Written by Tony "Manycubes" Kontes
BoneHeadz of New Idaho
manycubes@uswest.net

Web Posted May 06, 1999
Updated August 05, 2000

Here are some tables you can use to quickly generate player or non-player characters for a Car Wars role-playing campaign. All characters start out at 15 years of age with one skill level roll and gain one new roll for every two full years of age after that. Any player who chooses to have a character older than 25 years must roll once on the mishap table for every year over 25.

The first thing you need to find out is where you come from: Country, Small Town, or City. After that you can determine your social standing and starting wealth. Next you roll to see if you can gain skills and these rolls are modified both by where you came from and your social standing. Finally, roll on the Benefits Table one time and then roll once for every two full years over the age of 15.
 

Table 1: Social Standing and Area of Origin

First, roll 1d6 and consult the top part of the chart. If you rolled a 1 or 2 you come from the country, 3 or 4 from a small town and 5 or 6 from the city. Next take 2d6 dice, roll them, look under your area of origin and find the number on the table that matches the dice result. Look to the left side of the table to determine your social standing. Once you have found that, cross reference it with the column labeled Money. Now roll 1d6 and multiply it by the monetary amount listed in the column. Do this once for each year of age your character has including your starting age of 15. This is your starting wealth. If your character is over 25 years of age you now need to roll for the number of mishaps that may have occurred to him in his later years. (This is done to reflect the hazardous world of Car Wars and to prevent people from creating 60-year-old supermen). Roll once for every year over 25. You must roll the number listed or higher on 1d6 to avoid a mishap. If you roll less than the number required refer to the Mishap Table at the end of this section.
 
 

Table 2: Mishaps

If you acquired any mishaps from the first table roll 1d6 for each one and consult the table below. An explanation of all results is listed after the table. All results are cumulative and may result in your character's death.
 
 

Lose half starting wealth: Divide starting wealth in half and round down. If you receive this result again divide remaining wealth in half again. Once you reach $0 ignore all future wealth reduction rolls.

Acquire one enemy: This enemy will be of equal or better social standing and can be rolled up on this table or assigned by your referee. This person feels you have wronged them some time in the past and will show up to harass you at the game masters discretion. Multiple rolls of this effect mean more people are out to get you.

Acquire one dependent: You have an important person in your life that relies on you for protection. This may be a wife, child, old parent, or other such person you are required to look after. If any thing happens to this person you will suffer great social consequences, such as lose of social status, job, wealth, or other undesired event. The exact penalty is up to the GM. Multiple rolls on this event can be treated as more members of your family.

Lose one skill roll: You now have on less chance to earn a skill. If this effect is rolled more than once it is possible to have been left with no skills what so ever.

Lose one benefits roll: Benefits are special things you have acquired in your life like a job, friends, extra vehicles, etc. This is the last table you roll on and it is possible to lose all of these rolls.

Lose one hit point: You suffered a serious wound that never healed right or a disease that left you crippled. Either way you're down one hit point. If you receive this roll twice your character is dead and you need to start rolling up a new one.
 

Tables 3 and 4: Skills

The skills listed here are from the Car Wars Compendium, Car Wars Tanks, and Aeroduel. The Mechanic skill can be for any type of vehicle but must be designated as soon as it is rolled. The Airplane Piloting skill can also be for any type of plane or even jet pack if the player wishes.

Procedure: The tables are divided into general skill areas. The player is allowed to choose one general table to roll for at age 15 and one more for every full two years after that. In order for a player to roll on a table he must first make the entry number or more on 2d6. For example, to enter the physical skills table an 8 or higher must be rolled. This roll may be further modified by the character's social background and place of origin. Example: People from the country have a +1 to enter the physical table while people from the city are at -1.

Once a successful entry roll has been made the player then rolls 2d6 again and cross references the number rolled with the general skill column to find out what skill they acquire (this roll may also be modified by a character's background). The first time a skill is received it starts at level 0. Any further rolls that result in the same skill raise it one level even if it was acquired under a different general skill table. It is possible that your character might miss all his attempts at skill rolls and end up with none. If this happens continue on with the remaining steps any way. In most Car Wars campaigns it is a good idea to start with at least three characters so even if one or two have no skills at all you can still make use of their benefits rolls.

