The big news out there is that NOVA is back to a regular schedule of gaming sessions. For the past 18 months, we've had to depend on conventions for our gaming opportunities. As you can well imagine, this had made things somewhat difficult for us. Also, we haven't been in much of a mood for gaming, considering the fact that there have been other matters which have demanded our attention.
    With Bill & Sandy Grush having moved Star Realm to a new and better location, things have definitely changed for the better. Although their new store is much smaller than the late (and much-lamented) original, it is well-suited for gaming purposes. NOVA would also like to extend a hearty welcome to all those Car Warriors who are thinking of joining us, as we are sorely in need of new members after our downslide of the last few years. No offense is intended towards any of our current membership is intended, it's just that we've grown so accustomed to each other's designs and dueling styles that there's no real challenge when we fight each other. After all, change is a good thing (besides, we need someone to clean the cobwebs out of the comers at NOVA headquarters). This issue, we will cover our trip to the latest episode of that long-running opera otherwise known as Gen Con, as well as the events we took part in while there. The write-up on the World Dueling Championships will not be included here, as its presentation is properly a function of Pyramid Magazine.
    For years, we protested the results of the World Dueling Championships for one reason or another, most of them having to do with a certain member of the RCADA who had the annoying habit of winning the championship for several years in a row. It is very likely that Lady Fate decided to punch his ticket stub, as the person in question was eliminated by a hit from the Synchronized Crash Team. Now, the combat boot is on the other foot. This year, the new World Champion criticized Norman McMullen's write-up of the Championships by E-Mail. Scott, you have our sympathy, because we know how tough it feels to do the best we can and still be criticized for it. Just remember that critics are a dime-a-dozen (whatever happened to inflation??). Constructive criticism and positive messages are always welcome. And now, without further adieu, we say "on with the newsletter".
 

In order to clear up a few things from last year, we can definitely say that the widely-reported demise of DKI was so much stuff-and-nonsense. The troubles with the Corporate Challenge were (to say the least) greatly exaggerated. The riots stirred up against DKI were nothing more than the sour-grapes rumblings of certain competitors who were too lazy to update their product lines. The loss of DKI in the Division-5 portion of the Corporate Challenge was due to carelessness on the part of the DKI driver. 'Nuff said.
    Secondly, the 2046 Club Dueling Championship was a mess twice over, beginning with almost-identical/nearly invulnerable Division-10 vehicles and ending with a stunning example of poor sportsmanship by a certain personage who is no longer a member of our August fellowship. To the satisfaction of most of those involved in this little dust-up, things have been resolved and there should be no further disagreements on the issues involved. Apologies are offered to anyone whose feelings were hurt by the results of the Championship. Honestly speaking, it is bothersome to think that some players take the game (or indeed any game) too seriously.
    In other matters, the DeathKnight has been appointed the Police Commissioner here in New Omaha for several months now. There have been several changes in the city, foremost among which has the repeal by the City Council of the unpopular anti-cyborg laws and the disbanding of the NOPD's C4 division. It should be noted for the record that this group was accused of using rather heavy-handed tactics in carrying out its anti-cyborg mandate. In the wake of these developments, the cyborgs known as Executioner, Robo-Jed and Peacemaker have returned to full-time duty with the NOPD. Some line officers have commented that "there isn't a dark cloud hanging over New Omaha anymore".
    Unfortunately, there has been a resurgence of activity by Organized Crime as well as some independent gangs. A number of vigilantes (including such notable characters as Ambush, Batman and the Master) have re-emerged to help the city deal with the problems involved. We can truthfully say that New Omaha has become a colorful place again. If we have anything to say about it, this state of affairs will continue for a very long time.
 

July 30, 2047: New Omaha's anti-cyborg laws were revoked by Mayor Bill the Cat. He commented that "These laws have harmed people with the lawful right to have whatever cybernetic implants they deem necessary. My action has allowed them to resume the exercise of this right without fear".

