Level   Trivial Easy Medium Hard  Very

Hard

Mechanic 1 9 11 12 x in service A jury-rigged component can Mech +1 1 7 9 11 14 never be properly repaired, and if it is Mech +2 1 5 7 9 11 damaged again, it cannot be jury-rigged a Mech +3 1 3 5 7 11 second time Some items will be destroyed so totally that they cannot even be jury-

No skill   2   11    x     x x

can work on the same item at once Each one rolls separately for success

 

Difficulty of Repair Jobs

Impossible (cannot be attempted): Repair damaged tires, repair computer

Very Hard: Jury-rig rocket or laser

Hard: Jury-rig other components; repair laser, rocket, radio, or power plant Medium: Repair any weapon other than

laser or rocket; reweld or patch armor; salvage radio, power plant, or comput- er from a wreck

Easy: Replace weapon link; salvage other items from a wreck

Trivial (even someone with no Mechanic skill can do this): Reload ammunition; replace or salvage tire; salvage spare magazines and unused ammunition from a wreck

 

Repair is the process of fixing a dam- aged part Each time a successful roll is made, one DP is restored to the item (or 3 points in the case of armor) If a com- ponent is totally destroyed, it cannot be repaired – only jury-rigged

Jury-Rigging is a temporary repair job If the proper roll is made, the jury-rigged component regains 1 DP, putting it back

 

To perform a given repair job, a Me- chanic must roll 2 dice, and get the number shown on the chart (or higher) He may try once per hour (every 30 minutes for a Mechanic +3) An “x” means the job is impossible at that skill level These num- bers assume the mechanic has a basic tool kit If he is working with improvised tools (pocket knife, chewing gum, baling wire), subtract 2 from all rolls If he has only a mini-mechanic (p 46), subtract 1 If he has a portable shop (see p 59), add 1 If he is working in a regular garage, add 2 A suc- cessful roll repairs 1 point of damage on the item in question (3 points if armor is being repaired), or successfully installs/ dismounts/salvages the item in question

Any number of mechanics can work on the same vehicle, but no more than three

rigged – like what’s left of a cycle after a head-on collision with an 18-wheeler

Salvage is the removal of a part from a wreck A mechanic must make the appro- priate repair roll to salvage any given part Installation is the opposite of salvage – putting a new part in to replace a destroyed one The old part must first be “salvaged” (that is, removed), even if it was totally destroyed The roll to install any part is the same as the roll to repair it – see the chart above When the roll is successfully made,

the part is installed

 

Learning the Mechanic Skill

The only way to learn or improve this skill is to spend game time as a full-time mechanic at a duel arena, truck stop, or

garage Since this is not especially thrill- ing, most high-level mechanics will be the referee’s characters, or player characters that started by taking Mechanic +1 or +2

If a character decides to drop out of duelling to become a mechanic, it takes a year (during which he also earns $6,000 above living expenses) to get the ba- sic skill It takes 2 more years (clearing

$8,000 a year) to get to +1, 3 more years (clearing $10,000 a year) to get to +2, and 5 more years (clearing $15,000 a year) to get to +3 A Mechanic +3 has a fairly safe life and earns $20,000 a year above living expenses Mechanics may rise no higher than +3

Paramedic – This skill helps save in- jured victims

If a character is at 0 DP but not below, and the medic can get to him within 20 turns of the fatal injury, a successful roll will save the character’s life He will remain at 0 DP, but will be alive DP are healed at the rate of one every 2 weeks of game time If a victim is below 0 DP, or the medic doesn’t get there in time, or fails his roll (only one chance), the victim is dead Every success- ful use of the Paramedic skill is worth 2 skill points toward improvement of that skill

If a victim has 1 DP left (that is, he’s unconscious), a successful Paramedic roll will revive him for a few minutes (long enough to get some important information, for example)

Running – Everyone starts with this skill at its base level Each plus adds 2 5 mph to a character’s speed – with Running

+3, you move at 20 mph and Sprint at 25 mph! No character may move faster than 25 mph (even while Sprinting) There is no way to earn points specifically in Running, but general skill points may be spent to im- prove the skill

