The Driver's Seat

Charles A. Oines

Summer is almost past us, there's been a total eclipse of the moon, we've easily got a box full of Ob-Racing contest entries (see ADQ 7/2 for details), Boat Wars, Second Edition has gone off to the printers and will be on the shelves before you read this, the 2039 AADA World Championships are over, first and second place were taken by two River City locals, and I've managed to inflict my mail on my roommate and editorial assistant, who's pretty much wiped out the backlog of letters. Whew. Things seem to be getting back to what passes for normal here at the SJ Games Bunker. Speaking of Boat Wars, I have a short note from Steve on the manuscript:

RE Oil Jets: "No effect in water." Wrong.

1. They ruin ducks.
2. They calm the water over a small area.
3. They infuriate environmentalists.
4. They upset people who think they might be FOJs.

Anyways…

We've got another packed issue for y'all. Our cover story is a fiction piece entitled And, of Course, It was Black, which pretty well sums up the story on its own. If you find that your MONDOs are regularly being pounded by everyone they meet, check out The Pedestrians Strike Back, a lecture on infantry tactics in the 2040s, reported by Craig Sheeley. Strafing and Rockets in Aeroduel presents a sneak peek at some new, optional rules for Car Wars. Catch up with the current computer technology in the second installment of The State of the Art. We've also got errata for the Car Wars Compendium (subtitled The Oops from Hell), with revised weapons tables and most of the other things you expect from ADQ.

Back issue update: We still have copies of ADQ 3/1, 3/2, 3/3, 3/4, 4/1, 4/2, and everything after 5/3 available at our regular address: Steve Jackson Games, Box 18957, Austin, TX 787608957. The price is $4.00, which includes postage and handling, per issue. Texas residents please add 7.25% sales tax.

Starting Chapters

We constantly get questions on how to start AADA chapters, and I guess it has been a rather long time since we last printed the requirements in ADO, so here goes:

You need five people who are members of the AADA - that is, five people who have subscriptions to Autoduel Quarterly Fill out the application form on the inside back mailer cover of the latest ADQ (which, I suppose, is this one) and mail it, with a check or money order for $15.00 (U.S. funds drawn on a U.S. bank, please!) to the AADA, Box 18957, Austin, TX 78760-8957. Please put "Attention: Chapter Charter" on the envelope so we know who to route it to.

For a sponsored club (run by a hobby shop or similar), all we need is a copy of either an invoice or a standing order form showing that five or more copies of each issue of Autoduel Quarterly are purchased. Subscription numbers are not needed. We do require the $15.00 charter fee, though.

If you don't want to deface your mailer cover and can't make a photo copy, you can just send the information on a plain piece of paper (please write legibly or type, though!). The information we need is:

1. The proposed name of your chapter. It can be as mundane (River City Autoduel Association) or be as strange (Five Neanderthals Out to Rake in Dough - FNORD! for short) as you would like to make it. We only have two rules about names: You may not use the name of any existing organization (like Prudential Insurance) or of any chapter that has previously chosen the name you want; and certain names which are patently offensive or could get us into legal trouble will not be allowed. You should give us your second choice of chapter name, just in case.
2. We need the names and membership numbers of the five founding members of the chapter (in the case of a private club) or the aforementioned invoice/standing order form from your sponsor. We do accept subscriptions along with charter payments; if you are subscribing at the same time you start your chapter, or if you have only recently joined the AADA and you don't have a membership number yet, just write "NEW" instead of a membership number and we'll check our records.
3. You need to designate one of your members as chapter president. He (or she) is our point of contact with the chapter, and any club materials, playtest materials or correspondence we send out will be sent to your president. (It's traditional to elect the chapter president by combat - but, of course, it's up to you!) For a sponsored club, the sponsor will assume the position of club president. New member packets for sponsored chapters are sent directly to the president to be handed out.

Charles A. Oines