Bass

"Now you know that I am the strongest. There's no need for you to make any more junk robots."

- Bass

Bass, known as Forte (フォルテ) in Japan, is a Robot Master created by Dr. Wily to imitate Mega Man's design, along with Treble, an imitation of Rush's design. He was created sometime during or before the events of Mega Man 6, and made his debut in Mega Man 7. Bass is the prominent anti-hero of the Mega Man classic series, fighting against Mega Man to prove he is the strongest robot in existence. Although Bass and Mega Man are rivals, at times they team up to take down mutual enemies of the two. Through these team-ups with Mega Man and his friends and their plea for peace and friendship, Bass seems to become less hostile to them as time goes on.

Mega Man 7
Bass is first encountered at the end of the intro-level stage and is fought as a mini-boss. According to himself, he and Treble were trying to stop Dr. Wily, and he picked that fight with Mega Man to see if he lived up to his reputation. If Mega Man defeats him, then he'll tell Mega Man that he's as good as everyone says, and that he might not need his help. If it's the other way around, then Bass will scoff at Mega Man, telling him that he's too weak to battle Wily. Later on, Bass and Treble are seen again at Shade Man's stage, after purposely getting themselves injured in battle. Bass then starts putting himself down, saying that he feels stupid to have been beaten so easily, and that he should probably leave Wily to Mega Man. Mega Man responds by telling him that "[they're] a team", and that Dr. Light will be glad to fix him up. Bass and Treble then warp away to Dr. Light's lab to get repaired. Sometime later, after the repairs were finished, Mega Man comes back to the lab to find that it's been trashed, and that the culprit behind it was none other than Bass. Dr. Light then tells him that Bass stole all the parts for the "new enhancements," as well. Shortly afterward, Dr. Wily appears on the monitor and reveals that Bass and Treble are his creations, and that he used Bass to get closer to Mega Man, so that he could earn his trust, and then steal the Super Adapter blueprints, so that he could use that enhancement for Bass and Treble. Bass is encountered again for the third time at the first stage of Dr. Wily's castle, where he's once again fought as a mini-boss. The two of them have a battle, and Mega Man manages to defeat him. Bass then swears revenge, saying that he'll be back. He, of course, stays true to his word, as he is encountered for a fourth time at the very next Wily Castle stage. This time, he performs a fusion with Treble, and tries to destroy Mega Man with the very enhancements that he stole, which were meant for Mega Man and Rush. After a hard fight Bass is once again defeated, and warps away. He and Treble aren't seen again until the ending, where they save Dr. Wily when Mega Man was about to kill him. Bass also appears as a playable character in the hidden two-player battle mode.

Mega Man: The Power Battle
The events of this game take place after the events of Mega Man 7. Dr. Wily has revived many Robot Masters from the previous games. Angry about their resurrection (due to the fact that he feels that they're standing in his way of defeating Mega Man), Bass temporarily teams up with Mega Man and Proto Man to stop them, and to prove to Dr. Wily once and for all, that he is the strongest, and doesn't need to make anymore "junk robots".

Mega Man 8
Bass is first seen at the very beginning of the game, alongside Treble, fighting against Mega Man and Rush. The battle was soon interrupted by Roll when she informed Mega Man about what was going on. However, Bass shows up later on, and fights against Mega Man in the third level of the Wily Tower. Although Mega Man warned him not to, Bass used Evil Energy to power up his attacks. He has no weakness although the Flash Bomb can hit him multiple times. Mega Man manages to defeat him once again and Bass warps away saying he'll never give up.

Mega Man 2: The Power Fighters
Bass, once again angry at Dr. Wily for resurrecting his previous Robot Masters, fights alongside Mega Man, Proto Man, as well as Duo, in order to stop them. In Bass' ending of Power Fighters, Dr. Wily says that when he was creating Bass, he also accidentally created "Bassnium" ("Fortenium" in Japanese), a very powerful energy, that he is studying to improve and create a robot that has more strength than Mega Man and Bass together. Bass says that a "girlie-looking long-haired robot" like this would never defeat him. During Bass and Proto Man's ending (during the two-player cooperative mode), Bass tells Proto Man that his "mysterious behavior" bugs him, and that he's going to deal with him after he defeats Mega Man. Proto Man then responds, saying that they will never fight, because he'll never defeat Mega Man due to the fact that he only fights to be the best while Mega Man fights for the future of robots and humans. In his ending with Duo, he rebukes Duo's thanks and simply tells him to come back stronger for a duel. Duo comments that Bass is strange, but he does have some energy for justice inside him. During his cooperative ending with Mega Man, Bass decides to pick another fight with him, but the outcome of the fight is unknown.

