Yet again, it is time to begin another issue. We have been digging through the NOVA archives and have found some rather interesting devices which we will be good enough to share with you. As this issue is going to press, the World Championships in Dueling & Racing have already been held. The write-up for those events will appear in a special issue of the Nightmessenger which will be published at a later date.

When we review our rather extensive archives on any given day, we are sometimes surprised at what turns up. Examine the following selection of equipment designed to assist one's fellow man in shuffling off the mortal coil and you'll see what we mean.

Umbrellas: Cost; by weapon type, 3 GE. For those with a taste for the finer things in life, we at Gentlemen's Weaponry Incorporated present the following sartorial accessories. All umbrellas are assumed to come with a collapsible riot shield (10 DP).
    SMG: CPS as for normal SMG, $1,250, To-hit: 6, 8 shots.
    Rifle: CPS: as for assault rifle, $900, To-hit: 7, 5 shots, 1d6+1 damage.
    Laser: $3,000, To-hit: 6, 2d6 damage. Recharged as if it were a laser rifle.
    Sword: $350, To-hit: 7. Damage as regular sword.
    Flight: This umbrella functions as an emergency helicopter pack. In helicopter mode it has an acceleration of 5, an HC of 1 and a top speed of 40 mph. The maximum range is 10 miles. Cost: $5,000.
    Flamethrower: $1,000 (unloaded), To-hit: 6, 3 shots, 1d-1 damage, CPS: as for LFT.
    Gas Spray: $800, 3 shots, CPS: as for gas type. This gas sprayed by this umbrella forms a 1/4" x 1/4" counter.
    Grapnel: $800. This umbrella contains a tiny rocket-powered spike and 6" of climbing wire. To use it, aim the spike at a target up to 6" away. Standing on the handle will cause the cable to retract.
 

Nuclear Cluster Bomb: To-hit: 9, Damage: special, CPS: special, 5 spaces, 2,000 lbs, 30 DP. Also known as SATNUC (SATuration NUclear Cluster), this weapon is an armored casing that contains 20 separate .1-KT mini-nukes. After launch, the casing will fall to a pre-determined altitude and break open (scattering the nukes). Each of the mini-nukes is equipped with an elementary targeting system (to-hit: 9) which will allow it to attack any target within a 500" radius of the release point. No more than one mini-nuke will attack the same target.

Neuro-Link: $5,000, no weight or space. A neuro-link is a neural-interface system built into the grip of a single hand weapon, such as a rifle, pistol, SMG, etc. Simply holding the weapon links it to the shooter's mind. This gives a to-hit bonus of +4 for that weapon only. This bonus is cumulative with those provided by handgunner skill. Note that a weapon with a neuro-link has no actual trigger (firing is by nerve impulse).

Hand-Weapon Stabilizer: +200% of weapon cost, 1 GE for two-handed weapons (rifles, SMGs, etc), 0 GE for one-handed weapons (pistols, machine pistols, etc). This option must be specified when a hand weapon is built. It comprises several microminiature gyroscopes built into the frame of the weapon. Their effect is to reduce range penalties for any weapon so equipped by 50% (-1 per 4" now becomes -1 per 8").
 

We would rather not mention what happened at Tacticon right now. Instead, we're saving the write-up for a special issue of the Nightmessenger which is being worked on as this issue goes to press.
    Bill (of DRAW) has had an interesting suggestion for the next Compendium. Along with revising the rules, he says that the roleplaying aspects of Car Wars need to be updated.
    Norman McMullen has started work on a series of Godzilla articles for use as adventure seeds. These are based on the long-running Godzilla events which Norman has (up until this year) run at Gen Con. The first of these should be ready as this column is being written. Check the NOVA website for details. Others will follow as time permits. Norman's "How to" article on running tournaments has been ready for some time. A copy was submitted to SJG for their perusal (the idea was that it be published in the on-line version of Pyramid). However, we have heard nothing back from them on it. Therefore, it has been placed on the NOVA website for the edification of all & sundry.
    Over the last eighteen months, much has happened in the gaming industry. The biggest change was last summer's purchase of TSR by Wizards of the Coast. Already, this colossus has laid its fell hand upon the industry. Their heavy-handed tactics leading up to this year's Gen Con caused SJG, R. Talsorian and others to boycott said convention (the main reason why the World Championships were held at Tacticon).
    In August, SJG experienced their own version of "A Bad Day At Black Rock" when they laid off several of their employees (including Scott Haring; long-time Car Wars editor). Other companies which are in similar straits are Task Force Games (which is in serious financial trouble), and Avalon Hill Games (which is now out of business). Where this latest round of gaming-industry evolution will end up is anybody's guess.
 

