Web Posted October 18, 1998
Updated September 02, 2001
SWAT is back and there is going to be trouble . . .
Mad Mike has returned to the Matrix and is back with a vengeance more intense than the mid-size car from ADQ 6/4. SWAT now has its physical and virtual headquarters in the Gateway of the Pacific: Seattle, Washington State. The Internet Service Provider ServNet, based in the neighborhood of Ballard, the home of the Hiram Chittenden Boat Locks, is now the host of the SWAT Web Site.
All of the usual columns are here. The Arena Watch Division of CWIN, led by the illustrious Michael Drennon, gives CWIN readers this issue a tour of the Doublecross Dueltrack. CWIN's Taelon (Oops! I mean Companion) Editor, Nathan Whitchurch of CRADA, returns to CWIN by presenting a new strategy article.
I need Road Atlas/Survival Guide entries and NewsWatch timelines! The timelines and the Spokane and Seattle RASG discussions I am writing have been delayed for several reasons so I need your help to keep the RASG column active. Survival Guides and timelines are not difficult to write but if you are having difficulty getting started, look at these two articles. As I have said before, writing a timeline that is related to a RASG article usually makes both projects easier and more fun to write.
AADA Road Atlas and Survival Guide -- Fortress
Towns: Theory and Practice
http://www.serv.net/~owenmp/rasg
If you find broken hyperlinks or errata in the SWAT Web Site, please let me know and I will fix it. Please realize that the SWAT Web Site will be under construction for at least a month, so you can expect formats and content to change however most of the URLs should be constant. Some of the goodies on SWAT HQ you can expect to find after trick-or-treating are [CLASSIFIED. VISIT THE SWAT WEB SITE ON A REGULAR BASIS AND CONTINUE TO READ CWIN].
CWIN is your newsletter. I cannot tailor its content to material you like so please send comments and suggestions to SWAT. Do you have questions about CWIN, SWAT or Car Wars? Please contact SWAT and visit the three Car Wars message boards. Remember that CWIN is always in need of submissions. As long as your articles are written with a minimal amount of errors and discuss Car Wars, they will be printed.
The next CWIN will be released in the time period around November 01, 1998.
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
P.S. After reading The Cracked Windshield articles in this issue, read the following article.
DOUBLE CROSS DUELTRACK
ALEXANDRIA, FREE OIL STATE OF LOUISIANA
http://www.serv.net/~owenmp/arenas/dblcross.html
CWIN was wondering what was Michael Drennon thinking when he took the CWIN Staff to Alexandria, Lousiana FOS (i.e. cycle gang haven). Amazingly, the cycle gangs did not attack out vehicles, instead escorting us along a windy road to a new arena CWIN had never heard of before: the Doublecross Dueltrack. The arena motto, "Trust no one, stay in the throttle and conserve conserve your ammo," is a very useful philosophy to follow on this track, especially when you face the arena's two four-way intersections.
HURRICANE! A WEATHER CONDITION IN BOAT WARS
Pocket Box Boat Wars. Steve Jackson Games. 1988.
p.16.
Deluxe Boat Wars. Steve Jackson Games. 1989.
p.8
Hurricane: No one in their right mind would be
out in this voluntarily. All weapons fire at -6. All maneuvers and hazards
are at a +D4. Add at
least 3 to all rolls on the Boat Crash Table
(Rowboats add 6, Dinghies add 5, Speedboats add 4).
LOS ANGELES INTERSTATE HIGHWAY SPEEDS
http://www.scubed.com/caltrans/la/la_big_map.shtml
This Web Page will show how the City of Angels
is on the Fast Lane . . . to nowhere.
MIDVILLE, OHIO: 2047 UPDATE
http://www.serv.net/~owenmp/rasg/midville.html
In 2047, James Barton gave HVD readers a tour of how "Toughest Little Town in America" has evolved since its designation of a Fortress Town by the AADA in the 2030s. Both sections of the discussion originally published the HVD Car Wars Mailing List are now on one Web Page as part of the SWAT Web Site refit.
THE LADY IS BACK
http://www.anime.net/~kens/Welcome.html
http://www.anime.net/~kens/chatsubo/snippets.html
http://www.anime.net/~kens/chatsubo/snippets/the_lady_is_back.html
The Lady is Back was written some time in the 1980s, before I had heard of the Cyberpunk gaming system. As such it was written as part of the Car Wars genre, the closest system to what I had in mind. It was the third and final story in a short series on the subject. As the other two concentrate more on the Car Wars side of things, I probably won't release them.
Ken Stone
Catgirl Paradise: A Cyberpunk-Genre Fiction Web
Site
Australia
sasami@blaze.net.au
http://www.anime.net/~kens/Welcome.html
U.S. 1 -- AN EARLY ADVENTURE OF THE DRIVING TIGERS
/ ROAD WOLVES
http://www.serv.net/~owenmp/fiction/us1.html
Christopher J. Burke, member of the Driving Tigers Car Wars Gaming/Writing Group and author of GURPS Autoduel Second Edition, presented this story in the HVD Car Wars Mailing List. All four sections of U.S. 1 have been placed on one Web Page as part of the refit of the SWAT Web Site.
