Written by Michael P. Owen
owenmp@hotmail.com
Web Posted December 24, 1998
Updated August 05, 2000
Car Wars and computers have the same problem: something will happen in the Year 2000 (Y2K) that will not be nice. Many computers all over the planet only have two digits for dates in their code. When Year 2000 occurs, those computers will think the year 1900 has arrived. The effects of this problem may be minor to major, inconvenient to serious, from errors in financial calculations to long-term power failures. Computer experts, government officials and corporations are still undecided on what problems will actually occur when the clock hits January 1st, 2000, 0000.
If several steps are not taken now, Car Wars may become a page in the history books in the early 21st century. Car Wars may not be in print in 2000 or even in 2001, the 20th anniversary of when it was first printed. This article is going to discuss this problem and present some ideas on how to solve it.
As I was finishing the first draft of this article, a friend sent me the following post on the Pyramid Car Wars Message Board. It's content highlights several reasons I have written this commentary.
Now that S. John is no longer with SJ Games, what of all the nifty plans they had going for a new and improved Car Wars? S. John seemed to have a lot of ideas and enthusiasm for the project, and I really hope SJ Games continues with this improvement process Who's in charge of Car Wars now?
I just read the rules clarifications from the 2048 AADA World Dueling Championship Web Site:
<STATIC>! Enough things to remember ?
As I am writing this Web Page I am about to complete eleventh issue of the Car Wars Internet Newsletter. Actually, it will be the thirteenth because I published two addenda issues, but the results are the same: CWIN has generated a very large amount of Car Wars news and material. Currently there are about 130 official subscribers with several "virtual subscribers, gamers who access the periodical via the CWIN Archive. What is amazing is that I still have energy to publish, I continue to receive submissions and the CWIN subscriber list does not fluctuate wildly.
I never dreamed when I first wrote for High Velocity Dueling Magazine in the winter of 1996 that I would be the editor of the only Internet magazine devoted to Car Wars and custodian to a Web Site listing all Car Wars Web Sites. The Championship Autodueling Circuit (CADC) also publishes a Matrix journal called Tire Tracks. This magazine is excellent but it is primarily for use by the CADC, therefore CWIN is the only Internet Car Wars magazine for the autodueling public.
To think I could have imagined my position now when I purchased Car Wars Adventure Book 1: Battle Road and Car Wars Adventure Book 2: Fuel's Gold, followed by Pocket Box Car Wars, AADA Vehicle Guide Volume 1, Uncle Albert's 2035 Catalog and Car Wars Expansion 9: Muskogee Fairgrounds and Family Emporium two weeks later, the first items of Car Wars I obtained, appears ludicrous.
While James Barton, HVD Editor, was skiing in Colorado in December, 1997, I revised the HVD Car Wars Jump Page. When I was done, I started to use search engines to find other Car Wars Web Sites. When the end of February arrived I had a document of Car Wars hyperlinks that was nearly 200 KB. In late February 1998 I published the first component of the SWAT Web Site: the SWAT Jump Page for Car Wars, GURPS DarkFutureTech and Formula De. I told James in January 1997 that I would have SWAT Matrix Headquarters active in February but I did not mention what year. :-)
As I published issue after issue of CWIN during 1997, the SWAT Jump Page quickly became the entrance to the SWAT Web Site. Arenas, variant vehicle rules and even AADA Road Atlas and Survival Guide Articles (When have you last seen one of those printed by SJ Games?) became components to the ever-expanding home of SWAT on the Internet.
I have to admit that I was naive when I stepped up to the CWIN Editor position. I thought I would make an attempt to keep the HVD Car Wars Mailing List alive although in an expanded form (warped by my devious mind, of course). I thought I could print a newsletter that would report Car Wars news occurring until SJ Games would get the AADA back up to speed and organized as it was in the 1980s. I thought I could also present fun variants and start to present my 200+ gadget ideas I have invented since 1990 in the form of a monthly "Uncle Edgar's Research and Development Catalog." I had no idea that my newsletter would cause so much chaos in the Car Wars Community, especially among the participants in AADA Tournaments.
During the first few issues of CWIN I encountered the aforementioned resistance to my ideas when I presented some clarifications and some minor revisions to the laser guidance rules. To support my arguments I placed all of the questions asked about laser guidance in ADQ on my Web Site. It appears that I disrupted the harmony of Car Wars gaming with my LGL article because many people I received many elmays telling me that I did not know the Car Wars rules well and my interpretations of the rules were flawed. I realized now that laser guidance is a sensitive area in Car Wars, a gadget that people either absolutely love or absolutely hate. I ended my LGL discussion and continued to publish more issues of CWIN but I had no idea the LGL debate was a preview of the havoc to come.
The months leading to the 2047-2048 AADA World Championship Events, Dueling and Racing, became a time of incendiary elmays between the New Omaha Vehicular Association (NOVA), the Rocky Mountain Autodueling Association (RMADA) and the CWIN Editor. I unexpectedly stepped into the Cold War that has been ongoing between NOVA and RMADA for many years when I began to report news about the 2047-2048 AADA WC Events. Apparently there was not a clear decision by SJ Games early in 1998 on who was going to run each event. When I found out NOVA was planning to duelmaster and racemaster both AADA WC Events, a notice of their intentions displayed on their Web Site, I received polite-but-passionate elmays from RMADA telling me that the only "official" news about the AADA WC Events was located on the SJ Games Web Site and on the AADA WC Web Pages (at that time under construction).
If any of you do not know how I write the majority of the material in each issue of CWIN, I use many search engines to scan the WWW and USENET newsgroups for news about Car Wars and gaming. If there is news on the Internet about Car Wars, I download it immediately and place it in the CWIN I am writing at the time. I am a "Car Wars metasearch mercenary:" if there is Car Wars information on the Internet, I take it for my own nefarious purposes and often present it in CWIN. If I have needed to make corrections to the news I report, I have tried to report the new data. My view is at least there is Car Wars news, regardless if it is or is not sanctioned by SJ Games, in each issue of CWIN.
After I received the elmays from RMADA telling me the NOVA AADA WC Event plans were unofficial, I quickly added a note to the reports the NOVA plans were tentative formats. I was not angry at NOVA or RMADA but I was taken by surprise at the emotions in the elmays I received about the plans for the AADA WC Tournaments. I thought that my troubles would be over. I could not have been more wrong.
Steve Jackson wrote an excellent article titled "Duelmaster" in ADQ 2/2, a tutorial for how to referee Car Wars games. The article should be required reading for any gamer interesting in running autoduels and combat races. I like the term duelmaster, a Car Wars version of the term "gamemaster." I used it interchangeably in CWIN. I had no idea that RMADA would be upset at my word choice, sparking another debate that generated as much adrenaline in all involved as the laser guidance debate in previous issues of CWIN.
I regularly visited the "CustomForum" on Delphi discussing Apple II computers when I received my IBM computer in November 1997. My Apple IIGS, received in December 1988, continues to work flawlessly and is the computer I used to write a major resource for Car Wars, a tool kit I will discuss later in this article. I was planning later in the year to obtain the CrossWorks software/hardware package for my Apple IIGS, a cable and a program that permits transfer of files between IBM computers and Apple II computers. The A2 CustomForum would be a good place to visit for technical help on how to perform the transfer and to get a list of recommended retailers that sold CrossWorks.
I talked to several Car Wars players about the type and amount of activity on the Pyramid Car Wars Message Board. I was told that there were less than 100 messages and most of them were discussions on Car Wars supplements and new Car Wars boxed sets. At this time I was considering subscribing to Pyramid Internet Magazine. I knew from past experience with Pyramid that the magazine would not cover Car Wars in great detail. This observation did not influence my decision to purchase each issue when Pyramid was a paper magazine; I may have disliked the low Car Wars coverage but I continued to support the periodical to get the Car Wars material that was there. I also purchased Pyramid because I wanted the GURPS articles to assist my understanding of that RPG so I could create my GURPS DarkFutureTech campaign.
I suspected that Pyramid Internet Magazine would likely continue the trend of Pyramid Paper Magazine with low Car Wars content. This guess, (which turned out to be correct) and the fact the Pyramid Car Wars Message Board had low support made me deter from obtaining a Pyramid Internet subscription. The latter observation was very frustrating for me because the game has been without for many years an outlet to ask questions and get answers, AADA-Sanctioned and variant, from SJ Games.
The Car Wars Message Board on the Capital Regions Autodueling Association (CRADA) Web Site was a regular place I visited when I used the Internet but only a few people were using the forum. I was hoping this discussion area would become a regular hangout for "virtual vehicular vigilantes" but the message board never became popular, in spite of my frequent advertising of it in CWIN. As of October 1998, the CRADA Car Wars Message Board no longer exists. This is a shame because some really cool discussions were posted there.
The USENET forum <news:rec.games.board> had the same problem as the CRADA Message Board: very little autodueling activity on its radar screen. The newsgroup also regularly displayed non-gaming messages, including some with adult/graphic content. This USENET newsgroup used to be a popular meeting place for Car Wars gamers, especially in the summer of 1996. Unfortunately, the forum became as quiet in terms of Car Wars posts as when an electric-powered hovercraft activates a sonic stealth system.
In May, 1998, Delphi contacted me via elmay to tell me that I could start my own CustomForum exactly like the A2 Message Board. Wow! The three Car Wars discussion areas on the Internet were imitating the activity level of a morgue. After contacting SJ Games and discovering no one knew who I should send Car Wars questions to I decided to form my own Car Wars newsgroup: Dueling Debate.
Creation of Dueling Debate must have been like the releases of some of the beloved and classic weapons of Car Wars, such as the Autocannon and the Gauss Gun, because the response I received from my start of Dueling Debate was incredible. Messages were posted daily and quickly ran into the hundreds. I never expected that a discussion forum was an idea in such high demand for Car Wars players. The USENET newsgroup <news:rec.games.board> was still active and was "waiting" for Car Wars messages but few autoduelists were posting to it. I must admit that I was (and I still am) slightly embarrassed at the number of messages on Dueling Debate, a quantity exceeds the number on the Pyramid Car Wars Message Board by a 10-to-1 ratio. Satisfaction does not describe my feelings towards the response Dueling Debate has received. I am in awe. The Car Wars Gods have smiled on me, a blessing I am thankful for.
Popularity is a two-edged sword. In one of the issues of the first two volumes of ADQ, an autoduelist asked if there was a limit to how high prestige could go. ADQ said that at high enough prestige autoduelists will be overwhelmed by fans seeking autographs, con men wanting to steal their money, sports teams seeking new talent, etc. When Dueling Debate became more popular, the friendly discussion area I created for variant rules, ideas on how to improve Car Wars and to provide a place for Car Wars autoduelists to talk on the Internet, started to attract the serious autoduelists: AADA Tournament Gamers. The question from ADQ was quite appropriate for the situations to come because I had no idea what in Hades was going to occur next.
