The 2024 Trafikjournalen 24h of clunkers (OPEN FOR SUBS!)

Knugcab · 19 August 2024 21:12

Yes, I feel ready to start on this seriously now, it is september after all…

THE IDEA BEHIND THIS
Now, after all those years, many people have already learned what this yearly challenge is all about. However, newcomers or people that haven’t been into this before, here is a small explanation.

The Swedish magazine “Trafikjournalen” has for many years been running a 24 hour endurance race for pure shitboxes. If you’re lucky, your car survives that abuse. If you’re even more lucky, you will become the one that has the most laps after 24 hours, and win the race. Yes, think of it a bit like a LeMons style event, but well, a bit more rough going I guess, this event is actually mainly not inspired by LeMons but by a similar challenge that was actually being ran by a Swedish car magazine in the 80s and 90s.

Check video for inspiration, sorry not sorry for the language of Bork.

HARD RULES:
I think they worked well last year so they are more or less copied over…

Car model, trim, family and variant has to be 2014 or older. Engine family and variant does not have to match the car, but an obvious engine swap may be punished (see further below)

The body should resemble a normal, street driven passenger car or light truck. No buses, heavy duty trucks, motorcycles, aeroplanes, open wheel racers, milkshake blenders or whatever else you may find.

No carbon fibre panels. Fiberglass will get a slight crash penalty.

No glued alu or carbon fibre chassis.

No more than 8 cylinders.

No magnesium or billet blocks.

No billet cranks or titanium rods.

Turbocharged engines can run a maximum of 0.8 bar of boost.

No race intakes or headers.

Only hard long life tyres allowed.

No carbon ceramic discs. Max 5% of sportiness brake fade.

Max one front and one rear aero fixture. They must be visually attached to the car. No positive downforce (as seen in the performance tab). No more than 50 engine cooling.

Race interior. Only a drivers seat needed. Standard AM to simulate communications equipment.

At least some kind of advanced safety (age not important), to simulate the weight from a cage.

Weight distribution slider can be touched freely. Weight optimization slider should be at 50 or higher value (you can make it lighter, not heavier).

Viewed in sportiness mode. spring rates has to be at least 1.2 Hz and dampening rates has to be at least 0.25. (I saw no objections last year so I guess we can keep running this?)

Max P/W ratio (as seen in the performance tab) 0.1 (preliminary, can be changed, since there were some opinions last year that it was a tad bit too strict, I will check some test mules but there won’t be much of a change in that case.).

Toe angle: The big change since last year. A compromise that might be considered is a +/- 0.3 limit on each angle (would allow for driveable RR cars too). I might build some test mules to see, also, I’ll glady take some input there.

TP AND QUALITY
Maximum total TP cost: $19M for car, $8M for engine, no negative techpool (based on default but allows for some adjustments).

Quality sliders does not have any hard limits, but unrealistically high quality might give disadvantages when it comes to reliability modifiers, and I reserve the right to bin shitposts like +15 quality everywhere on an 80s 3 cylinder hatchback.

PRICE AND ET LIMITS?
No, and I will explain why later.

FUEL, EMISSIONS, LOUDNESS
Unleaded Premium to make stuff easy (since you can now run it in all model years). Don’t sweat emissions and loudness too much, it’s beaters that might have non-working emission systems and rusted out mufflers anyway.

SOFT RULES
Any unrealistic engineering for what the car is will result in condition penalties (will be explained later) in the actual areas. I won’t be too harsh there, but if the car looks like a 1983 Daihatsu Charade and has a V8 and active suspension, expect it to be punished…

That is also true for tyre sizes that should be realistic for the type and age of car. No definitive limits, but if they are too far off from the truth, expect your tyres to have absolutely shit condition and risk breakdowns. If you are unsure, google similar IRL cars and see what they are running. If they are around 155/70R13, 255/40R18 is probably not what you should be running.