August 1, 2047: The DeathKnight was sworn in as the new Commissioner of the NOPD.

August 6, 2047: Commissioner Death knight swore the cyborgs Robo-Jed, Executioner and Peacemaker back into active service with the New Omaha Police Department.

August 7, 2047: Robo-Jed, Peacemaker and Executioner resumed their patrols today. Not surprisingly, there was little protest from New Omaha's criminal fraternity. Three suspects in the armed robbery of a pizza delivery driver obligingly turned themselves in at NOPD headquarters when they heard that Executioner was looking for them.

August 15, 2047: Showing that he's not the kind of cyborg who leads from behind a desk, Commissioner DeathKnight began his own street patrol, driving the famous Death Machine 5.

September 1, 2047: Executioner killed a criminal who opened fire on him as he responded to a hold-up alarm at Frank's Cloning Facility & Donut Shop. DeathKnight commented "Stuff happens. Maybe this will teach the criminal element in this city that mixing it up with the NOPD is a decidedly short-term and high-risk investment".

September 5, 2047: Robo-Jed engaged three robbery suspects in a high-speed chase through the outskirts of New Omaha. They foolishly decided to engage him in a running gun battle. The results were predictable.

September 8, 2047: Peacemaker helped a old lady across the street near City Hall today.

September 10, 2047: Batman stopped a robbery-in-progress which was taking place at a local recharge station. Later in the day, he broke up a brawl between several gang members. Witnesses report that none of the gang members were killed. It is possible that they took a lesson from what happened on September 1.

September 13, 2047: Ambush made a sudden appearance today and surprised several criminals who attempted to rob the ticket office at Aksarben arena. All five of them were captured, and none of them suffered injuries that are likely to keep them in the hospital for more than two or three weeks.

October 4, 2047: Mike Garrity won the Amateur Night event held at Double Drum Arena. His brother Chris took third place.
 

Fall: Fire Down Below

Thanksgiving: Alien Resurrection, Starship Troopers (in theaters on November 7th), Titanic, Tomorrow Never Dies (the next James Bond movie)

Memorial Day 1998: Godzilla

October: Star Trek: First Contact, The 5th Element, Men in Black, The Saint, Batman & Robin
 

This year's expedition to Gen Con was filled with excitement, especially because of TSR going belly-up and then being bought out by the new 800-lb gorilla in the gaming industry, Wizards of the Coast. The pre-registration forms along with the program books for the convention were late (no big surprise here), but by June everything had calmed down and was back on track.
    Pre-planning of our trip went well. We lost one member (for reasons already explained elsewhere), but another stepped in to fill the void, so that we had four members going again. The hotel reservation was iffy (because of the above-mentioned problems). However, it all worked out eventually. The car rental went well, considering the fact that it was done the day we left. As far as car trouble was concerned, there really weren't any.
    The road trip was uneventful for a change. The use of different drivers was a welcome change-of-pace. We had no trouble with the weather, unlike in past years. The road kill count was off this year. We saw none throughout Iowa and the western half of Illinois, but northern Illinois and southern Wisconsin made up for it. The totals were: 2 deer, 2 un-identifiable lumps, 1 red smear, 2 rabbits, 4 raccoons and 7 squirrels. On the way back, there was a four-car accident on 1-80 near Iowa City that slowed us down to a crawl for over an hour.

We will be brief here. The championship was much better attended this year, unlike in past years. Hopefully, this is a sign of future interest (and not just a fluke). The arenas used in the preliminary phases of the event were crowded, however everything flowed smoothly. The only problems which arose during the championship were minor disagreements over the interpretation of certain rules. Most of these were settled by the players involved. Little or no intervention by the GM (Norman McMullen) was required. Overall, things went extremely well.
    The write-up took a good deal of work in order to complete it to everyone's satisfaction. A copy of it was sent to SJG for publication in Pyramid (which still isn't out as of this date: November 11th).For those of you who don't want to wait any longer, a copy is available on the NOVA web site.
    Michael Garrity (the 2nd-place finisher) wrote an article concerning the design and performance of the vehicles which participated in the championships, and submitted to SJG for publication in Pyramid. As that magazine is what can most politely be called extremely late, it is reprinted here for your consideration. We recommend it as being worthy of careful study.

