Start Your Engines ...
I. FORMAT:
The event will consist of two (2) qualifying Heats, each a
two-lap race, and a three-lap Final. Novices can get a rules
refresher by attending the scheduled Paradise Terrace demo. Otherwise,
don't expect to be taught during play.
Everyone who wants to race will be allowed to race in each
Heat. Multiple entries are allowed, even after you have won a
prior Heat. Winning a heat will not necessarily guarantee you
a spot in the final. Multiple Heat entries may improve your chance
and position in the Final (see below).
Each Heat will use as many different tracks as are necessary
to accommodate all players. Generally, each board will have between
six and ten cars. All who want to race in a Heat will be divided
as randomly and evenly as possible. Players may use any track
they agree on, with exceptions listed below. Please note that
time is limited, so try not to choose an extremely long or slow
track.
Due to time constraints, races will generally end and finish
positions will be recorded the instant the second car crosses
the finish line. Players may choose to "play it out"
if all agree and time permits. Cars that crash will be ranked
in reverse order from the time they crash, i.e. the first car
that crashes will be considered to be in last place even if another
car crashes further back on the track later in the same turn.
All players will be assigned a unique random number when first
entering the event. This number will be used as the last tiebreaker
when determining starting positions and alternate qualifiers
for the Final. Players who sign up for multiple Heats will receive
only one number.
Qualifying for the Final: 10 players from preliminary
Heats will qualify for the Final. Heat winners will be ranked
using a system based on the MESE tiebreakers published at http://www.boardgamers.org/gmguide.htm.
In order, the following criteria will be used:
1. Win in first Heat entered
2. Most wins
3. Win in second Heat entered
7. Average finish in all heats entered
8. High random number drawn
If fewer than 10 heat winners appear for the Final, second-place
finishers will be selected as alternates based on the following
system:
1. Second in first Heat entered
2. Most second place finishes
3. Second place in second Heat entered
7. Average finish in all heats entered
8. High random number drawn
A player must finish in first or second place in at least
one heat to qualify for the Final.
I will rank players and post the rankings ahead of time so
players can see if they have a chance to qualify. I will probably
rank the top 20 or so, and the top ten qualifiers who show up
for the Final. The Fnal will start promptly at its scheduled
time, so it may be worth your while to stop by and see if you're
in.
Starting Positions:
In each Heat the starting positions will be randomly determined
as follows: each player will roll the black die with the LOWEST
number getting the 1st position, and so on.
In the Final, The top ten qualifiers will be assigned starting
positions based on their ranking as described above.
Car/Pit Color Selection:
The pole sitter chooses his car color combination first (with
the matching pit area), then the second position picks, and so
on until the last. In this way, positions in the pits will be
determined by pole positions.
II. TRACKS:
The players in each group for a Heat will decide the track
they want to use for that Heat, by vote if necessary. Note the
EXCLUDED Tracks below. If the players cannot agree on a track
within a few minutes, the GM will assign one for that group.
Pole positions cannot be rolled until after the track is decided.
Excluded Tracks:
The two Super Speedways, Indianapolis (#26) and Daytona (#30),
are excluded. That applies to both the ovals and road courses
shown. I don't want to deal with all the special rules for these
two tracks.
IF YOU OWN THE GAME AND SOME TRACKS, PLEASE BRING WHATEVER
YOU HAVE!!
III. RULES:
All races will use all of the Basic Rules, plus Slipstreaming
and the special Tournament Rule "Redlining". The Final
will use a few extra rules - see below.
Redlining:
ONCE per turn and at ANY TIME during his turn a player may cross
off one ENGINE point and move his car forward one additional
space. That's the rule - very straightforward. No, you may NOT
use your LAST engine point to Redline and deliberately blow your
engine. Yes, you may redline in order to make it into a corner
(the main reason for the rule). You may redline to get into Slipstreaming
position (another worthy reason). You may even redline to get
into the lead on the home stretch, thereby rolling first and
winning! You may Redline as part of over-shooting a corner, but
all the usual penalties apply to over-shooting: the extra space
costs you a tire point and you may not change lanes with the
redline. If you redline in a corner you must follow the arrows
normally. Warning! Those engine points are precious, so redline
with Extreme Caution!
Extra Rules used for the Final:
The Final will be a three-lap race and will use all Advanced
Rules except Time Trials, Weather and Tire Types. Each player
will construct his car using 20 Points.
Game Play:
In order to keep the game moving, and to help simulate the split-second
nature of racing, all players are expected to begin moving their
cars immediately after rolling the dice. Once a player is moving
his car, he should finish the move in a prompt fashion. A player
may move his car forward or may count with his finger touching
the track, but either way IS considered to be moving the car.
While moving a player may only take back the previous space;
he may not take back several spaces and may not restart his move
from the beginning.
When it is not your turn, PLAN AHEAD. This is the time to
calculate your distances to corners and think about what your
options are for the next move. When you turn arrives, you will
be expected to shift gears and roll promptly.
Now, these restrictions are not designed to stress you out
and make you screw up your moves. There will be NO CLOCKS put
on players to time their moves, and there is no specific amount
of time within which you must complete your move. The point is
to begin moving after you roll and finish the move promptly.
You may certainly pause for a few seconds in the middle of your
move to consider your approach (to a curve or to traffic, for
example), but don't sit there for a full minute counting options.
If you want to count in your head, or with your finger (NOT close
to the track), that is okay so long as your move does not take
very long to complete. Also, I understand that sometimes you
have a crucial move to make and need some extra time. That is
fine. The last few curves of a race might be key, or a bunch
of traffic might have sprung up unexpectedly in your path just
before your turn. Just don't abuse the flexibility here, and
also don't be a jerk when another player needs a bit of extra
time once in a while.
