Car
Wars Classic
Stay Alive on the Cheap
by Robert L. Collins
This is a road rally adventure for one to four players and a
referee. The
players have agreed to participate in the Fist Annual Southeast
Kansas "Stay
Alive on the Cheap" Road Rally. The rally starts in the fortress
town of
Iola, and ends on the east side of Wichita.
For the Players
This road rally is different from any other rally in that the
contestants
will be trying to get from start to finish not quickly, but cheaply.
The player
who completes the rally while spending the least amount of money
will be awarded
$20,000, and all repairs and reloads given in the S.E. Kansas area
will be free
for six months.
No more than two characters can be on each team, and the budget for
vehicle
and equipment cannot exceed $25,000. The rally begins at 10 AM, and
to win a
team has to cross the east gate of the Wichita "wall" by 8 PM.
Shooting at opposing contestants or law enforcement officers is
illegal.
The following roads have been deemed safe for rally contestants:
US-54,
US-169, K-96, K-39, and I-35. Roads K-99, K-254, and US-75 have been
declared
unsafe.
According to the AADA and local officials, three gangs are active
along the
route. They are the Ninety-Sixers (along K-96), the Wildcatters
(within 15 miles
of El Dorado), and the River Rats (along the Neosho River between
Iola and
Buffalo). BLUD is also believed to be active in the area.
If you plan to play the adventure, read no further.
Before the Rally Begins
Each team should be approached by at least one of the gangs, and
perhaps one
or two BLUD brothers as well. They will offer safe passage, trouble
for
opponents, better deals on repairs, and anything else in exchange
for cut of the
prize money and any salvage.
Give the players only one chance. If they say yes, fine; if they say
no,
that's it. Note that a gang could go to more than one player, or to
all of them.
Note also that there's nothing to prevent either side going back on
any
promises.
The referee will next have to decide when gang encounters will occur
along
the route. Remember that the players will be choosing the route they
take, so an
encounter might have to be moved.
There are several other encounters that the players should face. A
slow-moving convoy, unprovoked attacks, other people's duels, odd
breakdowns,
and shady garages should liven things up. If the rally is going on
in the fall,
everyone should run into a large harvester (potatoes) or a school
bus going 20
mph.
During the Rally
The roads in southeast Kansas are always tricky, mainly because of
winding
twists and turns. Control rolls will be necessary and should be made
often.
While the rally is measured in increments of five minutes, control
rolls are
made per miles traveled.
By road, here are the frequency of rolls: K-96, every 2 miles; K-99,
every 6
miles; K-39, every 4 miles; K-254, every 2; US-169, every 5; US-75,
every 3;
US-54, Iola to Eureka every 3, Eureka to El Dorado every 5. Any road
not
mentioned needs no control rolls other than during encounters.
What this all means is if a player drives six miles in five minutes
along
K-96, he must make three control rolls. This should keep speeds
within speed
limits.
All towns except Towanda have one truck stop of some size, and
Augusta and
El Dorado have two. Eureka, Towanda, and Andover have one garage;
Augusta, Iola
and Chanute have two; El Dorado has three. Truck stops will provide
food,
recharges, and basic repairs, while garages provide n jor repairs
and reloads.
Prices vary along the routes. Prices in Andover, Iola and Chanute
are normal. In Yates Center, Buffalo, Towanda, Eureka and Severy
prices are 15% above
normal. Due to strong competition and size, prices in Augusta and El
Dorado are
10% below normal. This information is readily available to the
players, but only
if they ask.
Each police department in each town has at least one police cruiser.
Andover, Augusta, Chanute, Eureka, and Iola have two; El Dorado has
three; and
El Dorado and Chanute have one Highway Patrol chopper. The police
will chase any
offender up to four miles out of town. If the offender does not
stop, the police
will radio ahead, and a roadblock will be set up at the next town.
Each town has
four officers per vehicle.
Additional Notes
If anyone should take I-35, the I-235/K-96 exit will put them two
miles east
Wichita; the US-54 exit will put them right at the gate.
Once the player arrives at the gate, he will park and submit all
receipts to
the rules committee. It will then contact the businesses to confirm
all charges
(including restaurants).
If everyone makes it back by 6 PM, a tentative winner will be
announced that
night. The committee will then call all shops along the route to
assure that
there have been no cover-ups. If the winner hasn't cheated, then
he'll be
awarded the prize at a ceremony two days later.
Vehicles start fully charged and loaded, and in good repair. Cost is
figured including the price of all meals and recharges, all repairs
and
maintenance, and all ammo purchased along the way, and any ammo from
the initial
load actually fired. Cost of repairs made after the end of the rally
is not
figured in, provided the vehicle crossed the finish under its own
power.
Stealing power, food or parts to cut down on expenses is grounds for
disqualification.
What might happen to the players after the rally is up to the
referee. If
the players have made enemies of any of the gangs, they're going to
come
calling. There'll be a lot of people with a lot of problems wanting
to talk to
the winner. And of course, even the losers who survived will get a
job offer or
two. This adventure is more flexible than most. It will allow the
players to
compete against one another, and can be tailored to suit them. A
change in
route, the cars or the characters will make everything else play
differently. In
short, this is an adventure that can be replayed.
Ideally, each competitor should have only one crew member, or at
most two.
(The one-car limit should help considerably.) This will assure that
every team
takes a different route, and when combat comes, few attackers will
be needed.
Three-lane sections can be used on the US highways and I-35. Use
two-lane
sections on all state roads. Since combat will be largely prohibited
in towns
and cities, none of the city maps will be necessary.
This adventure could be adapted to GURPS Autoduel. The
PCs could be part of
one team, or competitors. The one-car limit still applies. The GM
would have to
work out a number of NPCs, but stats should be interchangeable
between
like-NPCs.
Best of luck, drivers, and may the stingiest man win!
Car Wars Classic: Stay Alive on the Cheap. Robert L.
Collins. Autoduel Quarterly: The Journal of the American
Autoduel Association. Volume 9, Number 2. Summer 2041 / Summer 1991.
Steve Jackson Games. pp. 28-29.
Web posted by Steve Jackson Games,
February 1998.
Reprinted by the Seattle
Washington Autoduel Team, April 02, 2015.
Updated May 29, 2023.
Original URL: http://www.sjgames.com/car-wars/adq/9/2/classics.html