TEAM RULES
A presentation and name of your team is required along with the car. It doesn’t have to be very advanced. Also, to avoid what happened at SR 2023, ANY NON-HUMAN CHARACTERS WILL REQUIRE PERMISSION FROM ME AS A HOST! So, if you are planning to run any, contact me before you make your decision in that case.

SO, HOW ABOUT THE PRICING OF THE CAR THEN?
I have realized that Automation prices doesn’t reflect used car values very well. There are also costly options that doesn’t affect either performance or used car values. You could probably build a Lotus Elise inspired track weapon for the same price as many family cars. Hence, I will totally skip the price limit. But, when doing your car presentation, YOU WILL HAVE TO EXPLAIN THE CONDITION OF THE CAR! The fancier, the sportier, the more important it is. You should be able to get a similar car for around $1500 AMU or less, and yes, I know that is hard to translate into real world money, so use your imagination a bit. If it is an 80s hatchback with 54 hp, not much of an explanation will be needed, if it is an early 10s sports car, it really has to be a lemon. I will use your explanations to calculate the condition of different subsystems in the car. If the car seems to be too fancy to be bought cheap in the condition you describe it, I might give it more penalties than you have counted with. If it is borderline too fancy to fit in at all, I might tell you to do something else, but if it is downright a Porsche 959 from Wish, you should have known better and I will bin it at the spot.

BWAAAAHHHH THAT SOUNDS UNFAIR!
I promise to try to be as fair as I can to everyone. Since this is a role play heavy challenge, I see it as I am actually allowed to have some power as a GM. A somewhat similar system worked in SR, and if there is a price limit, people will just do all they can to squeeze out everything from it. Now, you actually have to think a bit more about what you’re making.

OK, BUT HOW WILL THE RACE MECHANICS WORK THEN?
Basically the idea is that the one that has made the most laps in 24 hours is the winner. The second lap time from the Höljes track will be used as a basis for your car. So, just make a car that does great lap times then?

Well, it is not that easy. Every 30 minutes some rolls will be made. The more reliable your car is, the less chance it is for a breakdown that will cost you time, or in worst case, end your race altogether. The more driveable your car is, the less chance it is for, in best case, worse lap times and in worst case, a crash that may require a pitstop or end your race altogether.

New for pit stops this year: Cars with service costs of $450.00, or under, and cars with service costs of $900, or over, will get an extra roll for times in the pits. For cars with the lower service costs, the best roll will be chosen. For cars with the higher service costs, the worst roll will be chosen.

There are a number of subsystems, and a roll will determine which one that will risk a breakdown. What you have said about the condition of the car will affect how much of a risk every subsystem have to breakdown. Adding to that, every car will have one “dark secret” that nobody will know about (that may or may not breakdown during the race). But the entirely randomized condition is gone now.

Another thing that will take 5 minutes off your time is fuel stops, so a fuel sipper may spare you time compared to a gas guzzler. Every car will be running a 50 litre tank to make it simple, and even if automation average figures is not the most realistic for racing, they will be used for simplicity.

TL:DR - focus on:
Lap times on the Höljes track (link some posts below)
Reliability
Driveability
Fuel economy
Service costs
(Honestly speaking, nothing is really important except for them, but min-maxing that hampers realism is not encouraged)

OK, I GET IT, BUT IF I HAVE TO ROLEPLAY I WON’T PARTICIPATE!
I won’t force anyone into roleplaying, but honestly speaking it is more than half the fun of a challenge like this, and it doesn’t matter if you write a lot or just a brief overview of what happened, it is always better than nothing, and most people are better at writing than they believe themselves, so I suggest you to dare to try anyway, but it is still totally up to you how little or much (or at all) you want to take part in the RPing.

I DON’T UNDERSTAND WHAT KIND OF CARS THAT MIGHT BE ELIGIBLE IF I CAN’T MAKE A SUPERCAR!

Oh, there are lots.

Is a dependable and light little fuel sipper your thing?

Or do you want to take a step up?

Nah, screw it, I want bigger

I SAID BIGGER!