The American Autodueling Association (AADA) appears to have a majority of members that take the game of Car Wars seriously, especially when competing in AADA Tournaments. When variant rules and ideas for new articles for Car Wars on Dueling Debate were discussed, many of the authors of those posts were criticized for the interest in expanding Car Wars by AADA Gamers visiting the message board. These autoduelists are concerned with the addition of new rules on the Internet because participants in AADA Events might be confused between AADA Official Rules and variant rules. For six years the format for AADA Events has been fairly clear, only using Car Wars Compendium Second Edition (now the Fifth Printing with black-and-green cover), Uncle Albert's Catalog From Hell and Classic Car Wars. This guideline is explicitly stated in the AADA Tournament Rules and Regulations Document, another topic that will be discussed later.
AADA Rules and Regulations: Unofficial (SWAT-Endorsed / HVD-Endorsed)
Edition
http://www.serv.net/~owenmp/AADA/regs2048.html
After a negative discussion about something involving vehicle construction, I became quite annoyed with the ongoing fight between "amateur" (non-tournament Car Wars players) and "professional" (AADA Event autoduelists). These labels I am going to use in this article are not an evaluation of the skill level of Car Wars players. These labels simply designate what type of autoduelist a Car Wars gamer is depending on his/her gaming preference: Car Wars events with house rules, variants and exotic rules (Aeroduel, Car Wars Tanks and Boat Wars are examples) or AADA Car Wars Tournaments with strict regulations.
The amateur versus professional fight spread outside of the SWAT Message Board. There were complaints about my CustomForum on the Pyramid Car Wars Message Board. I chose not to respond to these opinions, instead posting ideas for Car Wars gaming on my message board. After a few weeks some of the professionals complaining about Dueling Debate returned to my message board. For a while calmness prevailed, but like an eye of a hurricane, the ferocious winds of the typhoon's eye wall eventually returned.
I responded by writing two posts asking the RMADA President Robert Deis, a professional who was not happy with the conversations about changing rules used in AADA Events, about SJ Games and Car Wars. I was not criticizing SJ Games or S. John Ross. My "target" of my two posts (displayed below) was Robert Deis himself. I was getting irritated that Robert and a few others working closely with SJ Games were so critical of the purpose of my message board: a place for all types of Car Wars players, amateurs and professionals, could discuss anything related to Car Wars, GURPS DarkFutureTech and Formula De. Mr. Deis was promoting Pyramid and SJ Games at the time, saying many projects for Car Wars were on the "assembly line." I replied to Robert's requests by asking why the Web resources for Car Wars on the SJ Games Web Site were in complete disorder. I also included comments I have heard Northwestern US gamers make about Car Wars, GURPS and SJ Games in general, reasons why those individuals no longer play Car Wars. As soon as I posted these two letters to Dueling Debate, I received a very inflammatory letter that told me to quit my criticism of SJ Games and that all Car Wars players need to rally behind Mr. Jackson for increased Car Wars support.
I was quite piqued by the letter I received, so mad that I seriously considered shutting down my Web Site, my message board and quit publishing CWIN. The constant tracer fire from both debates (NOVA versus RMADA, amateurs versus professionals), made my demon of darkness started to rise from my unconsciousness to my consciousness where it was not restrained (i.e. I was very angry, frustrated and not happy). I focused on presenting variants and occasionally proposing rules changes because I wanted to distance myself from the AADA environment. The pros know what rules are used and how they are interpreted in their games. If I had the time and money to attend AADA Events I would certainly be ready to debate AADA-Sanctioned rules. Because I was not interested in participating in such passionate debates and the fact I did not have AADA experience (except AADA reports from professionals, ADQ and Pyramid), I decided to focus my talents of game design on providing resources for Car Wars amateurs. Highlights of me being an "autodueling author" include Advanced Tire Rules (HVD 7), Advanced Fire & Explosion Rules (HVD 8), Virtual Autoduel Review Media List (HVD 8) and the Chassis & Crossbow Compendium. I am happy to say that the response to these resources has been phenomenal. I could not be more pleased with the results.
I have a very potent force of anger inside of me but I rarely let it out. For many reasons I prefer to act in a positive and a polite manner. I try to avoid getting involved in flaming elmay wars because those conflicts are usually not productive and are situations where the adrenaline pumping can lead to wrong words being said, statements that can mentally and emotionally injure a person. After enduring all of the problems this year (the use of the term duelmaster, the question of who would run the AADA World Championship Tournaments, amateur rules versus pro rules), I decided to attack all of this negativity with a "flanking maneuver" instead of a direct "frontal assault." This article is my attempt to provide a positive outlet for all of the powerful emotions active in so many individuals.
1. Car Wars Line Out-Of-Print. Almost everything for Car Wars is out-of-print (OOP). Two of the core rulebooks for Car Wars, Uncle Albert's Catalog From Hell and Classic Car Wars are OOP. The Classic Car Wars set, which is excellent for gamers first starting to play Car Wars, is still in stock but its quantity at SJ Games is quite low. Discussions I have had with SJ Games Staff strongly suggest Classic Car Wars will become another OOP item. Arenas such as the Armadillo and Dumbarton Slalom/Buffalo Municipal combination, are very fun to use but are only available as used supplements because of their OOP status. Gamers interested in expanding their areas of play cannot add aircraft or military equipment because both Aeroduel and Car Wars Tanks are OOP. This problem is a large obstacle to professionals because AADA Events require use of UACFH, a book that can no longer be obtained except in the used games sections of retailers.
2A. Lack of SJ Games Follow-Through: Late Releases. Since the late 1980s SJ Games has rarely released Car Wars supplements on schedule. One reason I did not subscribe to Autoduel Quarterly or Paper Pyramid, purchasing those magazines from gaming stores, is because each issue released seemed like a miracle. I was unsure about the stability of either magazine, wondering if each delay would signal the end of the publication. I certainly did not want to only receive two issues because of organizational problems, and finding out the back-issues I needed were OOP! Yes, the Secret Service Raid did cause severe problems for SJ Games. The company eventually recovered from the snafu but the tardiness of releasing Car Wars projects continued, even during the good-income days when Illuminati New World Order was selling well. Yes, the tsunami of collectible card games into the gaming market hurt SJ Games business but the company weathered that disaster too. One of the reasons many Northwestern US gamers gave up playing Car Wars and started to sell their collections was the habitual tardiness by SJ Games when releasing their publications. The company has made quantum jumps in this area but the damage to public opinion to Car Wars will heal very slowly.
2B. Lack of SJ Games Follow-Through: Canceling of Projects. Promises of Car Wars projects were made in issue after issue of ADQ and Pyramid but gamers did not see any results. I cannot remember how many times ADQ wrote that box sets of Chassis & Crossbow Third Edition Edition and DuelTrack Second Edition were going to be written and published in the early 1990s. I and the rest of the Car Wars gaming community waited . . . and waited . . . and waited but these supplements never appeared on store shelves. The main reason I created the Chassis & Crossbow Compendium was my patience could no longer be held for SJ Games to produce a new edition of the C&C rules. I felt that after six years if SJ Games was not going to write C&C Third Edition, I was going to have to write it myself. With the publication of the CCC, gamers now have a foundation for writing CC3 together, via elmay, physical mail ("physmail"), telephone, FAX and Dueling Debate's special section reserved for CC3 discussions.
2C. Lack of SJ Games Follow-Through: Low Internet Support. The idea of an ADQ Archive on the SJ Games Web Site was started in 1995. While several issues of the now out-of-print magazine were converted to HTML format, the project has been static for over a year. The issues of ADQ now on the Archive are full of typographical errors and missing many of the original images. Although the ADQ Archive Project is a performed by volunteers, someone needs to take leadership of it, to make sure files are uploaded successively to the SJ Games Web Site, to investigate who is converting which issue, keeping quality of the HTML conversions consistent, etc.
Robert Deis of RMADA is now in charge of maintaining the SJ Games Car Wars Web Pages. Unfortunately, since that position was taken very little effort has been made on the part of Mr. Deis to perform the duties of that job, efforts that are able to be seen on the SJ Games Web Site. One example of the Mr. Deis' lack of effort is the continued listing of the SWAT Web Site, CWIN Archive and HVD Car Wars Mailing List Archive being on my previous Internet Service Provider, Spokane-based Internet On-Ramp, on the SJ Games Car Wars Fan Page List. Those three hyperlinks do not work anymore. Although Mr. Deis has been aware of the change in URLs, an event I announced a month before my IOR Web Site went off-line, the Web Addresses for SWAT resources remain unchanged and non-operational. Robert Deis may be well-versed with Car Wars rules and how to run Car Wars tournaments but his lack of progress in maintenance of the SJ Games Web Site strongly suggests Mr. Deis is not qualified to be in that position. Fortunately, I was able to contact Jacqueline Hamilton, the Webmistress of the entire SJ Games Web Site, a few days ago. Jacqueline was extremely nice and prompt in correcting the hyperlinks to the SWAT Web Site on the SJ Games Car Wars Web Pages. :o)
I give credit to George Smith of Great Britain, the previous SJ Games Car Wars Webmaster. Because Mr. Smith is working towards obtaining his Ph.D., he had to surrender his post to Robert Deis. Although the SJ Games Car Wars Internet resources were not updated frequently, there were updates. Mr. Smith had a legitimate excuse for not expending a huge amount of energy in maintaining the SJ Games Car Wars Web Pages. Academics should come before autodueling. As I know Robert Deis is not attending university. I do not know how much time he needs to spend on his engineering job but it appears to me that Mr. Deis has less time constraints than many of us, more leisure time available for updating the SJ Games Car Wars Web Pages. If this is true I cannot imagine why there has not been action on the part of Robert as a Webmaster.
3. Car Wars, SJ Games, Lasers and Smoke Clouds. The best analogy I can think of to describe the relationship SJ Games has with Car Wars is the combat effects of an non-visible wavelength laser beam penetrating a hot smoke cloud. The autoduelists not firing the laser do not know if the laser is infrared, which will be blocked by the hot smoke, or X-ray, which will penetrate the gas.
SJ Games says it will be renewing its interest in the game at one moment then those ideas are not discussed again. I feel the company should commit itself to Car Wars again by correcting most of the problems above, specifically keeping the core rulebooks in print and regular maintenance of the Car Wars Web Pages on the SJ Games Web Site. If the corporation cannot or will not do this, I suggest SJ Games sell the copyrights and trademarks of Car Wars to someone who will actively promote Car Wars, not necessarily to an individual or group interested in making profit from the game.
