By Any Means Necessary

By Any Means Necessary
Recurring Survivor Challenge
Description:	A recurring physical challenge.
Appearances:	Palau Panama Micronesia Heroes vs. Villains Caramoan Millennials vs. Gen X

Battle Dig (also known as Water Slaughter) is physical race challenge that originated in Survivor: Palau, and has subsequently appeared in Micronesia, Caramoan, and Millennials vs. Gen X. A land-based version of the challenge was also used in Panama and Heroes vs. Villains.

Rules

In Survivor: Palau, Survivor: Caramoan, and Survivor: Millennials vs. Gen X, two members of each tribe would race out in the water to retrieve a ring. The tribe members would then battle against each other to gain possession of the ring and bring it to their tribe flag/pontoon. The first tribe to score a given number of points would win.

In Survivor: Panama and Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains, for each tribe, a designated number of contestants will race out to a marked location and dig up a bag. The castaways then compete to return the bag to their tribe's mat. The first person to touch the tribe mat, with a hand on the bag, scores a point for their team. The first tribe to win a given number of rounds will win the challenge.

In Survivor: Micronesia, the tribes start at opposite ends of the playing field with three canvas bags. The tribes have to battle their way to their end zone. The tribe that has their three bags and two of the other tribe's bags in their end zone at the same time wins.

History

The challenge debuted in Survivor: Palau as the episode three Reward Challenge. Two contestants from each tribe would swim out to retrieve an inner tube and try to bring it back to their tribe's platform while contestants from the other tribe would try to stop them. The first tribe to three points won. Ulong won this challenge in a 3-0 sweep over Koror.

The challenge re-appeared in Survivor: Panama as a tribal Immunity Challenge. The first tribe to score three bags won the challenge. Casaya narrowly defeated La Mina 3-2 to win immunity.

In Survivor: Micronesia, playing in an area similar to a football field, the tribes start at opposite ends of the playing field with three canvas bags. The tribes have to battle their way to their end zone. The challenge ends when one tribe has their three bags and two of the other tribe's bags in their end zone at the same time. The tribes, dressed in war paint, had a very physical battle in the rain with the reward of items chosen from a catalog. Malakal won the challenge over Airai, taking home a tarp, a lighting kit, and a survival kit.

The challenge was used as the first Reward Challenge in Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains. The challenge occurred immediately at the start of the game. Teams of two raced for each tribe, with the first tribe to reach three points winning. The Heroes tribe won the challenge, defeating the Villains tribe 3-2, receiving flint. The challenge was notable for inflicting multiple injuries, with Stephenie LaGrossa dislocating her shoulder and Rupert Boneham breaking a toe. This challenge was also notable for Sugar Kiper letting go of her bra (which was undone by Sandra Diaz-Twine) in order to score a point for the Heroes tribe.

In Survivor: Caramoan, a variation of this challenge was again used as the first Reward Challenge of the season. Adapted to an aquatic playing field, two members of each tribe would race to retrieve a buoy from one end of the course and return it to their tribe's pole. The Favorites tribe Bikal won the challenge 4-1 over the Fans tribe Gota, receiving flint and 20 pounds of beans.

In Millennials vs. Gen X, the challenge appeared as the first Reward Challenge of the season. Again, it was played in an aquatic field. The Gen-X men were physically stacked against the Millennials. Despite a strong showing of effort from the Vanua tribe which included Michaela Bradshaw losing her bra, the physically intense brawl ended with Takali victorious and winning a barbecue feast.

Winners

Episode	Challenge Type	Winners
Palau "Dangerous Creatures and Horrible Setbacks"	Tribal Reward	File:S10 angie t.jpgFile:S10 bobbyjon t.jpgFile:S10 ibrehem t.jpg File:S10 james t.jpgFile:S10 jeff t.jpgFile:S10 kim t.jpgFile:S10 stephenie t.jpg Ulong
Panama "Crazy Fights, Snake Dinners"	Tribal Immunity	File:S12 aras t.jpgFile:S12 bobby t.jpgFile:S12 bruce t.jpg File:S12 cirie t.jpgFile:S12 courtney t.jpgFile:S12 danielle t.jpgFile:S12 shane t.jpg Casaya
Micronesia "I Should Be Carried on the Chariot-Type Thing!"	Tribal Reward	File:S16 amanda t.jpgFile:S16 ami t.jpgFile:S16 cirie t.jpg File:S16 eliza t.jpgFile:S16 james t.jpgFile:S16 jonathan t.jpg File:S16 parvati t.jpgFile:S16 ozzy t.jpgFile:S16 yauman t.jpg Malakal
Heroes vs. Villains "Slay Everyone, Trust No One"	Tribal Reward	File:S20 amanda t.jpgFile:S20 candice t.jpgFile:S20 cirie t.jpg File:S20 colby t.jpgFile:S20 jt t.jpgFile:S20 james t.jpgFile:S20 rupert t.jpg File:S20 stephenie t.jpgFile:S20 sugar t.jpgFile:S20 tom t.jpg Heroes
Caramoan "She Annoys Me Greatly"	Tribal Reward	File:S26 andrea t.jpgFile:S26 brandon t.jpgFile:S26 brenda t.jpg File:S26 cochran t.jpgFile:S26 corinne t.jpgFile:S26 dawn t.jpgFile:S26 erik t.jpg File:S26 francesca t.jpgFile:S26 malcolm t.jpgFile:S26 phillip t.jpg Bikal
Millennials vs. Gen X "Who's the Sucker at the Table?"	Tribal Reward	Takali

Gallery

Angie fighting Gregg in {{S4|10}}.

Jenn competing for Koror (Palau).

Misty and Danielle get physical ({{S4|12}}).

Sally and Cirie fighting for the pillow (Panama).

The challenge in Micronesia.

Sugar, Sandra, and Candice battle it out in {{S|20}}.

Coach and Russell collide with Tom and Colby (Heroes vs. Villains).

The first round in Caramoan.

Andrea and Hope fighting in Caramoan.

The challenge in Survivor: Millennials vs. Gen X.

Michaela, Hannah, Jessica, and Lucy competing in Millennials vs. Gen X.

Trivia

• Cirie Fields, Amanda Kimmel, Parvati Shallow, Stephenie LaGrossa, Danielle DiLorenzo, Erik Reichenbach, Tom Westman, and James Clement are the only contestants to compete in this challenge more than once.
  • Cirie, Danielle, Erik, and Tom are the only returning castaways to have competed is this challenge in all of their seasons.
    • Cirie is also the only castaway to compete in this challenge 3 times. 
  • Cirie, Amanda, Stephenie, and James are the only castaways to have won the challenge every time they competed.
• This is the only challenge that Francesca Hogi has won in her two seasons.
• In all of the seasons in which the challenge was used for reward, the winning tribe lost the subsequent Immunity Challenge.
• All tribes to win this challenge have been colored blue or purple.