Mega Man & Bass
Bass was angry about the fact that King claimed to be the most powerful robot in the world, and so he embarks on yet another mission to destroy the Robot Masters (as well as King himself) before Mega Man can, so that he could prove that he's the strongest. Bass, of course, does manage to defeat them. After using all eight of the Robot Masters' powers to open the gate to King's castle, Bass goes through it and destroys all obstacles in his way, and eventually comes across King himself. King congratulates Bass for making it that far into the castle, and then engages Bass in combat. King, wielding a shield with reflective abilities, used that to to absorb Bass' blasts and send them right back at him in the form of a powerful laser beam. Because of this device, King was seemingly unstoppable. That is, until Proto Man appeared and used his powerful "Big Bang Strike" ability. Due to the fact that Proto Man used nearly all of his power on that attack, it was too much energy for King's shield to absorb, which led into it getting destroyed, as well as King getting hit and weakened by it in the process. No longer in possession of that shield, Bass' attacks actually began to do some damage, and he ended up defeating King. King then questions Bass, asking why he's fighting for "lowly beings" like the humans, and tells him that robots are more advanced than them. Bass then tells him not to forget that humans are the ones who created robots. After that, King asks Bass to finish him off, but first teleports an unconscious Proto Man out of the fortress. Bass then asks King who created him, and King answers him by telling him that Dr. Wily was his creator, which shocks Bass. Shortly afterwards, Dr. Wily appears on the monitor, scolding King for helping an enemy, and telling him to finish Bass off. King refuses, and then Dr. Wily uses a device to increase his "brainwashing" (and supposedly enhancing King's power in the process). King's armor then changes from gold to a violet coloring, and then he breaks through the wall and enters the next room. Bass follows him, only to find King fusing with the giant blue machine that he fought two other times while he was at King's fortress. Bass engages King in combat once more, and defeats him once again. After that, King tells Bass to get out of the castle quickly before it explodes while he's in it. Bass, in a rare display of humanity, shows concern for King, asking about his safety. King told Bass that he would make it out of the castle somehow, but after Bass leaves. Bass quickly warps out of the castle, leaving King behind. During King's "last" words, before he's supposedly destroyed, said that he and Bass could have probably been good friends. After that, the castle explodes, seemingly killing King and burying him under rubble. After his victory over King, Bass decides to go to Dr. Wily's newly built laboratory to challenge him out of anger of being deceived and betrayed. Bass once again, manages to overcome all obstacles in his path, including the newly resurrected Robot Masters, and eventually came face to face with the doctor himself. Dr. Wily then thanks Bass for getting rid of King, and then told him that he was going to put a restraining bolt on him before he goes haywire like King did. The two of them engage one another in combat, and Dr. Wily is eventually defeated, and starts bowing to Bass, pleading for mercy. Bass then holds Wily at gunpoint, demanding an explanation for creating King. According to Dr. Wily, he created King to test Bass' abilities. He supposedly designed King with the intention of creating the most powerful robot in the world, and since Bass destroyed him, he has proven himself as the strongest. Bass scoffs at him, telling him that it was a "lame excuse", and then Dr. Wily changes the subject by revealing his plans for a second model of King. He told Bass that if he joins King II, then the two of them will be unstoppable. Before Bass could answer, however, Proto Man arrives and destroys the plans. Angered, Dr. Wily orders Bass to destroy Proto Man, but he refuses. Proto Man then asks Bass if he would rather destroy Mega Man with his own power. After that, he decides to give Bass a lecture, saying that he will never defeat Mega Man because he has "nothing to fight for". Bass then gets angry about it, telling Proto Man to get lost, in which he does. After that, Bass scoffs at Proto Man, saying that he doesn't need a reason to fight, and will continue fighting to destroy Mega Man.



Mega Man 9
Although Bass didn't make a physical appearance in this game, he does make a small cameo in the ending. His blueprints can be seen in the background, on Dr. Wily's computer. Supposedly, he was undergoing adjustments during the events of the game.