Mighty Joe Young. This update of the 1949 release is expected to hit theaters around Christmastime

Star Wars: The Phantom Menace. This long-awaited and much-heralded picture is set for release in May 1999.

Star Trek: Insurrection. This next installment is due out on December 11th, 1998

On Video: Titanic, Godzilla, Deep Rising, The Big Hit, Mr. Nice Guy (Jackie Chan)
 

RadCon: February 12-14, 1999, in Seattle, Washington. This 'Con will be the site of the NW regionals and possibly some chapter rumbles.

Skirmishes '99: July 9-11, 1999, in Kansas City, Missouri. Possible site of the 2049 World Championships.

Origins '99: July 1999. Possible site of the 2049 World Championships.

Gen Con '99: August, 1999. Possible site of the 2049 World Championships (we hope).
 

June 13, 2048: Joe Ratner opened a Hobby City store today. He commented that "I always wanted to get involved in other people's hobbies".

June 30, 2048: The City Accounting Office announced that the NOPD was cleared of any allegations of wrongdoing concerning its present budget. However, they said that they would only authorize funding for one division of Commissioner Death Knight's Tank Police. Death Knight was said to be somewhat disappointed with their decision, but he pledged to abide by it. In other matters, the Accounting Office said that they were beginning to investigate former Police Commissioner Smith's tenure at NOPD. Results are not expected to be available until August.

July 5, 2048: Richard Knight returned to the small screen as the star of a new series called "Team Road Knights". The series has him in charge of a crack team of vigilante autoduelists. Years ago, Richard Knight had a series called "The Road Knight", but it went off the air after massive riots destroyed most of Battle, Nebraska.

July 25, 2048: Michael Shadow bought Battle, Nebraska at a government auction today. This took place a month after the DSA left the United States and gave up all of its holdings. He also nominated Harry Kellerman to be the interim Mayor of the city until the Fall elections. Michael Shadow also announced a major refurbishing project for the city and its amusement park.

July 28, 2048: Harry Kellerman announced that the Battle Racetrack and the Fizbin Arena will open next Spring. He further said that Merc, Incorporated and Omatechnologies will open facilities in the city.

July 29, 2048: Harry Kellerman re-opened the Triple Death Arena in Battle, Nebraska. To mark the occasion, a celebrity all-star duel was held. Participants in the match included Joseph Ratner (NOVA President), Police Commissioner Death Knight, The Weasel, Bill the Cat (Mayor of New Omaha), Richard Knight (TV Star) and several others from around the Midwest.

August 8, 2048: Mike Garrity defeated Norman McMullen and Don Jacques in a pre-Worlds warm-up duel which was held at the Hickok Arena in Deadwood, SD.

August 20, 2048: Michael Shadow opened yet another dueling arena in Battle, Nebraska. This facility has yet to be named.

August 28, 2048: Harry Kellerman named Adam Wells as the new Police Commissioner of Battle, Nebraska. He jokingly commented that "There will be no terminators here, ever!!", apparently referring to certain incidents from his past.

August 30, 2048: Harry Kellerman announced the construction of the Aerodrome Speedway in Battle, Nebraska. It should be completed by next summer, and will hopefully host future racing championships.

September 3, 2048: In a landslide election, Harry Kellerman was chosen to be the mayor of Battle, Nebraska.

September 6, 2048: Michael Shadow announced that ARC will open another manufacturing plant in Battle, Nebraska. Radius Motors, Blaster Motors and ACE also announced similar openings.
 

