Jeffro’s Car Wars Blog

“The bike I rode had a front armor weight of 180 pounds; it could stop blasts from twin Vulcans, and often did.  My bike had a vulcan mounted front and a smokescreen rear; this was about average for my gang.”

 – Fred Wolke, Bethel CT, ADQ 4/1

Hephaestus — Heavy cycle with CA frame, hvy suspension, medium cycle plant with superconductors, 2 PR tires, cyclist, VMG with 10 shots of ammo front, SS back.  Armor: F 30, B 7, two 9 point cycle wheelguards, 10 points CA around power plant, 10 points CA around SS.  Acceleration 10, Top Speed 120 mph, weighs 1,298 lbs, costs $10,124.

[I don't think CA frames or half-space cycle component armor was available back when Fred wrote his letter, but maybe he had some sources on the black market that I don't know about.  Anyways, this design was built with the Compenium 2e rules just to see if it could be done.  Does it make sense for a gang to be riding around in $10,000 cycles?  Not sure about that, but  if that's average... then there's some dudes riding around on 15 to 20 grand worth o' hog!]

[Edited 3/22/06 to correct a design error.]

Tired of not being taken seriously because you’re riding on a mere 2 wheels?  Don’t worry– times are changing.  When that chip on your shoulder turns out to be a pair of heavy rockets, folks will be pulling to the right to let you cruise on by.  The Psycho… a perilous cycle for perilous times.  Test drive one today at your local Cycle Concepts dealer.

PSYCHO.  Heavy cycle, large cycle power plant, hvy. suspension, PR tires.  Armor F 18, B 15.  Mounts one MG with 10 shots of ammo and two linked HRs front.  HC 2, acceleration 10 mph.  Weight 1,298 lbs.; costs $5,196.

[This cycle was built with just the original pocket box edition of Car Wars.  Five of these little thugs can take on a four wheeler in the classic Pack Attack scenario.  Just take along 5 sets of body armor, 10 grenades, one SMG, and two targeting computers.]

The Cretan 420 is a limited run concept car that appeared at the 2042 Combat Showcase.  It raised eyebrows in its day, and was the subject of more than its share of footage of spectacular flaming explosions.  Today it is something of a collector’s item and autodueling connoisseurs are willing to pay incredible sums for them.

Mid-sized, x-hvy chassis, hvy suspension, 150 cid engine, 5 gallon duel tank with 5 gallons of gas, 4 solid tires, driver, Gatling Canon spinal mounted front with 10 rounds of HD ammo, PS back, spoiler, airdam, HD shocks, SWC.  Armor (Metal/Plastic): F 15/30, R 0/30, L 0/30, B 0/30, T 0/12, U 0/12, 2 10 point Armored Wheel Hubs front, 2 10 point Wheelguards back.  Accel. 5, Top Speed 60 mph, 5,697 lbs, $24,204.

For Division 25 dueling, take Body Armor, a Portable Fire Extinguisher, a Sub-machine Gun and a Grenade.  (Brings total cost to $24,999.)

[This vehicle was designed with Compendium 2e rules.  It uses the Gatling Cannon from Aeroduel and the Spinal Mount rules from the "Evil Stevie Returns" article in ADQ 10/4.  The GC gives a D2 hazard each time it is fired, but the HD shocks bring it down to a mere D1 hazard.  This maneuverable car packs a big punch and can take a lickin', but it's slow and vulnerable to incendiary attacks.  But really... who brings incendiary weapons to Division 25 when fireproof armor is so affordable?  And do you really need to go so fast when your weapons give you a hazard every turn?!] 

The Grendel is a small bus built for short runs through extremely dangerous areas.  Passenger space is sacrificed for extra weaponry.  Twin ATG’s make this bus a nightmare to have on your tail, while minedroppers make it a foe best not followed.  With 4 turret mounted RRs, there’s really no good arc of fire to in which to engage this monster.  Perhaps its only weakness is its relatively light armor.

GRENDEL.  30′ bus; extra-heavy chassis; regular truck power plant; 10 solid tires.  Armor F 30, B 30, FR 30, BR 30, FL 30, BL 30, FT 25, BT 25, FU 20, BU 20.  Turrets with linked RRs front and back; two linked ATGs front; MD back linked to MD back left linked to MD back right.  Driver plus gunner; each have hi-res computers.  7 passengers, 1 extra cargo space with up to 210 lbs.  Weight 18, 990 lbs. (full); price $80,050.

[Note: this vehicle was designed only with rules and equipment from the original Car Wars and Truck Stop pocket box games.  Drop one shot of MD ammo to meet the $80,000 price limit for the Pack Attack scenario from Truck Stop.]