Or, maybe I want to gamble on reliability to get something sportier?

Old luxury cars gives you a lot for the money - until they break in horrific ways

But maybe it was better in the good old days when cars could be repaired with a hammer and whatever you found on the ground?

Commercial vehicles? If something can survive white van man, it can survive 24h!

So don’t tell me alternatives doesn’t exist, one of the most hilarious parts of 24h has without a doubt been the mix of cars with everything between heaven and earth.

And yes, I am aware that some of the cars shown aren’t cheap in pristine condition, so…explain why your autoverse equivalent isn’t pristine if you’re making something similar.

MAN, SOUNDS GREAT, I WISH THERE WAS A DISCORD SERVER FOR THIS!

There is, look in the post just below this.

SOME ADVANCED STUFF THIS YEAR
This is stuff that, if you just ignore it, it won’t matter, so if you just want it as uncomplicated as possible.

To start with, I will make some possibilities to make “driver profiles” for your team this year. That means that a certain driver will, for example, be better at some stuff than at others, since this does not affect the rules delib I will come with an announcement about how it works in the upcoming days.

Also, I will give everyone a brief description about things like the condition of the car after each round this time. You will then have a chance to tell me if you want to, for example, enter the pits to try to repair something before a complete breakdown, or do anything else (however, there’s not a guarantee that you will get that approved, that’s something I will consider in each individual case, and the good old D20 might have a say or two there…)

I will come up with more info about this in the upcoming days

SO, WHAT ARE THE DEADLINES AND SUCH THEN?
Submissions will start on wednesday the 11th of september, 5 PM CEST.
Submissions will end on friday the 4th of october, 5 PM CEST.

Naming conventions, car model/trim: 24h24 - yourname / Name of the car
Naming conventions, engine family/variant: 24h24 - yourname / Name of the engine.

TRACK LINK, PLEASE!

Knugcab · 19 August 2024 21:38

OK, since there won’t be lots of stuff delaying this challenge this year, I think we can pull it off a bit closer to when it is supposed to take place. My plans are to open for submissions in september, with the challenge taking place sometime around october…

But since I have some new plans in my head there can be some point in discussing them before we pull them off maybe…

For you people new to the forums, this is a yearly challenge with the main goal of showing up with a car that is more or less junk, taking it to a track with a bunch of other idiots, and hope that it holds up for 24 hours of abuse. Here is the thread from last year:

Also, if this sounds interesting, there is also a discord server surrounding this challenge (optional to join)

Well. Since I have been running this for a while, I think the ruleset for the cars should be more or less nailed now. There MAY be changes to it still, but if you start building a car for the 2023 ruleset, I doubt that you will have to do more than small adjustments to still make it work in 2024.

My new ideas are mainly about game mechanics, and since maybe not everyone wants to join discord, I guess we could have some discussions here too, as long as they don’t go overboard. Anyway, this is some of the ideas I have in my head that is new for this year, and I would gladly take feedback on them.