Since these tables can be confusing the first time they are used I have included several sample characters at the end of this article with a step-by-step explanation on how they were rolled up. Please refer to them before using these tables if you have any questions.

Abbreviations for social and geographical standings: S = Scum, P = Poor, M = Middle Class, U = Upper Class, E = Elite. C = Country, T = Town, B = City. Modifiers that affect the entry roll will be listed next to the entry number. Modifiers affecting the skill acquisition roll will be listed in the line corresponding to the table roll modifier. Treat all rolls less than 2 as 2 and all rolls above 12 as 12.
 
 

This table represents the things most people accumulate as they become an adult. These include jobs, friends, connections, etc. An explanation of each benefit is given after the table. All rolls are cumulative.
 

Procedure: One roll is allowed on this table at age 15 and then one more roll for every two full years above 15. If a character has a technical skill he adds +1 to rolls on this table. If a character has a high-tech skill he adds +2 to rolls on this table. If a character has more than one technical or high-tech skill only one of the highest modifiers apply. The level of the skill doesn't matter for this roll either.
 
 

Luck: This result imparts one level of Luck on the character.

Weapon $X: Roll 1d6. On a 1-4 receive the dollar amount toward the purchase of a weapon. On a 5-6 receive one skill level in a weapon skill you already have, or if you have no weapon skill roll for one on the weapon skill table.

Bodybuilding: Receive one level of Bodybuilding skill.

Gang: You are part of a gang and can call on them to assist you on a 7 or better on 2d6. Roll 1d6 +1 to determine how many members are in the gang. Each member has 20 points to spend on skills and $1,000 to spend on weapons and equipment.

Connection: You know one person who has access to information or items that are difficult to get. Examples would be a drug dealer, a police informer, a fence for stolen merchandise, a seller of high-tech items, or a military arms dealer. They can acquire basic items or information for your character on a 7 or higher on 2d6. The game master must decide if your request is reasonable and may penalize or disallow a roll for anything he deems to powerful or unacceptable.

High Connection: You know people at the top. This may include a mayor, police chief, business leader, or other higher up. On an 8 or higher they can provide you with information and special items or treatment that other people can not get. This benefit is more potent than a regular connection but is still subject to any limitations your game master wishes to put on it.

Survival: Receive one level of a survival skill in the area of your choice.

Vehicle $X: Roll 1d6. On a 1-4 receive the dollar amount listed toward the purchase of a vehicle. On a 5-6 receive a level increase in one piloting skill or if you have no piloting skills receive one level in either motorcycle, car, boat, or truck. Remember even if you have no skill level you can still pilot these vehicles but at a penalty.

Loyal Bodyguard(s): This can represent anyone from a good friend or spouse to a paid protector. This person is totally loyal and his expenses are considered included in your characters living expenses if you're not using the optional living expenses rules. The bodyguard has 30 character points to spend on skills and $500 to spend on weapons and equipment but can receive more money from you to purchase better items.

Community Respect: You are considered an important person. On any social roll you make in the area where you live you receive a +1. This includes requests for aid or information as well as political favors. You are however subject to backlash if you abuse this privilege, mistreat a dependent or perform some other nefarious deed.

Jobs: The first time you roll this benefit you receive a job of that category type. Any further job rolls of the same type allow you to increase one tech or high tech skill that you already have. If you roll a better job type later you must take the better job but gain no skill increase for this roll. If you have no tech or high tech skills, or have increased the mechanic skill to level 3 and have no other skill to put points in, instead of increasing your skill you receive one weeks worth of pay to add to your starting wealth. All jobs pay a base weekly income which will be doubled for every 20 points you have in technical or high-tech skills. This income is take home pay and all living expenses must be deducted from it, or you can just assume to save 10%-30% every week (roll 1d3 * 10 for percentage saved). You decide what you do for a living but the game master has the final say.