Security – The knowledge of security systems – techniques and methods of con- struction, and ways to disarm or fool them Streetwise – This skill allows a charac- ter to get around in the underworld, get a piece of the action, and make the contacts he needs Successful use of Streetwise lets you find out where any sort of illegal ac- tivity is going on, who can (or must) be

bribed, and so on

Prestige

This is a character’s status among other autoduellists and the millions of TV auto- duel fans Prestige increases a character’s possible arena winnings and decreases his expenditures for new cars, parts, repairs, etc Each character starts with 0 prestige Arena combat always counts for prestige; road combat sometimes affects prestige There is a 2 in 6 chance that any road combat will have been witnessed or filmed by helicopter TV crews, in which case it scores normal prestige Otherwise, you’re an unsung hero for that fight – no pres- tige In some situations (inside a city, in an area with competing TV stations that de- vote more time to autoduelling, etc), the chance of a witnessing TV crew may be

higher That decision is up to the referee An ace is a character who has partici-

pated in five confirmed kills – that is, arena kills or road kills that were witnessed A double ace is a character with ten confirmed kills

 

Scoring

Prestige is scored as follows: For entering combat: +1 Winning an event: +2

For each kill your vehicle scores: +2 Your vehicle “killed” but you survive un-

hurt: −1

Your vehicle “killed” but you survive with injury: −2

You leave your vehicle while it can both move and fire: −1

You leave the arena in a vehicle that can both move and fire: −1

You attack with hand weapons while out- side a vehicle: +1

You kill a vehicle occupied by a charac- ter with prestige of 15-20: +1

You kill a vehicle occupied by a charac- ter with prestige over 20: +2

You become an ace: +5

You become a double ace: +10

 

A character may earn up to 3 extra pres- tige points per game for excellent play, lucky shots, or survival against bad odds These points are awarded by majority vote of the players and onlookers during that game The referee breaks ties

Being killed lowers prestige: −1 for a heroic death, −2 for an ordinary combat death, −3 for a mundane death, −5 for a cowardly death

 

Advantages of Prestige

In any arena combat where cash prizes are offered, a character with prestige of 10 or better earns a percentage bonus equal to his prestige; that is, a prestige of 17 earns a 17% bonus In addition, a character with prestige of 15 or better gets a 25% discount on all new car purchases and repairs (for his own use only); prestige of 25 or bet- ter earns a 50% discount This is in return for the champion’s sponsorship of various brands of ammunition, autos, weapons, etc

Wealth

Each character begins with 0 wealth He can get started in a number of ways He could enter an “Amateur Night” arena sce- nario (p 62) in which the network supplies vehicles for aspiring drivers, or he could be hired as a mercenary for a highway convoy However a character gets started, there are several ways he can earn money:

Selling cars: A car may be sold for sal- vage after it has been used Most arena con- tests give a survivor the right to salvage his kills, too

Arena prizes: This is the big money The referee for a continuing arena campaign may set cash prizes A typical purse would be from 1/2 to 1 1/2 times the total value of the vehicles competing

Road salvage: You can earn money the way the cycle gangs do: pick a fight on the road, and strip your kill for salvage

Perform missions: Many adventures in- volve doing something hazardous (deliver an item or person to another city, protect a person, steal an item) for pay These can be very profitable, but the risk is high and the characters should be well-equipped and experienced This is not for beginners

Transactions with other players: Car sales, used equipment, side bets, and what- ever else you think of

Other than repairs and ammo purchases, the only expense a continuing character has is $150 per week for food, a place to stay and power plant recharges A character with

no money must sell something or starve A character with no money and no car is obvi- ously afraid to enter the arena, so his pres- tige drops to zero and he’s out of the game

Pedestrians

Not everyone has a car Vehicles may face challenges from enemies on foot – or a driver may leave a wrecked vehicle and sprint for safety A pedestrian is represent- ed by a counter that is 1/2” × 1/4” The pe- destrian is considered to be in just the front half of the counter – a single 1/4” square The larger counter is provided for ease of handling Anyone firing on a pedestrian must trace a line of fire to the particular square the pedestrian is in, not just any part of the entire counter Pedestrian counters should always be lined up with the map grid

 