ALL THE LINES OF THE T-800 IN THE TERMINATOR
-- NAILED440'S WEB SITE
http://members.tripod.com/~nailed440/
CAR WARS IN A GALAXY FAR, FAR AWAY . . .
A COMIC STRIP FROM THE REC.TOYS.ACTION-FIGURES WEB SITE
http://12.6.109.132/torch/say/carwars/carwars.htm
LESSONS I LEARNED FROM BABYLON 5: A MESSAGE ON
THE RECREATION GAMES MECHA NEWSGROUP
From: Solarmech <solarmech@aol.com>
Date: 1998/07/20
Newsgroups: news:rec.games.mecha
PASSIVE RESISTANCE IN A MILITARY FORCE: AN
ELMAY SIGNATURE FILE
From: M-Rex <michaelzabkar@mindsync.com>
Date: 1998/09/06
Forums: news:rec.games.frp.marketplace
Peace through superior firepower.
OFFICIAL DARWIN AWARDS
http://www.officialdarwinawards.com/index.html
Following the ideas of Charles Darwin, the Darwin
Awards are given, usually posthumously, to the individual(s) who remove
themselves from the gene pool in the most spectacular fashion. However
there is an exception to the requirement to die. If said individual does
not die, however does render him/her self incapable of producing any children
-- they may be eligible for the dubious honor of receiving the award while
still alive.
JATO-EQUIPPED IMPALA STORY: A FICTITIOUS ACCOUNT
FROM THE OFFICIAL DARWIN AWARDS
http://www.officialdarwinawards.com/uls/impala.html
The former front-runner was the mystery owner of a jet-propelled Chevy Impala. The Arizona (USA) Highway Patrol came upon a pile of smoldering metal embedded in the side of a cliff rising above the road at the crest of a curve. Wreckage resembled that at an airplane crash, but it was a car -- make and model unidentifiable at the scene.
A lab figured out the story. It seems the driver had somehow gotten hold of a JATO unit (Jet-Assisted Take Off -- actually a solid fuel rocket) that's used to give heavy military transport planes an extra "push" taking off from short airfields.
He drove his Chevy Impala out into the desert and found a long, straight stretch of road. Then he attached the JATO unit to his car, jumped in, got up some speed and fired off the jet device. The cops calculate that the driver of the car . . . hit JATO ignition at a distance of about three miles from the crash site. Asphalt was scorched and melted there.
Reaching maximum thrust within five seconds, causing the Chevy to reach speeds well in excess of 350 mph and continuing at full power for an additional 20-25 seconds, the driver, soon to be pilot, most likely would have experienced G-forces usually reserved for dog fighting F-14 jocks under full afterburners, basically causing him to become insignificant for the rest of the event.
The individual remained on the highway for about 2.5 miles (15-20 seconds) before the driver applied and completely melted the brakes, blowing the tires and leaving thick rubber marks on the road surface.
Became airborne for an additional 1.4 miles, impacting
the cliff face at a height of 125 feet and leaving a black crater three
feet deep in the rock. Most of the driver's remains were not recoverable;
however, small fragments of bone, teeth and hair were extracted from the
crater and fingernail shards were removed from a piece of debris believed
to be a portion of the steering wheel.
ROCKET MAN: NEWS RELEASE FROM THE ARIZONA DEPARTMENT
OF PUBLIC SAFETY
http://www.dps.state.az.us/news/nr96006.htm
As the Department's Public Information Officer (P.I.O.), I receive inquiries several times a day about accidents, drug busts, and investigations we are conducting. About two years ago I picked up the phone and researched the answer to what has now become an Arizona myth. Instead of telling you the question, I'll relate the story in one of many versions that are circulating on the Internet.
"Top honors for the human projectile of the month goes to an as yet unidentified dude who we're told is also a serious contender for the annual Drone Award. That prestigious prize is given posthumously to the person who does the human gene pool the greatest service by removing himself from it in the most extraordinary and stupid fashion. Well the Drone folks might see it that way, but we consider it a gallant, if not brainless, form of ballistic research".
"Troopers from the Arizona Highway Patrol got on to this historic event after motorists reported some mysterious scorched and blackened scars on a stretch of deserted highway. The more officers found the stranger the case became until they pulled back and launched a full scale investigation. Here's what they pieced together."
"JATO units are basically huge containers of solid rocket fuel used to achieve jet assisted takeoff, typically lifting big transports into the air from rough ground and short runways, or shooting overloaded planes from the decks of short aircraft carriers. They were not, I repeat not, designed to augment the inherent boost factor of a 1967 Chevy Impala. But we guess, let's call him Zippy, didn't know that when he hooked one up to his ride."
"Old Zippy apparently chose his runway carefully selecting a nice long lonely piece of straight as a string highway, in good repair. Not guessing he might need a bit more than five miles of zoom surface. Zippy's test track had that far down the strip a gentle rise on a sloping turn. Anyway the Zipster kicked the tires and lit the fire and ran his Chevy up to top cruising speed and then lit the ignition. Investigators know exactly where this happened judging from the extended patch of burned and melted asphalt."