I must highlight that SJ Games has been fantastic in the area of giving fans of its games permission to create Web Pages about their games, versus other companies That Sue Regularly and We're Out To Conquer. I have been a fan of SJ Games since the autumn of 1986. My room with a bookshelf full of SJ Games books and a closet with several banker boxes containing Car Wars supplies shows my dedication to the game. Of course, this collection has come at a price: A large amount of my Car Wars collection was acquired from used game sections of retailers, Car Wars supplements gamers no longer wanted. I suspect that many of these players quit autodueling because of the problems above. While I am happy to have had a chance to improve my Car Wars collection, I am sad that these veteran gamers left the dueltrack. If SJ Games were to advertise they were going to produce one to three products for Car Wars in a period of 1-2 years and managed to get those products to retailers, their commitment to Car Wars would appear to the tabletop gaming community as being on the way to the recovery room versus to an intensive care unit. Again, I want to state that the status of SJ Games in the eyes of Car Wars players and fans of other gaming systems would increase dramatically if there is follow-through: proposal of a project, development of project, completion of project, multiple quality control checks of project, transport of finished project to gaming stores and regular maintenance of Internet resources for project.
4. The Amateur-Professional Autoduelist Conflict. I mentioned this dilemma previously and its causes are most likely from the problems of SJ Games and Car Wars above but they are not entirely. Players of the game are also responsible for the low status of Car Wars in the gaming community because the AADA, tournament autodueling, has been emphasized. This idea was a good idea in the 1980s when there were a large number of Car Wars gamers, but in 1998 the number of fans actively autodueling has been substantially decreased. The AADA is not the only way to play Car Wars nor is it the best way. I will return to this concept later but the professional Car Wars gamers need to realize that if they want more tournament players the general gaming public needs to be supported. The narrow focus on the AADA instead of making the game accessible for everyone is almost certainly turning away gamers from playing Car Wars.
While the majority of this conflict has been caused by the professionals, the amateurs are also responsible for this problem. Both groups need to respect each others needs and feelings. Professionals are in dire need of a revised, comprehensive book and a set of regulations that make tournaments consistent and easy to duelmaster. Amateurs also need a good, detailed rulebook but they need supplements to expand their game (and rulebooks to simply play!) Professionals should participate in more amateur discussions involving variants and suggested rules changes while amateurs should not be so harsh to judge the professionals for being so obsessed with labeling of rules as "tournament-compatible" or "variant." Both camps should be able to co-exist side-by-side without each others' activities interfering with the others'.
5. Personality Conflicts in the Autodueling Community. The problems discussed above which have been factors in the formation of the Amateur-Professional Autodueling Conflict, have been exacerbated by several autoduelists with personal feelings against each other, most prominently NOVA, RMADA and Steven Vawter. My opinions on this matter are the following.
First, realize that Car Wars is only a game. The AADA World Championship Tournaments are not American Football's Super Bowl or the Professional Golfing Association's Masters Tournament, where millions of dollars are "on the line." The AADA WDC Tournaments are not Magic: The Gathering World Tournaments, where tens of thousands of dollars are offered as prizes. I would like to hope that the low emphasis on prizes for winning AADA WC Tournaments is an incentive for those games to be less stressful than playing other championship tournaments such as BattleTech, Magic: The Gathering or Star Fleet Battles.
Second, passionate debates about how to play and duelmaster Car Wars are good; use of strong/offensive language, accusations without support (facts, observations, evidence, etc.), taking a person's quotes out of context and ridicule are actions that are not good. Mr. Deis and Mr. Vawter have performed most of these negative actions with their posts on Dueling Debate and the Pyramid CWMB. The members of NOVA, while sometimes sending incendiary statements towards Robert and Steve, have followed my wishes when I tell them to end a discussion thread and when the visitors to Dueling Debate need to be more positive with their posts. Mr. Deis and Mr. Vawter quit using Dueling Debate for a while, stayed on the Pyramid CWMB then returned to Dueling Debate. I am happy to discover that these two have been following my wishes for the omission of the negative comments above when posting to my CustomForum.
My main point about this topic is that if you have a conflict with another Car Wars gamer, do not let your negative feelings determine your actions in the Car Wars Community. If you have a problem when dealing with someone, a polite discussion of your views is appropriate; incendiary ranting is inappropriate and is something most Car Wars gamers do not want to hear.
6. Lack of Well-Written Rulebooks. The Car Wars Compendium Second Edition Fifth Printing, Uncle Albert's Catalog From Hell and Classic Car Wars need to be significantly revised because many of the rules are not written clearly. Although CWC2.5 was printed in 1996, and according to AADA Regulations (discussed below) a book printed later takes precedence over books printed earlier. Technically, this is not true anymore because CWC2.5 is basically CWC2.1 but with new artwork. Yes, some errata has been corrected but most of those errors were typographical in nature, therefore CWC2.5 is actually a set of rules from 1990, the time when CWC2.1 was printed. Because the AADA WC Events use UACFH, a 1991 text, it is difficult to determine what rules are current and what rules are obsolete. I present some ideas later on how to solve this problem.
7. Internet-Only Car Wars Resources. While the Internet was the one development that saved Car Wars from oblivion, it is a Catch-22. All of the information about the game is only on the Matrix. Unless a gamer has access to the Internet, he/she cannot get news about the game, especially about AADA events, therefore gamers will not purchase Car Wars items, further weakening the stability of Car Wars, etc. This situation is not a nice cycle. Distribution of Car Wars information to gaming stores should be a high priority for Car Wars players to break this perpetual motion machine.
Backfire Column Letters from ADQ
I am guessing one of the reasons Robert Deis is so passionate about rules being set in stone is because of the problems with the AADA World Dueling Championships in the past, most notably the 2039-2040 Tournament. I would feel the frustration of Robert if I had attended, only having Car Wars Compendium First Edition while the Second Edition rulebook was being used.
It is interesting to realize that Mr. Deis proposed a rules committee for Car Wars in 1991. SJ Games stated at that time such a committee would likely not help the game. In 1998, Robert Deis formed a rules committee for the 2047-2048 AADA World Dueling Championships. Robert was nice to ask me to join, which I did, but I simply observed the conversations on the mailing list of the group. Apparently, answering as many questions as possible was the purpose for the committee. Some of the answers the group generated were good and some were not.
The major tool the AADA WDC Rules Committee used to answer questions was the ADQ&A columns from Autoduel Quarterly. Those questions and answers are a great resource for Car Wars players but they should not be considered as written in stone. The 40 issues of ADQ span 10 years of Car Wars history, a game that has changed substantially since that time and during its 16 years of existence. Use of those questions and answers as if they were written yesterday is not a good idea. Each question and answer in that collection needs to be evaluated to see if they still hold relevance today and if they need revision.
I do not know if the 2048 AADA WDC Rules Committee was a success because I have received mixed messages about the quality of the WDC Tournament (and not just from NOVA). A committee to write a Third Edition Car Wars Compendium be a fantastic idea. A new CWC would make both amateurs and pros quite happy. However, because there is Dueling Debate and the Pyramid CWMB, a committee is not needed. A group of people formally writing CWC3 is fine, using comments solicited from many people on the two forms previously mentioned. It should be noted that many of the questions presented on the 2048 AADA WDC Rules Committee Q&A Web Pages have answers on both of the AADA-Sanctioned Tournaments Rules and Regulations documents. :o)
Future AADA WC Events should not have rules committees. If a group of Car Wars players wants to get together to debate the format of the events, that is fine but again those discussions could be performed with the rest of the autodueling public on Dueling Debate.
Dueling Debate Car Wars Message Board Posts
I have taken a lot of incendiary machine gun ammunition attacks from my use of the phrase "common sense" on my message board. As I have said above one reason I started Dueling Debate was to provide a place for all types of Car Wars players to go for answers to questions and to chat about the game.
If someone on Dueling Debate has a straightforward question that can be found in a rulebook, the specific rule should be given with the source (book title and page number). As all Car Wars players know the rules system in many places has areas that need to be written more clearly. Answers containing the same information as a rulebook reference but worded differently may help a gamer understand the game better.
When someone asks on my CustomForum if a certain rule should be added, deleted or changed, the question being asked cannot be simply answered with rulebook references. Of course, if the question has been asked in ADQ and the answer given in ADQ appears not to conflict with current rules, listing of that answer is fine. If there is not an ADQ&A entry about the question then autoduelists need to go beyond the rulebooks, using "common sense" to answer the question.
My definition of "common sense" on Dueling Debate is simple. Use of rulebook references (if any), consideration of game balance issues and the possibility of the situation actually occurring in 1998 is my system of answering complex questions such as "Should racing cars be allowed to use active suspension?" For example, reasons the restriction on active suspension and racing cars should be lifted are Formula One cars can in reality use the accessory and perhaps active suspension would only work to reduce tire loss hazards, not increasing HC. (It should be noted that the Formula One Racing Commission has banned active suspension because it has been found to be too effective and if allowed it would increase the costs further in that multi-million dollar-per-year-to-operate sport.) Arguments against racing cars mounting active suspension would be the extra HC would disrupt game balance and the fact mentioned above that Formula One racers are no longer permitted to use the gadget. Note that in this example I have stated that there is a restriction regarding racing cars using active suspension. I asked whether or not the rule should be changed and what effects can active suspension have on racing cars if the restriction is lifted. Can you see the difference between answering the question "No, the rules state racing cars cannot have any suspension modifications of any kind" and the answers I gave above? Now, if I asked "Can racing cars use active suspension?" an appropriate answer would be to state the AS-RC rule. As you can see I am not disregarding the rulebooks of Car Wars to answer questions, which some people may have suggested.
If there is a consensus that a certain rule should not be changed, fine. If there is a consensus that one or more rules need to be changed, fine. Those rules changes are considered variants regarding AADA Tournament Games although there is a possibility if duelmasters and racemasters really like the changes they might use them. Yes, this is not following AADA Regulations which state optional rules are not to be used in AADA Competition. My viewpoint on variant rules in tournaments (arena-applicable variants only, not military and exotic items) are fine as long as the participants are notified well in advance of what variants will be used. An excellent example of this protocol is the format of the 2048-2049 AADA Northwest Regional Dueling Championship, which will be duelmastered by the Death Racing Association of Washington (DRAW). The variants to be used have been posted for several months on the DRAW Web Site and those rules will likely make the event a lot of fun.
Before I discuss some topics that are going to make many emotions go crazy, I want to address an important point. I agree that Car Wars is a game and it is an abstraction of reality. If a gamer wants more realism from Car Wars, they should go play a game involving GURPS Vehicles Second Edition and GURPS Autoduel Second Edition. Both of those rulebooks have a detailed vehicle combat system that is excellent. I agree that Car Wars weapons should not be compared to every detail current weapons but it is appropriate to consider some weapons in Car Wars as counterparts to some 20th century weapons, realizing Car Wars does not simulate every detail of real-world combat. It is much more interesting and exciting to say when describing your vehicle "I have two 0.50-caliber Browning/GE M4 heavies front and a Morrison Machine Works heavy freezer back" instead of saying "I have two HMGs front and a HDID back." It is also appropriate to consider if the GAU-8/A Gatling cannon on the A-10 Devil's Cross ground attack aircraft has more damage potential than the 120mm hypercannon mounted on the M1A1 Abrams tracked AFV. Without going into detail of the physics of weapons damage, Car Wars players could easily simulate differences between these two weapons by assigning different damage values. If more detail is wanted, gamers should go play GAD2 and GV2.
