Web Posted May 01, 1998
Updated September 02, 2001
Hello once again! I am now talking to 130 autoduelists. Wow! I never imagined this attempt to maintain the Car Wars Mailing List would attract so many readers. CWIN even attracted the attention of Garth Anderson, the winner of the 2046-2047 AADA World Dueling Tournament, a duelist that has shown high intelligence by subscribing to CWIN. :-)
Today is May 01, where in the United States is celebrated as Law Day. This holiday was enacted to "counterattack" the former Soviet Union's May Day, which was used to display weaponry and the military might of the Red Bear. This edition of CWIN also parades military hardware with a wonderful article on tank guns and artillery written by Michael Garrity of NOVA. Michael has also presented an interesting discussion on the 2046-2047 AADA World Dueling Tournament. Thanks Mike!
The infamous Michael Drennon has presented yet another Arena Watch, a location to make experts of the Ozark Off-Road Autoduel Arena nervous. Andras Otto Schneider also returns with items for the Uncle Edgar Catalog and new methods to increase the impact of pickups and campers.
Lucas Dixon from the United Kingdom joins the CWIN scene with a discussion of his plans for "Matrix Autodueling" which Ben Howard also does with his Gear Jammer Web Site, which also includes a new Play-By-Elmay Car Wars League. A new combatant, Kevin "Krash MacAlister" Regier, has started a new column for Duelmasters, beginning with advice for arena design and Nils Braad Petersen and Loren Dean display articles to help you create miniatures for Car Wars.
All of the usual columns are here plus some new ones. Although the assistance has been exceptional, many more submissions are needed, especially AADA RASG entries and NewsWatch timelines. I would like to hear from the Car Wars Groups that have been quiet for many months, including the BADAss, Princeton Corporate ADA and SPARK.
Thanks again for your support and interest in Car Wars and this newsletter. See you on June 1st!
Michael P. Owen
Seattle Washington Autodueling Team President/Webmaster
Car Wars Internet Newsletter Editor
owenmp@hotmail.com
http://www.serv.net/~owenmp/swathome.html
2046-2047 AADA WORLD DUELING CHAMPIONSHIP RESULTS
http://www.sjgames.com/car-wars/aada/news/aada_28.html
While you are Netrunning you can read the transcript of the the final
rumble of the 2046-2047 AADA Duel Season from Pyramid Magazine 28.
2046-2047 AADA WORLD RACING CHAMPIONSHIP RESULTS
http://www.sjgames.com/car-wars/aada/news/aada_29.html
If speed and maneuverability are more to your liking visit the AADA
News Archive and read about the final race of the 2046-2047 AADA/R League,
courtesy of Pyramid 29.
DEATH RACING ASSOCIATION OF WASHINGTON (DRAW) WILL HOST 2048-2049 AADA NW TOURNAMENT
Dear Scott Haring:
On behalf of the AADA Chapter Death Race Association of Washington (DRAW), I would like to request the privilege of our chapter running the Northwest Regional AADA Tournament at RadCon 2C in Pasco, Washington, during the second week of February 1999. I believe I (president Bill Stevenson) and my co-referee Phil Bedard have the experience and vision it takes to make the tournament a fun and successful event. Last year we hosted 36 players in three preliminary rounds of Car Wars, which was narrowed down to a field of 12 for the final Division 30 duel. We were also voted the "Best GMs" of the convention by the players. Both of us have been playing Car Wars for years with my start in 1985 and Phil's in 1988. We have constantly striven to make the game of Car Wars fun for everyone playing while providing fair competitive games. Our chapter has a current roster of 14 people and is about to begin another season of dueling with an event held every month and we are constantly encouraging people to try the game for themselves. There is nothing better to us than creating an obsessed Car Wars fan. *laugh*
As to running the AADA Northwest Regional Tournament, Phil and I would promote the game to all known Chapters and players in the Northwest at our expense and would add a Semi-Finals Round to seed Chapter Champions. We would happily put aside our variants (as posted on our Web Site, which you so wonderfully mentioned in the Daily Illuminator) and stick to pure AADA rules. Currently our plans are to conduct the preliminary rounds with one in last year's final arena, the Moscow Suicide Slide (patterned after the second level of Sony Playstation's Twisted Metal 2), one off-road event to be held most likely in a 3D Ozark Off-Road Autoduel Arena and a third to be held in a 3D rendering of Midville on a Micro Machine scale. The final event has yet to be determined, but we have decided to post them by the end of May along with Divisions. The only sure thing about the final for next year is that it will be held with 1/24th scale models and damage will be applied with dremels as the game progresses. And yes, a small sledge hammer will be on hand for any vehicle that is converted to confetti. The models will be given to the players at the end of the game (whatever is left of them) as prizes for making the final round of game play.
If you have any questions, reservations, requirements or desires about allowing us to host a Regional Tournament, please let me know. Thank you for your time and consideration.
Bill Stevenson
Death Racing Association of Washington State (DRAW) President
billst@concord.televar.com
http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Battlefield/6056/index.html
Dear Bill Stevenson:
Sounds good to me. How many clubs are active in your region?
Scott D. Haring
Pyramid Magazine Editor
AADA President
sdharing@io.com
http://www.sjgames.com
Editor's Note: There are currently four AADA Chapters in Washington State:
The Autoduelist
http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Alley/2982/
HVDs Car Wars Opponent Finder
http://www.sjgames.com/HVD/list/index.html
A TECHNICAL ANALYSIS OF THE 2046-2047 AADA WORLD DUELING CHAMPIONSHIPS
http://www.serv.net/~owenmp/range/wdc2047.html
Now that you have read about the final battle of the 2046-2047 AADA Dueling Season listen to Michael Garrity's discussion on the strategies of vehicle design each competitor followed. Reading these notes will likely make most duelists think twice about entering and gain a desire to run away from the World Dueling Championships (BCs, HVMGs and ATGs . . . Oh My!).
Michael Garrity
New Omaha Vehicular Association (NOVA)
garritym@hotmail.com
http://www.novia.net/~desslok/nova.htm
SWAT is planning to write an entry for Spokane and perhaps one for Seattle but CWIN needs its readers to write RASGs on a regular basis. This is an opportunity for CWIN subscribers to advertise their home region and share with other duelists the "flavor" of your home. Please start writing articles.