"The pocket calender boys figure Zip reached maximum thrust within five seconds, punching that old Chevy up to well in excess of 350 mph and counting a full burn for another 20 to 25 seconds. Early in that little sprint, in roughly the 2.5-mile mark, the human hydro-shock stood on the brakes, melting them completely and blowing the tires rapidly, reducing all four skins to liquefied trails on the pavement."
"Remember that gentle rise on the turn? That is where Zippy concluded his land speed record attempt and went for aerial honors. Ultimately reaching an altitude of 125 feet and still climbing is when his flight abruptly ended. We'll never know how far or how high the big Zip might have gone. A cliff face of solid rock got in the way, posing a serious violation of the laws of physics, when two chunks of matter were attempting to occupy the same space at the same time."
"Zip gave it hell though, blasting a three-foot crater in the Terra Very Firma. The best modern forensic science could do was identify the car's make, model and year. As for Zip, only trace evidence was found of bone, teeth and hair embedded in the back of the crater, also splinters of fingernails embedded in what is believed to be a piece of the steering wheel."
"If there isn't room for this in the Guinness Book of World Records then there damn sure ought to be an honorable mention."
Even after two years, I recieve about five calls a month from around the county from people wanting to know, "Did it really happen?"
Direct Inquiry to Officer Bob Stein
602-223-2310
The following letter was discovered by CWIN Staff on the DRAW Web Site Update Page.
Well, where do we start, No! We have not quit playing Car Wars nor have we bailed on maintaining the DRAW Web Site. Here for your enjoyment is the list of things that have happened since the last DRAW Web Site update.
Thank you for your time.
Bill Stevenson
Death Racing Association of Washington State
(DRAW) President
billst@concord.televar.com
Phil Bedard
Death Racing Association of Washington State
(DRAW) Webmaster
bedard@televar.com
CAR WARS LIVES!
http://www.magicnet.net/~qzar/
If you like Car Wars 3-D, in 1:1 scale, check out this customized Mazda RX-7. Lots and lots of toys, but the ones we like best are the paintball gun and the missiles . . .
The Daily Illuminator
http://www.sjgames.com/ill
September 9, 1998
CNN NEWS -- BMW INTRODUCES $88,000 BULLETPROOF
CAR (APRIL 20, 1998)
http://cnn.com/US/9804/20/wheels.bulletproof.car/
This article discusses the same autodueling BMW
mentioned in HVD 07. The armor is great on this car but if there only was
a way to install the two 0.50-caliber HMGs I have on my back porch . .
.
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY OF THE U.S. FOSSIL ENERGY
GATEWAY
http://www.fe.doe.gov/
The U.S. Department of Energy has not placed all
of its resources into nuclear fission energy nor has it ignored different
sources and uses of fossil fuels. The U.S. DOE knows the planet's supplies
of oil will be depleted soon. Take a look at this Web Site to learn about
ways to make the supply of oil last longer.
JANE'S DEFENCE SECTION
http://www.janes.com/defence/defset.html
Jane's Military Books: The Holy Grails of Military
and Combat Tabletop Gamers. You can read an outstanding review of infantry
combat technology written by the Jane's Staff on this Web Site without
having to pay the $300 U.S. to acquire a Jane's volume!
MSNBC NEWS -- ICE COLD DEPOSITS MAY BE FUTURE
FUEL
http://www.msnbc.com/news/193823.asp
Frozen methane resevoirs may be a great source
of energy in the future but there are high risks in its use. This article
discusses the same topic as presented in an earlier CWIN.
SANDIA LABORATORIES' COAL LIQUIDS RESEARCH
http://www.petc.doe.gov/programs/cfs/sandliq.html
Many scientists suggest the coal supply of Earth may last over 100 years. There is one obstacle why coal is not as widely used as oil or natural gas: pollution. The U.S. Department of Energy's Sandia Labs is trying to convert this fossil fuel into substances you could literally pour into a fuel tank. Liquid coal? Recon this Web Site to see how the solid-to-liquid coal conversion is being developed.
SPEED VERSUS ACCELERATION
While designing a car for one of my (unfortunately) ill-fated demonstrations at a local game shop and trying to figure out which engine size to pick, the question "How important is top speed?" struck me. I have never reached speeds over 90 mph during a duel.
Acceleration, on the other hand is a deciding factor in many of my duels. The fastest car gets to fire first in combat. If you can get to a reasonable speed faster then your opponent, you can maneuver faster then they can.
Unfortunately there are only two things in the Car Wars Compendium to directly increase acceleration with electric power plants (PPs): Improved Supercharger Capacitors and Rocket Boosters.
Improved Supercharger Capicitors (ISCs) raise accelration by 5 mph and top speed by 20 mph while activated and last three turns. The down side is they cause damage equal to about one-third of the DP of your PP, You can use three, sometimes four before your engine is destroyed. The up-side is they're rechargable, so they can be used time and time again in long-term compititions.