Pedestrian Movement

Most pedestrians move at 12 5 mph; that is, they move 1/4” on every phase Pedes- trians may move into any adjacent square, including those which are diagonally adja- cent, in their move They can change direc- tion any time without bothering with con- trol rolls or handling class (though things like oil and spikes can hamper movement) You may elect to go slower, and there are ways of going faster (see below) To determine the phases in which you move, multiply your speed by 4 and read the ap- propriate line on the Movement Chart, p 7 Move 1/4” in each phase the chart indi- cates For example, someone moving 17 5 mph would move 1/4” in each phase indi- cated on the chart for 70 mph Pedestrians

go before cars moving at the same speed

 

Going Faster

Spending points to increase your Run- ning ability will increase your base speed For short periods of time, you may also opt to Sprint A Sprinting character increases his speed by 5 mph for up to 10 seconds After the 10 seconds, he can continue to run, but only at his base speed, and only for a maximum of 10 more seconds Then he must stop and rest After Sprinting, a character must stop and rest for 1 second

for every 2 seconds spent Sprinting; if he Sprinted for 6 seconds, he must rest for 3, for example A character who is rest- ing can do nothing except catch his breath You cannot Sprint up a flight of stairs, and you cannot fire a weapon while Sprinting

– but if you need to get under cover fast, the extra speed could save your life

There is no limit to the number of di- rection changes a pedestrian can make – don’t bother with handling classes, control rolls, or Crash Table rolls

 

Stairs

Stairways are marked on Car Wars maps as a series of squares, with every other square marked with a floor number. When a pedestrian reaches the numbered square corresponding to the floor he is on, he must stop On phase 1 of the next turn, he may move one square up or down On phase 1 of the turn after that, he may move again This continues until he reaches the floor he wants On the turn after reaching the num- bered square for any floor, the pedestrian may move on that floor normally. The up- permost box of many staircases is marked “R,” and represents a hatch to the roof of the building It takes one turn to move from the “R” square to any adjacent square – then movement continues normally

The Running skill helps a pedestrian when climbing stairs For each level of Running the character has above base level he can climb one additional square per turn, up to a maximum of 5 If a Runner +2 was climbing a set of stairs, he would climb one square on phase 1 of the turn, then another on phase 2, one on phase 3, and then again on phase 1 of the next turn

Dropping Prone, Crawling, and Hiding

A pedestrian can drop prone instantly – this takes no time A prone pedestrian can be in the open (an extra −1 to hit), com- pletely safe (behind a wall, for instance), or covered but not completely safe (if he is prone in rubble, he is at a −5 to be hit). A pedestrian can fire from prone position Being immobile gives him a +1 to hit A pedestrian who is in safe cover (such as behind a wall) but sticks his head out to fire is at a −2 for cover.

A prone pedestrian can crawl, mov- ing in phases 2 and 4 only He cannot fire while crawling

It requires a full second to stand up from a prone or crawling position

 

Spikes, Oil, and Mines

Pedestrians can run afoul of the nasty surprises dropped on city streets and in- tended for vehicles When a pedestrian enters a square covered by a spike counter (not the adjacent area, but the counter it- self), he must roll 2 dice On a 2 or 3, the pedestrian takes 1d−4 points of damage.

A pedestrian on oil is more likely to resemble a Keystone Kop than Clint East- wood When a pedestrian enters a square with oil on it, he rolls 2 dice He must roll a 5 or better to stay on his feet If he moves immediately to another square with oil, he must roll a 7; then a 9, and then an 11 for each subsequent square If a pedestrian falls, he can either spend an entire second to stand up – which also requires a roll of 7 or better on 2 dice to accomplish – or crawl, moving only during Phases 2 and 4 Flaming oil has the same effect as regu- lar oil, and pedestrians also take 1 point of damage at the end of every turn they’re in it Body armor does protect against dam-

age from flaming oil.

The weight of a pedestrian will not set off vehicle-type mines

 

Equipment and Encumbrance

Pedestrians may carry up to six gre- nades, or six grenade-equivalents (GEs) worth of equipment; see the list on pp 45- 47 This does not affect their movement Carrying a heavier load, except with a pack or similar item, is prohibited

 

Combat

Pedestrians can use hand weapons only (see list, p 47) A pedestrian can only fire once a turn Once a pedestrian fires, he can- not move for the rest of the turn A sprint- ing or crawling pedestrian cannot fire

Pedestrians have 3 Damage Points – the first hit wounds, the second knocks uncon- scious, and the third kills They can wear body armor, which adds DP