Regarding a Car Wars Vehicle Design Program discovered by CWIN Staff . . .
Dear Michael P. Owen:
Yeah, I did that a while a ago with a very old release (Deluxe Edition Rulebook, I think) of Car Wars. The program is actually a database for FileMakerPro, so you need the FileMakerPro Application to use the Car Creator.
Hey I've got an idea, how about Car Wars over the Internet? I could probably write a Java program that connected people . . . That got me thinking.
Cool. Like I said, the file is FileMakerPro DataBase, it runs on both Mac and PC, but you need the application. I think there was a small problem with the database, I'll have another look at it, should be easy to fix.
You are welcome to take a look at what I've already done and change it, improve it etc. If you can get me the latest edition of the rules I'll update the editor. Also one thing you could do is enter more of the weapons basic data. I was entering data as I went along, so some things are there but not very much.
I was kind of thinking of going whole hog and writing an application that did the layout of the Car's equipment too, still in the back of my mind, somewhere.
Here a few fun things to ponder:
1. FileMakerPro 4.0 Lets you put the database online, if you've got a Server running FileMakerPro 4.0 then you could have an on-line, on the Net, build your own car -- cool. I'm currently working for a company connecting a database to the Internet and I know how to do this; I don't however have access to a server where I could put my own database up, do you know any?
2. We could expand the idea, make the Equipment layout into a Java Program, connected to the database. I can do that too, although I'm not sure if I've got the time.
3. Setup up a whole roleplaying character creation server, I've made character creators for some RPGs too.
Lucas Dixon
United Kingdom Autodueling Association
lucasd@dai.ed.ac.uk
http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/elmorian/
Hi. My name is Krash and I have not been with CWIN for a very long time, but I have read all archived materials and I have learned a great deal about playing Car Wars. One thing that is lacking in CWIN is articles to help DuelMasters. Well, I hope this becomes the first in a series of articles designed to assist the referees of the greatest game on Earth.
This is always something overlooked by most referees who just throw something together right before they are going to run a Car Wars game (No, I do not mean everyone; just listen). I would like to see more inventive Car Wars Arenas. I have played in MANY arenas and about 75 percent of them feel like I am playing in an arena I have made at one time.
Well, for some of you folks out there that is fine but there are a few of us out here that really what something "more." I do not like people who build their car around the specific design of the arena. I agree this strategy wins more often, but should not the game be about Car Design and not just Car Design based on that arena and that arena alone?
I have had the same car for about four months and I play about three times a week so you figure three times a week at four months is 48 times or so. I have played this car in about 15 different arenas and come out placing in the top three 80 percent of the time and the other 20 percent of the time I had so much fun blowing up. Now in the past month or so I have been refining my dueling activities. I spend on the average four hours per arena, I use it once or twice then move on to something else.
One of the most important aspects of the arena is not to let the players see the layout ahead of time. This makes the players plan more when they design and leads to better vehicles. It also gives the players the greatest enemy, the unknown arena, so the players are forced to deal with just not each other, but also with the arena. Below are a few guidelines that I like to use:
1. Variable Terrain. I like to put some off-road terrain into every arena as it makes for an interesting duel.
2. Sub-Arenas. This is an idea I have not seen before. For example, the arena I am working on now has underground tunnels all under it so it allows for multiply playing fields. (Editors' Note: A good example of the Sub-Arena concept is The Factory Arena in the Solaris VII Expansion for BattleTech featuring a main map and two mini-maps).
This series will not survive without the support of fellow duelists so please send your responses to me and to CWIN.
Kevin "Krash MacAlister" Regier
CWIN Arena Manager's Office Editor
Arkansas Autodueling Association Fayetteville Division
whoopus@hotmail.com
http://www.geocities.com/Area51/2550
TRENCH WARFARE HISTORICAL MUSEUM AND DUELING ARENA
ARLINGTON, VIRGINIA
http://www.serv.net/~owenmp/arenas/trench.html
Are off-road arenas not challenging enough for you? Is jumping at Hammer Downs and the Flying Fortress simply routine? If so solve your problems with a visit to Arlington, Virginia, home of the US National Armed Forces Cemetery and location of the Trench Warfare Historical Museum and Dueling Arena. While you are awaiting for your event to begin you can stroll through the Military Museum, presenting material from WW I to the Trans-Pacific War of 2042.
Do you want an extra level of difficulty in this locale of jumps and trenches? Test your combat skills in a Classic's Night Event and see if you still have autodueling instincts without 2040s technology. Just watch out for Charon when the trenches are filled with water.
Who is Charon? Well, if your duelist abilities are not up to par the speedboat Charon and his aquabike Minions will send you to the spiritual Charon, the boat pilot that ferries souls across the River Styx to the Underworld.
Editor's Note: The Car Wars Plus II Gold boat variants were used for both sample vehicles and standard links were used to connect the lateral weapons on the speedboat instead of smart links. CWIN feels that trikes and boats should be able to connect lateral weapons to each other and front weapons (back with reversed trikes) with standard links. Connecting to turrets and other locations will require smart links. This is an advantage of using vehicles with only three wheels (trikes) and low top speeds and HC (boats).
Michael Drennon
CWIN Arena Watch Editor
Illinois Autodueling Association Evanston Division
KidEgo999@aol.com
AUTODUELING QUOTES
Victory Quotes from the Badlands Duelists of the Heavy Gear Fighter Card Game
A couple friends of mine, Dianne [17] and Lisa [18], were moving into an apartment on Lexington Avenue overlooking Interstate 94 in St. Paul. Bruce [16] and I [18] went along to help.
We got pretty much everything moved in, and decided to go get some lunch. Bruce and I jumped into the back of the pickup and away we went.
In the back of the pickup with Bruce and I was a box of Star Wars toys,
since all four of us were big fans. Among the toys in the box were a Kenner
Han Solo Blaster and Stormtrooper Blaster. Bruce and I took these out and
played at shooting each other, pedestrians, and passing vehicles for no
more than a minute or two [the time it took to drive maybe two or
three city blocks].
Presently, a police car came up behind the pickup and hit its sirens. "Great," I thought, "it must be illegal to ride in the back of a pickup with the gate down." Dianne turned off University Avenue onto a side street, pulled over, and stopped.