Mega Man 10
As with Proto Man in Mega Man 9, Bass was confirmed as a playable character in Mega Man 10 unlockable through downloadable content. According to the Mega Man 10 operations manual, he can shoot in 7 directions like he did in Mega Man & Bass. Unlike the Proto Man Mode in Mega Man 9, Bass has a story in this game and a store featuring Reggae as the owner, even though there are less items in the store and the remaining items cost more. As always, he was fighting the Robot Masters to prove that he's the strongest. Sometime during his journey through Dr. Wily's castle, Bass succumbs to the Roboenza virus and collapses to the floor. However, Treble came to his rescue by giving him one of the prototype cures that he stole from Dr. Wily, and Bass was able to recover and continue his journey through the castle. He eventually came face to face with Dr. Wily, and defeated him once again. Afterward, he mocks him for his "half-brained plans for world domination". It was then revealed that Dr. Wily caught the flu, but Bass assumed that it was Roboenza. Dr. Wily then assures him that it isn't Roboenza (due to the fact that it only affects robots, rather than humans). Seemingly, Bass just left Dr. Wily there to suffer. However, it was later revealed that Dr. Wily was taken to the hospital.

Mega Man: Battle & Chase
Bass appears as a playable character that uses the vehicle Treble Darkstar, a balanced machine with the attacks Bass Buster and Bass Blast. He entered the Battle & Chase contest to race against Mega Man. If Bass wins the contest, he isn't satisfied for defeating Mega Man as it was just a race, and wants to defeat him in a real battle. In the Japanese version, Wily contacts Bass and asks him for the prize money, but he ignores Wily and leaves the money in a beach.

Rockman and Forte: Mirai Kara no Chousensha
A group of futuristic robots calling themselves the Dimensions attacked Symphony City, a city where robots and humans lived together in peace. The one leading the Dimensions was Rockman Shadow, a robot very similar to Mega Man. Mega Man heard this news at Dr. Light's laboratory and goes to the scene, while at the same time Wily sends Bass to see who this evil Mega Man was. Bass agrees to help Mega Man stop the robots because Wily's laboratory was near the city. After Bass defeated the Grey Devil in Rockman Shadow's robot factory, Rockman Shadow tells Bass he will reveal his true identity if he can defeat his underlings. Bass manages to defeat all the Robot Masters and Rockman Shadow reveals to him he is a robot like Quint that Wily created when he traveled to the future. Rockman Shadow then offers Bass to join him to destroy the real Mega Man, and that way he will be truly the strongest. Bass rejects the offer and says he will do things his way, first of which to destroy Rockman Shadow. The two of them engage in a "battle to the death" and Rockman Shadow is eventually defeated. Before dying, he tells Bass that after Quint's defeat, he was the only robot left. He increased his strength, and devastated the world. As nothing was able to stop him in the future, he traveled back in time to find someone that could defeat him. He also tells Bass that seeking strength is not the way of robots, because even if Bass crushes his enemy, a superior one will always appear until he ends up dead like him. Bass admits it was a good lesson and before leaving he tells Mega Man that he will forgive him this time but do not forget that he [Bass] is the strongest. Bass later is shown in the game credits taking a nap and in the ending picture with Dr. Light's team and Rockman Shadow.

Other games
Bass also appeared in Rockman Gold Empire as a playable character, as a boss in Rockman Strategy and as a card in the game SNK vs. Capcom: Card Fighters DS. Bass is also a character from the upcoming game Rockman Online.

Other media
Bass appeared in several Mega Man manga, some of them being Rockman 7, Rockman 8, Rockman & Forte, Mega Man Megamix, Rockman Gigamix, Rockman Battle & Chase and the Brazilian comic Novas Aventuras de Megaman. In Mega Man Megamix, Bass first appeared in the story "Holiday of Soldiers". When Bass saw Proto Man's strength, he tried to fight against him, but Proto Man left the area to avoid Dr. Light's six robots being harmed. In Wily's hideout, Wily is shown to be very angry because the eight robots from Mega Man 5 where defeated by Mega Man and Bass doesn't obey him, hitting the eight robots out to get money for him, destroying some objects, and punching a fake Bass with boxing gloves. Some days later, Bass attacked Mega Man in the amusement park where the eight robots from Mega Man 5 where working to get money. In the story "Power Battle" Bass takes Roll hostage to make Mega Man fight against him. In Rockman Gigamix Bass appears in the story "Burning Wheel", where he's one of the racers in the Battle & Chase contest, he also appears in the stories "White Nightmare", "Moon of Darkness" and "Toward a Bright Tomorrow" where he goes to space to fight against the Stardroids and Sunstar. In the Brazilian comic Novas Aventuras de Megaman, Bass is called "Slasher" and works with Dr. Light's robots in the future. Although not much of his past is revealed, it hints he was created by Dr. Light. The Rockman 10 Image Soundtrack included a 16 page Japanese manga called Rockman 10 -Extra F- which focuses on Bass' story in Mega Man 10.