• Standard: You work at least 40 hours a week and bring home $100 a week. Your job sucks but at least you have one.

• Good: You work 40 hours a week and bring home $200 a week. You're looking for something better but realize you have it better than most folks.

• Great: You work 20 to 30 hours a week and bring home $400 a week. Not many people have it this good and you know it.

• Excellent: You work 20 hours or less a week and bring home $800. This is the life!

Here are the steps to generate three player characters. In the violent world of Car Wars I recommend starting with three characters per player. One character should be the main focus and the other two secondary. Consider all of them to be good friends with each other but the game master shouldn't allow them to exchange wealth or use each others connections or other benefits. All characters are assumed to have a base levels in Running, Search, and Area Knowledge of their local area. The process for rolling the second and third characters will be the same as the first but I won't go into as much detail.
 

Character 1: Dog Boy (Car Thief)

First we consult Table 1: Social Status and Origins. Rolling 1d6 and checking the top line to determine origin, a 5 is rolled indicating this person is from a city. Next rolling 2d6 and consulting the side column we get a 2. Cross-referencing this with the city column yields a result of Scum. Now we determine the age of the character. One look at the Mishap Column shows that scum characters don't survive well into old age needing a 5 or better on 1d6 for every year beyond 25 to avoid a mishap. We will make this character 21 years of age to avoid a mishap. (Yes, we could have made him 25 and received two more skill rolls but this was a role-playing decision on my part to vary ages). Next is Wealth. Scum characters don't get much starting wealth. We receive one roll at age 15 and one for every year beyond that for a total of seven 1d6 rolls. These seven rolls result in a combined total of 28 which we then multiply by the wealth amount of $1 for the grand amount of $28. This can be used to purchase equipment or saved as cash with this small amount it hardly matters. No mishap rolls are needed so we go right to skill acquisition.

Dog Boy, the name I have decided to call this character, receives one skill roll attempt for age 15 and one for every two years of age after that for a total of four attempts. Since he is scum he probably lives in a bad area and thus would need to defend himself so the first skill we will try for is a weapons skill. Consulting Table 3: Skills Set 1 we find the Weapons Skills column. Looking down the column we find that the entry number needed is (7+) so a 7 or higher must be rolled on 2d6 to get onto this table. Since Dog Boy is a scum, which is abbreviated as S, we see that he gets a +1 to his entry roll, so he only needs to roll a 6 or better. The dice roll is 8 which makes it even before the +1 is added to the roll. It is now time to see what kind of weapon skill he gets. Rolling 2d6 again to get a 7 and cross-referencing this with the weapons chart shows that he receives the Handgunner skill at base level.

Next Dog Boy wants some covert skills to help him survive on the bad side of town. Table 4: Skills Set 2 has the Covert Skills Column which requires a 10 or better to get on. Dog Boy's roll of 9 with the +3 bonus scum get on this table is modified to 12, a result that easily puts him over the necessary number. Now we roll 2d6 to find out what skill he knows. Since he is from the city he is at -1 to this roll (B -1). He rolls an 8 which when we subtract 1 gives a result of Stealth, so he gains the Stealth skill at base level. Next he goes for a piloting roll on Table 3: Skills Set 1 in hopes that he will get the Cyclist skill. He rolls a 5 however which is less than the 7 or better that is required and thus loses that chance to gain a skill. Dog Boy has one more skill roll left and decides to go for a piloting skill again. This time he makes it by rolling a 7. Now that he is on the piloting column he must subtract 3 since he is scum (S -3). This is okay with Dog Boy as that gets him closer to the Cyclist skill. A roll of 9 is made and even after subtracting 3 gives him a 6 which is Driver skill at base level.

Now to see what Dog Boy has acquired in his short life time we go to the Benefits Table. He gets one roll for his age of 15 and one for every two  full years after for a total of four. Taking 1d6 he rolls a 1 and cross-referencing that with the scum column gives him Luck at base level. Next he rolls a 2 giving him Survival (which we will chose as Urban Survival) also at base level . Another 2 is then rolled which increases his Urban Survival skill to level 1. Finally he throws a 5 which gives him a Connection. For this he decides that he has a girlfriend who is in the local gang. Because of this he can stay in the area without fear of them and can fence the cars he steals to them. Now a brief history and we're done.