The car that had been following us pulled in at an angle to block us in place from behind, another police car came out of the alley and blocked us in from the front; and a third car pulled out of the opposite alley and pulled up alongside us. I was beginning to think this wasn't a routine traffic stop. :-)
About a dozen officers jumped out of these cars, guns drawn. Oddly, several officers also came out of the building we were next to [I can't recall what that building was; maybe we happened to pull up next to the precinct station or something], also with their guns trained on my and Bruce's heads. We reached for the sky pretty quickly.
Now, I'd put my "blaster" back in the box, but Bruce still had his sitting on his lap. One officer gingerly climbed up into the pickup bed, and slowly approached Bruce; he kept up a mantra of ". . . don't move . . . don't move . . ." in a low, calm, voice as he reached for the toy gun in Bruce's lap. As he picked it up, his own weapon was maybe an inch from Bruce's face. He backed away with it until he was at the back of the truck, then actually looked at it.
"Star Wars?" He looked at me, gun still on Bruce. "Star Wars?"
"Yes, sir."
"Put your hands down." The rest of the officers began laughing and holstering their weapons. He lowered his own gun and walked back back over to Bruce.
"How does this work?"
"Sir, you press that button and then pull the trigger."
The officer did so. The noisemaker in the gun is a small motor with a gear that rubs on a piece of plastic, so it makes a sort of dental drill sound on an extremely small scale.
"That's it? It doesn't fire anything, or go bang, or anything like that?"
"No sir, that's it."
"Oh, geez . . ."
He holstered his gun, dropped the toy into the box, and climbed out of the truck.
Once the danger was defused, the other officers set about giving Dianne [the driver] a hard time because of her driver's license. In Minnesota, people under 18 are given "provisional" driver's licenses, which become "real" at 18. To be honest, I don't know what the difference is, other than the obvious one that the holder is under 18. But that part of the story is not nearly so entertaining as the previous part.
St. Paul, Minneapolis, 1980.
ADVANCED MILITARY WEAPONRY RULES
http://www.serv.net/~owenmp/daemon/advmil.html
Michael Garrity of NOVA has roared onto the battlefield like a Mark VI Ogre again with his writing prowess. This article presents new versions of military weaponry . . . much deadlier versions. Civilian duelists . . . be afraid . . be very afraid.
Michael Garrity
New Omaha Vehicular Association (NOVA)
drjake@ix.netcom.com
http://www.novia.net/~desslok/nova.htm
ADVANCED PICKUP/CAMPER CONSTRUCTION AND COMBAT RULES
http://www.serv.net/~owenmp/daemon/advpick.html
Pickups are one of an autoduelist's best weapons. Only oversized vehicles can match their weight capacity and their space capacity is excellent for construction tasks. While Car Wars considers pickups as standard cars, in reality they act more like ten-wheeler cab-carrier vehicles. Read this article by Andras Otto Schneider and Michael P. Owen before your next duel or courier run to increase the power of your pickups and campers.
Andras Otto Schneider
CWIN Daemon Mechanic Editor
andrasotto@olg.com
Michael P. Owen
Seattle Washington Autodueling Team (SWAT) President/Webmaster
Car Wars Internet Newsletter (CWIN) Editor
owenmp@hotmail.com
http://www.serv.net/~owenmp/swathome.html
AUTO ARSENAL STILL MYSTIFIES POLICE
OLYMPIA -- No one can explain why two men arrested Thursday near the state Capital were wearing bullet-proof vests and transporting an arsenal of loaded weapons. Nor are the two men offering any clues.
"All kinds of things run through your mind," said Lt. Ellis Morehead, a Washington State Patrol spokesman. "Hopefully, the troopers prevented something very serious from going down."
A 19-year-old Pacific Beach man, sporting a shaved head and dressed in orange jail overalls, sat expressionless yesterday in Thurston County Superior Court as his bail was set at $50,000.
A few miles away at St. Peter's Hospital, a 20-year-old Eatonville man was in stable condition, recovering from surgery for gunshot wounds to both forearms. Charges have not been filed against either man.
The two were stopped Thursday afternoon by a State Patrol motorcycle officer for speeding on Highway 101. One suspect was taken into custody, but the other broke free and sped off. The suspect was injured after troopers pursued him and shots were fired by both sides. The man was captured about three miles away in Tumwater.
The other man also broke free at one point by kicking out the back window out of a patrol car, but he was quickly recaptured.
In the suspect's trunk, police found three 12-gauge shotguns, one with a laser sight, two Uzi semiautomatic rifles, two 9mm and 0.45-caliber handguns, both with silencers, one 0.47-caliber semiautomatic assault rifle, two hand grenades, one smoke grenade and loaded magazine clips for each gun. Recovered in the car were three semiautomatic handguns, 0.45-caliber, 0.22-caliber and 9mm guns and a homemade battle-ax.
Police also found three ski masks, rubber and cloth gloves and a radio scanner. In addition, the men wore bulletproof vests.
A longtime resident of Pacific Beach, the 19-year old has a previous conviction for second-degree arson in Pierce County and had an outstanding warrant for carrying a concealed weapon as a felon in Grays Harbor County, police said.
Rick Scott, chief criminal deputy for the Grays Harbor sheriff, said the 19-year-old as connections to Tacoma gang activity.
"There are no card-carrying gang groups in Grays Harbor, but he has been identified with having gang relationships," Scott said. "I've been told he is associated with the guys in the Musselman homicide."
Todd Musselman was a Tacoma man who was killed in a random freeway shooting while riding with his pregnant wife in January. Kong Liliko Lefeau was convicted of the shooting in July.
The 20-year-old suspect in Thursday's arrest comes from a prominent Eatonville family and has a juvenile record in his hometown but nothing more, Eatonville police Chief Rick Armstrong said.
Dan Raley
Seattle Post-Intelligencer Newspaper
October 09, 1993
LAST NAPALM STOCKPILE MIGHT BURN IN PEACE
What may be the last Vietnam War-era stockpile of napalm is likely to be destroyed, after several bungled efforts, beginning next year.