Carry that load with class– and protect it with triple machineguns in a full 360 degree arc.  The Marshall: a no nonsense hauler at a price that can’t be beat.  And if you’re expecting an unusally nasty amount of trouble, check out our standard options for an extra 1200 pounds of rocket power.

MARSHALL.  Van; x-hvy chassis, hvy suspension, super power plant, 6 solid tires.  Armor F 20, R 15, L 15, B 20, T 20, U 10.  Mounts 3 linked MGs in turret.  Carries fire extinguisher.  19 cargo spaces.  Maximum cargo load 1200 lbs.  HC 2, acceleration 5 mph.  Weight 6,000 lbs; cost $19,950.

“Slugfest” Option — Add 5 linked RLs back each with 8 shots of ammo.  Hi-res Computer.  No cargo.  Weight 7,200 lbs; cost $30,350.

“Broadside” Option — Add 6 linked HRs right and 6 linked HRs left.  Targeting Computer.  No cargo.  Weight 7200 lbs; cost $23,350.

[Note: this vehicle was designed with just rules and equipment from the original Car Wars and Truck Stop pocket box games.  I built it to be a no-frills $20,000 road car that fills out the range of concepts presented in the original AADA Vehicle Guide.]

You’ve seen Derran Mcgwire stomp the Southeastern Division 20 circuit in his infamous Wolverine–  now you can experience the power of triple recoiless rifle satisfaction for yourself.  Obliterate the competition with this unbelievable bargain!

WOLVERINE.  Luxury; x-hvy chassis, hvy. suspension, super power plant, solid tires, driver, passenger.  Armor F 30, R 30, L 30, B 30, T 15, U15.  Mounts three linked RR’s front; MG, PS, and SD back.  Carries fire extinguisher and targeting computer.  HC 3; acceleration 5 mph.  Weight 6,550 lbs; costs $20,000.

[Notes:  This vehicle was built with just the rules from the original pocket box Car Wars.  In the original AADA Vehicle Guide, only one Luxury design ("The Moose") had the maximum 6 spaces of weaponry pointing in a single arc.]

The Calamari: a versatile workhorse for the highways of the 2040’s. 

Station Wagon, extra heavy chassis, heavy suspension, large power plant with Superconductors, 4 Solid tires, Driver, Passenger, RL with AP rockets in universal turret, RL with AP rockets front, smartlink, SD (explosive spikes) left linked to SD (explosive spikes) right, link from spikes to turret, HD shocks, HRSWC.  Cargo Capacity: 7 spaces, 500 lbs.  Armor: F 38, R 27, L 27, B 35, T 30, U 20, 2 10 point wheel guards back, 2 10 point armored wheel hubs front.  Acceleration 5, Top Speed 95 (without cargo), Top Speed 90 (with cargo), HC 3, 6,600 lbs, $23,190.

Personal Equipment: 2 PFE’s, 2 BA’s, 1 Heavy AV rifle, 2 tear gas grenades, 2 explosive grenades.  Adds $1,810 to cost, totaling to $25,000.

[This design is built according to rules in the Compendium Second Edition.]

Here’s a cycle to pull the CTS I put together a few days ago.  I’ve downgraded the armor on the sidecar to standard and added a 4 point wheelguard instead.

Light cycle, Heavy suspension, Large Cycle Plant, 2 PR tires, Cyclist.  Armor: F 18, B 15, 2 10 point Cycle Wheelguards.  Acceleration 15, HC 2, 797 lbs, $3,030.

2 space CTS, Light suspension, 1 PR tire, Light Laser in turret, Light Rocket in turret, Light Rocket front, Laser Guidance Link with tuning for both rockets.  Standard Armor: F 1, R 0, L 1, B 1, T 1, U 1.  10 points CA on light laser, 10 points CA on front rocket, 1 4 point cycle wheelguard.  HC 0, 798 lbs, $6,720.

With the sidecar, Acceleration drops to 10, weight goes up to 1595 lbs, and cost goes up to $9,750. 

At division 10, that leaves just enough money left over for some body armor!  You get unlimited ammo, solid accuracy, and good acceleration with this entry– not to mention a fairly heavy one shot punch.

[This design is built according to rules in the Compendium Second Edition.]

Here’s a one-of-a-kind sidecar that never made it into mass production.  This design (and others like it) occasionally turned up in Division 15 cycle duels and also on cycle gang leaders’ bikes. 

2 space CTS, Light suspension, 1 PR tire, Light Laser in turret, Light Rocket in turret, Light Rocket front, Laser Guidance Link with tuning for both rockets.  LR Armor: F 1, R 0, L 1, B 1, T 1, U 1.  10 points CA on light laser, 10 points CA on front rocket.  HC 0, 798 lbs, $6,713.[This design is built according to rules in the Compendium Second Edition.]