Background: Dog Boy has grown up in the ruins next to a large city. He has had to make ends meet the hard way and makes a living stealing cars (thus his skills in Stealth and Driver). He currently lives in an abandoned building with his girlfriend hoping for a change in his miserable existence.
 

Example 2: Mary Kay (Car Mechanic)

Origins roll is a 4 indicating a small town. Status roll is a 7 which is middle class. We'll make this character a 25-year-old female named Mary Kay. Mary's age means we roll 11 d6 for her starting wealth which gives us a total of 26 points times $100 or $2,600. Twenty-five years is the cut-off date so no mishaps will need to be rolled for.

Mary will have six rolls to attempt to get skills. First is weapons. Mary is middle class so she gets a +1 to entry and her roll of 7 plus one equals 8 and puts her on. Next she rolls a 7 and acquires the Handgunner skill at base level. Next roll is for piloting. An 8 gets her on and then a 7 minus 1 for middle class gives her a 6 and the Driver skill at base level. Now she wants a technical skill so she can make money. An 8 is needed but middle class (M) gets a +2 bonus. A roll of 7 + 2 = 9 and gets her on. Since she comes from a town there is no modifier to this roll and a 7 gives her the Mechanic skill at base level. She rolls for this column again getting on with an 11+ 2 =13 which rounds back to a 12. She then rolls for the type of skill and rolls an 8 which is the Mechanic skill again and raises this skill to level 1. After that she goes for a social skill for which she needs an 8 or higher to get. A 12 puts her on this column without a problem. The skill roll is a 5 which gives her Fast-Talk at base level. Her last roll she goes back to the technical skills column and gets a 9 + 2 = 11. Her roll for the skill is a 6 which is Mechanic again giving her a total skill level of 2.

Mary now receives six rolls for benefits, and because she has a technical skill all of these rolls will be made at +1. First roll is 6 + 1 which is 7. This is a job roll and since it is her first she now has a job earning her $100 * 2 (for her Mechanic skill level of 2) every week. She probably works for someone as an auto mechanic. Second roll 2 + 1 = 3 is a weapons roll. Rolling 1d6 we get a 2 which means she will have $500 over her starting wealth which she must use to purchase a weapon. If she had rolled a 5 or 6 she would have raised her Handgunner skill by one level. Third roll: 5 + 1 = 6 (Standard Job). Since Mary already has a job at this level she can raise one of her technical skills one level. Mechanic is the only technical skill she has so it goes to level 3 (note that since this now gives her 40 character points in her technical skill she will now be earning $400 a week from her job). Fourth roll: 3 + 1 = 4. This is a Connection which Mary will have be the garage where she works. She can use the tools for free and gets a 40 percent discount on all auto parts. Fifth roll: 2 + 1 = 3 weapon. Rolling 1d6 we get a 3 which gives us another $500 to spend on a weapon. The sixth and final roll is 4 + 1 = 5 (vehicle). Now we roll 1d6 and get a 6 which means her Driver skill goes up by one to level 1.

Background: Mary works for a small-town garage. She is the best mechanic in town and because of this the owner pays her well lets her use the shop for free and gets her a good discount on auto parts. Mary doesn't own her own car yet and is always on the look out for a good deal. This is how she met Dog Boy as he tried to fence a stolen car to her. Though she didn't approve of his thievery she liked him and has kept in touch with him, bringing him food and clothing whenever she goes into the big city.
 

Character 3: Fred Johnson (Jack-of-all-Trades)

Origin roll of 1 is country. Status roll of 9 is middle class. This character will be Fred Johnson. He will be 31 years old which will give him nine chances for skills. This is also six years over 25 so he will have to roll for a possible mishap six times. Rolling for wealth results in 17. Total starting wealth is 57 * $100 = $5,700. Rolling for mishaps six times on 1d6 yields: 2, 5, 5, 4, 2, and 6. Both 2s are below the "4 and up limit" so Fred has had two mishaps in his life. We now consult Table 2: Mishaps and roll 1d6. The first roll is a 4 which is a loss of one skill roll so now our character only has eight instead of nine chances for a skill. The next roll is a 3 which gives Fred a Dependent. We'll have this be his son that he cares for all alone now that his wife has died.