The napalm -- about 23 million pounds of the notorious stuff -- sits
in about 35,000 drums at a U.S. Naval Weapons Complex in Fallbrook, Calif.,
inland from San Diego. The Navy's problems getting rid of the napalm, one
of the simplest leftover weapons and wastes in the Defense Department exotic
arsenal, helps show why the massive cleanup is going
to be so complex and costly.
A Navy spokesman, Richard Williamson, hastens to point out "It's not our napalm." The Air Force dropped off in Fallbrook in 1972. When the war ended in 1975, it never came back to pick up the napalm, he says. During the 1980s, the Navy on three occasions hired contractors who planned to break down the flammable goop into its three constituent parts -- 33% gasoline, 21% benzene and a sticky 46% polystyrene -- and then sell them. But the contractors ran into either technical or financial problems. Meanwhile, increasing numbers of the canisters have sprung leaks, requiring patching and repackaging.
Now, the napalm is a small part of the $250 million Defense cleanup contract up for grabs in the region, and many major waste-handling companies are expected to bid. The Navy still hopes to recycle the napalm and sell the parts, but at this point, Mr. Williamson says, "the whole slew could be removed and burned."
These days, napalm is a ready-mix weapon, with its constituents combined just before an aircraft takes off, the Navy says. That minimizes the amount of unused napalm that must be stored.
The Wall Street Journal Newspaper
October 08, 1993
LONGER LIFE VIA FUEL CELLS
Longer-lasting batteries may be on the horizon, thanks to the development of a new power source for cellular phones, portable computers, and other portable electronic devices. The batteries, which are basically fuel cells, reportedly last up to 50 times as long as standard nickel-cadmium batteries.
Following a longtime dream of electrochemists to create electric power from hydrocarbon fuel, Los Alamos National Laboratory physicist Bob Hokaday has engineered a new miniature methanol fuel cell in his basement lab. Financial backing has been arranged to develop a manufacturing prototype. The batteries, similar in size and price but half the weight of conventional batteries, is expected to have a major impact on the $1-billion-a-year cellular phone battery market. The product could be on store shelves by the end of the next year.
Fuel cells work by converting the chemical energy from the oxidation of a fuel such as methanol directly into electricity. Hockaday's methanol fuel cell runs at room temperature like other batteries and will produce power at levels needed to operate a cellular phone -- three-tenths of a Watt in standby mode and four Watts for conversation.
The micro-methanol fuel cell is expected to last at least 20 years, where as most contemporary batteries wear out after two.
Refueling the micro-methanol cell is as rapid and simple as pouring 1.5 ounces of inexpensive methanol, instead of waiting several hours for recharging.
Douglas Page
Popular Science Magazine
May 1998
MATT TRACKS: WORLDWIDE TRACK TECHNOLOGY
http://www.mattracks.com/
Visit this Web Site to view one of the coolest autodueling-related gadgets
invented. :-)
PLASTIC: BACK TO OIL
Here's an idea: forget about recycling plastic.
Turn it back into oil. University of Kentucky scientists have succeeded in converting plastics back into crude oil, a much simpler process than trying to recycle the plastics, which is a complex task because each of the five polymers in the material must be separated if any further use is to be made of it.
The university's Institute for Mining and Materials engineer Mehdi Taghiei says 80 million barrels of oil a year could be recovered by cooking the plastics in a reactor fed with hydrogen and an alumina silicate catalyst.
That would supply about five days of the U.S. annual consumption -- each year, every year, for as long as we deem it wise to use plastic made from oil.
If a commercially-viable, environmentally-benign process can be perfected, the world will surely be better off.
Seattle-Times Newspaper
October 03, 1993
LASER GUIDANCE LINKS
Dear CWIN Staff:
Well after reading several articles, I must admit to being a bit puzzled by all the confusion over Laser Guidance (I know . . . Not again!). But not to fear, my take on the situation is quite simple and is how my friends and I have played them for the last 10-12 years (Egads! Has it really been that long?)
Tuning a laser -- $500. Not necessary for a Targeting Laser
Laser Guidance per Rocket -- $200
Linking the laser to each "Rocket Weapon" $200 (The actual Laser
Guidance Link)
The guided rocket weapons should only need a smart link if the rockets being guided, are of the same type and you're doing the typical "turret-and-front-mounted-weapons" thing. This follows the standard Smart Link rules. Why the heck do you need a Smart Link between the Laser and the rocket weapon? Isn't that the job of the Laser Guidance Link?
Period. That's it. What's the big deal? Yes, Laser guiding individual rockets gets very expensive very fast. To me and those I've played with, it's game balance. Okay, show of hands, who wants a lightweight, cheap, 3d6 weapon, with a to-hit of 6 pointed at their backs? Okay those of you who would be doing the shooting, put down your hands now . . . :-)
Seriously though, it's actually very easy and from what I can tell, the people that want to change it are trying to bend it to their wishes, not their interpretation. Either they want to abuse it or they hate it and want to "rules lawyer" it out of existence.
Personally, I think the rules are fine the way they are and are perfectly clear.
I hope I've done my part to muddy the waters further . . . ;-)
Sincerely,
Ken Rehor
Wannabe World Champion Autoduelist
Colorado Autodueling Association Denver Division
krx1121@po1.cobe.com
Dear Ken:
I like your interpretation about the LGL. Note that I presented the rules of the LGL found in CWC2 and in UACFH in a less ambiguous format than those two publications. You can check for the accuracy of my comments with the ADQ&A Collection of LGLs I have placed on the SWAT Web Site (containing all of the questions about LGLs presented in ADQ and in Pyramid).
You will note that someone (nice person however) started to make comments on the LGL how it is interpreted in Official/AADA Car Wars Events. You will note that CWIN almost always presents material for home autoduels only.
When you look at the ADQ&A document you can see that the LGL needs to have a revised description. I hope I did not give you the impression I am against the gadget. I have been checking designs in several places for many years and few have installed the LGL correctly. I was hoping to present a tutorial for newer Car Wars players.
Your application about a TL having automatic laser-tuning is an interesting rules change. I will try your idea in the future.
You will note that I did not state a LGL needs to use a smart link. Another person suggested that I did. What I specifically said is the links connecting the TLs and the rocket weapon systems do not need to be smart links. The links connecting rocket weapons to each other, separate from the LGL may or may not need to be smart. The LGL is the technology from which the smart link is based and the LGL was around (introduced in the winter of 1984 in ADQ 2/4) a long time before smart links (introduced in the spring of 1988 in ADQ 6/1).