If you think a player is delaying the race unfairly, or is
trying to take back moves repeatedly, please notify me so I can
handle the situation. As GM, I reserve the right to take whatever
remedial action I determine to be necessary if a player repeatedly
violates this (or any other) rule of the tournament and disrupts
the game.
IV. RULES CLARIFICATIONS:
This is a non-comprehensive listing of some common rules clarifications.
All players are expected to know the rules so hopefully this
list will answer most of your questions.
THE FINISH LINE: As per Descartes rules a car must completely
cross the finish line to win. This does not mean your car has
to be one space beyond the finish line; but it does mean you
must cross the finish line not just have your car situated on
it as could happen on most tracks in the middle lane.
Ex.:
On Track#11 Watkins Glen
Outside lane would cross the finish line on space#13
Middle lane would cross the finish line on space#14
Inside lane would cross the finish line on space#14
The number of spaces denoted are the spaces past the last corner
of travel to the finish line; which can be easily referenced
from the printed numbers on the side of the track.
USE OF TIRE OR BRAKE POINTS: Some people have a misconception
that a car can only use three brake or three tires points in
one turn. This is not true! You may use all of your available
brake and/or tire points in any turn. I believe that the misconception
comes from the rules section on Blocking, which does have such
limits.
"FUEL" POINTS/TRANSMISSION POINTS: For some reason
the game calls these "fuel" points when really they
represent Transmission. They are used for over-revving the engine
when you skip gears downshifting. They do not represent fuel
in the gas tank. That is why you do not automatically get these
points back in the pits, like tires.
TWO CORNERS IN ONE TURN: Remember that if you overshoot a
corner and end in another corner, you are NOT considered to have
stopped in the second corner.
BODY DAMAGE CHECKS: When you pass a car and change lanes so
as to end directly in front of it, neither car checks for body
damage. Of course, you still have to check for any other cars
you are also next to.
ENGINE CHECKS: Remember that an Engine Check caused by your
own roll of a 20 or 30 is not taken until the end of your turn,
so that you get to move normally that turn even if you then blow
your engine.
We are using the standard rule that everyone in 5th or 6th
gear must make an engine check whenever anyone throws a 20 (in
fifth gear) or a 30 (in sixth).
SLIPSTREAMING - Things to Remember: Slipstreaming is ALWAYS
OPTIONAL.
You must be in 4th, 5th or 6th gear and in the SAME OR HIGHER
gear as the car you are slipping. I.e. if you are approaching
a car in 6th gear, you must also be in 6th gear to slipstream
it.
If your slipstream move ends you behind another car, you may
slipstream again as long as you qualify normally. You may keep
slipstreaming as long as you qualify.
If slipstreaming carries you into a corner, you use a brake
point (but still move the full three spaces). This is called
Late Braking. If you don't have a brake point, you can't choose
to slipstream into the corner.
You slipstream exactly three spaces (you must use normal brake
points if you want to move less).
In a straight-away the three spaces must be moved in one of
three ways: 1) Pass the car you slip and end in front of it;
2) Move over one lane and ahead two spaces; or 3) Move over two
lanes and ahead one space. The upshot is that you CANNOT move
over one lane, ahead one\ space, and then move over another lane,
even if that is the only available movement option because of
traffic. If it is, you cannot slipstream.
In a corner you ignore the above movement options and just
move three extra spaces following the corner arrows normally.
If you overshoot the corner with a slipstream, the normal overshooting
rules apply (tires points, no lane changes, etc.).
You can never use Brake points to get your car into a slipstreaming
position, but you can Red Line, of course.
PIT STOPS: Stop whining about the apparently silly rules that
allow you to enter the pits in 6th gear and exit them in 4th
gear. Michael Schumacher never had it so good! Remember that
the game is trying to simulate a long race with only two laps.
If cars had to slow down to stop in the pits and then start again
in 1st gear, a pit stop would basically take a car out of the
race. Clearly, the designers had to fiddle with reality to make
the pit stop a viable part of the game system.
To enter the pits, a car must have a movement point to move
out of the pit road and into the colored pit area.
To EXIT the colored pit area, the car moves to EITHER ONE
OF THE TWO SPACES beside that color's pit area. This uses one
space of movement. While there appear to be two separate pit
areas for each color, the game does not differentiate between
them. Each car leaves pit road into the "first" pit
space, but each car may exit from the "second" pit
space.
In the Heats only the Basic Game pit-stop rules are used.
The Quick Stop rule is not optional, but is mandatory. You must
roll the black die and on a 1-10, you exit the pits that turn
in 4th gear, or less. If your path is blocked, you do not suffer
any penalties. Your car just stops behind the blocking car.
In the Final the Advanced Pit Rules will
be used. If you only replace tire points, then the Quick Stop
rule is mandatory. Remember that you have two WEAR POINTS to
use in the pits to replace any of the following: Brake, Fuel
(Transmission), Engine, Bodywork and/or Road-Holding. NOTE: That's
two Wear Points total throughout the race, NOT two points per
pit stop.
ROAD-HOLDING: This will only be used in the Final. Like engine
and bodywork points, your car must have at least one road-holding
point to function. It is out of the race when it loses its last
point.
Dangerous spaces are created whenever a car loses an engine
point involuntarily, bodywork point, or is eliminated. Note that
choosing to Red Line will NOT cause a dangerous space. Mark dangerous
spaces where the loss occurred. Pennies work well. When a car
enters a dangerous space, a black die is rolled. On a 1-4 the
car loses a road-holding point. No, the dangerous space does
not become even more dangerous when a road-holding point is lost
in the dangerous space. Remember, in Formula One racing they
don't stop the race to clean up the track every time it gets
a little messy.
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