Rocket boosters are the other choice. One pound of rocket booster will accelerate a 1,000-pound car 1 mph. The amount of acceleration a car can withstand can take is determined by the chassis strength. The upside: it's cheap and boosts your car more then an ISC will and causes no damage to your car (unless you use more then the chassis can handle). The downside: it is a one-shot option. While this is nothing in a one-shot duel, after a few duels in a long-term competition, it gets expensive.
Gas Internal Combustion Engines (ICEs) are a bit different. To start, a gas engine the same size as a electric PP has more PFs. A three-space electric PP has 800 PFs while a three-space gas ICE has 1,900 PFs. A five-space electric PP has 2,000 PFs while a five-space gas ICE has 3,200 PFs. Higher PFs means higher acceleration and higher top speed.
Gas engines also weigh less, but one of their downsides is their cost. For the most part, gas engines cost several times more then electric PPs. The gasoline itself is also a problem because it has a nasty tendency to catch fire and blow up!
Gas engines have their own accessories to boost acceleration. Turborchargers increase acceleration by 5 mph. Unfortunatly you have to be at full acceleration for one full turn before this 5 mph bonus kicks in. The Variable-Pitch Turbocharger ignores this limitation, but costs $1,000 more. Superchargers add 5 mph to acceleration at all times. Nitrous Oxide adds 10 mph to the acceleration for 5 seconds. The bad part when you activate a bottle of Nitrous Oxide is the stuff uses a full gallon of gas and have to roll on the Engine Critical Damage Chart. Cars using gas engines can also use rocket boosters since they're not an engine option, but a big rocket strapped to your car.
Of course, no matter what power source you are using, you still have to have the money for all this, so in a duel with a small budget you may only be able to afford one, if any, of these options.
The next time CRADA presents a Firing Range commentary, there will be a short discussion on HC and the various options that affect it.
Nathan "Tarlyn Xeno" Whitchurch
Capital Regions Autodueling Association (CRADA)
President/Webmaster
xeno@albany.net
http://www.albany.net/~xeno/carwars/
FORMULA DE INTERNET HEADQUARTERS
A FORMULA DÉ TOURNAMENT IN QUEBEC!
Yes! It's now official, The first FORMULA DÉ
tournament in Québec will be held on the 5th and 6th of December
1998. For more info, visit Martin Fraser's Formula Dé Web Site <
http://pages.infinit.net/seeker>.
FORMULA DÉ GOES USA!
Two interesting reports by Eric Randall as he
continues his "Formula Dé" trip across the USA. Read his report
about the "Grand Prix Indycar at Laguna Seca" <http://www.formula-de.com/en/stories/980914.laguna-seca/Laguna_story.html>
and "Formula-Dé in the rainbow" <http://www.formula-de.com/en/stories/980920.rainbow/Rainbow_story.html>
a story about his first meeting with FD fans in San Francisco. Both stories
are written in French.
ERIC RANDALL AT GAMESCAPE IN SAN FRANCISCO
On September 26th, Eric Randall, one of the two
authors of FORMULA DÉ, will be doing demos, signing tracks and competing
from 1pm to 7pm at the Gamescape shop, located at 333 Divisadero, San Francisco,
CA. Khalsa Brain Games, Chessex Distributing and Gamescape will be providing
prizes throughout the afternoon. For more info call GameScape at 415-621-GAME.
Come and meet with the CREATOR!
MASTERS 1998: MONTREAL and LONG BEACH
After a well deserved vacation, it's now time
to get back to work and get prepared for the MASTERS 1998, the sixth edition
of this international and acclaimed annual tournament. The 1998 edition
will definitely mark the "North American" era of the game, since MONTREAL
and LONG BEACH have JUST been chosen as the race tracks used in this two-day
competition. For more info, go to the Masters Section of this site <http://www.formula-de.com/en/masters_what.html>.
MASTERS 1998: THREE VETERANS ARE BACK TOGETHER
An exceptional team just announced their participation to the Masters 98. Although the name of the team is still kept secret, its members are known and famous: Rod Runner, Pepo Lavauretto, and Ilgel Dussel. Nothing less! For those who don't know these mythical names, they are, in the real life, Eric Randall, Laurent Lavaur (the two authors of FORMULA DÉ), and Eric Rocher, the very first FD "World Champion" in 1988! What a challenging comeback for the three pioneers!
MINIATURES PAINTING GUIDE AND FAQ
http://www.ruf.rice.edu/~mjcasav/minispaintfaq.html
Finally! The artistically-challenged can learn how to paint their miniatures when using the Internet. There is great information on this site for painters of all skill levels.
The historical account of the Mongoose-ASP War
continues with Operation No Shoulders: Part Two in the Adventures Section.
Proposals for the formats next THREE World Championships of the AADA, Dueling
and Racing, are presented in the Conventions Section. Regardless who duelmasters
and racemasters those events, the ideas for these upcoming events are very
good and should be seriously considered by the referees who are assigned
to oversee those tournaments.
NOVA sent the following report to CWIN just before SWAT evacuated Eastern Washington State.