Autoduel Earth is one of the most exciting genres for gamers. Players of Car Wars should roleplay in Autoduel Earth whenever there is an opportunity, even in non-roleplaying Car Wars tournaments. Note that the above example has not effect on gameplay whatsoever. The roleplaying simply adds "color" and "depth" to a game. After all, anyone can move counters and roll dice but gamers should enjoy what they play by imagining they really are in Autoduel Earth. Funny thing. Steve Jackson himself made some similar comments in his "Duelmaster" article in ADQ 2/2. :o)
Before I comment on these letters I must confess I have broken a confidence in this message. The negative letter I received from Robert Deis was labeled by him as "Private Transmission." I debated whether or not to conceal his identity or even to print the letter at all but the message brings up several key points I want everyone to know so we can all work together to make Car Wars better.
I'm a bit confused.
First, you say that nothing on Dueling Debate is sanctioned CW material, then you go and say things like "I declare that overdrive and heavy-duty transmission are useable with electric power plants andgasoline internal combustion engines."
If you're not claiming any sanction, that under what authority are you "declaring" things? What is your objective? Create a rival organization to the AADA? Promote Car Wars?
As long as you speak with authority, no matter how many times you say you have none, people will listen to you, trust your words, and be confused when they find out you're not the authority you act like you are.
If you truly want to promote and improve Car Wars, you should stop bad-mouthing SJ Games Personnel and Policies. With the appointment of S. John Ross to AADA President, a lot of new things are in the plan for for Car Wars, and if we want them to come to fruition, we need to support SJ Games in any way we can.
Robert, I do not think you are a bad person. From what I know of you I think you have good intentions for Car Wars but you end up "working harder, not smarter." Being a regular participant in the AADA WC Events gives you a unique perspective on the game that many of the fans of Car Wars do not have. It must have been very frustrating during the AADA WDC Tournaments when referees of the games did not run them as properly as they should have. (Question: When non-SJ-Games Employees duelmastered AADA WC Events, were there less problems or more problems compared to SJ Games Staff refereeing those games?)
I do not agree with some of your tactics of discussing Car Wars. Many of your posts on my message board have been negative. I do not know for certain but it appears to me that you sometimes took comments made on Dueling Debate out of context when posting to the Pyramid CWMB. You should be aware that while you were gone from my message board and discussing Dueling Debate with a negative point of view on the Pyramid CWMB, I did not do the same on Dueling Debate; I simply continued to discuss Car Wars ideas. I do not believe in flame elmay battles. This article is not intended to start one with you or anyone else. Several events have occurred recently, such as Mr. Ross' resignation from SJ Games, that now requires all autoduelists to get along if Car Wars is to survive We need to be open with each other and to discard our past conflicts with each other.
You may not believe this but I chose to discuss suggested rules changes and variants on Dueling Debate because I was respecting you and the other AADA gamers. You and that group know how the rulebooks are interpreted by the AADA, how the AADA Tournaments operate, what rules are good and what rules are not. Now, if we were going to write the Third Edition Car Wars Compendium with an AADA Rulebook as an attachment, I would love to discuss rules with you and the rest of the professionals.
Your suggestion on the Pyramid CWMB that myself and other amateurs do not know the current rules therefore we make up new ones was insulting. I have been playing Car Wars since 1986. You may have been playing longer than I have but I know I have read every rulebook, ADQ, Pyramid, The Space Gamer and Car Wars supplement more times that you have. I know that I am one of the most knowledgeable Car Wars players. This is not being bragging on my part. If I did not feel like I knew the rules as well as I do, I would have likely not taken the job as CWIN Editor. I can prove this skill level because I wrote a special supplement for Car Wars, a topic discussed below.
Mr. Deis, no, the New Omaha Vehicular Association did not convince me that you were, as you stated on the Pyramid CWMB, the "Spawn from Hell." My observation of your negative comments on Dueling Debate made me think you need to take the game too seriously. You should know that after you left my message board I elmayed NOVA to tell them to reduce the "passion" in their future posts and to be extra polite when replying to your messages. I told NOVA that I did not want to see the personal problems between RMADA and NOVA spread to my CustomForum, a place on the Internet I intend to keep positive and focused on the game of Car Wars.
My two posts asking you about the status of SJ Games, if you will read again, were not "bad-mouthing SJ Games" as you stated in your acidic letter that you sent to me. As I mentioned above, many gamers in the Northwestern US have given up playing Car Wars for the reasons in those two posts on Dueling Debate. I love Car Wars very much that I will almost certainly stay with the game for the rest of my life, regardless of the delays SJ Games makes in getting new Car Wars supplements to market. I am a die-hard Car Wars and GURPS fan, someone who will most likely continue to purchase SJ Games books no matter what happens with the company. Once again you let your anger control you when you wrote that letter, something that has happened to all of us. When I wrote those two posts on Dueling Debate that made you so angry, it was after you continued to ignore my requests for calm posts and to not get into a flaming battle with NOVA. I was angry at you for your violation of my message board number one rule ("Be nice; do not post Black Ice").
I expressed my anger at you for ignoring my requests for politeness by compiling about your lack of progress on the SJ Games Car Wars Web Pages. You have said time and time again for Car Wars players to rally behind SJ Games because a Car Wars Renaissance was planned by SJ Games. You have stated many times that you would be updating the SJ Games Car Wars Web Pages. I want to see results. Actions speak louder than words.
I stated in my posts that if SJ Games Staff visit the Pyramid CWMB regularly to answer questions in a timely fashion, and there are a huge number of posts each day you would see more autoduelists signing up for Pyramid. I said if there were promises by SJ Games that more Car Wars articles were planned for Pyramid and those articles were printed you see Pyramid subscriptions increase. Unfortunately, as I guessed, SJ Games has not "followed-through" once again for Car Wars players. If I was not a fan of GURPS I would have been very disappointed with my subscription to Pyramid because the majority of articles available that I am interested in are about GURPS DarkFutureTech. Yes, it is nice to have access to the 30 issues of Paper Pyramid but I have a complete set of Paper Pyramid. The electronic format of the articles in Paper Pyramid is a nice convenience but I want to see new articles for Car Wars as well as GURPS DarkFutureTech. Now, if SJ Games prints more Car Wars articles in Pyramid, following-through with its plans (Where have we heard that phrase before?), many more Car Wars players will send $15.00 US to Austin to spend time visiting the Pyramid Message Boards.
If it is not apparent to you Robert I subscribed to Pyramid several months ago. I read your complaints about my message board on the Pyramid Car Wars Message Board. You should note that I did not post replies to your opinions. The Car Wars Community does not need yet another feud between players. I chose not to post to the Pyramid CWMB because I respected your wishes and feelings. I felt that forum was "your territory," a place where you should have the freedom to debate in any fashion you want. This is fine because I suspect that many of the visitors to the Pyramid CWMB are veterans of Car Wars, therefore they can have advanced and AADA rules discussions with you. Dueling Debate however is visited by many novices. I established my guidelines for posting so a gamer of any skill level and amount of experience playing Car Wars could visit Dueling Debate and find something to improve his/her autodueling activities. I have seen too often on USENET newsgroups where novices ask a simple question and veterans of the game in question (not necessarily Car Wars but any game) give negative responses that likely made the amateur never play the game again. I wanted to provide a friendly, positive environment on the Internet for fans of autodueling with my message board. I am sorry to know that you do not approve of my decision.
No, I am not trying to create a rival organization to the AADA. For the reasons stated above I have tried to present resources primarily for amateur Car Wars players, permitting you and the rest of the professionals to handle the AADA yourselves.
I do not understand why you are so angry and confused with my "declarations." Most, if not all, of the participants in AADA Tournaments know those events are using rules only from these books: CWC2.5, CCW and UACFH. Once again, I mention the AADA Rules and Regulations Document states this guideline explicitly. I imagine most Car Wars players reading HVD and CWIN know that the rules presented would be variants in the AADA WC Events even if they did not the AADA Regulations. My "declarations" were my attempts to clear up some ambiguities for the non-AADA gamers. Whether you and the AADA rule that overdrive and HD transmission can or cannot be used with ICEs is the decision of the AADA. (I would expect that you let me know about it so I can add that news to CWIN). I would absolutely love for SJ Games to begin to make AADA-Sanctioned rulings again but at this time there is no longer a person with such power to declare rulings that affect Car Wars games for amateurs (the rulebooks they use) and professionals (the AADA Regulations they follow). You should realize that several of my unofficial declarations were actual rulings by SJ Games at one time but were reversed many times by several different people. Again, the concept of follow-through and lack of quality control come into play again.
Robert, if you start revising the SJ Games Car Wars Web Pages and get the ADQ Archive Project "out of parking gear," I will be absolutely thrilled and I will give you a great deal of praise. As I have said before it would be great for SJ Games to produce Car Wars items again but I am content if their Internet resources for the game would be followed-through. Arrgh! The infamous phrase raises its ugly head again!
I would have not been angry with your low amount of progress of revising the SJ Games Car Wars Web Pages if I knew what was your current situation regarding Car Wars. If you are having personal or work challenges that require most of your time, please tell the autodueling public! The fans of Car Wars would rather know the Webmaster needs to delay his/her work in order to take care of other matters, versus not knowing what is happening and seeing the SJ Games Web Pages sit untouched. Since you became the SJ Games Car Wars Webmaster, if you would have told Car Wars fans you would have limited time to maintain Web Pages for a while, the fans would have very likely been excited to help you anyway they can! This same idea applies to SJ Games too. If the company would simply tell why a certain supplement or Internet resource for Car Wars is delayed, the faith of gamers in SJ Games would become much stronger.
Robert, if I did indeed think you were the "Spawn from Hell," I would have never converted the two ADQ articles discussing vehicle declarations to Web Pages. I guessed you were quite busy planning to duelmaster the AADA WDC so I thought making those HTML conversions myself would eliminate one item from your "to do list." You should also realize that if I disliked you and gamers who disagreed with NOVA's comments about the AADA WDC, I would have not added their letters to CWIN.
Steve, some of the comments I made to Robert above also apply to you but I want to point out one important issue regarding you.