Longtime readers of the NightMessenger will remember a pair of articles written by T.J. Gates for NM 5/1 and NM 5/2 respectively titled "The Winning Formula" and "The Winning Formula II". These articles looked at the vehicles used in the 2036 and 2038 World Dueling Championships and compared them on the basis of design & performance. This article will do the same for the 2047 Dueling Championships.

BODY STYLE: Out of a total of eight cars in the championship round, five were luxuries. Six of the eight combatants had Carbon-Aluminum frames (not very surprising, considering the amount of money involved).

CHASSIS: Unlike in some previous championships, every car had an extra-heavy chassis. In the higher divisions, the increased weight capacity of an x-hvy chassis is a vital asset.

SUSPENSION: All cars had heavy suspension. In addition, Jim Beecher's "Boom Boom" was fitted with active suspension, allowing him to keep on fighting even after his tires had been destroyed.

POWER PLANT/ENGINE: Six cars had gas engines. Three of these were 150-CI engines and three were 200-CI engines. Tim Jacques' "A-Wing 2047" used a sport power plant fitted with platinum catalysts, and Tony Kowalchuk's van had a conventional super power plant.

TIRES: There was some variation in this category. In general, six cars had various types of solid tires (two had FP solids, one had SB solids, one had radial solids, one had FP solid snow tires and this writer's "Eviscerator" had regular solid tires). Tony's van had PR radials and Phillip Swim's "Black Buticus" had FPPR radials.

CREW: Six cars had a driver only. Darrin Marquez' "Mob Buster" and Tony's van both had a driver and a gunner.

ARMOR: With two exceptions, the cars in the championship round had very heavy armor. The two exceptions were the "Mob Buster" (which had 182 points) and Tony's van (which had a minuscule 116 points). Of the six cars with heavy armor, four used the tried & true combination of metal and plastic. The other two ("Eviscerator" and "A-Wing 2047") used regular plastic armor.

Further particular are given on the table listed below.
 

Vehicle	Type	Armor Type	Armor Totals	Armor Weight	Armor Ranking
Black Buticus	Mid-size	LR metal/FP plastic	52M/10P	2,888 lbs	1st
Victory	Luxury	LR metal/FP plastic	44M/25P*	3,040 lbs	2nd
Shredder	Luxury	LR metal/FP plastic	28M/160P	3,000 lbs	3rd
Boom Boom	Luxury	metal/plastic	6M/251P*	2,810 lbs	4th
A-Wing 2047	Sedan	plastic	280P*	2,520 lbs	5th
Eviscerator	Luxury	plastic	260P*	2,600 lbs	6th
Mob Buster	Luxury	FP plastic	182P*	1,820 lbs	7th
Tony's Van	Van	FPRP plastic	116P	1,624 lbs	8th

*Sloped

Armor ranking was determined on the basis of the percentage of the vehicle's maximum load devoted to armor.

FIREPOWER: Three cars had blast cannons loaded with HESH ammunition. Garth Anderson's "Shredder" had an extra magazine with a partial load of standard explosive ammo. The "Mob Buster" had two blast cannons, one of which was concealed on the right side. Two cars had front-mounted HVMGs loaded with HD ammo; this writer's vehicle (the "Eviscerator") had two of them (can you say ouch??). The "A-Wing 2047" used a pair of front-mounted lasers, while "Boom Boom" used the ever-popular choice of twin ATGs loaded with APFSDS. Tony's van had a pair of front-mounted WGMs (for distance shots) and a turreted laser (for sniping at the top armor on other vehicles). "Black Buticus" had a single front-mounted RL with an extra magazine, both of which were loaded with incendiary rockets. The rockets were guided by a turreted IR medium laser.
    As far as dropped weapons are concerned, every car had them in one form or another (except the "Mob Buster"). Of those which did have them, two had FCEs, two had SDs (1 with explosive spikes, 1 with incendiary spikes), one had an FOJ and one had a pair of MDs loaded with radio-detonated mines. The use of three(! !) bottom-mounted SMDs loaded with radio-detonated TDX mines on the "Shredder" was innovative and lethal. The average damage from this trio can instantly remove the tires from any car (even if they are SB solids). Dischargers rounded out the selection of dropped weaponry, with "Shredder" having six FCDs, Grady Elliot's "Victory" having three HSDs and the "A-Wing 2047" having two sand dischargers and two FODs. Interestingly enough, Tony Kowalchuk's van had a rear-mounted GL which he triggered along with his linked MDs (possibly he was trying to combine their effects).

