AADA-Sanctioned Tournament Rules and Regulations
Unofficial 2050 Update
This document is an attempt to publish all AADA-Sanctioned Tournament Rules and Regulations printed since the initial draft presented in Autoduel Quarterly Vol. 9, No. 1. These rules are not endorsed nor sanctioned by the American Autoduel Association.
Michael P. Owen
owenmp@hotmail.com
Web Posted by the HVD Car Wars Mailing List,
February 1998
Reprinted by the Seattle
Washington Autoduel Team, March 1998
Updated March 24, 2007
Introduction
Rules
Vehicles and Equipment
Vehicle Descriptions
Crew Members
Arenas
Scoring
Team Play
Referee
Sportsmanship
Summary
The Number One Regulation
AADA Restrictions on Weapons and Equipment
Bibliography
These guidelines should be used to define the parameters of sanctioned AADA Tournaments. Areas covered by these rules include vehicles acceptable and vehicles prohibited in the arena, quantity and quality of crew, acceptable types of arenas and scoring of these arenas. These regulations will be used for all events related to the AADA Duelling and Racing Tournament, specifically all Chapter Championships, all Regional Championships, all Qualifying Rounds of the World Championships and the Final Rounds of the World Championships themselves.
These regulations are the official tournament
policy of the American Autoduel Association and of Steve Jackson Games.
All AADA-Sanctioned Competitions will be run using the rules found in the following sources:
Rulebooks
All AADA-Sanctioned Competitions will also follow errata and rules changes found in Autoduel Quarterly (ADQ), Pyramid (PYR), AADA Newsletter, the Official Car Wars Web site and the Official AADA Web site.
In both areas listed above (textbooks and addenda) rules and errata with a later date of publication shall take precedence over earlier rulings. All applicable rules from AADA Tournament Guidelines published in Autoduel Quarterly, Pyramid, AADA Newsletter, the Official Car Wars Web site and the Official AADA Web site will also be in effect.
Rules and equipment unique to Car Wars Tanks, Aeroduel, and similar Car Wars supplements not found in CWC2.5 and not listed as AADA-Sanctioned in UACFH (p. 6) are not suitable for the arena and will not be used. Rules published in ADQ and Pyramid are considered optional unless specifically identified as "official rules."
Optional rules may be used as long as the variants
are announced well in advance of an event.
AADA-Sanctioned events should be limited to those vehicle types found in the following chapters present in CWC2.5 in UACFH: Cars, Cycles/Trikes, and Racing Cars. For most Duelling (as opposed to Racing) arenas, body types should be limited to all body types found in the following chapters of CWC2.5 and UACFH: Cars, Cycles, Sidecars and Trikes.
In general, all vehicles should be of a standard, non-oversized, wheeled vehicle without the capability for extended self-propelled flight or the ability to operate on water.
Unless specified, vehicles shall be limited to
electric power plants (PPs). If the arena is open to gasoline internal
combustion engines (ICEs),
this must be specified before the event. All
vehicles shall have a range of at least 150 miles at cruising speed as
per Vehicle Range in CWC2.5
and in UACFH.
The total amount of money that each competitor
may spend building and equipping the vehicle shall be specified before
the event. This notice should have enough lead time for each competitor
to build and outfit an acceptable vehicle. The acceptable Divisions for
AADA-Sanctioned events shall be:
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It is suggested that in a multiple-round tournament setting earlier or preliminary rounds be of a lower Division than the Divisions of the later rounds. Each competitor should be limited to one vehicle of an acceptable type, according to these guidelines: restrictions included here in these AADA Rules and Regulations, any specific equipment restrictions of the arena, and the Division restrictions of the arena.
Additional prohibitions may be made for specific arenas at the discretion of the tournament officials provided that the competitors are given adequate notice of the prohibitions. It is suggested that Racing events prohibit or severely limit the use of dropped weapons of any type as these tend to destroy the expensive track surfaces of racetracks. Any regular Duelling event which has critical checkpoints that vehicles must cross, either because of arena design or to satisfy victory conditions, should consider restricting the use or availability of dropped weapons.
The Referee should inform the competitors if the third-spaces rule will be in effect. The Vehicle Design sections in CWC2.5 (p. 73) and UACFH (p. 160) state that "no more than one-third of the total spaces in a vehicle can be devoted to weapons that fire from any one side (round down)." Vehicles in past AADA events have often violated this rule therefore competitors are advised to ask the Referee about the use of this restriction. Note that motorcycles and sidecars are both exempt from the third-spaces rule.