I might allow faux diesels (NO I WON’T!). Either from Moroza’s ARM ruleset (the adjustments for price and reliability nothing to take into consideration though, due to the nature of the challenge), or a slightly adjusted version of it, since some people have pointed out that the ARM rules were more suited for building a performance diesel than something close to falling apart in an old beater. I haven’t been looking into it much. I guess, if people actually want faux diesels, I will investigate that later on. If everyone tells me that they don’t want them and have a good argument why, there’s no meaning in looking deeper into it, so…what do you all say? (IRRELEVANT, WON’T BE INCLUDED)
I will probably no longer mention what happens when there’s just a small timeloss with no crashing/spinning etc. - just mention that the team loses some time, and if they want to roleplay on why, I will give them some freedom. That will lead to less rigid, repetitive writeups, I think.
I have thought about giving the possibility of making driver profiles for your teams. I haven’t been looking into it that deep, but if one of your characters are “good at driving fast, bad at wrenching”, that might affect your times a bit both on the track and in the pits. Now, I have to make a somewhat standardized solution there that works for everyone, and for it to work, it will require that I get a schedule for when who will be driving. If driver profiles gets included this year, they will be fully optional.
Between the rounds I might give a little more info about, for example, car condition. However, that will only be about the condition of the subsystems, nothing in detail. But let’s say that the cooling system is in “poor” condition after a round. You can then ask me if the team can go into the pits for fixing it before a breakdown forces them into there. If it will be allowed is all up to me (the team probably can notice low coolant better than a water pump close to giving up) as a GM to decide, but it can be worth a try…or it can be stupid because you get stuck in the pits for repairs that maybe would not have been needed to finish…this gives a bit more freedom and depth, and also, if it gets implemented it will be totally optional.
The problem last year was bad driveability cars that also were heavy (I am looking at YOU, ChatGPT not-a-Lada-2110 thing) rammed everything off the track. I may counteract that this year by have a baseline driveability, where every roll below that will result in guardrail munching or similar single vehicle action. And weight is only good if you hit something that does move…

Well, that’s what I can think about for now, feel free to give opinions.

Madrias · 19 August 2024 21:46

Posting in here so I get notified as the thread moves along… But I already kinda have a car and team ready.

Angelustyle · 19 August 2024 23:05

I have also made a car for this. I still need to draw a couple of things though. Mainly redrawing one of my characters and drawing another one.

Hshan · 20 August 2024 11:45

I doubt I’ll have enough time for this, but I’d love to - and if it turns I can, I’ll definitely enter.

That said, as much as I like experimenting with faux diesels, I don’t think allowing them here is worth the extra complexity, especially since we don’t have (yet…) a widely agreed upon ruleset for their creation. The ban on diesels can be even roleplayed as there being only one fuel supplier for the event, who for simplicity supplies only petrol Maybe next year? I honestly hope we’ll get a streamlined diesel ruleset by then.
Also there’s so many ways to built a fun beater that I don’t think the lack of diesels would be that much of a limitation.

abg7 · 22 August 2024 17:49

In other cases, a lighter car can be more effective, since it can more easily avoid obstacles and launch out of corners harder.

About time - anything that leads to only a minor loss of time is seldom worth mentioning.

Happyhungryhippo · 27 August 2024 14:05

OH NO, RHINOS!

Why are they called Rhinos in first place?
Well, Chantal, the more or less most prominent team member, mixes up hippos and rhinos all the time, like alligators and crocodiles. And so, with their last name being Nilfert, sounding like Nilpferd (Hippo), she thought they´re Rhinos… Chantal not being able to speak any foreign language didn´t make it better…

So, who are they?

Thomas Nilfert, 60, car mechanic (called “Thomas the Temper Engine”)

Thomas is old, grumpy and has a lot of life experience which makes him good at handling whatever will happen. He is smart at fixing them, but his impatience and temper turn repairs into disasters at times. He likes getting drunk, smokes in a chain and … considers trigger warnings as childish sh*t. Despite his old-fashioned mindset, Thomas is not your average boomer Karen, he can be nice and thoughtful if needed. Physical appeareance: 193cm/110 kg, strong for his age.

Chantal Jolina Nilfert, 20 (called “Chanty”)

Chantal is quite easy to spot with her blue hair and chubby figure, tons of piercings and tattoos… she is also easy to make friends with, as she is propably one of the most friendly and caring people you could meet. This came at a price, because she suffers from depression and anxiety, and could break down at the slightest inconvenience. She is said to have just a single braincell working, as she is not the smartest… and has unlimited appetite.
Physical appeareance: 161cm/108 kg, Mostly shy and insecure body language.

Jan Kellermann, 22

Jan is Chantys boyfriend and the opposite of Thomas. He tends to think before acting, and he CAN think as he is quite smart, and interessed in science, music, photography and nature. But don´t think he is just always calm. If he loses temper, he does it like Thomas, but that rarely happens. He works in care business and has career ambitions there, willing to be a good provider to Chanty and affording a family with her.
Physical appeareance: 180cm/66 kg, Always seems a bit distracted and feels wrong at the place.