ACCESSORIES: Seven cars had a computer or computers of some type. Four of those with computers used SWCs, while the other three had HrSwcs. Four cars had HD shocks (including those with HVMGs). Two cars mounted the spoiler/airdam combination, while one ("Boom Boom") had active suspension. Only one car (Tony's van) had wheelguards and one ("Eviscerator") had component armor. Also, four cars had overdrive and two cars had turrets. Additionally, one car had a ram plate. If this car (the "Mob Buster") had been in a position to use it, the championship might have has a very different outcome.

PERFORMANCE: The car with the best handling was "Boom Boom", whose radial solid tires and active suspension gave it an HC of 5. Honors for highest acceleration also go to Jim's car, as its 200-CI gas engine with supercharger and VP turbocharger gave it an acceleration of 20. The "A-Wing 2047" was the fastest car in the arena, with a top speed of 155 mph (including the bonus for overdrive). The other cars had a top speed (including overdrive bonus) of 90 mph, except for "Black Buticus"(top speed: 85 mph) and Tony's van (top speed: 95 mph).

GENERAL NOTES: Among the eight competitors, those cars best suited for front-line combat were "Boom Boom", "Eviscerator" and "A-Wing 2047". These three had the requisite combination of thick frontal armor and heavy firepower. "Black Buticus" is best used as a team player, as its moderate firepower handicaps the driver when contending against more heavily-armed cars. "Shredder" is a classic "wall-hugger" design, invulnerable from the right side (but dead meat if caught anywhere else by decently-heavy weapons). For reasons already stated, beware its TDX mines. "Victory" can be an effective general-purpose war machine if its armor is properly placed. The biggest assets of the "Mob Buster" are its ram plate and concealed blast cannon. As far as Tony's van is concerned, its weapons and armor were far too light for its division.
 

This year was a first. The monster lost in all three sessions. In years past, the players have either only come close to killing the monster, or killing it once or twice. The winners were as follows:
    Thursday - Mike Garrity
     Friday - David Oleksy
     Saturday - Roy Stevens
Each of these three individuals did the most damage to the Godzilla Brothers. However, they needed help to finish the job. A tip of the helmet is given to Mike Garrity, whose unusual style of attack involved airships which dropped laser-guided steel darts that weighed 50 tons each! !. Not surprisingly, all of Mike's vehicle crews survived. Sometimes, the monsters surprised the players. This was obvious after Mike killed one of the creatures, then stood by in amazement as it managed to regenerate itself. Another unpleasant surprise was the use of tag-team wrestling tactics by the monsters. It should be fairly obvious by now that we can get rather silly sometimes.
 

At this year's Gen Con, the hot topic of discussion in a number of events was fire (yes, this pun was intended to be as obvious as it looks). The main point of disagreement was over when a vehicular fire starts causing internal damage. As the rules for fires & explosions are currently read, all you have to do is set a vehicle on fire, then roll for the possibility of an explosion or the effects of a fire extinguisher. Does this make any sense?? We don't think so.
    In NOVA we use a house rule which says that the armor of a vehicle has to be breached by fire damage in order for there to be the possibility of explosion. This takes the bite out of the firebugs out there and makes the duel less like an episode of The A-Team. Also, fire extinguishers only work on internal fires.
 