Appearance
Bass' design was made in mind to be a polar opposite of Mega Man's. Bass is adorned in black armor with gold lining. On his chest is a triangular blue crystal. He has purple stripes running down from his distinct red eyes and extending down his cheeks. His helmet features large fins that resemble a cobra, giving him a slightly taller appearance than that of his rivals and a cross-shaped blue jewel on the forehead. Concept art of Bass without his helmet and the Megamix manga show him with dark, wild hair featuring a widow's peak (see gallery).

Personality
Bass is presented as an extremely smug, bad tempered, egotistical, rebellious, fiercely independent and arrogant individual who believes that he's the strongest above all else. Bass thinks very highly of himself, labeling everyone else around him as inferior "junk robots". He has always been shown to hold a rivalry with Mega Man, but aside from him, Bass happens to have hatred for every robot that was created by Dr. Wily (with the possible exception of Treble and, needless to say, himself), since he feels that they're standing in the way of his goal to destroy Mega Man and become the strongest. Bass looks down on them, believing himself to be superior to them in every way, shape, and form. However, a notable aspect of his personality he showed in Mega Man & Bass was that he seemed to have some degree of respect for humans, since they created robots. Duo says that there is goodness in Bass (even going so far as to say that he has "justice energy"), which he ignored saying that he only wants to fight, claiming that his only concern is who the strongest is. There's a possibility that Duo's claim of there being goodness in Bass is true, since he was able to use the Evil Energy Capsules in Mega Man 8 without dying. During the events of Mega Man & Bass, he even began to show some form of concern for King.

Despite being extremely powerful, Bass' faults that usually lead to his downfall are his arrogance and overconfidence. According to Proto Man, it's because he has "nothing to fight for". The reason that he's continuously defeated by Mega Man is because of his selfish motive, which is simply to prove himself as the strongest, as opposed to Mega Man's desire to "fight for everyone's future" and bring peace to the world.

Mega Man 7
In Mega Man 7 and the arcade games, Bass plays very much like Mega Man, and the only real difference is that rather than Sliding, Bass can Air Dash. He has the capabilities of firing a (albeit different colored) Charged Shot, much like Mega Man. In Mega Man 7, Bass can fuse with Treble, and it had the exact same capabilities as the Super Adapter; a jet booster and flying fist attack. However, unlike Mega Man, Bass has the ability to fire either a regular charged shot or a rocket punch while in this form, as opposed to just the rocket punch. In the Mega Man 7 hidden two-player battle mode, Bass can perform a rising kick attack and an air dash attack, similarly in Mega Man 2: The Power Fighters he can perform two consecutive somersault kicks.

Mega Man 8
In Mega Man 8, Bass gained many new abilities due to the fact that he used one of the Evil Energy capsules. He can fly as long as he wants, as well as being able to fire powerful laser beams. His super form with Treble also had a design change, although it's unknown whether or not this was because of the Evil Energy, or if the artists simply decided to redesign him that way (as they've also done with Roll).

Mega Man & Bass
In Mega Man and Bass, Bass is overhauled to make his gameplay inherently different from Mega Man's. While Mega Man can slide to reach into smaller crevices for secrets, Bass can Dash and double jump. He can also dash jump to increase the distance of the jump. Bass's Buster was also modified to make him different from Mega Man, and instead of being able to charge, he fires quick, weak shots repeatedly in 1 of 7 directions. Bass also shares Mega Man's ability to copy abilities from other Robot Masters. Similar to Mega Man's ability to fuse with Rush, Bass can perform that ability as well with the Treble Boost, being able to fly and shot in three directions at the same time.