Dear CWIN:
Robert Deis, member of the Rocky Mountain Autodueling Association (RMADA) and now the SJ Games Car Wars Line Editor, accepted a challenge to meet me at TactiCon 1998 several weeks before that event. Both of us were to be driving one vehicle and no other combatants would be allowed in the match. Robert told me he would meet me in such an event, not related to the 2047-2048 AADA World Championships.
I approached Robert at TactiCon, carrying my vehicle design I created weeks before and said "Let's duel." Robert replied that he was too busy to play and did not have time to design a vehicle. Because Mr. Deis did not contact me about rescheduling the event, which would have been the honorable action to do, following the "code of the arena," I claim victory by default.
Michael Garrity
New Omaha Vehicular Association (NOVA)
garritym@hotmail.com
http://www.novia.net/~desslok/nova.htm
ACCESS DENIED GAMER DATABASE
http://www.accessdenied.net
Access Denied offers a database of gamers for Boardgames, PBEM (Play By E-Mail), Network and RPG games. You can register yourself as a player with over 500 games in the database (and you can easily add new games that are not listed). With an advanced query engine you can find opponents based on location, game, skill level, or available times.
The Daily Illuminator
http://www.sjgames.com/ill
October 10, 1998
CAR WARRIORS: BACK FROM HELL MAY BE PUBLISHED
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0812519906/qid=906098278/sr=1-4/002-3805896-5486838
Few autoduelists know there was a third volume in the Car Warriors novel series. David Drake's The Square Deal and Aaron Allston's Double Jeopardy were to be joined by a work from Mick Farren. The was stopped by Those Darn Elves and disappeared . . . until 1993. I found a listing for Back From Hell in the University of Washington's library database. Although I tried ordering the book through several stores, Those Darn Elves made any information on the book disappear. I was told the book was out of print or was planned to be printed. Thanks to Amazon.com, there is some news that appears to be granite solid about the release of Back From Hell.
CAWFEE SYSTEMS ROLEPLAYING RESOURCES
http://www.cusd.claremont.edu/~bwilder/roleplaying/
This site is for all those people who like roleplaying games. This site will contain characters, campaigns, and worlds for a lot of roleplaying systems. Cawfee Systems will link to any other worlds on the Internet. We currently have sites for two games: GURPS, The Generic Universal Roleplaying System (Steve Jackson Games) and Car Wars (Steve Jackson Games ).
The GURPS Web Pages contain hyperlinks to other
GURPS Web Sites, character collections, Internet campaigns and worlds.
Unfortunately, there is no material on the Car Wars Web Pages at this time.
CHAMPIONS RPG STATISTICS FOR "MAD" MAX ROCKETANSKY
http://www.mactyre.net/scm/deejay/champs/characters/cinema_lit/mad_max.html
What autoduelist does not hold Mad Max, one of
the "founders of autodueling," with holy reverence? This Web Page allows
you to simulate the "Freeway Fighting Master of the Wastelands" when playing
the Champions RPG.
DARKER DAYS ROLEPLAYING GAME
http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Dimension/2320/
A member of the Free RPG Web Ring, Darker Days
is a role playing game set in the dark near future of 2031. The game has
a cyberpunk theme but with a little twist. The game system used was designed
by Dudi Rippel and is based on the principles of simplicity and game flow.
Darker Days would be an excellent Taelon (Oops! I mean Companion), to GURPS
Cyberpunk and DarkFutureTech campaigns.
DRAGONSLAYERS OF THE UNITED KINGDOM
http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/HUDSOND/dslayer.htm
This UK gaming group has been around for some 17 years! Their Web Site gives details on a long Corporate Car Wars dueling schedule they have planned for this season. You'll also find reports of past events and winning designs.
Steve Jackson Games Fan-Written Car Wars Web Site
List
http://www.sjgames.com/car-wars/unofficial.html
September-October, 1998
GURPS BASIC SET THIRD EDITION HARDCOVER NOW AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE
We ordered only 2,000 each of the GURPS Basic Set and GURPS Traveller hardcovers. Apparently the printers gave us some extra. A good thing, too, because we came very close to selling out of the GURPS Basic Set just on pre-orders . . . I expect to run out this week, except for the ones we have reserved for direct mail sales . . . and GURPS Traveller won't be far behind.
So if you want one of these, go bug your local retailer right now, and beat out those people who don't read the Illuminator . . .
Steve Jackson
Steve Jackson Games CEO
sj@io.com
http://www.sjgames.com
The Daily Illuminator
http://www.sjgames.com/ill
October 13, 1998
IRONY GAMES' WEB-BASED RPG TOOLS
http://www.irony.com/webtools.html
The number of computer programs such as map editors and battle calculators is too large to list here. Take a visit to this Web Site. You will not be disappointed. The IG Tool Box should be in every tabletop gamer's Bookmark/Favorite database. Thanks to The Realms of the Mind Web Site for presenting a hyperlink to this Web Page. The CWIN Staff located TROTM site then became aware of the Irony Games site.
