This is an attempt to create a modern, open, relatively light game similar to Car Wars. These rules are still very much under development; feel free to edit this page and improve it.

Yes, that means I want you to update these rules. You, the one reading this. It's Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike licensed.

This system uses only six-sided dice and graph paper.

It was when a tank of gas hit $200 that things really got bad.

The Middle Easterners just clammed up; don't think they ever really liked us anyhow. Air travel became a luxury only for the super-rich. Then came the riots all over the place, and the Oil Recession, and the New Great Depression. Then the war, of course; at least that's over now.

Now oil's become a little more local and a little easier to find, but it's still precious. Not that it stops the kids from racing around the wastelands, robbing and torturing any clutch of good folk they happen to find. Not that there's much else to find; the riots drove away most of the city-folk to villages.

Which is why we need you. A driver. A new breed, with the firepower to drive away the jackals and take back a piece of the new world.

In the game, you play the driver of a car, which you build based on the following stats:

• Frame
  • Light 8 max speed, 170 pound capacity
  • Medium 6 max speed, 200 pounds capacity
  • Heavy 4 max speed, 300 pound capacity
• Engine
  • 4-cylinder
  • 6-cylinder +1 to max speed, extra 30 pounds
  • 8-cylinder +2 to max speed, extra 60 pounds
• Tires
  • Normal
  • Reinforced extra 20 pounds
• Armor 1 point per 1 pound, up to 30 pounds on each side (front, back, left, right, top, and bottom)
• Weapons
  • Light machine gun 2 power, 10 pounds, 10 range
  • Heavy machine gun 4 power, 20 pounds, 12 range
  • Flamethrower 5 power, 40 pounds, 6 range
  • Rocket launcher 7 power, 50 pounds, 20 range, 3 rounds; must have its own grid square; only hits with a 3-6 on a die roll
  • Grenade launcher 5 power, 40 pounds, 25 range, 3 rounds; must have its own grid square; only hits with a 2-6 on a die roll; targets top armor
  • Handgun 1 power, 2 pounds, 12 range, 8 rounds
• Options
  • Gunner 150 pounds
  • Kevlar vest for driver 10 pounds, 5 extra damage points
  • Targeting computer 5 pounds
  • Auto-rotating mount for one weapon 25 pounds; must have its own grid square; requires a targeting computer
  • Smokescreen generator 25 pounds; must have its own grid square. When fired, it generates a 2 square by 2 square cloud of smoke directly behind the car.

If playing a short game, drivers have 20 damage points. If playing a long game, drivers have 50 damage points.

Your car is placed on a grid (using standard graph paper); each square represents approximately 1 square yard. Your car is 2 squares wide by 4 squares long.

The driver, engine, weapons, and any options that don't state that they modify another item must all be located on one of the eight squares of your car's grid. Up to three weapons can share a space, unless they say otherwise. On a motorcycle, the driver and engine both take up one square.

Weapons placed on one side of the car or another are pointing in that direction. If it's ambiguous for some reason, you must choose a facing (draw a little arrow indicating your choice), unless the weapon is mounted on an auto-rotating mount.

Always round down.

Here's what happens during each turn:

1. Everyone simultaneously moves their vehicles forward according to their speed.
2. Everyone simultaneously makes a Maneuver action.
3. In sequence, each player makes an Attack action.

Each player may skip his or her Maneuver action or Attack action (or both).

If people seem to be cheating about their movements, feel free to require each player to write down their Maneuver action before performing it.

You can accelerate or decelerate 1 square per turn. Based on your frame and engine, you max out at a certain number of squares per turn (6 for a medium frame and 4-cylinder engine).

If you skip your Maneuver action, your vehicle maintains its current speed.

You can turn your car up to 45 degrees during your turn, but you must decelerate by 1 square before doing so.

If you attempt to maintain your speed when you turn, roll a die. On a 3-6, you succeed. On a 2, you spin out (see below). On a 1, re-roll; if you get a second 1 your car flips, while on any other number you spin out.

If you're holding a handgun, you re-roll on a 1 or 2, spin out on a 3 or 4, and succeed on a 5 or 6.

If you attempt to increase your speed by 1 when you turn, roll a die. On a 5-6, you succeed. On a 3-4, you spin out (see below). On a 1-2, re-roll; if you get a second 1 or 2 your car flips, while on any other number you spin out.

If you want to do a 90-degree turn, you must decelerate by 1, and follow the rules as if you were accelerating during a turn.

Motorcycles can perform a 90-degree turn as a standard maneuver, without any die roll.

If you want to do a 180-degree turn, roll a six-sided die. If you roll a 1, your car flips and explodes. If you roll a 2-4, you spin out. Rolling 5 or 6 has no other effect.

Motorcycles can perform bootlegger reverses as a standard maneuver, without any die roll.

If you want to slow down dramatically, decelerate by 2 squares and roll a six-sided die. If you roll a 1, you slide 1 square to the left. If you roll a 2, you slide 1 square to the right. Rolling 3 through 6 has no other effect.

When a motorcycle slides, it has a chance of flipping. When sliding on a motorcycle, roll a die. On a 1-3, you flip; on a 4-6 you're fine.

If you spin out, you may take no more actions this turn. Next turn, your entire maneuver action is taken up by turning your vehicle another 45 degrees (a total of 90 degrees from your original position), reducing your speed to 0.

If you have the unfortunate misfortune to slam into another vehicle at high speed, calculate damage as follows.

If you sideswipe another vehicle (both are going in about the same direction, but one turns towards the other), each car takes one die of damage (roll separately for each car). Each car's speed decreases by 1.

