How to scout a VEX team

A useful scouting report helps answer a specific question: what can this team reliably do with our robot? Before collecting numbers, write down the roles your alliance needs and the evidence that would support each role. Keep observations about robot performance separate from assumptions about the people on the team.

Find the correct team number, season, event, and division. A familiar team number can have a different robot or strategy at its next event. Record which matches you reviewed so another scout can check the same evidence.

Look at the record and individual match scores together. An alliance score describes the alliance, so a high score does not tell you which robot produced it. Note partners, opponents, and how many usable matches support a statistic. Compare teams within a similar event and season context.

Use OPR as a prompt for further review, not as a count of points personally scored. Missing ratings mean the available data cannot support that calculation; they do not mean the team contributed nothing. Check the methodology before comparing metrics from different websites.

Review several complete matches when footage is available. For each, record the match identifier, a timestamp, the action observed, and any uncertainty. Useful questions include whether the robot repeatedly completes its intended task, where it travels, whether it interferes with its partner, and how it recovers when a plan fails.

Mark an action as unobserved if the camera cuts away or another robot blocks the view. Avoid turning a single successful attempt into a reliability claim. Also distinguish an unsuccessful attempt from a task the team never attempted.

Fictional example: in four reviewed matches, Team A completed its planned opening in three. The fourth opening was hidden by the camera. Write “three observed completions; one unknown,” rather than “75% reliable.” That note preserves the limits of the evidence and identifies the next thing to watch.

If Team A and your robot both use the same area, your follow-up question is whether either can use an alternative route. A slightly lower statistical rating may still fit your plan better if the robots can work independently. Confirm the plan with the team and another match observation.

End with three short items: demonstrated strengths, unresolved questions, and the role you would test together. Attach match references to concrete claims. If AI helps summarize footage, review the cited moments yourself; generated observations are not official results.

Revisit the report when new matches arrive. Your notes describe the evidence available at the time, not a permanent judgment of a team. The linked team and event pages are starting points for that review, and the methodology explains how Scoutless handles results and unavailable data.