KRAKEN'S LAIR
http://www.it.umd.edu/~kraken/Welcome.html
Coming to a future near you -- I plan to add to
the Games Section of my Web Site as time goes on. I wish to post information
and designs I have for Car Wars, Ogre, and even some tips concerning computer
games. I also hope to get enough free time (Yeah, right -- a grad student
with spare time. Funny.) to sit down make a few illustrations for some
of my designs. I used to do this way back in high school, but I havn't
been able to get around to it much while in college. In fact, I haven't
played these games in quite some time -- I just upkeep my designs to stay
current with the rules and various game universes.
IT'S THE END OF THE WORLD (AS WE KNOW IT): POST-APOCALYPSE
GAMES
MANIA WEBZINE'S OUT OF THE BOX GAMING COLUMN
http://www.mania.com/mania.html
http://www.mania.com/games/box/box031497.html
For years, Steve Jackson Games has taunted us with promises of GURPS Survivors, the post-apocalyptic game for generic system fans everywhere. The consensus seems to be that Steve wants to do it himself, which means it will be a while before it comes out (the last GURPS book he wanted to do himself, GURPS Time Travel, took five years to develop and write, and that was with a coauthor). Until then, console yourself with a choice of disasters: the release of GURPS Autoduel 2nd Edition and the upcoming GURPS Reign of Steel. GURPS Autoduel is the world book for the old Steve Jackson board game Car Wars; revamped to match GURPS Vehicles 2nd Edition rules, and bulked out with fondly remembered Autoduel Quarterly material. Car Wars was set after The War, and simulated slambang Road Warrior type combat, which in the game world of the autoduelers was also a spectator sport. The combination of postmodern recursive "game playing a game playing a game" attitude and no-holds-barred, pedal-to-the-metal, Springsteen-and-Gatling-Guns, exploding-ball-of-flame action makes Autoduel America a pretty fun place to play.
GURPS Reign of Steel is the companion piece to GURPS Robots; this is the world we saw in the Terminator flashbacks. Flashforwards. Whatever. The AIs have revolted, and humanity is hunted like rats by killer robot android mecha-monstrosities with nanotech bodies and laser cannons. One assumes that you play the bold and beleaguered human resistance, but you can never tell with GURPS.
Kenneth Hite
Mania Gaming Columnist
GURPS Alternate Earths Co-Author
March 14, 1997
NEW CAR WARS ONLINE EDITOR
Our online editors are volunteers who take responsibility for the web pages for various games. They make it possible for us to give you much more web support, and we appreciate their efforts! Our new online editor for Car Wars is Robert Deis <rdeis@io.com>. Welcome, Robert!
Steve Jackson
Steve Jackson Games CEO
sj@io.com
http://www.sjgames.com
The Daily Illuminator
http://www.sjgames.com/ill
October 01, 1998
ONE SMALL STEP
http://www.jps.net/oss/
http://www.jps.net/oss/itw.html
Welcome to One Small Step, publishers of Competitive Edge magazine and other fine yet affordable games. One Small Step has lots of new projects cooking. A short description of each and a possible time when it might become available is available at the second URL above. Please be aware that these dates in no way constitute release dates, only general time frames.
One of our games in development is Route 666:
Road Warrior meets Car Wars in this game of survival in the days immediately
following the Apocalypse.
Q-CARZ TACTICAL/ROLEPLAYING GAMING SYSTEM
http://www.unclebear.com/toybox/free/q-carz.html
http://www.literati.com/~nstilwel/qcarz.html
Nathan Stillwell's Carz gaming system is back
on the Internet after a two years . . . and with a vengeance. Visit the
Uncle Bear Review Page to gain an overview of Q-Carz then enter the Q-Carz
Web Site. Thank you Nathan for resurrecting your game into a system with
even more fun!
SAGEBRUSH GAMING REVIEWS
http://www.gamebase7.org/newsletter/july97/art05.htm
This classic Steve Jackson has won several awards over the years. You're in the near future, in a "Road Warrior"-like universe. The most popular sport is autodueling. Drive a car in a specially designed arena, through the local mall, or down the highway and try and survive. Did I mention you and every other vehicle around you is armed with machine guns, rocket launchers, and lasers?
I haven't seen this game played much in the area anymore, which is a shame. It's a very fun game, with a wide variety of options and tactics, thanks to the various terrain and weaponry a car can have. The number of combinations of scenarios is great. You can arrange small arenas for short gamers lasting 90 minutes to two hours, design large sections of towns or long highway battles that can take several hours.
The Deluxe Car Wars game on the market is not as expensive as some games are today, but the cardboard figures used to represent the cars are somewhat flimsy. Take care not to move the board too much, or your cars may be jolted quite a distance! I highly recommend this game.
John Cannon
JohnCannon@Gamebase7.org
July, 1997
SCOTT HERRIN'S ROLEPLAYING GAMES WEB SITE
http://www.public.usit.net/herfam/dandd.html
Various Car Wars resources are found on Scott's
site . . . but they are not yet available.
STARGATE SG-1 OFFICIAL HEADQUARTERS
http://www.stargate-sg1.com/
STARGATE SG-1 UNOFFICIAL WEB SITE
http://www.stargatesg-1.com
The television series adaptation of the hit 1994
movie StarGate is now available to non-Showtime pay-television network
subscribers! I have only one comment to say about StarGate SG-1: It rocks.
