Scrambled V and other Scrambled Patterns

Recommended prerequisite: Roundabout; Next: Ambled Patterns or Zippy

Scrambled V is a standard 4 person manipulator pattern that is widely known and the first that most people learn, just like Roundabout for 3 passers. It is based on a rotating two-count vs four-count feed where passers stand in a V formation. Beyond Scrambled V, there are 26 more 4-person patterns based on the same rotating feed with similar takeout actions.

Scrambed V

A: 3pB3 3pC3 3pB3 -> B B: 3pA3 33 3pA3 -> C C: 33 3pA3 33 -> A M: CBz SBlz ICv>.

The pattern starts with the feeder and the manipulator each having two clubs. The manipulator respond's to B's pass on beat 1 and carries what would have been a pass from A to B, placing from below and then zipping the other club to get reader for the substitution. Standing in front of B, the manipulator substitutes B's self on beat 3, stealing late by grabing the handle and placing from above. As the final step the manipulator then intercepts (late, catching the handle) a self from C while passing in front of C to the outside of the pattern; the passer previously in role C now becomes the manipulator, flips both remaining clubs, and walks forward toward the previous feeder to repeat the cycle. The passer in role B walks across the pattern in a four-count, just as in the standard rotating feed. The previous manipulator starts the next cycle by receiving a pass to start their feed.

Hints: It is common for the feeder to count right-handed beats, 1-2-3, to keep the timing. The feedees can help the manipulator a lot by throwing nice pelfs (B on beat 3 and C on beat 5). It also used to be common (and recorded in many videos) for the group to start the pattern by skipping the manipulator's first beat; this way both A and B can start with three clubs and a pass on beat 1 and the manipulator comes in from the side with one club to subsitute the self on beat 3.

Turning back: As in moving patterns and other manipulator pattern, when a segment or two works, it is useful to turn back to learn the segment before the current start. To move backward, switch positions as follows: The passer in role C walks backward across the pattern and the manipulator switches positions with with A; the previous A now starts as M, B as A, C as B, and M as C.

Toast

Toast is another common pattern worth learning and remembering, consists of subsituting a pass to B on beat 1, then jumping across the pattern in front of C to intercept the pass to C, whereas the old C now starts with a carry to the old manipulator, as in Roundabout.

A: 3pB3 3pC3 3pB3 -> B B: 3pA3 33 3pA3 -> C C: 33 3pA3 33 -> A M: SBez ICv>.CCz

Hints: The manipulator does not usually need to jump for the intercept, but it can be fun to exaggerate this part of the pattern. The feeders first and second pass both go to the manipulator; it is really helpful to throw the second one lofty.

The 27 Scrambles

There are a total of 27 manipulator patterns in the style of Scrambled V and Toast that each have the manipulator sequence carry-substitute-intercept on subsequent right-handed beats. Many passers know Scrambled V and maybe a few more like Toast, B, and 3 but, these days, it is more common to just pick a pattern from a list and try it from the notation. While some of them are a bit more difficult than others, they are all accessible when familiar with Scrambled V and Roundabout. In fact, learning the notation and trying to juggle a randomly assigned pattern is a common workshop format.

By convention, these patterns are simply notated with 6 letters describing the manipulator actions, such as "CBSBIC" for Scrambled V, whereas everything else is implied, including the actions and movement of the other passers in a two-count vs four-count rotating feed. To learn a pattern it is usually useful to first track what the manipulator does in each step and where the manipulator switches with one of the other passers (at the intercept). The notation does not describe where the manipulator should stand or how they should steal or place a club or where the passers can help with pelfs -- many passers enjoy the challenge of identifying what works and finding solutions how how to navigate a tight spot, for example, performing a substitution with a chop as in Chopabout to avoid extra spinning or with a zap instead of an manipulated self to reduce the manipulator's walking. Alternatively feel free to look up videos of these patterns online.

Here is the full list, linked with the video from the aidanburnsproject (see below):

Combining Scrambles (5+ Persons)

It is possible have two or even more manipulators in a scrambled pattern that each do different manipulator sequences. The best known among these is Scrambled 3-V that has both a Scrambled V manipulator (CBSBIC) and a 3 manipulator (CCSAIB):

A: 3pB3 3pC3 3pB3 -> B B: 3pA3 33 3pA3 -> C C: 33 3pA3 33 -> A M: CBz SBlz ICv>. N: CCz SAezf IBl.

Other combinations of common patterns are B on Toast, 3 on Toast, and Scrambled V-B.

When adding even more manipulators, there is very little juggling remaining as many throws get manipulated and the number of objects equals or exceeds the number of hands in the pattern, such as in the 6-person pattern Scrambled 3-B on Toast combining CCSAIB, IBCBSA, and SBICCC.

Many, but not all patterns can be combined. The obvious conflicts are when two manipulators would manipulate the same club on the same beat -- for example Scrambled V (CBSBIC) and Postman (CBSCIC) both try to intercept the same pass. Also having the two manipulator interact, for example because one intercepts the carry from the other as would happen in Scrambled V on Taost, is at least unintutive. That still leaves 162 combinations of two and 190 combinations of three of the 27 scrambled manipulator sequences, most of which have probably never been juggled. Lukas Bonauer created a spreadsheet with all combinations. As a simple conservative heuristic, any two manipulators can be combined if they always manipulate clubs to distinct roles on each beats.

History and lore

Scrambled V (like Roundabout) predates any notation for manipulator pattern and the terminology of carry, substitute, and intercept. As far as I know, Scrambled V was the first of these patterns, named for the V formation. The patterns B, 3, and IV were also very early and named for being the second to fourth pattern in different numbering styles. Toast was named for the jump to catch the intercept.

Aidan's key insight was that all these patterns share the elements of what became known as carry, substitution, and intercept, and they all do so every other beat. Around 2012, he suggested (a slighly earlier version) of the now common Aidan notation and identified that there are 27 different scrambled patterns that do the carry, substitute, and intercept actions on right-handed beats: 3 beats when the intercept can happen (first, third, or firth beat), 3 passers that can be intercepted on that beat (A, B, and C), and three passers that receive the substitution 4 beats after the intercept (A, B, and C), resulting in 333=27 combinations. Note, the recipient of the carry two beats after the intercept is decided by the intercept already: It is replaces the action that the intercepted passer would have done next with their right hand.

By the time of Aidan's untimely death in 2014, most of these 27 patterns had not been juggled or named. The community decided to embark on a distributed project to name and film two rounds of each pattern, which resulted in one video with all of them: aidanburnsproject and the names listed above. Since then, several groups have juggled all of them; on passing.zone there is a recent version with clear videos of all of them.

Aidan, when he invented patterns and introduced the notation, made many assumptions that were true for Roundabout and Scrambled V but that are not necessary, such as that all takeout actions happen on right-handed beats and are always two beats apart. The next chapters introduce some of the more recent developments.