As Chanty begged to do the 24h again Thomas did as asked, but was thinking what car to use. Remembering last year´s destruction derby and how Jan nearly could have died in their light car, Thomas decided to not repeat a mistake and get the largest and heaviest he could buy for the budget, and when he ordered cars from the USA, he also saw a retired police car. A 2007 Globus Grand Cruiser, one of the very last ever made.
Drunk as he was, Thomas didn´t check in depth why it was so cheap, but he had space left to fill the huge containers he ordered so the shipping was almost for free.

The car turned out to be in … not great condition. Thomas stripped the interior, fixed the worst problems and made a basic serive, installed a rollcage and slapped some cheap tires on it since the police package performance tires were all flat and bald.

After that, he searched cursing in his mess of documents.

“THIS FUCK HAS TO BE HERE!!”

“Whaff?”

mumbled Chanty, having the mouth full with food.

“The phone number of my transport company, this damn cop crap doesn´t fit onto my trailer.”

“Fiff if why you haff to keep order!”

“AND YOU DO NOT HAVE TO SPEAK WITH A FULL MOUTH! Fuck it, I will call Schrant. How is Valentin?”

“He wrote me back after I wrote him. But sadly he replied not much… I guess he was never a talkative person. Why are you asking?”

“Valentins father also has a transport company with a solid reputation. Can you please pass me the phone? DAMN! I SHOULD LOCK IT WITH A PASSWORD SO THAT YOU CANT ORDER FOOD ANYMORE!”

“You dinosaur, you do that with an app and not by calling. NOBODY CALLS FOR FOOD ANYMORE!.”

“Göteborg … Thank god I learned some English after the fall of the wall, so…that should work with Swedes. A shame you can´t practive adult calls that you refuse to do now because you …”

“Yes… go on calling me dumb just because… you are right, I am too dumb to learn English, to dumb to be able to make calls, …”

Thomas calmed his daughter a bit down and dialed the number, not knowing that the boss himself will be on the line.

“Hello, my name is Thomas Nilfert from the repair shop with the same name in Leipzig. I got a 5,5 meter long problem - my Globus Grand Cruiser needs to find a way to get from here to Sweden to this years 24h, can you help me with that?”

It was calm in the Schrant company, as… on sundays, people tend to not make up their mind with work.At the Schrant family home, the phone rang for a while and made a travel through half of the mansion until it reached the hands of Rüdiger Schrant.

“At first a good day, Sir. So, once again slowly please. You need a car from… Leipzig… in, eeeeh, at the Höljesbanen Rallycross AB…?”

“Correct! Mr. Schrant, is your son also there, my daughter is looking foward to seeing him again.”

“DAAAAD! NOOOO! THIS SOUNDS SO WRONG!”

Meanwhile, Thomas continued negotiating with Rüdiger Schrant.

“So, your company has a reputation for being reliable and having fair pricing, so it would be a pleasure if this works. I will of course provide you with all the needed paperwork.”

A bit irritated, Rüdiger pressed a few buttons - with it being on loudspeaker, audible for Thomas - on the telephone, before answering.

“I do not know yet if Valentin drives. Aside from that, I need an e-Mail-address.”

“Ah, yes, this would be… Thomas@kfz-nilfert.de. Is there something else that you need?”

“Everything relevant will be the subject of the mail you are going to recieve. Oh, my phone beeps… Valentin drives. I will add his contact data in the mail. I suggest contacting him in written, he doesn´t like phonecalls.”

The mail arrived relatively soon, and the paperwork also wasn´t a problem, as Chanty, being the only person there to at least try to keep order, searched for everything that Thomas needed to process.