Terminators
These cyborg warriors from the future are relentless, remorseless hunters. They are among the most dangerous foes any duelist will ever face. Their purpose is to hunt down and kill all humans. A giant computer called Skynet controls their design & production, using them for its own dark designs. Early versions of the terminator were easy to spot, as they had rubber skin. More advanced models (such as the Cyberdine systems Model 101; AKA the T-800) had a covering made of living tissue. These versions were very difficult to spot, as they were specifically designed to resist detection. More advanced models are rumored to exist.
    The T-800 has 2 DP of flesh covering 10 DP of metal. It has all vehicle operation skills (driver, cyclist, etc) at the level of +3. Its other skills (gunner, handgunner, mechanic, medic & computer) are also +3. A T-800 can perfectly imitate any voice it hears and is highly adaptable to any situation.
    A T-1000 is the most advanced model known to exist. It has 15 DP of liquid metal, and takes no damage from projectile weapons. Explosive projectiles will scatter the T-1000's body, but it will eventually re-form. A T-1000 takes half-damage from lasers (because of the energy-dispersal qualities of its liquid metal body. It can only be destroyed by exposure to intense heat, such as is generated by molten steel or lava from a volcano.
    Terminators are said to come from a future time, where the world was ravaged by a nuclear holocaust. Another theory has them coming from a parallel dimension. Certain corporations are rumored to possess the highly-advanced technology necessary to build them. They could also be the result of a super-secret government project. No one knows for sure.

"The sleeper must awaken." --Dune

"It's hard to beat a person who never gives up." --Babe Ruth

"You are more than what you have become." --The Lion King

"You pay a price for getting stronger. You pay a price for going faster. You pay a price for jumping higher. You pay a price for staying just the same." --The Price; H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

"Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, prepare for death." --Ancient Klingon Proverb

"Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, let's make a deal." --267th Rule of Acquisition
 

Dog & Pony Show: A derogatory remark made by members of Big-League Unlimited Dueling (BLUD) and some street duelists. It's what they think of an AADA arena event.

Buckwheat: To be killed in the slowest and most painful way imaginable. From the movie "Things to do in Denver when You're Dead".
 

This summer has seen the return of Godzilla, as well as some unwelcome visitors from outer space. Does anyone remember films like "Meteor" or "When Worlds Collide"?

Armageddon: A world-killing comet (which happens to be the size of Texas) is headed towards Earth, and the Human race has only 18 days to stop it. Two space shuttles with a crew of astronauts and oil-riggers are sent to the comet, their objective being to place nuclear weapons below its surface and blow it up. I'm not going to spoil it by telling what happens along the way. Notable stars in this movie include Bruce Willis, Liv Tyler, Ben Afflect, Billy Bob Thornton, Steve Buscemi and Peter Stormare.***

Deep Impact: While working for MSNBC, Tea Leoni discovers a story with world-shaking implications. It is a meteor the size of Mount Everest, and it's headed directly towards Earth. In the months after the breaking of the story, a desperate plan is hatched in order to destroy the meteor (named E.L.E: Extinction-Level Event). The plan has a new spaceship built in orbit, which will then carry a crew of astronauts and several nuclear weapons to the meteor's surface. The objective is to knock it off course so that it will miss the Earth. Needless to say, things don't go quite as planned.**

Mean Guns: Starring Christopher Lambert and Ice-T, this movie has the Syndicate bringing together forty of its toughest assassins at a brand-new prison (before it opens). The Syndicate offers ten million dollars to the top three in this select group. The assassins have six hours to find out who is the best among them, and lots of them die trying. This movie is filled with gunfights, fist fights, martial-arts battles and other assorted pedestrian mayhem. There's not much blood (surprisingly), but there's a great deal of action. No one knows who will survive it all, because there are deals and double-crosses galore. This movie would be great as the source for a pedestrian-style Car Wars event. Renting it is highly-recommended.***
 