If you have read the StarGate novels, the action and plot detail in them
gives you an idea of the quality of the production. Are your players getting
too powerful, becoming Driver +6 and Gunner +6 and wealth measured in the
six or even seven figures? Now duelmasters can see these super players
have real strength. When you combine SG-1 with Car Wars and
GURPS DarkFutureTech, the players will be armed with multiple lasers and
VRFPs but now they will have to fight blast lance-armed udajeet anti-grav
gliders and Pyramid starships protected by Abydos quartz (think of 1,000
points of laminate plastic armor per facing).
THRILL KILL CAFE DARK FUTURE GAME SITE
http://www.majordomo.net/techpriest/tkc/thrillkillcafe.htm
CWIN has finally located a Web Site discussing
Games Workshop's 3-D autodueling board game Dark Future with the Thrill
Kill Cafe. The site is under construction but the resources and format
presented at this time look great. Keep your radar locked on the TKC during
1999.
UNCLE EDGAR'S RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT CATALOG:
OCTOBER 2048 EDITION
http://www.serv.net/~owenmp/edgar/cwincat.html
WEST END GAMES LIVES
http://www.sjgames.com/ill/
http://www.westendgames.org/
The producer of the Star Wars RPG is alive and has established a new Web Site, featuring its products at up to 70% off retail.
The Daily Illuminator
http://www.sjgames.com/ill
September 21, 1998
SWAT is moving into its new home on ServNet although slowly. If a hyperlink for a document on the SWAT Web Site, a file that has "http://www.serv.net/~owenmp" in its URL, does not work please visit the "SWAT Web Site Superstructure" to find the specific Web Page. Revisions to SWAT HQ will be displayed on the index page and on the respective documents changed. Most of the construction regarding this Web Site is expected to be completed by December 1998 so please visit SWAT HQ on a regular basis until the "bodywork" is finished.
Thank you for your patience.
Seattle Washington Autodueling Team "Web Site
Superstructure"
http://www.serv.net/~owenmp
CHASSIS AND CROSSBOW COMPENDIUM
The CCC, rules for low-tech "Mad Max-style" Car
Wars combat, now has the ADQ 5/1 rules for Weapon Durability and Maintenance
and the ADQ 5/3 rules for Overloaded Vehicles. Several other rules discussing
ICE are also in the CCC. If you want a copy of the CCC, the first step
in writing Third Edition Chassis and Crossbow, please contact SWAT. The
CCC is over 1 MB in size and is composed of two file folders, one over
700 KB in size. Tell SWAT when your request a copy of the Web Book if your
elmay system can accommodate these large attachments. CC3 is expected to
be completed at the earliest in the autumn of 1999. Dueling Debate has
a section for the CCC so please visit that message board and post your
low-tech ideas.
DUELING DEBATE: A CAR WARS MESSAGE BOARD
http://www.delphi.com/carwars/
The SWAT Message Board for Car Wars, Dueling Debate,
has almost as much action as an AADA World Championship Event! The current
topics being discussed are acceleration, top speed, racing frames and EWPs.
Please take a few minutes to register with the Delphi Network, a no-cost
membership and enter the discussion arena, which is always in need of new
victims . . . I mean new participants.
DUELTRACK COMPENDIUM
SWAT will begin to compile articles for the DuelTrack
Compendium, the first step in writing Third Edition DuelTrack, a new edition
of the out of print racing rules for Car Wars. The foundation of the DTC
will be the Championship AutoDueling Circuit (CADC) Regulations however
there is plenty of room for many people to write articles for this project.
DT3 will be ready for release in the autumn of 1999 at the earliest. Dueling
Debate now has a DuelTrack section for Car Wars racing discussions so please
gather your thoughts and start writing.
ASTRAL ENTERTAINMENT'S CAR WARRIORS COMBAT RACING
COMPUTER GAME
http://members.xoom.com/Astral_Entertainment/carwarriors.html
Car Warriors is a simple computer game but it
is a lot of fun with awesome graphics. Think Bally-Midway's Spy Hunter
and you will understand the game mechanics of Car Warriors.
AUTODUEL COMPUTER GAME COVER
http://www.geocities.com/SiliconValley/Vista/2717/c64-27.jpg
Take a trip back in time through the history of
Car Wars and look at this sharp scan of the cover of Origin Systems' Autoduel.
DEATH RALLY WEB SITE BY REMEDY ENTERTAINMENT
http://www.remedy.fi/dr/index.html
This hyperlink will take you to a very nice-looking
Death Rally Web Site created by one of the producers of the game.
MAD MAGMA PLAY-BY-WEB COMBAT RACING GAME
http://www.magma.ca/java/
It is the year 1997. Mad-dog anti-tech fanatics roam the earth in souped up gas-guzzlers, running down everything in their paths. The ozone layer doesn't stand a chance.
The bottom part of the screen contains input and output windows. You will receive messages from the server and from other players in the scrollable output area. You can send broadcast messages via the input area.