Mega Man 10
Bass' abilities in Mega Man 10 are the same as in Mega Man & Bass, except that he can not double-jump. The Bass Buster also can remove the shields of Shield Attackers and Sniper Joes.

Mega Man: Battle & Chase

 * Vehicle: Treble Darkstar ("Gospel Dragster" in Japan)
 * Body: Treble Body ("Gospel Body" in Japan)
 * Engine: Double Engine
 * Wing: Accl. Wing (Accel. Wing)
 * Tire: Almighty Tire

Mega Man & Bass CD data
A robot that Dr. Wily has created to be like Megaman. His final goal is to beat Megaman.

"Get lost, loser!"
 * Good point: Emulous
 * Bad point: Vain as a peacock
 * Like: Champion
 * Dislike: Weak robot

Japanese CD data: 
 * Good point: Determined
 * Bad point: Vain

Rockman Battle & Fighters data
ワイリーにつくられたスペシャルワイリーナンバーをもつ、せんとうようロボット. じぶんのてで、ロックマンをたおすのがのぞみらしい.

Translation: The Special Wily Number combat robot Wily created. Wants to defeat Rockman with his own hands.

Mega Man 7

 * "This is... Mega Man??"
 * "You are as good as they say, Mega Man..."
 * "I'm Bass, and he's Treble. We have been trying to stop Dr. Wily while you were gone..."
 * "I see now that you don't need our help..."
 * "You are much too weak to battle Wily. Maybe you better sit this one out. Let's go, Treble!"
 * "Damn! I was careless! I feel stupid to have been beaten so easily... Maybe I should give up and leave Wily to you!"
 * "Thanks. I'm glad that I have a friend like you..."
 * "You are far too weak, Mega Man. Wily may fear you, but I do not!"
 * "Ah, my wait is over! This time, the mighty Mega Man shall fall!"
 * "Treble, attack!!"
 * "Why... Why can't I destroy him...??"
 * "You're too late, Mega Man. He who hesitates is lost! We shall return!"

Mega Man: The Power Battle

 * "Now you know that I am the strongest. There's no need for you to make any more junk robots."
 * "I underestimated him that time. But I will conquer him this time!"
 * "Ha! All you make is junk. Do what you want."

Mega Man 8

 * "Mega Man! Today, we'll finish this!"
 * "Shut up!"
 * "You can't leave yet!"
 * "Don't run away coward! You'll pay for this insult! I'll be back!"
 * "Mega Man! You can't escape this time!"
 * "You're so naive! That will be your downfall! I'm not the same weakling anymore! I've got new powers!"
 * "Shut up! I'll defeat you! Come on, Treble!"
 * "Let's do it! I'll show you what real power is!"
 * "Feel it!"
 * "C...Curse you, Mega Man! I'll... I'll never give up!"

Mega Man 2: The Power Fighters

 * '"Wily, you idiot, you never learn from your mistakes."
 * '"Because you always interfere with me! I can defeat Mega Man by myself with no problem. You should go crawl in a hole somewhere."
 * "Ha! You created me? So what? If you created a powerful robot such as myself, it must have been an accident."
 * "Ha! This girlie-looking, long-haired robot will be the strongest? Don't make me laugh!"
 * "Don't talk, just leave."
 * "I don't care about justice or peace! Who's the strongest? That's my only concern."
 * "Hey, I accept your challenge. When will you come back to Earth?"
 * "You'd better train hard before you return."
 * "Proto Man, what do you want from life!? "
 * "Your mysterious behaviour annoys me! I'll deal with you after I defeat Mega Man."
 * "What are you saying!"
 * "What!"
 * "Future!? I don't understand!"
 * "The time has finally come! Fight me Mega Man!"
 * "Don't worry, I'll be OK. Only you will be destroyed!"
 * "You don't have a choice! This is our fate! You can't escape! So come and get it!"