The cabin Thomas rented last year was already occupied, so he would need to tow the camper trailer with his SUV, which means that the travel time will triple, being able to go only 80 kph with it and having to sleep at night in some motel, as both Jan and Chanty lacked the trailer license… so, Jan, who can´t miss any more day at work as holidays are very limited in care business, would have to drive with a seperate car, getting company from Chantal. Very inefficient, but that at least provides enough capacities to transport spares and tools.

Some weeks later, when Thomas and Chanty were arguing that Chanty stole her father´s pizza while he was briefly outside, one of the mechanics knocked at the door.

“Eh, Thomas, someone is there for you. He says it is about transporting a car to Sweden.”

The car

As Marie slapped some stickers on her SR24 car, Chanty was … not as annoyed as planned but liked them… so the 24h car of this year will have a lot of bumper stickers. Also, Chanty changed the livery a bit towars the team`s spirit animal, while Thomas wanted to make a funny gag and registered the car with the racing number “911”.

Introduction RP done in collaboration with @elizipeazie

Madrias · 27 August 2024 15:33

Team Highway Hooligans

The Crew:

Jake Storm

Height: 5’7" (170 cm)
Age: 36
Roles: Driver #1, Mechanic
Race: Human

Jake’s whole plan for this race hinges upon the car holding together, and their honorary hooligan actually knowing how to drive their underpowered land-boat in anger. That said, like all of the Hooligans, they’re just here to have fun.

Cody Acorne

Height: 5’9" (175 cm)
Age: 40
Roles: Driver #2, Pit Stop Assistant
Race: Human

Cody’s strategy is different than that of the other three - While they’re trying to preserve what’s left of the car and go the distance, Cody’s 6 hours are going to be Attack Attack Attack. If you’re in front, expect to feel the wrath of the plastic bumper. If you’re behind, watch out for brake checks.

Trevor Wright

Height: 6’0" (183 cm)
Age: 51
Roles: Driver #3, Mechanic
Race: Human

Trevor’s hoping that the car holds up okay, but he knows it’s junkyard trash with an engine pulled out of another pile of junkyard trash, with a transmission also salvaged from another old pile of junk. Sure, it’s all Bricksley parts, and sure, the engine’s the same one that’s supposed to be in there, and maybe the gearbox came from an ex-police cruiser, but he knows the car’s got problems.

Scott Morganson

Height: 6'4" (193 cm)
Age: 50 (Earth Years)
Roles: Driver #4, Honorary Hooligan, Pit Stop Assistant
Race: Panthirian Jagrilan

The only one of the crew who has driven a Grand Warden in anger, Scott got the last driver role in hopes that he could hustle whatever is left of their car across the line as quickly as it can manage. The other Hooligans have assured him, this car is better than last year’s limo, but they also admit, that really wouldn’t take much.

The Car:

1975 Bricksley Grand Warden

This former Chicago taxi cab has seen some serious shit. Built originally with a 206ci I5 in the wake of the 1973 oil crisis, this old brick once happily delivered tourists from airports to hotels, hotels to tourist destinations, and even the occasional local from one bar to another. Eventually, the tired old I5 just couldn’t do the job anymore, and after collecting a rear-end collision because it couldn’t accelerate away from the car the cabbie just cut off, it was retired to the junkyard.

That’s where Trevor came into play. Sure, anyone else would see a clapped out cab and think, "Okay, time to squish it into a cube and recycle it. Trevor saw it and thought, “Why not sling an engine in there and beat the shit out of it for 24 hours first?” He pulled a Pressurized 206ci I5 out of a small Bricksley pickup truck, the gearbox out of a crashed police cruiser that had seen a few too many PIT maneuvers, and tossed the parts together with Cody helping out and the aid of a fair few too many beers.

Those few too many beers are why the replacement hood for the one that was rusted out now has a hood bulge, two air-grabber scoops that don’t work, and a 3D printed toilet hood ornament. And why the car’s now wearing an eyepatch to cover a smashed sealed beam headlight that they just couldn’t be bothered with replacing.

To hide a broken tail-light lens, a bumper sticker was added. This resulted in the stickers ending up all over the car because “they hide damage well.”