Another comment about smart links I would like to make is that I prefer trikes to connect their lateral weaponry and their front weapons (back for reversed trikes) with standard links and not smart links. Trikes have used standard links for several years before smart links were developed. I will suggest that a turret connected to the frame weapons on a trike will require smart links but I feel that trikes not having to use smart links in some situations will give them an advantage. These vehicles are lighter than cars and only have three wheels (one of those destroyed immediately immobilizes the trike) so the rule is a good trade-off like subcompacts gaining +1 HC, no space loss from streamlining or sloping, and not having to follow the third spaces rule (the second and third rules are my own design HVD 2).
If you think the LGL is confusing or overused, try using the old rules of the LGL and the TL (located on the SWAT ADQ&A LGL Web Page).
Some of the AADA Chapters in the past appeared to have only played to particpate in Tournaments. Such competitive events are not bad but I feel that the main purpose of playing Car Wars and revisions of its rules should be to have fun (i.e. playing at home with friends). The main audience of rules changes should be for the home autoduelist because that is the majority of gamers buying Car Wars. The AADA Tournaments are operated by a set of rules that their participants know quite well and who do not need rule tutorials such as the above (i.e. they know the rules quite well).
Enough commentary. Let us return to ramming vehicles into confetti. :-)
Michael P. Owen
Seattle Washington Autodueling Team (SWAT) President/Webmaster
Car Wars Internet Newsletter (CWIN) Editor
owenmp@hotmail.com
http://www.serv.net/~owenmp/swathome.html
The Auto Racing Game has been continuing to engage the supercharger and turbocharger at 9,000 rpm. Thanks to Jean-Jacques Enser and Alain David for providing all of the following news.
Jean-Jacques Enser is preparing to display photographs, rules utilized, and details of the 1997 Formula De Masters, an event held in France that had 200 (Yes! Two-hundred!) pilots challenge each other for the checkered flag. Check on the "Masters" Section of Formula De Internet Headquarters regularly for updates.
After reviewing the 1997 Masters, you can start preparing for the 1998 Masters! The dates of the Sixth Annual Formula De Masters Tournament are known! The 1998 edition of this annual meeting will take place on October 24th and 25th in Asnières (92, France). For more details about the FD Masters check out the Masters Section on Formula De Internet Headquarters.
A sneak preview of the Watkins Glen (USA) racetrack is available on Formula De Internet Headquarters while you can access the Jerez, Spain track (created with Corel Draw and also available in 1/4-scale GIF format) courtesy of Alberto Romero.
The Third Edition of Formula De has been released with minor modifications made to the rules of the English-language edition of the game. The next track set, Watkins Glen (United States) and Silverstone (Great Britain), has been delayed until May 15, 1998 although Issue 6 of Formula De Magazine was released on April 25th.
Good things come to those who wait . . . Drivers will be greatly rewarded in both July and November, each month having the release of two tracks! The release of track set 13/14, containing the Montréal (Canada) and Long Beach (USA) will be joined by expansion 15/16, displaying Hockenheim (Germany) and Osterreichring (Austria). The 17/18 set featuring Suzaka (Japan) and Melboure (Australia) will be accompanied by the 19/20 set containing the Barcelona (Spain) and Buenos Aires (Argentina) racetracks.
Here is another benefit for the Commonwealth of Independent States for switching from socialism to capitalism. A Russian distributor has ordered 20,000 boxes (Yes! Twenty-thousand!) to be delivered to that country in September. Could the CIS be a future location for Car Wars? (Thanks to HVD Issue 3: Antartica Special, Car Wars players have rules for Antarctic combat -- Those rules should be useable to recreate Siberian/Arctic conditions quite well).
April 26th was the date of a Formula De Tournament (using the Spa Track) in Issy-Les-Moulineaux (92, France). Contact Alain David for the event's results.
The Open of Valreas (84, France) will occur over two days on May 9 and May 10. The Castellet and A1 Ring racetracks will challenge the participants.
The Watkins Glen and Silverstone tracks await racers in the Open of Boulogne Billancourt (92, France), a two-day event on June 13 and June 14. Contact Alain David for details.
Alberto Romero's Web Site, Formula De Club Dragon, now has several racetracks for downloading: Circuito de Jerez de la Frontera Racetrack Circuito de Jerez de la Frontera, Jerez de la Frontera, and vista preliminar reducida.
Jean-Jacques Enser
Formula De Internet Headquarters Webmaster
jj@netscape.com
http://www.formula-de.com
Alain David
France Formula De Events
David.Alain@wanadoo.fr
Alberto Romero
Formula De Club Dragon Web Site
110572@santandersupernet.com
http://www.ciudadfutura.com/clubdragon/fd.htm
MICRO MACHINE WARS
Regarding a conversation about 3D Car Wars and 3X-Scale autodueling . . .
Dear Michael P. Owen:
I don't mind you quoting me, and I don't mind writing a "Designer's Notes" piece, but I think there has been a misunderstanding: when I wrote "3D" I meant "3-dimensional". You thought I meant "3X" as in everything-multiplyed-by-3";-)
The Car Wars that we play in my group is not 3X; it's more like 2X. I think I know the article you're referring to, but that suggests that you multiply all distances by three. We have made our own rulers where one "inch" is exactly the length of a Mid-sized Matchbox car, thus it's not quite 3X.
Wooden rulers without numbers are available from most stores which sell office-acessories (at least in Denmark!)
I find that weapons made for Warhammer 40K are excellent for mounting on the Matchbox cars and if you play the game then you should have plenty of spare weapons. If not then seperate weapons can be ordered by mail from Games Workshop.