July 11th, 2048; Broken Heart Arena, Valentine, NE.
    Mike Garrity, Norman McMullen and Don Jacques faced off in the first event, which was a Division-20 duel. Mike entered from the east, Don from the west and Norman from the south. Mike and Norman turned towards each other, and all duelists took this opportunity to speed up. Don headed towards the center obstacle, while Norman hit Mike with his ATG (doing moderate damage). Mike and Norman closed on each other, with Mike hitting Norman's right side (doing minor damage). Then, he fired three MFRPs into that side. Norman's armor was instantly breached. His power plant was destroyed and the driver injured. Norman surrendered to Mike and coasted towards the nearest gate.
    Don went up the side of the center obstacle, losing 10 mph of speed. At the top, he fired his corner-mounted SDs. Mike came up shortly thereafter, and collided with Don head-on near the top. Don fired three HRs into Mike's front armor, causing major damage. The two combatants were now deadlocked together. Don's pickup pushed Mike's luxury back. He then fired his LMG into Mike's front, doing minor damage to his power plant. Mike saw himself in a losing position and surrendered to Don.

Results: 1st Place--Don Jacques, 2nd Place--Mike Garrity, 3rd Place--Norman McMullen

The second event was a Division-30 duel in which all of the obstacles, debris and dropped weapons from the first duel were left in place. This made things a little complicated for the intrepid duelists. Don, Mike and Norman entered from the same gates as in the first duel. Mike and Norman again engaged each other. Norman's RR hit Mike's front armor. In passing, Norman sideswiped Mike; this triggered his icedropper and spikedropper. A side-mounted MML was also autofired (by bumper trigger). The MML shot missed, and Norman turned to clear the battle area. Don now engaged Mike in a head-on battle. Mike returned the complement with a barrage of fire that lasted for several turns. Don's front armor was breached and his driver was killed. Norman circled back around just as Mike finished off Don.

Norman and Mike traded shots, with Mike inflicting heavy damage to Norman's front armor. Norman barely scratched Mike's front. Again, shots were exchanged. Mike got the better hits. He rammed Norman from the front, breaching the car's armor, destroying the RR and damaging the power plant. Norman surrendered to Mike, giving him the win.

Results: 1st Place--Mike Garrity, 2nd Place--Norman McMullen, 3rd Place--Don Jacques

Pre-World Championship Warm-up Duel

We designed an arena that was basically similar to the Eye in the Pyramid, except that it had eight sides (not nine) and four jumps (instead of three). Of course, we didn't forget to include the gates. The event was a Division-15 duel, with Mike Garrity, Norman McMullen and Don Jacques participating. The three duelists entered the arena, with Don going 40 mph, Mike going 60 mph and Norman at 50 mph. All three headed towards the nearby ramps and went up to the second level. Mike started chasing Don. He auto-fired his spikedropper (for three shots) at the top of the ramps, scoring every checkpoint enroute. Don caught most of his checkpopints and triggered his paint spray in order to deter Mike, but was penalized for using a dropped weapon in a prohibited zone. Norman turned towards them and scored a couple of checkpoints before doing a jump. He avoided some spikes at the end of the ramp he was on and scored another checkpoint.
    The checkpointing went on for a good 15 turns. Don mad a jump and got almost all the checkpoints. Mike got all the checkpoints and went down to the bottom level, scoring three of the targets. Norman scored three jumps and about half of the checkpoints. Norman led the field in point totals (due to the jump multipliers). Mike was close behind him and Don was a distant third because of his point penalties.
    The real combat started with Norman firing his ATG at Mike (who was airborne at the time), doing average damage to Mike's front armor. Mike returned fire with his turreted RR and inflicted minor damage on Norman. The duelists circled around and combat then took place between Mike and Don. Don made a jump and was hit hard by Mike while airborne. Mike then made his jump and Don lost control upon landing. He skidded off the ramp into the wall next to one of the gates on the lower level. He was knocked unconscious for four turns and his vehicle rolled out of the arena.
    Norman and Mike now turned their attention towards each other. Norman collected several more checkpoints, which put him ahead of Mike in the point standings. Mike let Norman ahead into an area which he had previously planted with spikes. Norman went straight towards Mike, who had a choice of either running into Norman or running over his own spikes. He did neither, performing a hard swerve which put him onto the lower level. The impact destroyed all of his tires and caused him to spin out.
    Norman ran over some spikes and lost two of his tires. He skidded off the upper level. Amazingly, he scored while doing so. Upon landing, he lost his other tires and came to a halt. Mike started firing his turreted RR and breached Norman's side armor after four turns. Norman surrendered, giving Mike the win.