If a vehicle collides with a pedestrian, use the collision system in Chapter 2 Re- member, pedestrians have a damage modi- fier of 1/5 The collision system can also be used if pedestrians run into each other

Hand-to-Hand Combat

For one pedestrian to strike another, he must be in a square adjacent to his intended victim He must roll a 2 or higher to hit, but all targeting modifiers (except for the point-blank range bonus) are in effect, in- cluding the −3 for targeting a pedestrian, so the net effect is that – most of the time

– he will need a 5 or better on 2 dice A hu- man fist does 1d−5 damage. If the attacker has something heavy in his hand – a pistol, an unused grenade, or a rock (any debris marker will yield something appropriate), the damage roll is 1d−4.

If a pedestrian has moved more than half his movement allowance in a given turn, he cannot attack hand-to-hand this turn

A pedestrian may also make a “hand-to- hand” attack against an adjacent vehicle He must have something to hit it with – a bare-handed attack against vehicle armor is pointless A pedestrian with a rock or other object may strike a vehicle once per turn (no to-hit roll is needed). He does 1d−5 damage that is, on a roll of 6, he does 1 hit A hand weapon used in this fashion will no longer be useful as anything but a club

A hand weapon may also do damage to a vehicle in a more conventional way Any hand weapon fired from point-blank range at a stationary vehicle hits automatically, doing 1 point of damage Any hand weap- on that would ordinarily do more than 1 point of damage against a vehicle (such as the SMG), gets the higher damage

Hand weapons take one turn to reload; this replaces one magazine Nothing else can be done while reloading a weapon When a pedestrian is hit by a weapon, he will always take a minimum of 1 point of damage from that weapon

 

Pedestrians and Vehicles

A pedestrian must stand beside a cycle for one full turn (one second) to get on The next turn, he is astride it He must remain motionless for 3 seconds, this being about the time necessary to get a cycle running

After the 3 seconds, he can move normally A driver getting off a cycle (or out of a ve- hicle) must spend a full turn beside it after coming to a complete stop (time to dis- mount) and then may run normally

A driver or passenger may jump from a moving vehicle Roll for damage as if the jumper were hit by a vehicle (with a dam- age modifier of 1) going 10 mph slower than the vehicle was going The jumper lands in any adjacent square, and may move and/or fire beginning the next turn

It would take about 30 seconds to pick up and restart a fallen cycle of any size Most combats won’t last that long

To enter a larger vehicle, a pedestrian must stand beside it for one turn (opening the door) On the next turn, he may enter The next turn he may close the door; if the side of the vehicle is hit while the door is open, half of all damage from area effect weapons is taken to the armor, and the rest is applied internally For other weapons, there is a 3 in 6 chance that all damage will bypass the armor and be applied internally It takes 3 seconds to start a vehicle It cannot move until the fourth turn – but it

may begin firing weapons immediately

 

Pedestrian Equipment

Ammo Clips – $50 + cost of a full load of ammo for that weapon, 1/2 GE each for most weapons, 1 GE for SMGs and GLs Extended Ammo Clips are available for pistols, SMGs, and rifles. $80 + cost of amino, holds twice as much ammunition as a standard clip Extended ammo clips take up 1 GE for most weapons and 2 GEs for SMGs and GLs

Backpack – $40, no GEs The pack car- ries 5 GEs’ worth of hand weapons that do not count toward the 6 GE limit It takes a firing action to remove or don a backpack, and items may be added to or removed only from a laid-down pack It takes 1d seconds to add something to or remove something from the pack If the pack is carried rather than worn, it counts as 5 GEs

Battle Vest – $75, 3 GEs Holds one pistol, two grenades of any type, two hand- weapon magazines of any type, and one Bowie knife Fits over body armor, but must be worn to gain benefits; if carried, counts as 6 GEs Putting on or removing

a vest counts as a firing action, but adding something to or retrieving it from the vest does not An armored version is available for $225, which gives the wearer an addi- tional 3 DP, but only works on a 1 to 4 on 1 die The armored battle vest cannot be worn over IBA or impact armor

Body Armor – $250 Gives the wearer 3 extra damage points, but does not pro- tect from falling or collision damage