Vehicle designs should be checked before the event by the Referee or another independent and impartial official. Illegal designs shall be modified. If the design cannot be made legal, the duellist should be offered a choice of the following actions:
(1) Submitting an alternative vehicleIf a vehicle is found to be illegal during competition, whether it was checked or not before competion, the vehicle will be modified by the Referee to make it legal. After this process the duel will continue from the point it was stopped with the modified vehicle.
(2) Using a stock vehicle that is provided by the Referee
(3) Withdrawing from the competition
If a vehicle is found to be illegal after the competition is over, where it was checked or not before the competition, the duelist will be stripped of the won standing/position only if in judgement of the Referee, based on the course of the event, it would have been impossible for the duellist in question to have attained the final standing with a legal design.
Not every item that is useful on the road will be acceptable in tournament competition. In the interest of fair play and sportsmanship the AADA has declared several devices illegal in the arena.
The devices and accessories from CWC2.5 and UACFH
listed in the AADA Restrictions on Weapons and Equipment
section of this document are prohibited from use in AADA-Sanctioned competition
or have their use restricted in some way. Page numbers and the reasons
for the prohibition or restriction are cited for each item.
All rules in the articles "Showing Your Stuff: Car Descriptions in Car Wars" and "Deception in Car Wars" from ADQ 6/3 are official AADA policy, except for the changes below.
Weapon classifications, first introduced in the Deluxe Car Wars Reference Screen, are available in CWC2.5 and UACFH. Weapons in AADA events are described as small-bore projectile, large-bore projectile, rocket, laser, flamethrower, dropped solid, dropped liquid, dropped gas, illumination device or sonic cannon.
The Variable-Fire Rocket Pod is only available
in the version described in CWC2.5 (p. 98) and UACFH (pp. 23-24). The two
articles from ADQ 6/3 mentioned above refer to statistics of the weapon
that are now obsolete.
Vehicle crews for AADA-Sanctioned events will be limited to a maximum of two crew members per vehicle. No vehicle in an AADA-Sanctioned event may carry passengers. Therefore, vehicles in an AADA-Sanctioned event will carry a Pilot (Driver or Cyclist) or a Pilot and a Gunner. All equipment supplied to the crew members will count against the Division cost limit and against the weight of the vehicle as per the Alternate Encumbrance Rules in CWC2.5 (pp. 62-66) and UACFH (pp. 132-143).
The number of skill points available to each crew member, as per the Characters section located in CWC2.5 (pp. 52-57) shall be specified before the event. It is suggested that no crew member in any event be allowed more than 50 skill points with no more than 30 skill points (+2 skill level/bonus) to be spent on one skill. Points for skills for each crew member must be allocated and recorded on the Vehicle Record Sheet (Schematic Sheet) before the beginning of the event. It is also suggested that Reflex Rolls be fixed at four (4) for each Pilot. This is to reduce the possibility of some Pilot being irreparably advantaged or disadvantaged in an event by a single, random die roll.
Personal equipment available to crew members shall
be limited to one suit of Body Armor of any legal type, and one Personal
Fire Extinguisher (PFE) only. No hand-held weapons or other personal equipment
will be allowed.
Arenas in AADA-Sanctioned events are classified into one of two general catagories: (1) Duelling and (2) Racing. Any of the events below may be fought in off-road terrain. If an event is to be fought off-road, this must be announced to competitors before the beginning of an event with sufficient lead time to allow competitors to design an appropriate, legal vehicle.
All restrictions on any event, above and beyond
those required by these guidelines, must be announced to competitors before
the beginning of an event. The type of event should be announced (Survivor
Duelling, Points Duelling, Simple Racing, Dueltrack Racing) and which arena
or track (previously-published design or custom design) is to be used.
Duelling Arenas are the most common and can be
further divided into two subdivisions: (A) Survivor or (B) Points. Both
types of Duelling Events should be limited to standard body types (Cars,
Cycles and Trikes) with Racing Cars being prohibited. All restrictions
shall be announced to competitors before the beginning of the event, with
sufficient lead time to design an appropriate vehicle.
Survivor Arenas are those arenas where the last
operational vehicle wins. The physical layout of these arenas should be
kept simple. The Armadillo Autoduel Arena (if there are a large number
of competitors) and the Double Drum Autoduel Arena (or even half of the
Drum if there are a small number of competitors) are examples of arenas
which are good such events. In general, arenas for Survivor Duels should
be kept on the small side for the competitors involved, with few, if any,
obstacles to encourage participants to engage in combat and to limit the
ability of Pilots to avoid combat to survive through inaction.