So, what do we know is wrong with it? Not much, but everything came from the junkyard… There’s got to be reasons it was there. But for the Hooligans… Not knowing is half of the fun.

(So, yeah, I know I should be asking before putting the bipedal leopard alien on the team, but literally worst-case-scenario, we pull a “Scott couldn’t make it to the track on time” here and run with a team of three.)

Angelustyle · 27 August 2024 19:12

We all wondered (or maybe not) at some point: “What would happen, when you combine a group of 4 chaotic siblings, with outworldly powers and abilities, with 2 of their friends (which are from the same species as them too), a Wild Competition, and a Moroccan Sports Car that’s on the verge of falling apart ?”

Yumeisotitanian Earthly Auto Racing (Y.E.A.R.)

After this year’s Shitbox Rally, Team Firulais theoretically dissolved. However, the spirit lives on with Yumeisotitanian Earthly Auto Racing: A team which hopes to represent Yumeisotitanians Across Earth… Initially beginning as Yukobaiyaroslavl Family Racing (Y.F.R.), Ángel invited some more people into the mix. So, let’s meet them beforehand:

Kanna Yukobaiyaroslavl - The Smiling Little Sister

I can say (rather proudly), that I have improved in drawing… Sadly this came at the price of taking longer to do so.

Age: 21 (At the time of writing. DoB: 05/OCT/2002)
H: 156cm - W: 108kg

Kanna is the younger sister in the Yukobaiyaroslavl quartet. Quite snappy, joyful, and always capable of making you smile, it’s hard to recall when she’s sad. A great singer, but hasn’t really left Japan (except for one time when she had to attend to a recent funeral in Saint Petersburg).

As a big eater, and a heavy drinker, it’s a bit difficult to keep Kanna satisfied.

She has Mind Reading, Telepathy, Increased Strength and Resistance, and the capability of turning into Statues and back.

She drives at a moderate speed, and is a clean driver.

Stats:
Driver - ★★
Mechanic - ★★★
Pit Stop A. - ★★
Spotter - ★★★★

Ryoga "Ryo" Yukobaiyaroslavl - The Foolish, but Charismatic Older Brother

I took inspiration of certain characters of my favorite Manga to draw Ryoga. Hell, even the name. Can you guess ?

Age: 27 (DoB: 02/NOV/1996)
H: 172cm - W: 68kg

Ryoga is the older brother of the family (yet not the oldest sibling present). A dumb, but confident and funny guy, always capable to give some comic relief. Has a very strong brother relationship with Ángel, and they work well as a Dynamic Duo.

Even though he may be the least troublesome, and despite his strong-guy image… He has one weakness: Hou. She is his crush, and he just can’t really express himself properly with her. Not like he is rude or impolite, just that he gets quite timid…

Has Mind Reading, Telepathy, Increased Strength, Speed and Resistance.

He drives fast, but not what you can call clean, as he sees driving as a bit of a giggle.

Driver - ★★★
Mechanic - ★★★★
Pit Stop A. - ★★★★★
Spotter - ★★

Hou Niu - The Shy Gal

No, Hou ain’t Japanese.

Age: 26 (DoB: 09/DEC/1997)
H: 181cm - W: 66kg

One of Ángel’s friends at some point at High School, and, both awkwardly and unknown to her, Ryoga’s Secret Crush, Hou may not be as sociable as the rest of the team, generally wanting to stay behind. However, she’s OK talking with people she knows that will be good to her. She’s Chinese (more specifically, from Chongqing), but has lived in Japan since she was a teen.

Being very shy and timid, she’s a bit hard to open up. However, once opened up, she becomes very servicial and friendly. Not that she is aggressive to begin with. As a person, she is very much like Ángel: Clumsy, weak to alcohol, weak emotionally, and blind without her glasses…

Has Mind Reading, Telepathy, Increased Strength and Speed, and Telekinesis.