You should not criticize Car Wars gamers, primarily amateur, for asking "Can I . . . ?" questions on Car Wars message boards. The Pyramid CWMB was supposed to be the place to get answers from SJ Games Staff. There has been little traffic on that forum over three months and the only SJ Games Staff Member I know of that posted to it was S. John Ross. Now that Mr. Ross has resigned from SJ Games, there really is no SJ Games Staff Member active on message board ready to give AADA-compatible answers, therefore the Pyramid CWMB is simply another newsgroup where there is no "leader." If a novice to Car Wars (or veteran for that matter) wants to ask a simple question such as "Can I mount two turrets on a van?" there is nothing wrong with how that question is phrased. I would simply refer the autoduelist to the "External Item Tables" in CWC2.5 and UACFH and say no. If the duelist wanted an explanation, I would likely say the restriction is for structural reasons (Do you really know how long that roof will not collapse from such heavy weight?) and for game balance. (By the way, vans might be able to carry a sunroof in addition to a 2-space turret in Chassis & Crossbow Third Edition. :o) ). A reply of "No, because the rules say so" would be one of the most impolite responses to a question a gamer would receive. Veteran autoduelists might be fine with such an answer but many novices would feel they negativity from such a message and may give up on the game thinking that is the attitude in many Car Wars gamers. We all need to be polite to each other when answering each others' questions about the game. If an autoduelist cannot get ask a simple question on Dueling Debate and expect to get a simple answer that is polite, then the forum has lost its purpose. The veterans of Car Wars can play the game until the 22nd century but if the game is going to survive besides in the OOP collections of veteran gamers, new players of the game need to join the fun of fighting in arenas and on highways. Veteran players should always make novices feel welcome to the Car Wars Community.
Now, I know both of you are as furious as Category-5 hurricanes. It was not my intention when I wrote the above to embarrass or injure either of you. Please control your anger and continue reading. The stress you have endured reading to this point will have been worth it when you read the ideas I have below. I needed to discuss the above topics so we could settle our differences in the past, enabling us to look towards the future with new eyes.
December 1992: Autoduel Quarterly ends with Volume 10 Number 4.
1993-1995: Most Car Wars players abandon the game because of its complex and unclear rulebooks and to play other games such as Magic: The Gathering. Many Northwest U.S. Car Wars players sell their collections of Car Wars supplements. Michael P. Owen is able to increase his collection of Car Wars items through purchase of much of this "salvage." Car Wars edges closer to becoming only a game in history books as more and more gamers abandon autodueling.
1996: The Internet, specifically the WWW, brings Car Wars back from being forgotten forever, with newsgroups and a few Web Sites discussing the game, but Car Wars is still in critical condition. BADAss, NOVA and SPARK are among the first Car Wars gaming groups to post Web Sites to the Matrix.
Autumn 1996: The First Phase of the Car Wars Renaissance. James Barton of Melbourne, Australia begins to publish High Velocity Dueling Magazine and the High Velocity Dueling Car Wars Mailing List. These two publications start the large increase in the appearance of Car Wars Web Sites. GURPS Vehicles Second Edition is released.
January 1997: GURPS Autoduel Second Edition is released.
February 15, 1998: HVD CWML 3.02 is published. James Barton announces the HVD CWML will no longer continue and issue 8 will be the last HVD however James will produce one or two Web supplements for Car Wars each year, beginning with Arena Book 2048: Flashfire Circuit.
February 24, 1998: The Second Phase of the Car Wars Renaissance. SWAT publishes the first page of its Web Site: The SWAT Jump Page for Car Wars, GURPS DarkFutureTech and Formula De.
March 01, 1998: Michael P. Owen of SWAT resurrects the HVD CWML in the form of the Car Wars Internet Newsletter. The SWAT Web Site soon hosts the HVD CWML Archive and a CWIN Archive.
October 18, 1998: SWAT Web Site is moved from Spokane-based ISP Internet On-Ramp to Seattle-based ISP ServNet. The 200KB SWAT Jump Page is replaced by several Web Pages for faster access and better organization.
December 18, 1998: The Third Phase of the Car Wars Renaissance. Michael
P. Owen finishes writing the Second Edition of the Autoduel Question and
Answer (ADQ&A) Compendium.
What in Hades did you just say in that last sentence?
Yes, I finished entering all of the Car Wars questions
asked in Autoduel Quarterly and Pyramid at 12:00 AM on December 18, 1998.
I have included all of the "Backfire" column letters from ADQ, all of the
Car Wars content "We're Reading Your Mail" column letters from Pyramid,
some AADA News excerpts from ADQ and Pyramid, and most likely all of the
Car Wars rules questions asked in The Space Gamer: The Magazine of Adventure
Gaming (I think I have all issues of TSG that have Car Wars questions).
How did you do write this book?
I started in the autumn of 1992 using my Apple IIGS (2.8 MHz, 512 KB
RAM, one 5.25" 143 KB floppy disk drive, one 3.5" 800 KB floppy disk
drive) and typed every question and answer. I do not have a scanner
for my IIGS. I am glad I do not have one for my Apple. Because I had to
read
each
ADQ&A as I typed every ADQ&A into a set of 12 AppleWorks
3.0 word processing files, I became very knowledgeable about Car
Wars. This became true after I reviewed the book five times. I had
this project completed as soon as the spring of 1996 but I wanted to perform
several quality checks and I wanted to try to get all of the issues of
The Space Gamer that had Car Wars Q&A. Next time you hear someone criticize
the Apple IIGS for its low speed and low RAM, tell that person what computer
was used to write the ADQ&A Compendium. :o)
Why is your text a "Second Edition?"
When I started to write the ADQ&A Compendium, I planned to write it for myself. When I first accessed the WWW in the summer of 1995 (I had used the Internet extensively in the early 1990s but I had not used the Matrix, USENET and elmay, since 1993), I was shocked to see SJ Games was planning to create an ADQ Archive! Arrgh! The ADQ Archive was my idea, a project I thought of in 1992. I considered the "Duelmaster Compendium," where many of the best articles in ADQ were reprinted in one book. I was not too depressed about this news but when I discovered that an ADQ&A Compendium was being written as well, my heart skipped a few beats.
I considered trying to rush finishing my ADQ&A Compendium but I decided against it. The main reason I kept working on the project for so long was the enjoyment I received I got from it. If I tried to rush my efforts, the project would become a job, which would make me lose interest and likely create a book with low quality. I am glad I made my decision because as of December 18, 1998 the same five or so Q&A collations are present after two years on the SJ Games Web Site. Yes, SJ Games is making rapid progress . . .
I am glad that I subscribed to Pyramid Internet because it has given me access to several good GURPS DarkFutureTech articles and it has given me access to the Pyramid Car Wars Message Board. When I read the following message Robert Deis posted to the Pyramid CWMB, I began to panic.
Fortunately, my fears did not come true. Since his appointment as SJ Games Car Wars Web Site Editor, Robert Deis has not revised one SJ Games Car Wars Web Page. I did not hear any updates from Steven Vawter or Robert Deis on their ADQ&A Compendium from October to December, therefore I had a chance to get my book finished. It may appear that my perseverance may have paid off because my ADQ&A Compendium is ready for autoduelists and still Steven and Robert have said nothing about their project. Good news (or lack of) for me. :o)
When I started to write my ADQ&A Compendium, I decided to revise
as many answers as I could as long as I could get concrete references from
any
rulebook or supplement in the entire Car Wars collection.
There are many questions in the ADQ&A Compendium that have been
asked several times and they have been given multiple answers, such as
the question regarding the compatibility of gasoline ICEs with overdrive
and HD transmission. I became very tired of seeing permission granted and
denied several times in ADQ and in Pyramid regarding this equipment combination,
therefore I "declared" on Dueling Debate that for non-AADA games
you can use both accessories on ICEs. I have kept those conflicting
answers in the ADQ&A Compendium. If there was a question that required
a good deal of thought, I decided to not revise its answer. Because I have
changed many of the answers in the book, my version of the ADQ&A Compendium
is called a "Second Edition." An ADQ&A Compendium with the originalanswers
withoutrevisions
is the "First Edition," which has not been written at this time.
Are Steven Vawter and Robert Deis duplicating your book?
Yes and no. Because I am imagining the fallout and the flame elmay war I may be starting with this announcement of the ADQ&A Compendium, with Robert Deis and Steven Vawter (because I will appear I "stole" their idea) I am going to offer that Steven and Robert write the First Edition ADQ&A Compendium. I need a First Edition because if Car Wars players want to go back to the original rulings, a First Edition ADQ&A Compendium will permit them to do that, without having to take multiple issues of ADQ, Pyramid and TSG off of their bookshelves. ADQ&A Compendium1 will be an excellent reference because it will be a historical overview of how Car Wars has evolved. If Robert and Steven have any revisions of answers, I am going to ask them to send them to me so I can add them to ADQ&A Compendium2.
When I started to write my ADQ&A Compendium in 1992, I tried using
the system Steven Vawter is using with his book, including all the
original answers then adding revised ones . . . for about a week. The
book became too complex and cumbersome to use with two sets of answers
for each question. Having two separate ADQ&A Compendiums, one with
original answers only and one with answers compatible with current
rulebooks only will make use of ADQ&A Compendium2 much more
fun.
Another advantage to having two editions of the ADQ&A Compendium
is the Second Edition be changed at a moment's notice when players feel
like a rule should be revised. Placement of ADQ&A Compendium2 on the
Internet will permit these revisions to be performed quickly.
Why are all of the Q&A in your book not compatible with the current rulebooks (Car Wars Compendium Second Edition Fifth Printing, Uncle Albert's Catalog From Hell, Classic Car Wars)?
As I said above, I only revised answers if I could get clear rules references
from the Car Wars Product Line. ADQ&A Compendium2 clearly
shows multiple answers to the same question and answers that were not
well thought out, signs the Car Wars rules system needs to be
overhauled. The set of revisions I performed with the ADQ&A Compendium2
is the first step towards this goal. If the ADQ&A Compendium2 is available
on the Internet, all of the Car Wars players can discuss its content
on Dueling Debate (the Pyramid CWMB has had nearly zero activity for almost
two months now and its discussions have been only about Car Wars supplements,
therefore I do not think it will be a good place to discuss the book).
After autoduelists discuss the best answers for the ADQ&A Compendium2,
using rulebook references and "common sense" (considering game balance,
some aspects of real-world Car Wars; i.e. overdrive is installed on many
Ford Broncos in 1998, vehicles that are powered by gasoline ICEs; and the
most important consideration of all, whether or not a rules change would
make the game more fun).
Robert Deis and Steven Vawter expressed their strong disagreement with
this system I prefer to be used on my message board when its users
discuss rules questions. Obviously, if someone asks a question that
can be found in a rulebook in a few seconds, giving the exact rule and
where it is found is quite acceptable. My "philosophy" of debate involves
questions that require gamers to consider the rulebooks as a jumping board
towards rulings that make sense and make the game fun, the ICE-overdrive
debate, for example. Dueling Debate is going to have message 1,100 soon
therefore a lot of gamers appear to not mind following my guidelines when
using my message board.
What are you doing now with the ADQ&A Compendium 2?
The book is now complete. I have finished entering all of the Q&A into my Apple IIGS and I have finished the fifth quality check. While I had completed entering all of the ADQ and Pyramid Q&A in 1996, I had not entered Q&A from issues of TSG until this week. I only recently obtained completed my collection of issues of TSG that have Car Wars material (questions and articles) through the participation in Internet auctions and sales. I have a backup copy of the book and I verified that both copies are on floppy disks without errors.