Points Arenas are those arenas where points are
scored by each vehicle for completing specific objectives (driving specific
circuits, making jumps, shooting targets, crossing checkpoints, mobility
and/or firepower kills, etc.). These arenas may be larger, especially if
there are checkpoints to cross to score points, as this will tend to draw
vehicles together. These arenas may also be more complicated, the added
complexity providing the officials more challenges to put the competitors
through and to award points for tackling these challenges. The Hammer Downs
Autoduel Arena and the New Boston Autoduel Arena are examples of good arenas
for Points Duels.
Racing Arenas can also be broken down into two general catagories: (1) Simple Races or (2) Dueltrack Races. In both Racing Events body types may be limited to Racing Cars only or left open to all body types allowed in other AADA-Sanctioned events. All restrictions shall be announced to competitors before the beginning of the event, with sufficient lead time to design an appropriate vehicle.
No dropped gas, solid or liquid weapons of any kind will be allowed.
Weapons are restricted to direct fire only (no grenades or grenade launchers), and individual weapons that do more than 2d damage are prohibited (linked combinations that do greater damage are permitted).
No temporary speed boosters, including nitrous oxide, rocket boosters, supercharger capacitors, jump jets, etc.
No participant may fire until that participant has completed one lap.
Tire shots are completely forbidden in all Racing
Events.
Simple Races are somewhat equivalent to the Survivor
Duels described previously in that the first competitor to cross the finish
line wins. Racetracks should, however, be complex, providing the competitors
with navigation challenges. Weapons should be prohibited in Simple Races.
The Daytona Racetrack Road Course and the Ontario
Racetrack are examples of good arenas for Simple Races.
Dueltracks are those races, whose, though the
object of the event is still to cross the finish line first, there is also
combat involved. Dueltracks should be simpler in layout, since the attrition
due to weapons fire should make up for the attrition due to loss of control
found in Simple Races. Dropped weapons should be heavily restricted in
any Dueltrack event and it is suggested that intentional tire shots be
prohibited entirely. The Scotio Downs Racetrack
and the Muskogee Racetrack (oval layouts and
partial-oval layouts) are examples of good arenas for Dueltrack Races.
Scoring, awarding points or determining kills, is largely at the discretion of the Referee. These scoring regulations will define how points should be awarded or kills determined to a large degree, but situations will arise which must be adjudicated by the Referee.
In Points Duelling arenas, the specific tasks and the number of points to be awarded for the competition of each task must be specified and announced after the vehicles have been designed and approved. Awarding points for completion of these tasks, should, in most cases, be self-evident and not require adjudication by the Referee. Points gained through completion of these tasks should not be great enough to discourage competitors from trying to gain vehicular kills (i.e. vehicular kills should be worth enough points to encourage combat).
Points should be awarded for both types
of kills: (1) Mobility and (2) Firepower.
A vehicle is declared a Mobility Kill when it
has lost the ability to move or maneuver under its own power – a vehicle
on its roof is a Mobility Kill. A vehicle on its roof with unfired rocket
boosters containing sufficient thrust to slide it along the arena floor
is still a Mobility Kill, since the vehicle cannot maneuver.
Firepower Kills are more at the discretion of the Referee. Any vehicle which cannot significantly affect the outcome of an arena with its weaponry or a vehicle that does not have (combat-effective) weapons, shall be declared a Firepower Kill. A Mobility-Killed vehicle with its weapons against a wall or other obstacle is a Firepower Kill, even though its weapons may still be functional. A vehicle which has been Mobility-Killed and does not have direct-fire weapons (a ramcar, a vehicle with only dropped weapons, etc.) will usually be a Firepower Kill. An abandoned vehicle is considered both a Mobility-Kill and a Firepower-Kill.
There should always be point penalty for competitors having their own vehicles killed, either Mobility-Killed or Firepower-Killed and the penalty should be great enough to discourage competitors from killing their own vehicles to gain points.
Points kills scored after the vehicle has been eliminated should be awarded to that vehicle. For example, a Mobility-Kill scored by a mine dropped by an eliminated vehicle.
Awarding points for kills is entirely at the discretion
of the Referee. Normally, it should be clear to whom the points should
be awarded – the car that destroyed the tire, the car that laid the mine,
the car that rammed, etc. In some cases, however, the determination may
be unclear – two vehicles fire simultaneously at the same vehicle and that
vehicle loses control and rolls. In such cases, awarding points is at the
Referee's discretion. In the specific case mentioned above, points should
be split between each attacker.