Buildings can be anything which has once been used to hold something else; milk cartons, soda cans (silos), etc. To paint them I use white spray paint all to cover them completely, and then black spray paint applied unevenly, and not covering the surface. This gives a very good futuristic effect of wear and tear, and is very easy. ;-)
Nils Braad Petersen
Denmark Autodueling Association
bcr1924@vip.cybercity.dk
SUPER-SCALE CAR WARS
http://www.serv.net/~owenmp/hvymetal/supercw.html
Autodueling with 1X Scale materials is excellent because there are many pre-published maps in this scale and there are now readily-available miniatures in this scale (Formula De Miniatures and Formula Racers). Increasing the scale to 2X will permit you to combat with Micro Machines. If you have a large amount of room to play you can have your Hot Wheels and MatchBox vehicles autoduel in 3X Car Wars. If MatchBox Wars Scale is not large enough for you read this article and you will be armed to convert your campaign to the next step in miniatures . . . Super-Scale Car Wars!
This article can also be located in Shadis Magazine Issue 45. Why purchase the magazine while you can download the article from the Internet? The Shadis edition contains photographs of the car construction process!
Loren Dean
Critical Mass University of Utah Gaming Group
davinci@MCI2000.com
http://www.cc.utah.edu/~jch9478/Mass.html
ARENA BOOK 2048: FLASHFIRE CIRCUIT
James Barton has finished this project! Twelve new arenas await you to challenge them including the dreaded and infamous Twister Arena! AADA Road Atlas and Survival Guide entries, new rules and equipment iincluding ice-dueling rules from ADQ 5/3 for the Pale Horse IceDuel Arena) and tournament guidelines are also displayed. This book should be downloaded immediately by every autoduelist!
HVD'S CAR WARS OPPONENT FINDER
When James finished the Flashfire Arena Book the HVD CWOF was his next target, a Web Site not seeing an update since early 2048. The registry has reached over 100 members and is continuing to grow with Washington State and Michigan State as the two states/provinces having the highest number of Car Wars players. Please take a few minutes and add your name and your Car Wars Group to the database.
SWAT is working on several timelines, including the History of Spokane and the History of Biotechnology but CWIN needs its readers to write timelines on a regular basis. This is an opportunity for CWIN subscribers to write about their own fields of knowledge. NewsWatch is a very important part of the Car Wars world so please start writing.
AUSTRALIAN AUTODUEL ASSOCIATION -- BOINK'S CAR WARS SITE
http://web.logicworld.com.au/~tense/carwars.htm
Another Web Site has taken the Australian ADA banner. At the moment
this Web Site only has a Vehicle Guide but more resources are planned.
The designs are interesting therefore stop by and download them for your
stock vehicle list.
AUTODUEL CHAMPIONS STILL AVAILABLE
http://www.io.com/~allston/
http://www.io.com/~allston/gaming/sales.html
The legendary writer Aaron Allston, who has written the Star Wars X-Wing
novel Rogue Squadron that is on the New York Times Bestseller List, has
a few copies of his Autoduel Champions text for sale. This book first presented
helicopters to the Car Wars universe as well as many now-standard gadgets
such as the VMG, HD dropped weapons and the IRSS. Autoduel Champions presented
autodueling rules the superhero RPG Champions, super-character rules for
Car Wars, and non-super roleplaying rules for Car Wars. The section previously
mentioned is a nice compliment to Car Wars, a game which concentrates more
on cars than character interaction. Mr. Allston is also offering autographed
copies of ADC. This book is an important piece of Car Wars history and
includes several gadgets found nowhere else such as the hi-res vehicular
computer and LAW/VLAW mounts for cycles.
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE OF UNITED STATES
DICTIONARY OF MILITARY AND ASSOCIATED TERMS
http://www.dtic.mil/doctrine/jel/doddict
According to the May 1998 issue of Popular Science Magazine, this Web
Site is "a handy guide for those who do not know Saints from salted weapons."
GEAR JAMMER PLAY-BY-ELMAY CAR WARS LEAGUE
http://www.his.com/~bhoward/cw/
Ben Howard has created the Gear Jammer PBEM CW League and is creating a collection of computer resources for Car Wars. The Web Site is under construction but is expected to be completed within a few weeks.
Ben Howard
Gear Jammer Play-By-E-Mail Car Wars League
bhoward@his.com
http://www.his.com/~bhoward/cw/
GURPS WATERWORLD IN DEVELOPMENT
Andre Beckershoff of Germany recently watched WaterWorld for the first time and became so entralled with the movie that he has begun writing not-for-profit fan-and-Internet version of GURPS WaterWorld. I imagine that it will be a combination of GURPS and Car Wars. Andre needs as much help and advice as he can get so please send your suggestions to the elmay address below.
WaterWorld is one of the best Car Wars environments so please help Andre make this idea come to fruition. CWIN wishes Andre the best of luck and will present progress reports of the book in future newsletters.
Andre Beckershoff
GURPS WaterWorld Editor
Germany
anbeck@muenster.de
KEVIN "KRASH MACALISTER" REGIER'S CAR WARS WEB SITE
http://www.geocities.com/Area51/2550/
The composer of this Web Site, who is also a guest writer this issue
(see the Arena Manager's Office), is planning a chat room for autoduelists
and other resources. The page is under construction but the background
is beautiful so stop by and take a look.
TAMPA WRECKING CREW
http://blackcircle.digitalchainsaw.com/rpg/carwars/carwars.html
This Car Wars Group is very cool. CWIN has decided to let the TWC describe their campaign in their own words:
UNCLE EDGAR'S RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT CATALOG:
MAY 2048 EDITION
http://www.serv.net/~owenmp/edgar/cwincat.html
VINDICATOR GAMING MAGAZINE RETURNS
Vindicator was a fanzine published by Michael Friend in 1995 and 1996 for rules variants, strategy, reviews and more on science-fiction and fantasy Microgames, including our own Ogre, G.E.V. and Car Wars, as well as other classics like Melee, WarpWar, Outpost Gamma, The Creature That Ate Sheboygan and others.
But like many fanzines, momentum slowed, problems arose and Vindicator went on hiatus. Until now.
Under the stewardship of new editor Duke Ritenhouse, Vindicator is back. The latest issue, Vol II, No. 1, has articles about the history of microgames, some new units for G.E.V., and more.