Mega Man & Bass

 * "Proto Man!!" (GBA version)
 * "Is that the robot who calls himself King? What a joke. Everyone knows that I am the mightiest robot in the world. I will show him who deserves to be called king!" (GBA)
 * "So, this is the robot they call King? There's only room for one 'Strongest' in this world, and that's me! No one will stand in the way of the forging of my legend as the world's most powerful being!" (SNES)
 * "Proto Man! Get outta my way! This is my battle! I'll defeat King myself, dammit! (SNES version, translated.)
 * "Proto Man, you don't need to do that! I'll destroy King by myself!" (GBA)
 * "What? What power...!" (GBA)
 * "Hmm... Proto Man stole the spotlight..." (GBA)
 * "Damn... Don't look like I get my shot at him now..." (SNES)
 * "............ But it is humans who created us." (GBA)
 * ""Bah, don't forget. It was humans that created us." (SNES)
 * "Before I go, you must tell me something... Who is your father? Who created you?" (GBA)
 * "What!?"
 * "Dammit... King, what about you?" (SNES version, translated)
 * "You pretended to be assaulted by King in order to have me take care of him? I will destroy you for using me!!" (GBA version)
 * "Why did you deceive me!?" (SNES/GBA)
 * "What!? What do you mean?" (SNES/GBA)
 * "What a lame excuse..." (SNES/GBA)
 * "I..."
 * "Silence! Just get lost!" (SNES/GBA)
 * "What I've fought for? That is ridiculous. I don't need a reason to fight. I have and am going to fight only to destroy Mega Man!!" (SNES/GBA)

Mega Man 10

 * "Don't tell me I've caught this dang Roboenza, too!"
 * "Treble!"
 * "We gotta teach that old cook a lesson he won't soon forget!"
 * "You just never give up with your half-brained plans for world domination."
 * "Something wrong with you? Oh, you've got a fever! How'd you end up catching Roboenza!?"
 * "Well... See you around."

Trivia

 * Forte and Gospel were originally named Baroque (バロック, Barokku) and Crash (クラッシュ, Kurasshu) in early designs, a play on the names Rock (ロック, Rokku) and Rush (ラッシュ, Rasshu) to emphasize their role as rivals. Baroque is also a style of music originating from the time period of the same name. Crash is a type of cymbal.
 * Although he's a recurring enemy of Mega Man, Bass never actually appears as a main stage boss. Instead, Mega Man always fights him as a mini-boss.
 * The aforementioned abilities (rapid fire, multi-directional) of the Bass Buster is similar to the shooting abilities of the Mega Man X character, Axl.
 * Despite the fact that Bass had a small cameo in Mega Man 9, Treble was absent from the game entirely.
 * Bass has a similar personality to Vile's from the Mega Man X series. The two of them both have a rivalry with one of the Mega Men (so strong, that they even object to other enemies trying to kill their rivals), are both extremely cocky and arrogant, and only fight for the sake of themselves. However, Bass happens to be a lot more sane and less destructive than Vile is. Bass also has a few similarities to Ballade, since the two of them both consider themselves to be the strongest, as well as the fact that they both have a dislike of weak opponents.
 * Bass is one of many of the characters who have music-inspired names. More specifically, his name refers to the lower bar in double-staff musical notation; his canine counterpart Treble's name refers to the upper bar.
 * There has been a lot of controversy concerning the pronunciation of Bass' name. Due to the fact that his name was erroneously pronounced "bass" (like the fish) in Mega Man 8, this has led many people to believe that it's actually pronounced that way. However, because of the fact that many characters within the Mega Man series are named after musical terms (and because of the fact that his wolf is named after one), this further supports the fact that his name is actually pronounced, "base", like the guitar.
 * Roll has a crush on Bass in the Rockman Megamix manga.
 * Aside from Dr. Wily, Bass actually has the most lines of any character in the original series.
 * Some slight controversy popped up when Bass shouted "Damn!" in the Mega Man 7 video game's English release, due to the Mega Man series widely being considered a "kids' series", and that the word "damn" is taboo. Bass' language is cleaned up in the Anniversary Collection. Ironically, X and Zero speak the expletive, most notably during Mega Man X3 and X4, which wasn't "cleaned up" with the X series collection. This is most likely because most consider the Mega Man X series to be a bit darker and more adult than the regular series, in addition to the fact that the E10+ rating did not exist at the time Mega Man: Anniversary Collection was in development.
 * Forté is used as a dynamic directive in sheet music in its abbreviated form, {f.}, to indicate raising the volume of the music. Forte is also the portuguese word for strong.
 * "Emulous" (Bass good point in the Mega Man & Bass CD data) is defined as "eager or ambitious to equal or surpass another or characterized or prompted by a spirit of rivalry".