Improved Body Armor – $1,500 Works like regular body armor, except that it has 6 DP instead of 3 If the wearer is in a burning vehicle, roll 1 die each turn On a 1 to 3, the wearer takes no damage On a 4 to 6 the wearer takes the normal point of damage Anyone wearing improved body armor must subtract 1 from his reflex roll because of the bulk, and pedestrians in IBA have their speed reduced by 5 mph (2 squares/turn) The IBA also includes a built-in gas mask, and reduces the amount a person can carry to 5 GEs

Impact Armor – $2,000 Impact armor gives the wearer 6 additional DP and is fully effective against falls and collisions Furthermore, any fall or collision damage is halved before applying it to the armor’s DP Naturally, once the armor is destroyed (by collision or weapons fire), these ben- efits are lost Impact armor has the same effects on carrying capacity, reflex rolls, and running speed as IBA, but it doesn’t give protection from fire or gas This item cannot be combined with any other form of body armor except for a fireproof suit

Blended Body Armor – $750 and up Gives the wearer 3 extra DP, just like regular body armor, but is indistinguish- able from street clothes Custom tailoring may cost more Regular body armor of any type cannot be worn with this item, and a fireproof suit will be obvious if worn Im- proved Body Armor is also available in a blended version for $5,000 and up, but it does not offer protection from fire or gas (though its penalties still apply) Impact ar- mor is not available in a blended version

Spiked Body Armor – adds $100 to cost of any kind of body armor Spiked armor inflicts an extra point of damage in hand- to-hand combat, through the use of spiked knuckles, knees, etc

Fireproof Suit – $500, no weight or space Worn under body armor, the suit will protect the wearer completely from vehicular fires for 30 turns – after that, the wearer takes 1 point of damage for every ten more seconds exposed The suit protects the same way against flaming oil and building fires If the wearer is hit by any type of flamethrower fire, damage is halved (round down) The suit offers no protection from other weapons

Gas Mask – $30, 1 GE Gas masks pro- tect against tear gas and other irritants If exposed to paint, wearer has −2 to his to- hit rolls until the mask is removed

Light Intensifier Goggles – $300, 1 GE Reduces the penalty “to hit” for night combat from −3 to −1. A LIG/Gas mask combination costs $400, but is still only 1 GE. Paint not only adds a −2 penalty, but also negates the goggles’ bonus at night

Medikit – $1,000 Counts as a pedes- trian’s full load when carried As cargo, it takes up 2 spaces and 50 lbs, and has 3 DP Gives a +2 bonus to all Paramedic rolls

Portable Medikit – $750, 3 GEs Worn like a backpack (5 GEs if carried by hand), takes 2 seconds to put on or take off Gives a +1 to Paramedic rolls; this cannot be combined with the bonus for a Medikit If the wearer is hit, roll 1 die: on a 1, the Me- dikit is hit first, taking damage to its 2 DP Mini-Mechanic – $50, 1 GE When us- ing this item for any repair job, the penalty for using improvised tools is at −1 instead of −2. Will fit like a grenade in a battle vest. Portable Fire Extinguisher – $150, 20 lbs, 1/2 space carried as cargo, 3 GEs when carried Puts out a vehicular fire on 1 to 2 on 1 die (or a 1 for a gas burner) Can be “fired” 20 times before it must be refilled

– which costs $20 and can be done at many truck stops, armories, and hardware stores Tool Kit – $600, 6 GEs Includes enough tools and spare parts to allow a mechanic to work in the field at no penalty Has 2 DP; the first point of damage hurts the case, and the second point breaks the case and

destroys or scatters the contents

Tripod Weapons – Adds 10% to the weapon’s cost, 5 GEs May mount up to 2 spaces’ worth of any vehicular weapon (or linked weapons) Extra magazines may be purchased, and do not count toward the

tripod’s “spaces” – they are placed on the ground next to the weapon Each extra mag- azine is 2 GEs Weapons that require power (e g, lasers) will require a battery

A tripod gunshield can be added, adding 1 GE to the weapon, at $10 and 4 lbs per point of armor (max weight 40 lbs) The shield acts like a wheelguard: On a 1 to 4, the gunshield takes damage before the tar- get Gunshield armor is considered to be a

vehicular component, and thus takes half or no damage from many hand weapons

Tripod weapons cannot be used by a normal passenger in a vehicle A passen- ger who wishes to use a tripod weapon takes up an additional space (i e, a gunner would take up 3 spaces) Tripod weapons take up 2 spaces as cargo