Last November I obtained a cable and software package called CrossWorks. With this tool I can physically connect my Apple IIGS to my IBM and send any files between the two computers . . . into each other's formats! I used CrossWorks to transfer the files from IIGS to IBM on December 21, 1998. The procedure worked perfectly. My AppleWorks 3.0 word processing files containing the ADQ&A Compendium2 are now WordPerfect 8 word processing files! :o) I have also created a HTML version of the book with hyperlinks that connect the individual Web Pages to each other.
At the moment, the book does not have any italics for the answers and certain phrases in questions that were placed in italics for emphasis. I do not have boldface for certain sections of both questions and answers made bold for extra emphasis. I did not want to use a huge amount of printer options such as italics and boldface that might be lost in the Apple-IBM conversion process, therefore I labeled the words that had special print options using the following set of symbols:
Your book sounds confusing and not user-friendly.
This is not true. The "custom typefaces" I used can be easily replaced.
Changing typesetting in a word processing program is a lot easier and
takes a lot less time than trying to type a document. The ADQ&A
Compendium2 can be used right now. My labels for typefaces should not
be too bothersome.
Steven Vawter and Robert Deis are planning to create a comprehensive index for their ADQ&A Compendium. Why didn't you create one for your book?
Technically, I already have. The ADQ&A Compendium 2 is currently organized by date each question is asked. All of the ADQ&As in each volume of ADQ (four issues) have their own word processing files (ten files for 10 volumes of ADQ). I have one file for the Pyramid ADQ&A, one file for the ADQ&A from TSG and one will be created for the AVRO and AADA 2048 WDC questions. The chronological version of ADQ&A Compendium2 (ADQ&A Compendium2C) will be a type of organization that will not be changed.
Each question affects several areas of the Car Wars rules. If I were
to organize the ADQ&A Compendium 2 by subject, the best way to do this
is to place each Q&A in several areas. For example, if a question asked
about roll cages, collisions and oversized vehicles, I would use the
"copy-and-paste" feature of my IBM or GS three times, adding this question
to the documents Accessories, Movement and Vehicle
Construction.
As I was performing my five quality checks of the ADQ&A Compendium2,
I added several "keywords" at the beginning of each question. These keywords
tell the reader what areas of the rules the question is discussing. These
keywords permit use of a "Find" feature in most word
processing programs and Web browsers to find questions about specific
subjects quickly. Because I added the keyword system, the ADQ&A
Compendium2 could be considered organized by subject even though its
arranged chronologically. The keyword-and-find-program system should make
the book useable now while the arranged-by-subject ADQ&A Compendium2
is written (i.e. a series of copy-and-paste commands from Hades that will
take several months to write). I think you can understand that ADQ&A
Compendium2 Subject Version (ADQ&A Compendium2S) will be at least twice
the size of the original book because each question in ADQ&A Compendium2C
will be used at least twice in the subject text. I do not want to think
of the amount of Web space ADQ&A Compendium2S will occupy. :o)
Now the book is on my IBM hard drive, I have no idea what to do with
it. I can send it to friends but I cannot simply post it on a Web
Site (if I had the Web space; I am trying to avoid purchasing more
space on my Web Site until spring and I prefer to not use the no-cost Web
Sites sponsored by such companies as GeoCities for several reasons) because
of copyright issues. Now that S. John Ross is no longer employed at SJ
Games, the former Car Wars Line Editor and AADA President, and the fact
that no one at SJ Games has "officially" filled
those positions, I have no idea who to talk to at SJ Games so I can
get my book printed to the Internet. A paper version is possible but it
would become out of date almost immediately. A paper version of ADQ&A
Compendium1 would be fine because it is a historical document.
Steve Vawter, I imagine right now you are jumping up and down in anger and you are crying because I wrote the ADQ&A Compendium first. This is true and is not true. While I have written ADQ&A Compendium2, I still need you to complete your copy of the ADQ&A Compendium. According to one of your posts on the Pyramid CWMB, it appears you have been adding suggested revisions to the answers in the file below the original answers. This method of writing this book is excellent and has not made your work on the project a waste of time at all for these reasons. First, I want you to complete ADQ&A Compendium1 and keep your suggested rules revisions in a separate document. Second, when you are done with your book, send me your rules revisions so I can add them to ADQ&A Compendium2. If there is disagreement on any ruling, all of the players of Car Wars should use Dueling Debate and Pyramid CWMB to discuss the best answer to add to ADQ&A Compendium2. Because we will have two copies of the ADQ&A Compendium, we can always change our minds about an answer but do not have to look up the original ruling in a print copy of ADQ. Novices to Car Wars would certainly be confused if they saw two sets of answers to each question. With two copies of the ADQ&A Compendium, Archive Edition and Revised Edition, this problem is solved.
Steven Vawter, please do not try to rush to finish your ADQ&A Compendium. The ADQ&A Archive Edition needs to have as few errors as possible. Taking your time will also give you time to consider revisions carefully. You should know that the main reason I know Car Wars rules so well, besides reading the rulebooks on a regular basis, is because I wrote my copy of the ADQ&A Compendium. I guarantee your knowledge of Car Wars will be outstanding after you complete writing your edition of the ADQ&A book. This is another very important reason I do not want you to quit the project!
I have no idea now what to do with my book, whether to send it to SJ Games, Robert Deis, Steven Vawter, NOVA or CWIN subscribers. The main reason I am confused is, you guessed it, low follow-through by SJ Games regarding Car Wars.
If you continue reading, I will present to you my ideas for the autoduelists themselves to keep Car Wars alive and well, regardless if SJ Games continues to support or abandons the game.
Introduction
I suspect that most Car Wars games are not tournaments, casual autoduels and combat races between friends instead. There is nothing wrong with tournaments. The thrill of competition, the agony of defeat, the adrenaline pumping through your body as you plan your next move and the satisfaction of victory are all wonderful reasons (well, except for the being defeated part) to enter tournaments.
Today, there are quite a few professional Car Wars players that take the game seriously, possibly because they play in a tournament atmosphere. I do not what the rest of the U.S. and the planet is like, but in the Northwestern U.S., gamers appear to be quite relaxed towards tournaments. Northwest U.S. gamers are some of the best opponents you will ever face, but in my experience a majority of them play games for fun, even in tournaments. Whenever I have held Car Wars tournaments the participants have been extremely polite, calm, respectful and quite laid-back about playing. If there was a rules question and the players did not know the answer, I would look up the rule if I did not know it immediately. If there was a situation I needed to make an original ruling (can a driver get out of a vehicle that is skidding across the arena floor . . . on its top . . . using an underbody-mounted sunroof . . . while top-mounted jump jets are activated :o) ) I would look in my rulebooks, make a decision and ask the players if they thought it was reasonable. All of the Car Wars games I have refereed, tournament and non-tournament, have almost always "ran themselves." The players kept a continuous momentum. All I had to do was sit back and watch the the gamers have fun destroying each other. :-)
In order to make the Car Wars World Championship Tournaments a better measure of the Car Wars skills of a gamer, to increase the international aspect of Car Wars, to eliminate the amateur versus professional autoduelist arguments and to make Car Wars more exciting and enjoyable in order to get more players, I propose a significant set of revisions of the American Autodueling Association (AADA).
The AADA was a great idea for its time, an organization to unite autoduelists and to provide a way for Car Wars gamers to meet annually to battle for a worldwide title. Now, there are very few AADA Chapters fighting each other for fun and in Regional Tournaments. There are few truly active AADA Chapters, gaming groups that play Car Wars regularly with each other and for AADA World Championship Events. Now, in 1999, the AADA is only about Car Wars players meeting once a year at some gaming convention, where less than 50 gamers play Car Wars in two or three rounds to declare two World Champions.
I propose the formation of a new AADA as an organization that would oversee the tournament aspect of Car Wars and would also provide resources for amateur autoduelists as well. The name would be changed to the World Autodueling Association (WADA). The new name is to reflect the international appeal of Car Wars.
The goals of the WADA (i.e. ones I am creating at this moment) are the following:
1. Promotion of Car Wars. Demonstration games, many demonstration games, need to be run by experienced Car Wars players. Possibly related to this is for the WADA to find some way, whether through SJ Games or by itself, to resurrect Classic Car Wars, a game that is perfect for getting new people involved in Car Wars. Several ways need to be found to bring some of the Car Wars action on the Internet into physical reality again, into gaming stores, schools and groups of friends. If a person does not have an Internet-compatible computer, they very likely cannot play Car Wars because they will not become aware of it! This goal also includes WADA publishing exciting supplements for Car Wars that are sure to attract new players, such as Chassis & Crossbow Third Edition and DuelTrack 2050. The emphasis on the North American autoduelists needs to be decreased while the global Car Wars community is emphasized.
2. Information Clearinghouse. I have started to fulfill this goal with the establishment of the WADA Car Wars Player Registry and the WADA Car Wars Gaming Group Registry. There is one problem with these two databases: they are Internet-based. Many gamers do not have Internet access. Distribution via FAX and physmail of these registries to gaming stores would be a good way to bring the Car Wars data of the Matrix into gaming groups once again.
3. New Tournament Protocols. I will discuss this idea below with several articles from ADQ and other sources.
4. Creation of Car Wars Compendium Third Edition. We have two Car Wars message boards, 130 subscribers to CWIN, the powerful communication tool called the Internet and the ADQ&A Compendium2, so this project should be too difficult for many Car Wars fans to perform. Obviously, we will need to talk to SJ Games about copyright and trademark issues, but if fans wrote the entire book and SJ Games only had to print it, the job of SJ Games to produce CWC3 would be quite easy because most of the work would have been done by us. Because CWC3 would be written by the people that would use it, the quality would almost certainly be better than any gaming company's edition. If SJ Games gains financial strength to have a staff member take an active role in writing this book, I would love to have SJ Games get involved as much as they can in the CWC3 project.
The AADA World Championship Tournaments do not measure the skills of autoduelists and combat racers well. It is absolutely possible for a novice of Car Wars to enter an AADA WC Event and become a World Champion. In this situation, does this mean the novice is the best Car Wars player on the planet? I say no. Except in boxing, most sports measure performance of an athlete over a long period of time. American professional sports have teams competing against other over several months, often performing repeat matches between the same two teams. The best teams after the regular season enter a tournament, where the best teams survive until the two best groups of athletes in the league meet in the final round of the tournament, with one team being declared the best of the best but both teams should be considered by that title because their track record (or the infamous phrase follow-through) is clearly demonstrated. When a new season starts all teams have to fight their way into the season-ending tournament once again, each team having to rise from the bottom to get the the top of the mountain. Chess has a system even more detailed for evaluating skill level, a complex ratings system that measures players year-round and over an individual's lifetime.