Fred has eight chances for skills. First roll is for weapons. The result of 10 + 1 = 11 gets him on and a roll of 8 gives him Handgunner at base level. Second roll is for piloting. A 7 gets him on and the next roll (4 - 1 = 3) gives him the Cyclist skill. Third roll is for technical skills. John gets 6 + 2 = 8 so he's on and a roll of 6 - 1 for country origin gives him Survival which he'll take as Desert Survival. Fourth roll is covert skills. A 12 gets him on and a 9 + 1 for C gives him a 10 which is Explosives at base level. Fifth roll is for technical skills again. The roll 10 + 2 = 12 puts him on and 9 - 1 = 8 for Mechanic skill at base level. The sixth and seventh rolls are on the high-tech column but Fred rolls an 7 and 6 so he fails both of those chances. The eighth and final roll will be on the military column, but a roll of 4 fails to get him on.

All benefit rolls get a +1 because Fred has technical skills and these are automatically included in the numbers shown below. First roll is a 7, a Standard Job giving $100 a week, but Fred has 10 character points in Mechanic and 10 in Survival which equals 20 and that is enough to double his base salary to $200 a week. Second roll is a 4, giving a Connection for high explosives. Third roll is a 5 for a Vehicle. The follow-up roll of 2 gives him $5,000 to spend on a vehicle. Fourth roll is a 6, a Standard Job. Fred uses this second Job roll to raise his Mechanic skill to level 1 (he could have chosen instead to raise his other technical skill, Survival, by one but he hopes Mechanic will be more useful). Fifth roll is a 2, giving membership in a Gang, though at his age they don't call it that. There are two other people in this "Gang" each with 20 skill points an $1,000 in gear but Fred will figure them out later. Sixth roll is a 4, giving a Connection to military hardware. Seventh roll is 4, giving another Connection but this time it is for vehicles at 25 percent off regular price. Eighth roll is 4, yielding another Connection but Fred and the GM have agreed to let him save this one to set up at a later date when he meets someone interesting to do business with. Ninth and final roll is 5, a Vehicle. The following  roll of 3 gives another $5,000 to spend on a vehicle.

Background: Fred lived on a farm most of his life until bandits attacked his place and killed his wife. He then moved to the city and has been doing odd jobs to keep him and his son Bobby fed. Fred is a likable guy and has connections in many places. He and Mary know each other from way back and he often stops in to visit her when he makes deliveries to her town. Fred's not too fussy on where he gets his stuff and has dealt with Dog Boy on a number of occasions. With at least $10,000 spend on a vehicle (probably a cycle since he has the skill) Fred will probably be doing a lot of courier jobs that keep him close to home where he can watch his kid.
 

Campaigns

It will now be up to the player and game master to tie all of these characters into a main plot. It is best to have the story center around just one of the characters with the others as second interests. Hopefully this will provide for a wider variety of characters than your typical Handgun: 0, Driver: 0, Gunner: 0 that you often get with the normal way of creating characters.
 

Optional Rules

Living Expenses

I recommend using the simple method listed in the job descriptions, of saving 10-30 percent of your weekly salary and ignore the details. Characters without jobs are still considered to make ends meet out of the money they earn adventuring. If the character has no job and no adventures then they will be on the street starving and need to sell $50 a week in equipment just to survive. For those who want more detail, the following rules should help.

Living expenses include the following: Shelter, food, clothing, minor entertainment (movies, a little partying, etc. . .). It does not include: vehicle maintenance of any sort, major social functions, special equipment for adventuring, weapons, or hired individuals including any "bodyguards" from the advantage above.
 