Walkie-Talkie – $250, 1 GE It works like a vehicular CB and has a 3-mile range

 

Weapon

Hand

Abbrev  GE

Weapon

Damage To-Hit  Cost

List

Shots  CPS

    L $     Notes

Submachine Gun

SMG 2 1d 6 $250 10 12 $370 a

Rifle

– 2 3 hits 7 $120 20 1 $140  

Anti-Vehicular Rifle

AVR 3 1d 8 $600 10 5 $650 d

Heavy AV Rifle

HAVR 4 1d+3 8 $800 10 10 $900 d

 

                  Double-Barreled Shotgun Heavy Pistol

DStG

 

HP

3   1 2/4 hits   2 hits 6   7 $200   $100 10/5   8 1   1 $210   $108 g Light Pistol

LP

1 1 hit 8 $75 8 1 $83                        

 

 

Assault Rifle              AR   3  1d+1     7  $400  10   15 $550   a Laser Rifle                 LR    2    1d       6 $4,500 2     – $4,500 b, d Gauss Rifle                GR   2    1d       6 $1,500 20   15 $1,800 a, b Shotgun                     StG   2  2 hits     6  $120  10    1 $130

Machine Pistol           MP   1  1d−2     7  $250   6    12 $322   a Gauss Pistol               GP   1  1d−2     6  $500  20    5 $600   b Grenade Launcher      GL   2     –        7  $300   5     –     –     c

LAW 2 2d 8 $500 1 – $500 d VLAW 1 1d 8 $200 1 – $200 d

Light Anti-Tank Weapon

Very Light

Bazooka                       –     4    3d       8 $1,500 1    50 $1,550 d, e Bowie Knife/Bayonet –      1  1d−2     8   $50    –     –     –     f Grenades                     G     1   var       9   var     1   var    –     c

Anti-Tank Weapon

 

Abbreviations: GE – Grenade Equiva- lent, a measure of bulk and weight that determines a pedestrian’s carrying capac- ity Pedestrians can normally carry 6 GEs of equipment CPS – cost per shot L $ – loaded cost

 

Notes

a. Does half damage to vehicles

b. This weapon requires a power pack ($1,000, 3 GEs) to function effectively The laser rifle only gets two shots without it, but will get 20 more with the pack The Gauss rifle gets 60 shots’ worth of power from the power pack, and the Gauss pistol gets 100

shots’ worth of power from it Note that the Gauss weapons still require ammunition

c. See pp 34-36 for grenades

d. Does full damage to vehicles

e. Spare bazooka shells are 1 GE each, and take 2 seconds to reload (1 second for two people) Characters reloading a ba- zooka cannot perform any other actions while reloading

f. Only usable in hand-to-hand combat When attached to the end of a rifle, it adds no GEs

g. A double-barreled shotgun holds ten shells One or two barrels can be fired each turn It uses normal shotgun ammo

Vehicle Design

Cars

Building a new car is complicated – just ask Detroit When you first design a new vehicle, don’t be surprised if it takes a little while You must work within several con- straints: Space available in the body size you pick, weight that chassis can carry, and money available You have to make sure the car has enough power for decent accel- eration Within all these limits, you want enough armor and weapons to give you a chance to survive And remember to allow money and weight for ammunition! When you come up with a good vehicle design, save it for later reference, or add it to the stock car list for your local arena

Body Types

There are nine types of cars available to

Armor Types

Armor cost/weight is the cost and weight of a single point of ablative plastic armor Cars carry armor in six positions: front, back, left, right, top, and underbody You can put different amounts of armor in different locations, but the cost per point is the same, no matter the location The cost and weight per point of armor does vary according to the size of the vehicle, how- ever There are also a few special types of armor available to duellists

Fireproof Armor (FP) costs twice as much as normal armor, but weighs the same As the name indicates, fireproof armor can- not be set on fire It takes damage normally from all weapons, including flamethrow- ers and lasers, but if the armor is all that is damaged, you do not roll for the possibil- ity of fire – it can’t happen If the armor is

duellists, from tiny subcompacts to vans                               breached and internal compo-

Max

  Armor nents are damaged, regular fire