Results: 1st Place--Mike Garrity, 2nd Place--Norman McMullen, 3rd Place--Don Jacques
 

In this installment, we strike back with a formidable series of convoy frontliners from Radius Motors. Can you say "Run away, Run Away"??

Alpha Strike: Streamlined 40' bus, x-hvy chassis, regular power plant, 10 PR truck tires, driver & 2 gunners, 6 laser-guided VFRPs w/ AP ammo linked F, laser guided VFRP w/ AP ammo in 4-space universal turret TF, 4 MGs in 4-space universal turret TB, 2 IrTls w/ Lgls (1 F, 1 in front turret), 3 linked SDs w/ incendiary spikes (1 RB, 1 LB, 1 B), cyberlink (front VFRPs), HrSwc (rear turret), smart link (front VFRPs/front turret), radar, radar detector, radar jammer, LD radio, 2 bumper triggers (1 F, 1 B), 6 10-pt FPRP wheelguards, Sloped FPRP Armor: F70, B60, RF65, RB65, LF65, LB65, TF65, TB65, UF20, UB20. Acceleration: 2.5/5, HC: 1, Top Speed: 122.5 mph, 25,192 lbs, $274,610.
    Beta Strike: Remove VFRPs, MGs & 1 IrTl. Add 20 laser-guided HRs linked F and 2 VMGs to each turret. Add 3 points armor. $195,288.
    Gamma Strike: Remove VFRPs, MGs, cyberlink & IrTls. Remove 17 points of armor. Add 2 75-mm TGs w/ APFSDS ammo linked F. Add 1 BC w/ HESH ammo to each turret. $203,018.
    Delta Strike: Remove VFRPs, MGs & IrTl. Remove cyberlink, laser-guidance links & smart link. Add 20 APRGMs linked F and 3 SAMs in rear turret. Add 3 3-space rocket magazines w/ HARM rockets. Lose 5 points armor. $330,226.
    Theta Strike: Remove VFRPs, IrTls & Lgls. Remove cyberlink. Add 14 VMGs. Lose 134 points armor. $185,376.
    Sigma Strike: Remove VFRPs, IrTls, & Lgls. Remove cyberlink. Add 14 RRs. $197,060.
    Pi Strike: Remove VFRPs & MGs. Remove cyberlink. Add 12 RLs. $218,310.
 

Well, the big lizard is beginning to sing; said vocalization signaling the end of yet another issue of this august publication. My, how time flies when the keyboard is being pounded. As stated in Opening Fire, we will cover the World Championships in a special extra issue which should be ready for release some time in late December or early January. I have a feeling that its going to hurt. On a more pleasant note, the regular winter issue will cover our upcoming club championships. Topics to be included in Nuts & Bolts will be the Predators and other alien nasties. We may also have further news on the status of SJG and all the rumors floating around it. Wherefore, this discourse be at an end.

Until next time, keep your car on the road and your weapons hot. Most of all,

"DRIVE OFFENSIVELY"
 

Norman McMullen	Michael Garrity
NOVA President	NOVA Secretary

 

NOVA Works: Michael Garrity

The 10 O'clock News: Norman McMullen

Nuts & Bolts: Norman McMullen & Michael Garrity

Quotes: Norman McMullen & Michael Garrity

Duelslang: Michael Garrity & Norman McMullen

Cube Logs/In the Arena: Norman McMullen

The Showroom: Norman McMullen

Typesetting & Page Layout: Michael Garrity

Editors: Michael Garrity & Norman McMullen

The Nightmessenger is published quarterly by the New Omaha Vehicular Association, 2524 Madison St, Bellevue, NE 68005. All material is copyright 1998 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) are: Regularly attending club members: $4.00, U.S. subscribers: $6.00, International subscribers: $12.00.

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