Living Expenses by Class

Scum: In the chaotic world that the scum character lives in it is impossible for him to know what his costs will be. Will he have to bribe someone to stay alive, pay more for untainted food or lay down some cash for one decent night of sleep? To represent these unknowns simply roll
(1d6 + 3) * 10%. This will yield the percentage of income (from 40 to 90%) the character must spend just to stay alive. Of course 40 to 90% of nothing is still nothing. Dependents at this level cost no extra money.

Poor: Poor folks are required to spend a minimum of $30 a week plus 1d6 * $10 more. If this results in more expenses then the character has money then that character is out on the street and starving. Dependents at this level cost 1d6 * $5 each.

Middle Class: At this level $50 plus 1d6 * $10 must be spent. If this amount is missed for one week the character can make it up the next. If however the amount from two weeks has piled up without being paid the character is out on the street. If three or more weeks are behind the character is starving and needs to sell some equipment to survive. Dependents at this level cost 1d6 * $10 each.

Upper Class: Here's where things really start to get costly. Better homes, better home security, finer foods, nicer clothing, you've got to have it to stay on top. Expense start at $50 plus 1d6 * $20. Dependents at this level cost 1d6 * $20. Loyal bodyguards cost $100 per week. If a character misses one week of living expenses it can be made up the next. If two weeks are missed social status drops; this gives a -1 on all request rolls. If three weeks are missed the character is out on the street with a -2 to all request rolls. Four or more weeks means the character has lost all respect in the community. Request rolls are at -4 and the chance of losing employment becomes a possibility. A job is lost when a 1 is rolled on 1d6. Make this employment roll every month until the job is lost or expenses are recovered. Once upper class status is lost it is very hard to regain. How this can be accomplished will be left up to the GM. Loyal bodyguards will stay on with the character but may simply starve to death if their costs are not met.

Elite: Money flows away like rain at this level. Expenses are 2 d6 x $50 each week. Dependents cost 1 d6 x $30. Loyal body guards cost the same as above. Failure to pay expenses has the same repercussions as for upper class people.

Note: In all instances dependents must be paid for before anything else. Failure to do so will have negative consequences that the GM will decide. These consequences should be severe.
 

Near Death Experiences

When a character reaches 0 hit points that person is normally dead. This rule seems too brutal for role playing so I have adjusted it. Any character at 0 hit points has one hour in which to receive paramedic attention. At the end of that hour roll 2d6. If an 8 or better is rolled that character lives for another hour at which time another roll is necessary. Continue this until a paramedic arrives or the character rolls a 7 or less and dies. Characters below 0 hit points also roll like this but subtract 1 from the roll for every point below 0 they are at and must make their first attempt within 10 minutes rather than an hour.

Paramedic skill works the same as described in Car Wars with the following exceptions: Every paramedic working on the victim makes a roll. As long as at least one makes it the victim is saved, provided no natural 2s were rolled, in which case nothing can save the victim, who dies immediately. Paramedics working on a person below 0 hit points must subtract 1 from their roll for every point below 0 to a maximum of -5. No victim can survive below -5 hit points.
 

Wound Recovery

Injured characters recover wounds at the following rates:

1. In a Tech Level 8 hospital under a doctor's care: one point every two weeks
2. Receiving doctor care at but not in hospital: one point every three weeks
3. Not receiving a doctor's care: one point every four weeks

Permanent Character Damage

When a character goes to 0 or less hit points there is a chance they may never fully recover. A 6 or better must be rolled on 2d6-1 for every point below 0 to avoid this. The following modifiers for treatment apply:

1. Add doctor's skill plus 2
2. Add doctor's skill
3. Subtract 2

Lose one HP: Permanently lose 1 hit point. If this happens twice to a character the second time they receive this they die.

Lose use of one arm: Weapons and equipment requiring two hands may not be used. All piloting and other skills that may require two hands are at -1. Skills like Acrobatics and Climbing are at -3.

Leg hurt: Half all movement. A -2 penalty is applied to Acrobatics, Climbing and other skills that may require two good legs.

Lost one eye: All weapon, piloting, and other skills that require depth perception are at -1.

Hideous scar: Any social request rolls that rely on looks are at -1.