If one car rams into the side of another car, then for each car, roll one die per point of speed that the car was going, halve that number, and take that many points of damage. So, if the first was going 2 and the other was going 3, the first rolls 2 dice and takes half the result in damage, and the second rolls 3 dice and takes half the result in damage. Each car's speed decreases by 2.

If two cars hit each other head-on, each car takes one die of damage per point of speed it was going. So, if the first was going 2 and the second was going 3, the first takes 2 dice of damage and the second takes 3 dice. Each car's speed drops to 0.

• Active ground hazards
  • Spike strip 2 power, 1 die damage. After entering this square, tires are popped; lose 1 speed per turn.
  • Speed bump. If going less than 3 speed, slow speed by 1. If going over 3, decrease speed to 2 and take 1 die damage.
  • Light mine 1 power, 1 die damage.
  • Medium mine 2 power, 1 die + 2 damage. These mines are larger, and must be dug about a foot into the ground.
  • Military-grade mine 3 power, 1 die + 4 damage. These mines are expensive and rare outside of military defenses.
• Passive ground hazards
  • Oil slick
  • Pool of water
  • Ice patch
  • Potholes
• Passive air hazards
  • Cloud of smoke
• Obstacles
  • Animals and bystanders
  • Fruit stands

If you enter a square containing a passive hazard on the ground (oil, water, etc.), roll a die.

If you have regular tires, then on a 1 you decelerate by 1 and shift to the left; on a 2 you decelerate by 1 and shift to the right. On a roll of 3-6 there's no effect.

If you have reinforced tires, then on a 1 you decelerate by 1 and shift to the left or right (your choice). On a roll of 2-6 there's no effect.

If you enter a square containing an active hazard (like a mine), roll a die + the hazard's power. If you roll more than 3, the hazard hits, and deals the damage specified by the hazard.

Obstacles do an amount of damage equivalent to the size and sturdiness of the obstacle. Treat these like mines.

You must make this roll every time you enter a square containing a hazard, even if you must do so multiple times in one turn.

During your attack action, you can fire all the weapons facing in one direction on your vehicle. So, if you have two weapons facing front and one weapon facing rear, you can either fire both of the front-facing weapons or you can fire the rear-facing weapon.

If you have a gunner, the gunner can also attack during the attack action, after the driver's attack.

Weapons can target any vehicle in a 45-degree arc in front of that weapon. Weapons can only target one vehicle.

To attack, roll 3 dice, subtracting distance and relative speed. Distance is the number of squares between the weapon you're firing and the side of the vehicle you're attacking, including partial squares. Relative speed is the absolute difference between your vehicle's speed and the speed of the vehicle you're attacking.

If you want to specifically target an attack at one item on a car side with no armor (such as the driver), subtract another 1.

If firing through a smokescreen, subtract 1 for each square of smoke you're firing through.

If you roll a 3 or above, you hit.

Examples

You are 3 and a half squares behind your enemy, both going the same speed.
Roll 3 dice.  You roll a 1, a 4, and a 5, totaling 10.
Subtract the 4 squares of distance (including that half square), for a total attack of 6.
This is above 3, so you hit.

You are 3 and a half squares behind an enemy.  You're going 2; he's going 3.
Roll 3 dice.  You roll a 1, a 2, and a 3, totaling 6.
Subtract the 4 squares of distance, and the difference of 1 between your speeds, for a total attack of 1.
This is below 3, so you miss.

To calculate damage, roll a die, add the weapon's power, and subtract the total from points of armor on the side most facing you.

Once all the armor is removed from one side of a car, future hits damage the driver or any weapons or options on that side of the vehicle. Roll 1d6 to randomly determine where the damage goes. (In case of four choices, roll twice to choose two, then roll off between those two; in case of 5 choices… you'll figure something out.)

Weapons take as many points of damage as they have power.

If your driver drops to 0 or fewer damage points, the driver dies. However, your vehicle is still moving! On your turn, roll a die to determine what happens.

On a 1-2, your car flips and explodes. On a 1, slide the car 2 squares to the left. On a 2, slide the car 2 squares the right.

On a 3-4, decelerate by 1.

On a 5-6, accelerate by 1.

If you are involved in a collision, you immediately explode.

At any time, the driver may leave his or her vehicle. If the car is moving, roll one die per point of speed the car was going, and deal one-quarter the rolled amount as damage to the driver.

People move up to 4 squares per turn and take up 1 square. They can move any number of squares per turn in any direction, with no acceleration or deceleration. They may take and wield handguns, and can fire them in any direction.

Of course, you can also build a truck, van, or motorcycle. Vans are 2×5 squares, while motorcycles are 1×3 squares. Vans may only take medium or heavy frames; motorcycles may only take a light frame.

Download a blank record sheet for your car (PDF).

Medium frame, 4-cylinder engine
Armor: 10 points on front, back, and sides; 5 points on the top and underside
Weapons: 2 heavy machine guns (pointed front and rear) and 1 flamethrower (pointed front)
Options: 1 Kevlar vest for the driver
Max speed: 6

Light frame, 6-cylinder engine
Armor: 5 points all around, plus an extra 5 points on each side
Weapons: 1 light machine gun (pointed front), 1 heavy machine gun (pointed right)
Options: Reinforced tires
Max speed: 8

Heavy frame, 4-cylinder engine
Armor: 20 points on the left and right; 15 points on front, back, top, and underside
Weapons: 1 rocket launcher mounted in rear, 1 flamethrower (pointed forward), and one heavy machine gun (pointed forward)
Options: Reinforced tires
Max speed: 4

Tournament play is an arena game in which each player builds 3 vehicles. Each driver can, at any time, leave his or her vehicle. Once a driver makes it off the arena, his or her player can re-enter the arena with his or her next vehicle.