While the AADA does hold team events, the AADA
World Duelling and Racing Championships do not qualify as such. In order
to prevent collusion in the arena, the following guidelines are offered
as suggestions for AADA Tournament Referees.
1. Make Them Take the Shot
If a car has a good shot at a target and is not
currently engaged with a target, make the Pilot take the shot. A "good
shot" means an eight (8) or better to hit, with at least five (5) shots
of ammo left in the weapon (or five or more dropped weapon counters still
on the map). At one point in the Final Round of the 2041-2042 AADA World
Dueling Championships, one competitor was inclined to take an easy shot
at a participant from the same club. The Referee enforced the shot, which
turned out to be in the attacker's favor.
2. No Talking in the Ranks
Do not allow players to make deals. Do not allow
secret communications; anything that is said everyone can hear. In combat
events, if two or more players start driving around without shooting at
each other (if possible), promise to dock Victory Points if combat does
not increase.
3. Surrenders
Only allow surrenders if a vehicle cannot continue
fighting. Only allow the surrendering vehicle to surrender to the closest
enemy vehicle that can seriously damage destroy it.
The AADA World Dueling Championships and the AADA
World Racing Championships are supposed to be "lone-wolf bloodbaths" and
"lone-cheetah rallies," not "scratch my back, I'll scratch yours." Enforce
this attitude.
The Referee is the final and only arbiter of any
dispute that arises at an AADA-Sanctioned event. Excessive arguing of any
rules point, especially after the Referee has made a ruling, is grounds
for disqualification.
Foul language, harassment of another player, coaching
by a non-player, or any other non-sportsmanlike activity (as determined
by the Referee) are grounds for disqualification. There are no appeals.
These Regulations are intended to bring some parity
to the AADA events held at conventions and by clubs around the world. The
use of these Regulations will allow participants to be able to know what
to expect when they appear at a convention, a Chapter Championship, a Regional
Championship, or the World Championships themselves. These Rules and Regulations
are official AADA policy unless altered or amended in Pyramid Online, in
the AADA Newsletter, and on the AADA Web site.
Have fun!
AADA Restrictions
on Weapons and Equipment
Amphibious Travel and Self-Propelled Flight
These accessories permit vehicles to have extended self-propelled flight or the ability to operate on water. These two capabilities are not allowed in AADA-Sanctioned events, therefore these devices are prohibited.
Component armor (CWC2.5, p. 108; UACFH, p. 52)
may be used normally as specified in CWC2.5 and in UACFH unless it used
as a Damage Sink as defined above. Use of component armor to protect an
empty cargo area or a cargo area containing another Damage Sink is not
permitted.
These items represent "damage sinks," components installed with the only purpose to soak up damage that would otherwise destroy more necessary systems. Any item which possesses DP and is not directly useful in an arena combat (spare tires, searchlights in an illuminated arena, weapons or accessories carried as cargo, etc.) will be considered illegal in AADA-sanctioned events.
The AADA promotes and glorifies the skill, cunning, daring, and resourcefulness of its Pilots and Gunners in the arena, not the skill of their team programmers. Therefore the items listed below are prohibited from use in AADA-Sanctioned competition.
No more than one fuel tank may be installed in
an ICE-powered vehicle. Using more than one fuel tank would create a Damage
Sink situation as described above. Electrically-powered may not mount fuel
tanks for the same reason. A fuel tank, however, may be protected by component
armor normally.
These items are prohibited from use in AADA-Sanctioned events because of the potential for abuse. Note that tripod gunshields can be used with pintle mounts as long as Gunners are using pintle mounts. According to CWC2.5 (p. 99), Cloud Bomb Smokescreens are permitted only on aircraft. This restriction supercedes the rules for this weapon in UACFH (p. 12).
The following weapons are usually effective only on vehicles that are traveling on water. If an off-road arena that contains a significant amount of water is utilized, the Referee should declare which of these marine weapons, if any, are permitted for use in the event. All restrictions regarding this weaponry shall be announced to competitors before the beginning of the event, with sufficient lead time to design an appropriate vehicle.