Subscriptions are $11 for 6 bi-monthly issues ($18 foreign), $20 for 12 issues ($30 foreign) and $2 for a sample issue ($3.50 foreign). Duke is also looking for contributors. Contact him by e-mail or write using the following addresses:
Vindicator
c/o Duke Ritnenhouse
2160 Lakeview Drive, No. 272
Ypsilanti, MI 48198
The Daily Illuminator
April 25, 1998
http://www.sjgames.com/ill/
CAR WARS MAGAZINE ARTICLE INDEX
http://www.serv.net/~owenmp/magazine
Special thanks to Troy Gannon for suggesting that SWAT write this article sooner than later. :-)
This database is a list of the locations of most if not all Car Wars articles found in non-ADQ magazines. This document also includes references to all articles regarding the 3D vehicular combat game Dark Future and the card-based vehicular combat game Road Kill.
At the moment this Web Page simply lists the articles and the magazines where they are found. In the future, summaries of the articles will be added. Please send CWIN sources that SWAT have omitted and I will update this database.
Regarding Space Gamer Magazine and Pyramid Magazine I only listed actual articles and did not list issues that contained questions about Car Wars (SWAT is compiling the ADQ&A collections in Pyramid and Space Gamer and will present the list at a later date). Note that every Pyramid has an AADA News Section that may or may not contain vehicle designs and rule variants. Most of these articles can be accessed on the SJ Games Web Site.
If you have any of these articles please convert them to HTML format and approach SJ Games for permission to place them on the Internet. There are a large number of Car Wars articles not found in AutoDuel Quarterly that would be a great resource if placed on the Matrix so please volunteer for HTML conversions.
Thanks again Troy for inspiring SWAT to write the list! :-)
Troy Gannon
tgannon@inetnebr.com
CAPITAL REGIONS AUTODUEL ASSOCIATION (CRADA)
http://www.albany.net/~xeno/carwars/
The New York duelists have reformatted their Web Site, with the installation of a "What is CRADA" page, Dueling Rules (currently this page has the AADA-Sanctioned Regulations), and a nice Point System (CWIN suggests that duelists using the CRADA Points System multiply all values by eight to remove the need of fractions).
The CRADA Message Board is in operation so please start a discussion.
As this time, ice/oil combination slicks, roll cages on ten-wheelers, flame
clouds and flaming oil slicks are the current subjects being debated.
CHAMPIONSHIP AUTODUELING CIRCUIT (CADC)
http://home.sprynet.com/sprynet/timgould/CADC.htm
Editor's Note: SWAT apologizes for listing the incorrect URL for the CADC Web Site. The past URL would only send you to a CADC Web Page that did not have the frame-based menu to access all of the resources of the CADC. The correct Web Address has now been installed.
The pilots of Can-Ams are pushing their ICEs at 9,000 rpm with their Web Site as usual. After racing over 50 events since the inaguration of their group, the CADC will begin the Tire Tracks Archive on May 1st. The Archive will be updated once or twice a month. The old issues of TT will be scanned and will be uploaded to the CADC Web Site. Due to space limitations, the CADC will only have one or two back issues on the WWW at one time. The issues of TT prior to Volume 6 were produced using an old desktop publisher. Volume 6 is when CADC changed it over to the HTML format. The back issues do contain variants, but CADC has incorporated them into the current season's rules.
The CADC would love to have reccomendations and suggestions and invites CWIN readers to explore the Tire Tracks Archive as the race reports are quite enjoyable. CWIN wishes the CADC the best of luck with this project.
If you have not yet visited the CADC Web Site, please do so. The Car
Wars rules need a very good method of handling racing events and the CADC
Web Site fills that vacuum nicely. These racing rules have new body types
including off-road racing pickups and alternative statistics for racing
cars.
DEATH RACE 2000 MOVIE NOTES
http://www.mcn.net/~netrencher/dr2k.html (Non-Functional URL!)
As soon as this Web Site was linked to the SWAT Jump Page the document
disappeared. Before the file became scattered electrons SWAT downloaded
the "regulations" for the Transcontinental Road Races. If you are interested
in running a "Maniac" scenario (psychotic duelist running his vehicle in
a shopping mall; see ADQ 1/4 and Best of ADQ Volume 1 to simulate Death
Race 2000 send an elmay to SWAT and the Web Page will be forwarded to you.
SWAT suggests that you give the pedestrians large quantities of hand weapons
to make the game a challenge for players versus a senseless act of violence
(remember that prestige is not normally gained by vehicles using weaponry
on pedestrians). Of course, an illegal Death Race could be operated with
law enforcement trying to stop the chaos (as shown in the early issues
of the Death Race 2020 comic mini-series). :-)
DEATH RACING ASSOCIATION OF WASHINGTON (DRAW)
http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Battlefield/6056/index.html
The combatants of Omak are creating a stampede on their Web Site. The DRAW 2048 Season Page and scoring to the House Rules Combat Section have been installed. Three new arenas, Micro Machines Tribute, The Aztec, and The Dragon are displayed in the Arena Watch Section. The Uncle Schmalbert's Section has been fine-tuned and there is a new section titled Themes. Yes! DRAW has Desktop Themes for Windows 1995 Plus IBM platforms. Currently there are two available, Car Wars and Road Warrior/Mad Max and a third version is under development.
SWAT was able to meet Phil and Bill of DRAW at the 1998 Spokane Game Faire when the two duelists participated in a Tonka-Truck Scale (16" x 8") Car Wars Game. During that meeting SWAT heard that DRAW is planning to write Arena Book: Evergreen Circuit. This text will contain only arenas constructed by Washington State duelists or arenas that reside in Washington State. This project looks like it will be outstanding. SWAT was able to see a preview of some of the arenas, including ones that the disbanded Associated Autoduelists of the Inland Empire (AAIE) have created many years ago.
If you have seen the Ozarks Off-Road Autoduel Arena you know that the
map has nice asthetics. DRAW has multiplied the wonderful appearance of
this racetrack three-fold. Yes! DRAW has created a 3D version of the Ozarks
Arena with the southeast corner (the route racers take when bypassing the
jump right after the northeast 90-degree turn bordered by boulders) having
a high elevation. DRAW might be placing this photograph on their Web Site
as well as constructing a new 3D Ozarks Arena. These arenas have to been
seen to be believed because they are quite an awesome sight.