This issue, we'd like to shine the spotlight on some designs which didn't make it into the Dueling Worlds for one reason or another.

MOBAS (MOBile Armored Strongpoint): Mini-bus, x-hvy chassis, small truck power plant, 10 HD truck tires, driver & gunner, 5 RLs (ammo is ½ explosive and ½ armor-piercing) linked F, turreted BC w/extra magazine, 2 Swc, blow-through concealment for RLs, 10 pts CA on driver, 10 pts CA on gunner, 10 pts CA on power plant, 5 pts CA on linked RLs. Sloped Composite Armor: F18/50, B0/55, R0/60, L0/60, T0/40, U0/5. Acceleration: 2.5/5, HC: 1, Top Speed: 102.5 mph, 14,395 lbs, $49,876.

Battlemaster: Mini-bus, x-hvy chassis, small truck power plant, 10 HD truck tires, driver & gunner, 5 RLs w/blow-through concealment linked F, 2 VMGs in 4-space turret T, 2 linked OJs (1 R, 1 L), HrSwc (RLs), Sloped Composite Armor: F 18/50, B0/60, R0/50, L0/50, T0/44, U0/10. Acceleration: 2.5/5, HC: 1, Top Speed: 102.5 mph, 14,306 lbs, $49,997.

These two rolling nightmares were designed with the original rules for the World Dueling Championship which said that the final round was to be a Division-50 contest. Nothing was ever said about what kind of Division-50 vehicles were allowed. Under this interpretation, a Division-50 Grasshopper was a possibility. Had the GM not realized quickly what would have happened if one of these mini-buses got into the arena, he disallowed them. Not only could either of these vehicles destroy an opponent in a single volley, the merest bump or scrape would have instantly inflicted at least 6d of damage to anyone unlucky enough to be hit (this is considering their DM of 3 and the vulnerability of vehicles with CA frames to double-damage in collisions).

Gloamer: Streamlined luxury w/CA frame, x-hvy chassis, hvy suspension, 150-CI gas engine w/ VP turbocharger & 5-gallon racing tank, 4 SB solid snow tires, driver, PXL (F), TL (F), SD (B), OJ (B), HD shocks, HD brakes, spoiler & airdam, HrSwc (XL), blow-through concealment for XL, laser battery, 3 weapon links (XL, SD & OJ), 10 pts CA on driver, Sloped Armor: F60, B55, R55, L55, T8, U12. Acceleration: 10, HC: 3 (4 at 60 mph+), Top Speed: 70 mph, Base MPG: 45, 6,600 lbs, $49,365.
    This would have been Don Jacques' vehicle in the final round (if he had made it).

WorldFighter: Streamlined luxury w/CA frame, x-hvy chassis, hvy suspension, blueprinted 150-CI gas engine w/tubular headers, VP turbocharger & 5-gallon dueling tank, 4 radial solid snow tires, driver, 2 ATGs w/APFSDS ammo linked F, 2 SDs w/incendiary spikes (1 R, 1 L) linked to ATGs, SS w/hot smoke U, HrSwc, 5 laser-reactive webs (1 F, 1 B, 1 R, 1 L, 1 T) linked to SS, 2 bumper triggers (1 F, 1 B), HD shocks, HD brakes, overdrive, Sloped Composite Armor: F18/49, B0/49, R0/49, L0/49, T0/3, U0/4. Acceleration: 10 (5 w/OD), HC: 4, Top Speed: 77.5 mph (97.5 mph w/ OD), Base MPG: 45, 6,600 lbs, $46,338.
    WorldFighter II: Remove ATGs. Add 3 RRs loaded w/HEAT ammo linked F, 2 extra magazines for SDs (incendiary spikes) and 16 points plastic armor. $48,265.
    WorldFighter II+: Remove extra mags for the SDs, add N₂0 & 5 pts of plastic armor. $47,415.
    Norman designed this vehicle not knowing he was going to be GMing the Championship.
 