There are several reasons why you would want to play this game. One is that it is damn fun. Where else do you get to bash into your friends and enemies and demolish their cars. Another rather important reason is that you probably want to get your name in the Wall of Pain listing. As you drive around (and use up your gas), you get points. Basically, the longer you live the more points you get.
Note that each gas station only has one entrance,
so watch out for ambushes! If you run out of gas, you're dead.
MOUNTAIN WEB TEXAS INSTRUMENTS 99/4A PERSONAL
COMPUTER PAGE
http://mntnweb.com/oldcomputers/TI994A/TI994A.HTM
The phrase Car Wars was trademarked by Texas Instruments
in the 1980s because the company created an autodueling game for its TI-99/4A
personal computer. Now with the Mountain Web TI-99/4A Emulator, you can
play classic games such as Car Wars and Super Demon Attack on your IBM
computer. A screenshot of the Car Wars Arena is also available along with
screenshots of other TI-99/4A games.
SCROLLS OF TITAN: THE FIGHTING FANTASY GAMEBOOK
HEADQUARTERS
http://www.acs.ucalgary.ca/~mjpopp/fflist.htm
This Web Site is the best place to visit on the
Internet when you are looking for information on the FF Gamebook Series
or the books themselves. Be sure to keep on the lookout for FF 13: Freeway
Fighter, a post-apocalyptic virus adventure with the reader driving a heavily-armed
Dodge Interceptor.
SNAKE PLISSKIN: DAN COFFIN'S WEB SITE
http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/Bungalow/1642/snake1.htm
This tribute to the one-eye criminal has pictures,
a jump page, video/audio clips, discussions about Snake, scripts and the
entire story collection from the Unofficial Snake Plisskin Enthusiast's
Web Site. Definitely check out Dan's site if you are interested in converting
the Escape Universe to Car Wars and GURPS DarkFutureTech.
SNAKE PLISSKIN: SPECIAL GOLD EDITION WEB SITE
http://www.geocities.com/Paris/Bistro/7019/EFNY.html
Intelligence reports (movie scripts) of both Snake's
"vacations" in New York City and in Los Angeles are presented here. There
is also a novel under construction for the yet-to-be-made third Plisskin
movie: Escape From Earth.
SNAKE PLISSKIN: UNOFFICIAL ENTHUSIAST'S WEB SITE
http://www.northcoast.com/~ming/snake.html (Non-Functional
URL!)
"I thought you were dead." This phrase said by most of the characters in Escape From New York when commenting about the one-eyed super criminal Snake Plisskin holds true for this Web Site, which has disappered from the Matrix. Fortunately, you can find its four stories of other Plisskin adventures including the famous Kansas City and Cleveland escapades mentioned in the two Escape movies, on Dan Coffin's Snake Plisskin Web Site.
CAR WARS MINIATURES GALLERY
http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~tpope/miniatures/gallery/carwars/index.html
Thomas Pope has been busy changing the format
of this Web Site that makes Car Wars players salivate more than thinking
of a Pizza Hut large pan-style Super Supreme pizza on gaming night.
Thomas is also writing a Web Page discussing how to locate miniatures for
Car Wars. Thank you Thomas for displaying your artistic talents with the
autodueling community. How many bars of gold-pressed latinum will you accept
in exchange for your entire Car Wars miniature collection?
CHAMPIONSHIP AUTODUELING CIRCUIT (CADC)
http://surf.to/cadc
http://home.sprynet.com/sprynet/timgould/CADC.htm
Team Texas ends Ted "Rocket-Man" Judson's (USA) winning streak at four races by finishing 1-2 (Matt Hampton-Tim Gould). Judson pretty much locked in the Individual Standing with 102 point lead. Team Texas now leads the Teams by 29 points. One more race remains in this season of CADC racing: a Division 100 all-out blow-out survivor duel!
After Race #9 (09/19/2048) the top three individual point leaders are Ted Judson in first (706 points), Keith Scherer in second (604 points) and Matt Hampton in third (595 points). Texas leads in the team point standings (1,116 points) followed by the U.S. close behind (1,137 points) and Australia in third (997 points).
The CADC will be holding their 58th event since
2036 on October 24th. While you are waiting for the final race of the 2047-2048
CADC Season to be completed, recon the CADC Web Site. The Tire Tracks Archive
has been updated with two different issues. Tire Tracks 7.8 has also been
placed on the CADC Web Site, detailing recent events.
FELLONIUS FRIENDS
http://hem2.passagen.se/storen/
http://hem2.passagen.se/storen/enggame.htm
The gaming group responsible for writing GURPS
WATTS (World's Absolute Top Trouble Shooters) has also entered the autodueling
arena.
with Car Wars; or rather a Swedish variation
on that theme, called The CarWar. There is no other information on this
campaign listed.
DIVERSIONARY TACTICS
http://www.divtac.com/
Diversionary Tactics is a hobby/gaming store located in Vernon, CT. Our goal at "DivTac" is to provide a clean, competitive, and friendly atmosphere to gamers of all types. We want to give bright and creative minds the opportunity to do something with their time other than watch TV, drink beer, and waste away into normalcy. Diversionary Tactics is about making friends while sharpening your mind and imagination.