One of the best examples of this system, measurement of an athlete's long-term performance, is the American automobile racing series NASCAR. Each driver in the circuit gains points for each race he/she participates in. At the end of the NASCAR season the driver with the most points is declared the "Winston Cup Champion." Note that while the Daytona 500 and the Brickyard 500 are the two most prestigious and well-known races of the NASCAR Series, the winners of those races do not always become the Winston Cup Champion. If you look at the NASCAR record of the GM Goodwrench driver Dale Earnheart, which is seven Winston Cup Championships, only once has Mr. Earnheart won a Daytona 500. When Mr. Earnheart won the Daytona 500 in 1998, everyone, fans and competitors, welcomed Mr. Earnheart into Victory Lane, after Mr. Earnheart performed a series of "victory spinouts" on Daytona's colored-grass infield. :-)
I discuss below several options for a new Car Wars tournament system. Fans of autodueling need to discuss these so we can all find the best method to hold professional autoduels.
1. Boxing Model. The AADA is essentially the system boxing uses today. An athlete becomes champion after defeating several opponents over a long period of time. Once the champion title is earned, the athlete only has to defend the title against top-ranked competitors. Car Wars World Champions are given seeds in the AADA WC Events.
Many of my biological science classes during university had grades determined by three or four comprehensive examinations and a series of quizzes. If this model were to be applied to Car Wars, autoduelists would have their season ratings measured by their placement in several tournaments with their scores in declared-as-league-play games. For example, a Car Wars player would fight in four tournaments and a series of duels. Each of the tournaments would be worth 20% (four competitions gives 80%) and the individual duels would give a total of 20% of the possible championship points in a season.
I know that this tournament system is a radical change to the AADA one because it eliminates the World Championship Tournaments. Well, not exactly. If gamers still want to have one large event that hopefully people around the world compete for a global title, I suggest that only the top-scoring autoduelists and the top-scoring gaming groups in the WADA, whose performance was measured over eight months using the NASCAR Tournament Model, meet at a World Championship Event. Four types of play-offs would be held at this event: Individual Dueling, Individual Racing, Group Dueling and Group Racing. After the dust has cleared it is fairly certain that the two victorious gamers and the two victorious clubs are the best Car Wars players in the world of that WADA season.
Yes, this system requires tournament participants to be members of the WADA (i.e. play in a tournament over eight months), which excludes non-WADA people from playing in the World Championships (if they are added to the NASCAR Competition Model). While this seems unfair, in many ways it is not unfair. Yes, the AADA removed its long-standing requirement that participants in the AADA WC Events do not need to be AADA Members. If gamers are interested in playing Car Wars but were not able to participate in the Car Wars League, they will be able to play at the same convention where the four WADA WC Games are being held. How is this possible? Do you remember the first goal of the WADA? It would be the responsibility for the participants in WADA League Play to hold many demonstration autoduels and combat races while the Play-Offs occur.
NOVA criticized the 2047-2048 AADA WDC for several reasons. One of them was that children were permitted to play in the WDC. The comments made by NOVA were not exactly what they meant to say. NOVA was not against the idea of allowing kids to autoduel in the AADA WDC but they were against the concept of permitting novices (the skill level of the children that played in the games) to enter a World Play-Off where each competitor likely has two or more years of experience playing Car Wars. A WC Tournament should only have gamers who have fought their way over many other gamers several months ago and not simply after one Chapter Championship and one Regional Championship. Even the At-Large Qualifier at the AADA WC does not give enough time to give a good evaluation of a player's skills. The NASCAR Model will eliminate these problems but if Car Wars players still want a large-scale final event to end each sports season, they can. Only the absolute best Car Wars players of the current autodueling season should be given the chance to fight after the regular season is over, to fight for a chance at a trophy, a title and year-long bragging rights. :-)
The attached articles contain several ideas on how to create a new Car Wars tournament system. I want to make comments on some of them.
CADC 2048 Season Rules. The Championship Autodueling Circuit is the place of two great ideas. First, their racing campaign has been operated for over 10 years. I would safely assume the CADC has created a set of Car Wars racing rules that not only work but work well. Second, the CADC uses "Shot Cards." SWAT used them when duelmastering the 1998 Spokane Game Faire Car Wars Tournament. The Shot Cards worked extremely well and made game play much easier on player and referee alike. I highly recommend their use for everybody. CWIN will present an article about Shot Cards in early 2049.
Car Wars does not have a good, solid, fun, easy-to-use set of racing rules. The best solution to this problem is the writing of DuelTrack 2050, a book that the CADC, NOVA, SWAT and other gamers are writing together. There is a section on Dueling Debate reserved for discussions on what should be placed in DuelTrack 2050. Until that book is published, which will have a release date no earlier than the spring of 2000 (the writers want enough time to write the book correctly first time), I strongly suggest you use the CADC Regulations for Car Wars Racing. In fact, one of the core components of DuelTrack 2050 will be the CADC Rules. :-)
AADA Rules and Regulations: HVD/SWAT Edition. I compiled all of the AADA Regulations printed in ADQ and in Pyramid back in 1995, before SJ Games printed the ADQ 9/1 article on their AADA Web Page. The original set of rules is obscure in places therefore I sent to the HVD Car Wars Mailing List my edition of the guidelines with its ADQ addenda. I also changed the wording of some of the rules to make them easier to understand. I also added regulations about areas in Car Wars that should be discussed by the AADA. I am happy to know that HVD's Editor, James Barton, feels that my version of the AADA Regulations is better than the original document. :-) Many ideas of my file can be used for WADA Events.
Regardless of whatever tournament model is chosen, the following guidelines should be followed in any Car Wars game.
Shot Cards. As I mentioned above, this play-aid makes games much easier for all participants.
Advanced Preparation. If someone is going to run a Car Wars tournament, whether or not a part of WADA League Competition, the format of the event should be released to the general public at least two months in advance. All preparations by the duelmasters should be completed no less than one month before the competition. It would also be a good idea for future WDC if two groups are running the Dueling and Racing trials separately, they bring all of their materials to the convention themselves. Having one group depend on another to provide materials for their games should not be attempted because of the large possibility for problems to occur. Submission of vehicle designs to be used in a tournament, including a WC Match, should be submitted to the referees in spreadsheet form and in written description form and schematic form. Although there are many useful vehicle design programs available on the Internet, I strongly suggest that one format of vehicle design spreadsheet be used, specifically the one designed by SWAT. The vehicle record sheet designed by the Autoduelists of Vancouver Regional Organization (AVRO) should be used for all schematics. Written descriptions of vehicles should follow the same format in AADA Vehicle Guide 1 and AADA Vehicle Guide 2, with detailed explanations of what is contained on the vehicle.
Backup Conventions. It was almost certainly not a good idea to continue to hold both 2047-2048 AADA WC Events at Tacticon after the convention had been changed to a two-day format. It would have been a very good idea to have had a "emergency" convention to use in case the one hosting the AADA WC Tournaments had problems such as those as Tacticon. The commitment to hold the games in spite of the schedule change was not fair for the participants interested in playing in both the Dueling and the Racing competitions. It was also not a good idea because it caused extra stress for the referees preventable if the games would have been postponed.
Continuing Characters. This idea should not be required but it might be an interesting variant to Car Wars League Play. A player participating in the WADA Tournament must use the same character throughout the season. If the character is killed, the player is not eliminated from the tournament. I suggest that each player controls a corporation of a few characters (perhaps no more than three) that can be used throughout the WADA regular season and in the play-offs. If one character dies, the points the player has accumulated are not lost but some penalties are assessed for losing a character. Yes, characters can improve in their abilities and these characters with higher skills can be used in the WADA Play-Offs. This system will promote the use of careful strategy and will discourage suicide tactics because killing one's character will cause a loss of league points and may kill your best character. If a player runs of out assigned characters, I suggest that more can be used but at greater penalties to championship ratings. My "Advanced Character System" I am going to publish in the January CWIN will be an excellent variant to use when the Continuing Character WADA Tournament System is followed. It should be noted that characters can only improve their skills by their experience in designated WADA League Events. These characters are separate from campaigns played by gaming groups and cannot be modified outside of WADA Competition.
The format of the WADA is simply some ideas I have been thinking about for several months. The ideas above regarding the WADA Tournaments are not set in stone. The people interested in playing Car Wars should make their voice heard (in a polite manner of course), telling the autodueling community what type of professional organization they want.
AADA Events
The AADA Community must realize that AADA Car Wars Gaming is not the most popular way to autoduel. Few, if any, Regional Championships occur anymore. The number of truly, die-hard, active Car Wars gaming groups that meet regularly to autoduel and combat race, is quite small compared to the 1980s when Car Wars was a dominant force in tabletop gaming. Promotion of the Car Wars by giving 50 percent attention to AADA gaming and 50 percent to house rules gaming will likely attract more players. The constant, complex administration discussions and rules debates that are dominating the game today are most certainly turning people away from playing in the AADA and possibly Car Wars altogether.
It is a good idea to have a consistent format of the AADA Tournaments every year, using the same vehicle types and using arenas. I do not mind this system because it works. I do feel that the repetition of using the same vehicle frames (cars, motorcycles, sidecars, tricycles and racing cars) however is turning gamers away from participating in AADA Events because the format is almost always the same from year to year. I would very much like to see more variety in AADA Tournaments. Here is one example of an WADA World Dueling Championships (assuming the NASCAR Tournament Model mentioned previously was used to determine individuals and teams with highest championship points to attend the WDC) that provides more opportunities for gamers to test their Car Wars tactics:
One other idea I have that can be implemented immediately is for Car Wars tournaments to reduce their use of previously-published arenas. I cannot imagine how many times the AADA World Dueling Championships have used Double Drum, New Boston and Hammer Downs from Arena Book 2039. I think it is neat to see these and other maps occasionally because they are out of print, but the old phrase "variety is the spice of life" definitely applies here. The Internet has a large number of arenas that are waiting for autoduelists and combat racers to use them. To demonstrate the innovative and challenging Car Wars maps available on the Internet and to promote the release of Arena Book 2049: Hot Asphalt Circuit by High Velocity Dueling Magazine, I propose that all arenas and dueltracks used in both of the 2049 World Championship Tournaments, Autodueling and Racing, are only from Arena Book 2048: Flashfire Circuit and Arena Book 2049: Hot Asphalt Circuit (if these events are going to be held regardless of whichever WADA Tournament Model is used).
A gamer can play in a few arenas ten times and win one (or more) World Championships in those arenas, but that does not mean the autoduelist is a master of Car Wars. An expert of Car Wars is a player who can drive in many different arenas, use different vehicle types and win event after event. The Championship Autodueling Circuit changes the vehicle frames and dueltracks they use every year. The system works for the CADC so it should work for the WADA.
Car Wars Rulebooks
I proposed some solutions to the problems of Car Wars above. The best solution to many of these problems would be the publication of a Third Edition Car Wars Compendium. If AADA autoduelists want an AADA-only rulebook, I suggest the Classic Car Wars rulebook be revised into such a rulebook. I strongly recommend that omission of the non-AADA rules (car trailers, oversized vehicles, helicopters, boats and hovercraft) from CWC3 would be a very large mistake. It is very nice to have all of these rules in one volume. Being required to purchase separate rulebooks so a gamer can simulate a high-tech The Road Warrior battle would not be too convenient. I agree that Aeroduel and Car Wars Tanks should stay separate supplements.