Personal
Equipment: Backpack Items
Backpack-style items cannot be worn while piloting unless the Pilot is controlling a motorcycle. Each backpack-style accessory is assumed to occupy 1/2 space when carried as cargo. Note that scuba gear cannot be worn for defense by a Pilot in a car or in a trike because the item is a backpack accessory. Backpack items cannot be component-armored because that action would create a damage sink situation as described above. The weight of these accessories does count against the weight of the vehicle carrying them. The description of the PFE in Uncle Albert's 2036 Catalog Update states that the gadget has an "ammunition capacity" of 20 shots. This restriction is not listed in CWC2.5 or UACFH. Autoduellists should ask the Referee before an AADA-Sanctioned event if this rule is in effect.
Light, Standard and Heavy Sonic Cannon, with and
without Tight-Beam Modifications, are permitted in AADA-Sanctioned events.
The Military Sonic Cannon is prohibited from use in AADA duels and races.
Weapons that are spinal-mounted are permitted
in AADA-Sanctioned events as long as the weapon itself is AADA-Sanctioned.
Uncle Albert's 2050 Catalog Update
The weapons, ammunition and accessories presented in Uncle Albert's 2050 Catalog Update have the AADA classifications listed below. The AADA Head Referee, Eric Freeman, ruled in the July 2000 Edition of the Car Wars Referee Questionnaire Crystal Spikes are AADA-Restricted because their non-visible nature would be too challenging for the Referee to permit in a tournament situation.
AADA Restricted
AADA Permitted
Uncle
Albert's 2051 Catalog Update
All of the accessories in Uncle Albert's 2051
Catalog Update (High-Torque Motors, Heavy-Duty High-Torque Motors, Improved
Metal Airdams, Improved Metal Spoilers, and Cycle Armored Wheel Hubs) are
permitted in AADA events.
Weapons may be used in lockdown mode in AADA-Sanctioned
events. Weapons can be locked and unlocked via a firing action normally
during AADA Events.
Car Wars Compendium Second Edition Fifth Printing. Steve Jackson Games. 1996.Classic Car Wars. Steve Jackson Games. 1990.
Uncle Albert's Catalog from Hell. Steve Jackson Games. 1992.
AADA News: 2041-2042 World Dueling Championship Rules. Chris W. McCubbin. ADQ 10/2. Summer 2042. pp. 3-4.
AADA News: Official Tournament Rules Addendum. Chris W. McCubbin. ADQ 10/2. Summer 2042. p. 3.
AADA News: Team Play. Chris W. McCubbin. ADQ 10/3. Fall 2042. pp. 3-4.
http://www.sjgames.com/car-wars/adq/10/3/AADA News. Pyramid 25. May/June 1997. pp.71-72.
http://www.sjgames.com/car-wars/aada/news/aada_25.htmlCar Wars Referee Questionnaire Part 1
http://www.cwhnj.com/tsarnj/cwrq.htm
http://cwhnj.com/madhat/carwars/default.htmCar Wars Referee Questionnaire Part 2: Other Dueling Questions
http://www.cwhnj.com/tsarnj/odq.htm
http://cwhnj.com/madhat/carwars/misc/odq.htmDeception in Car Wars. Ken Scott. ADQ 6/3. Fall 2038. p. 8.
Evil Stevie Returns: Three New Combat Options from the Original Designer. Steve Jackson. ADQ 10/4. Winter 2042. pp. 6-7.
High Velocity Dueling Car Wars Mailing List Vol. 3, No. 1. High Velocity Dueling. January 1998.
Ireland Autoduel Association Car Wars Compendium Errata Sheet. David Gregg. 1996.
http://www.serv.net/~owenmp/iada/cwc.htmlRules and Regulations for AADA-Sanctioned Tournament Combat. Ken Scott. ADQ 9/1. Spring 2041. pp. 8-10.
http://www.sjgames.com/car-wars/aada/rules.htmlShowing Your Stuff: Car Descriptions in Car Wars. Ken Scott. ADQ 6/3. Fall 2038. pp. 9-10.
Uncle Albert's Auto Stop and Gunnery Shop 2048 Catalog Update. S. John Ross. Pyramid Online. September 25, 1998.
http://www.sjgames.com/pyramid/sample.cgi?310Uncle Albert's Auto Stop and Gunnery Shop 2050 Catalog Update. Stephen Dedman. Pyramid Online. April 28, 2000.
http://www.sjgames.com/pyramid/sample.cgi?1586Uncle Albert's Auto Stop and Gunnery Shop 2051 Catalog Update. Stephen Dedman. Pyramid Online. April 27, 2001.
http://www.sjgames.com/pyramid/sample.cgi?2211