SEATTLE WASHINGTON AUTODUELING TEAM (SWAT)
http://www.serv.net/~owenmp/swathome.html
The autoduelists of SWAT have been adding PlatCats, SuperCons, SuperCaps and HD SuperCaps to their Web Site. The SWAT Jump Page now has links to all of the articles SWAT has written for HVD Magazine as well as links to all other pages on the SWAT Web Site including CWIN articles. The Formula De Section now contains all Fomula De Web Sites on the Internet including a Non-English Language Site Collection. Links to Maverick's Classic Microgames Museum, several Australian newsgroups, United Kingdom newsgroups, marketplace newsgroups, and Lucas' RPG Site have also been added. Several other Web Sites have been linked and other pages discussed in this issue of CWIN. There are several other links not mentioned here so stop by and take a look.
MAY 2048 EDITION: DIVISION 50 CONVOY SPECIALTY VEHICLES
While you are contemplating your submissions for the HVD VDC (cargo carrier with two defending cycles) CWIN will begin running its own competitions. Each contest will run for two months and you may submit as many designs as you desire. I have only received one entry for the Div40 fire-fighting trike therefore I am suspecting that CWIN readers want a more challenging project. Your wish has been received . . .
This contest gives you an increased budget of $50,000 but your goal over the next two months is to design not one but two vehicles. Both of these will be utilized for car convoys, groups of specialized cars that work as one vehicle.
The first vehicle you need to construct is an anti-aircraft and anti-personnel vehicle. A common strategy is to make this a camper or van and place it in the center of the convoy where its thinner armor is not a large disadvantage. Because you need to add some AP ability this vehicle should have more armor than the case above.
The second vehicle is a "backdoor guard" or "Tail-End Charlie." Often filled with dropped weapons and a high degree of maneuverability, these vehicles can ruin a rear-attacker's day quickly coating the road with deadly surprises. If designed correctly a convoy needs only one of these.
These cars will likely work with two other vehicles, one a point-guard in the front of the convoy, armed with heavy front-mounted weaponry and perhaps a ramplate, and the most important vehicle in the group, the cargo carrier. Although all of the vehicles should have cargo capacity to carry supplies and courier cargo, this vehicle has the items that will be generating the main source of income for the vehicles. Likely this vehicle will be armed with a universal turret and some light weaponry to for point defense in case the three other vehicles are "busy."
Any piece of equipment can be utilized. Military accessories, such as electronics and sighting systems are acceptible although military weapons should not be used. If you install a gadget not located in CWC2 or UACFH please list its source. Custom-designed accessories will be permitted however send the CWIN Staff an elmay before you send your design. Any weapons, ammunition, and accessories located on the Internet may be utilized and are highly suggested.
Remember that these two vehicles are going to be used for convoy work on the highway. Think of freeways as a narrow, infinitely-long arena. Maneuverability is very important and ammo supplies should be ample. According to the Convoy Tactics article in ADQ 6/4 by Rodney Orpheus "Good convoy weapons must be cheap, reliable, and have a plentiful supply of ammunition." Incendiary weapons can be used but they often make your kills burn, destroying valuable salvage. Laser-guided rockets are too expensive and there is no guarantee you will find such speciality ammo at the next truck stop. Lasers might be acceptible but make sure you have a large quantity of laser batteries or energy cells (see Equipment Section of the AVRO Web Site). Gas engines are acceptable although range is a very critical issue so whether you use gasoline, electricity or hydrox (see the Nightmessenger Archive NOVA Web Site) make sure you have long-range capability. Power plants are better because you do not know if the next freeway exit will even have one gallon of gas! Remember spare tires! Some convoy drivers have started duels to get at opponent's tires.
If you want to mix the three abilities on these vehicles, go ahead. Often many vehicles in convoys carry AA weaponry but specialization between the rearguard and the AA characteristics is probably a good idea while AP weapons are distributed.
The scoring system used will be the same as the HVD contests.
Anti-Aircraft/Anti-Personal/Rearguard/Cargo Capabilities = 25 Points
Defensive Capability = 15 Points
Offensive Capability = 20 Points
Driving Pleasure = 15 Points
Cost = 5 Points
Analysis/Background = 20 Points
Remember that designing vehicles is only the first part of this contest. The second and perhaps most difficult is an "analysis" or "background" of the vehicles. Description of duels it has entered would be a great way to start this section.
To summarize your tasks and their due dates here is a table:
1. Could you clarify the acceleration rules? When do you have accelerations of 5, 10, 15 or more?
Kevin "Krash MacAlister" Regier
CWIN Arena Manager's Office Editor
Arkansas Autodueling Association Fayetteville Division
whoopus@hotmail.com
http://www.geocities.com/Area51/2550
1. Your acceleration question is a great one. The rules for acceleration, power plants, top speeds and maximum load can be confusing. The concept of "maximum pull," a term I have applied to power sources, should assist you to understand the acceleration rules.
Power plants and ICEs for cars, cycles, and trikes (boats, hovercraft, oversized vehicles, aircraft, and AFVs have their own specific rules) have two properties related to their power output.
The first power property is the amount of power factors (PFs) the PPs/ICEs contain. The value of the PFs is utilized for determination of top speed and cruising speed.
The second property of power output is "maximum pull," the maximum amount of weight the PP or ICE can successively move. The maximum pull value is determined by multiplying the PF value by three which gives the maximum amount of weight for the vehicle to have in order to have minimum acceleration, which is normally 5 miles / (hour * second).
After you calculate your acceleration based on the pull-to-weight ratio, any accessories such as nitrous oxide, ICE turbines, and overdrive change this rating when activated. Heavy-duty transmissions are a special case which will be discussed in a future issue of CWIN.
Accelerations of 20 or more based on power-to-weight ratio are usually reserved for dragsters and funny cars. However I feel that if you have a powerful enough ICE or PP to obtain 20 mph per second, I would allow your standard car to have it! I am working on some characteristics for dragsters and funny cars to give them special advantages other than acceleration (which is the purpose of the 20 mph acceleration limit).
Maximum Pull / Current Total Weight of Vehicle
WANT COPIES OF AUTODUEL QUARTERLY
I have read that SJ Games was looking for people to convert ADQ to HTML format. Any book someone is willing to send to me, I am willing to place in HTML format, but I do not have any ADQs.
Bradley B. Upson II
New York Autodueling Association Rochester Division
bupson@rpa.net
http://www2.rpa.net/~bupson/