"There's always room for improvement" --Unknown

"Another one bites the dust" --Queen

"Good, Better, Best. Never rest until good be better and better be best" --Mother Goose
 

This offering is one of the latest Car Wars-related series to come down the pipe. It takes place in an alternate universe from the original Knight Rider and Knight Rider 2000. It is probably nearer to the present time.
    What do you do when your main character has vanished* and your main HQ character has died?? Survey says "get replacements". The writers for this series have milked the original concept for all it was worth and decided to have more than one super-car. The rogue's gallery of drivers for these vehicles includes The Brain (a human, not an egomaniacal mouse with dreams of world domination), The Boss, The Computer Whiz, The Dumb Girl, The Smart Girl and Duh Jock. These drivers have vehicles to match their roles. They range from cycles to pick-up trucks, and all are equipped with a KITT-type computer. Unlike the original KITT, these vehicles are armed with rockets for defense & attack. Most of the basic vehicles are Ford products, with a convertible Mustang and an Fl50 being the most notable. The new series has also dropped the original motto "one man can make a difference". Each of the new vehicles is almost as indestructible as the original KITT, and each of them has its own flaw (as if KITT didn't have flaws too; How many times did it almost get destroyed?).
    FLAG (The Foundation for LAw and Government) is still around. It operates out of a converted C-5 Galaxy cargo aircraft that has an unbelievable V-TOL (! !) capability. The vast size of this aircraft allowed numerous vehicles to be carried, along with full support capability for them and their crews. This aircraft gives the show a possibile international storyline. Imagine Team Knight Rider dropping in on Europe or South America. Still, one wonders if they have the old Knight estate to use as a home base.
    As a series, Team Knight Rider is still young. It has a great deal of potential growth. One of its most intriguing aspects is that it hints at the original series in almost every episode. This raises the possibility that David Hasselhoff and KITT will make a guest appearance. We can only hope.** *: Babewatch--Michael Knight goes to the beach.

Next issue, we will cover our Club Dueling Championships. The selection of our new Club Champion should be much easier, now that Chris French is no longer among us. We will continue to bring you news of dueling interest as well as other strange stuff. Until our next episode,

"DRIVE OFFENSIVELY"
 
 

Norman McMullen	Michael Garrity
NOVA President	NOVA Secretary

Opening Fire: Norman McMullen

The World "Out There": Norman McMullen

The 10 O'Clock News: Norman McMullen & Michael Garrity

Gen Con 1997 Report: Norman McMullen

A Technical Analysis of the 2047 World Dueling Championship: Michael Garrity

The Godzilla Brothers: Norman McMullen

Nuts & Bolts: Norman McMullen

The Showroom
    MOBAS & Battlemaster: Michael Garrity
    Gloamer: Don Jacques
    WorldFighter: Norman McMullen

Editor: Michael Garrity

Typesetting & Page Layout: Michael Garrity

The Nightmessenger is published quarterly by the New Omaha Vehicular Association, 2524 Madison, Bellevue, NE 68005. All material is copyright 1997 by the New Omaha Vehicular Association. All rights reserved. Car Wars, Dueltrack, Boat Wars, Car Warriors, Crash City, Truck Stop, Convoy, Uncle Albert's Catalog From Hell, Autoduel and AADA are registered trademarks of Steve Jackson Games Incorporated, or are used under license. The above trademarks, and the characters and situations of the Car Wars background are the exclusive property of Steve Jackson Games Incorporated and are used in Nightmessenger under permission. Reproduction of any material published in the Nightmessenger without the express written permission of the publisher is prohibited. Any reproduction of Car Wars articles published in the Nightmessenger, or any unauthorized publication of fiction using the Car Wars background without the express written permission of Steve Jackson Games is strictly prohibited. Subscription rates (for 4 issues): Regularly attending club members-- $4, U.S. subscribers--S6, International subscribers--$12.

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