecting robot missions to run

The Into Orbit robot game has 16 missions and our goal was to accomplish as many of these as we can in the allotted 2.5 minutes. Each mission is designated with the number of points a team can get for accomplishing the task. We determined which missions to work on based on the following criteria:

Missions that are 

- closest to the base

- closer to other missions

- can score lot of points

- easy and quick to accomplish

- can be accomplished using passive or combined attachment

The base is the area on the robot game board where we are allowed to touch the robot without being penalized for it. We chose missions that are close to base, so that our robot can return to base quickly for attachment change over. Selecting missions that are close to each other allows our robot to do multiple missions in one run without having to return to base. Selecting missions that can easily help us score a lot of points was also important. And, if the mission is easy and quick to accomplish, then we will have enough time to attempt other missions. Finally, due to limited number of motors on the robot, if a mission can be accomplished with a passive attachment, it helps to get multiple missions done without depending on the availability of a motor.