Once again the demon called follow-through appears. SJ Games is not likely to write CWC3 in the near future or even in the next year. I propose, using Dueling Debate and the Pyramid CWMB, that the Car Wars Community write a CWC3 ourselves. I know all of us could write a better book than SJ Games Staff ever could. It is almost 100 percent certain out quality control would be outstanding and we would eliminate most of the errata and rules ambiguities from the Car Wars system once and for all . . . for about five years at which time we will need to write CWC4. :-)
CWIN, NOVA and RMADA
Some people have wondered if I think NOVA can do no wrong and RMADA is a group of negative gamers. These opinions are far from the truth. Yes, I print many articles from NOVA in CWIN. Why? Because NOVA submitsarticles! I subscribe to NOVA's newsletter, The Nightmessenger, because it is a good magazine, with most of its material about Autoduel Earth and scenario ideas. Although I am beginning to know Robert Deis, I do not know what RMADA is like, therefore I cannot make any judgments about that gaming group. If I did have a negative opinion about RMADA, I would keep it to myself. I try very hard to follow the Golden Rule (no, not the no-holds-barred capitalism one; he who has all the gold makes the rules): treat people the way you want to be treated. Since I have known NOVA I have been treated with the greatest respect and kindness by that group. One clear demonstration of their positive attitude is the winter holidays card they sent to me (Mr. S. Claus and Ms. S. Claus racing each other in NASCAR-style racing pickups). I do not know how they act towards others but NOVA continuously compliments my work of publishing CWIN. Feedback like that makes the work I do to write each issue more than worthwhile.
I said above that I describe myself as a "Car Wars Mercenary." I absolutely love any information about Car Wars. Whenever I discover a new Web Site that has Car Wars material, I download all of its files. Currently the folder where I place my Car Wars data is 130 MB in size. A majority of these files are from the Internet. I have subscribed to The Nightmessenger and contact NOVA on a regular basis because that group has a lot of cool information for autodueling. If RMADA would create a Web Site and produce a newsletter, I would do the same.
Because I have not attended AADA WC Events, I do not know how NOVA and RMADA act during those games, whether professional or non-professional. All I know is that there are conflicting reports about the two groups. I strongly suggest the two groups try to solve their differences and get together to duel each other, with a neutral third party acting as referee.
Steve Jackson Games and Car Wars
Yes, I have said many critical statements about SJ Games. I want to make it clear that most, if not all of them, were regarding the relationship of SJ Games to Car Wars. The support for GURPS the company has made, in releasing Worldbook after Worldbook (usually on schedule), good proofreading of GURPS Worldbooks before release, fantastic Web resources that are continuously updated, a readily-accessible Q&A forum and moderator and much more, has been incredible, fastastic, awesome and just plain cool. The same attitude has prevailed by SJ Games toward the rest of their games . . . except Car Wars.
There are four goals SJ Games should fulfill in 1999 for Car Wars:
It is my hope that the company can become financially stronger and realize that Car Wars is still a worthwhile investment. Again I state if only the Web Pages on the SJ Games Web Site about Car Wars are updated reguarly, which becomes the extent of SJ Games Car Wars support (no longer releasing any new supplements), I would be thrilled and gain much respect for SJ Games because they, yes, followed through. :-)
Conclusion
Car Wars is at a point in its lifetime where it could take off like the Thrust SSC or crash and burn. It is a very exciting time for the game. Veterans of autodueling should rally together to promote the game with positive and professional actions emphasizing how much fun vehicular vigilantism can be. Realize that there are is a huge number of potential Car Wars players today that would likely run down to a store to purchase a set if they knew the game exists. The popularity of Carmageddon, Death Rally, Streets of Sim City, Vigilante 8, the Twisted Metal series, and of course, the Interstate 1976 series, in the electronic gaming community has been staggering. Wow! Electronic gamers think autodueling is one of the best concepts to ever be created! Now imagine if those electronic gamers became aware of Car Wars, which was available in a small box set for only $10.00 U.S. (one reason Classic Car Wars should be resurrected).
The movie and television industries have experimented with autodueling in the past with such productions as the MegaForce, Street Hawk, Tango & Cash, Knight Rider 2010 and the Mad Max movie trilogy and they continue to play with the concept. Fortunately, this genre has been made a success because of the perseverance of these industries. Vehicular combat has finally been established with the survival and success of the television series Viper. (It should be noted that its success is likely resulting from its syndicated status. For many reasons, science fiction shows do not perform well on networks but flourish in syndication). Viper is now airing its fourth season and is returning to the DarkFutureTech and espionage elements in its first season! The number of Car Wars gamers that would be generated if the audience knew about our game is staggering. By the way, in the autmun of 1996 and in the spring of 1998, I did contact Paramount Pictures and Pet Fly Productions, the two companies that make Viper, telling them about Car Wars, GURPS Vehicles and GURPS Autoduel, saying that the gadgets in these games would make Viper a lot more exciting. As I think about this, I would not be surprised the hovercraft mode of the Defender was inspired from Car Wars. :o) If you think the number of potential Car Wars players in the electronic gaming arena is huge, consider the number of fans who watch auto racing. Imagine if these sports enthusiasts knew about Car Wars, especially when DuelTrack 2050 is released. :o)
Many of the reasons I like Car Wars so much that I publish a newsletter for it each month and because I have written this article, were written by the lengendary Aaron Allston in AutoVentures 1: TurboFire and AutoVentures 3: UltraForce (these comments are on the "Commentary References" attachment to this article). Mr. Allston's words state the best reasons for playing Car Wars, for getting more people to play the game, holding championship tournaments, writing fiction for the game and publication of other resources for autodueling. Read Mr. Allston's eloquent words and you will see how much fun it is playing Car Wars. Imagine novices or even non-gamers finding out about the system for the first time. If they like the auto combat genre, when they discover Car Wars, they must be thinking they are in a candy store. :o)
While I love miniatures games, especially ones from Games Workshop, there is one disadvantage they all share: they are expensive. Players need to invest a substantial amount of money into miniatures and painting supplies. Car Wars does not suffer this disadvantage because CCW or DCW has everything you need to play except for some d6 (High praise to the person with username "NutBarz" on Dueling Debate who suggested inclusion of d6 in CCW and DCW). If a gamer really wants miniatures, they can purchase relatively inexpensive ones: Micro Machines, Hot Wheels/Matchbox, plastic models or even Tonka-scale vehicles. The low-cost advantage Car Wars has (compared to many of the other games in the 1998 marketplace) is an asset to the tabletop gaming community that I do not want to see disappear with the end of the game by SJ Games placing it OOP and players abandoning it because of the problems discussed above (especially conflicts between players).
I love Car Wars so much because of several reasons. It was the game I first purchased when I "officially" entered tabletop gaming (first visiting a tabletop gaming store; I had played Milton Bradley's Gamemaster series of games for many years before Car Wars) and it has been the catalyst that has brought many of my best friends into my life, "comrades in dice" I will likely have for the rest of my life. If it was not for Car Wars, I could not have laughed at and mentally recovered from my April 1996 automobile collision (see HVD 2). Car Wars even helped me when I was in a serious medical situation, but as the actor Mako said in the movie Conan The Barbarian, "that is another story."
Gaming companies are disappearing in today's marketplace. Most of the companies that were around in 1981, the time Car Wars was first released, are gone. It would be so cool for Car Wars to survive to its 20th anniversary, an accomplishment that few other games have done. This is another reason I am fighting so hard to keep the game alive.
Every game of Car Wars needs to be fun, regardless if its a group of friends playing in a basement, 100 players around the world competiting for league points or 20 gamers fighting in a World Championship. Fans of Car Wars can write rulebook after rulebook, supplement after supplement but our efforts towards improving or harming the game will be proven if any type of person, gamer or non-gamer, who likes vehicular combat watches a Car Wars game then learns how to play and continues to autoduel for many years to come.
Happy Winter Holidays from SWAT. In the spirit of the winter holiday season, SWAT has a surprise for you.
If you were wondering where the ADQ&A Compendium 2C is located now, I decided at the last minute before printing "Car Wars Y2K" to add ADQ&A Compendium 2C to SWAT Matrix Headquarters. I talked to several people with experience in the area of copyrights and gaming companes and all of them told me to "Go for it!" I followed their advice and uploaded all 12 files of the book to my Web Site.
Over the next several months, I will change the format, add more abbreviation keys, activate hyperlinks, correct typographical errors and make other revisions to the ADQ&A Compendium 2. The book is still a work-in-progress, but it is quite useable at this time. If you have any questions about how to use the book, let me know. I hope you have as much fun using this book as I did writing it! :o)
ADQ&A Compendium Second Edition
http://www.serv.net/~owenmp/ADQA02/toc.html
It is Christmas Day 2049 as I write this editorial. I am amazed that 12 months have passed since I wrote the controversial article "Car Wars Y2K," and all of the events that have occurred since then. WADA has become a real organization that has been overwhelmingly supported by the Car Wars community. Tim Gould, Webmaster extrordinaire, has given new life to Car Wars HQ and AADA HQ. Combat racing is the new trend in Car Wars gaming, a type of autodueling that appears no sign of losing steam. Redline, combining the first-person shooting game with auto-combat action, and Interstate '82, have finally been released. The AADA is running on all twelve cylinders again (thanks to Eric Freeman, Tim Gould and Elizabeth Linssay), Car Wars HQ ADQ Online Archive are back in operation (thanks to Tim Gould) and SWAT has finally expanded its size to over 10 members. I can honestly say 2049 was one of the best years for Car Wars.
I would like to thank Robert Deis and Steven Vawter for the inspiration to form WADA. As many of you know, Robert, Steven, and I had several emotional debates last autumn. After several of these exchanges, I responded with an editorial in CWIN 2.01: Car Wars Y2K. One month after I wrote those words, SWAT formed WADA, and the rest is history. Every month I would receive report after report of duels and races for gamers to get their point totals updated on the WADA Car Wars League Standings. Battles of 10 to 15 autoduelists have become commonplace, and several gaming groups began playing Car Wars every week. My goal of getting more people to play Car Wars more often has been accomplished beyond my wildest dreams.
I am happy to report Robert, Steven, and I are no longer firing incendiary
elmay messages at each other. Robert is now spending most of his time training
his new Little Leaguer in the fine art of highway combat, but he does find
time occasionally to talk about the game via elmay or a message board.
Thank you, Robert, for your discussions last year. Our relationship was
very rocky at that time, but I think the experience was worth it because
we are better friends and the Car Wars community has been improved by our
challenges. Best of luck in your new role as a father. I hope you will
not be a stranger and will make a visit in the arena occasionally. Steven,
the above applies to you, too, and I hope to see you in body armor as well
once in a while.