She drives painfully slow, as she ain’t a very experienced driver. Makes one wonder how she actually got to drive (given how she doesn’t know how to use a stick). Also, don’t expect her to be clean…

Driver - ★
Mechanic - ★★★★
Pit Stop A. - ★★
Spotter - ★★★★★

María Yukobaiyaroslavl - The Older Sister, with a suspiciously unknown past

For the facts, I will say something. I actually had older designs of María and Kanna. I also tried to remake Ángel several times, with mixed results…

Age: 30 (DoB: 17/DEC/1993)
H: 186cm - W: 74kg

María ain’t usually mean. She is occasionally very nice, but don’t try to push her too hard; she has claimed to have a “personality disorder”, but only her nicer half will actually tell the truth. She may even go mad…

María has a great fear for Cats, and is lactose intolerant. Let’s hope no large groups of cats are present, and that she didn’t forget to bring the lactaid pills… Sadly, that may not be enough, as she has a bit of sweet tooth (she likes candies a lot). María is a heavy drinker too.

She has Mind Reading, Telepathy -I think those two will be normal for everyone here-, Increased Strength and Resistance, and the Capability of Hypnotizing.

She’s can drive depending on her condition, but, generally, she drives from a moderate to a slow speed, although she’s probably a bit dirty, same as Hou.

Driver - ★★
Mechanic - ★
Pit Stop A. - ★★★
Spotter - ★★★★★

Catherine "Kate" Jansdatter - "Honey Bunny"

I can say, Catherine may be the worst drawn out of the team. However, in my defense, I can say, larger characters aren’t my thing to draw. I may improve in drawing far taller/wider characters soon though. But hey, if an AI can (most of the time) recognize her body shape, then I guess I succeeded.

Age: 28 (At the Time of Writing. DoB: 22/SEP/1995)
H: 176cm - W: 188kg

This Canadian-Groenlandic girl, is, hard to believe, Ángel’s Girlfriend. How did we get here ? Well, back when Ángel was still in Vladivostok (yes, he moved residences), he recieved a Valentine’s Gift (3 months after Valentine’s though…): A box of chocolates, which was already half consumed… And a love letter from a “Secret Admirer” who lived at Kitakyushu. As bad as a start this may seem, Ángel felt like he finally had found someone who would love him… And boy, he was right. Catherine absolutely loves her little “Milksweet”. Not to mention she is lovable as a person too.

Maybe her eating capacity surpasses almost everyone else’s combined. And she’s a heavy drinker too. Not to mention, she doesn’t stand being without her lil’ guy for too long. Her size and weight may also cause problems at times.

She has Mind Reading, Telepathy, Increased Strength and Resistance, and the Capability of Inducing Sleep.

As slow as a driver she is, she is very skilled with dirt, gravel and snow, as the Canadian Roads weren’t exactly too easy either before moving to Japan. She is not very clean, but, she, same as Ryoga, looks at driving as a bit of a fun activity.

Driver - ★★
Mechanic - ★★★★★
Pit Stop A. - ★★
Spotter - ★★★

Ángel Yukobaiyaroslavl - The Chaotic Mind Reader

For him, I actually wanted to share three pics. The design I used for him when he got the Valentine’s Gift, the one from just before leaving Vladivostok, and the one for now.

Age: 25 (DoB: 26/NOV/1998)
H: 162cm - W: 52kg

You may know this guy already, as he participated in this year’s Shitbox Rally in Team Firulais. That in itself was a riot. He still keeps contact with the members of the Firulais, but he decided that from now on, he’d get along better with other “Yumes”, for racing. What better way to be with other Yumes than with your sisters, your brother, a Yumeisotitanian Friend and your Yumeisotitanian Girlfriend ?

But, in case you don’t know him… Well, he’s quite an interesting person. He’s very easy to scare off, very easy to alter, and definitely easy to mess with, but has a heart of gold, which is no surprise given how close of a relationship he has with everyone in the team, not to mention his “Honey Bunny” (the nickname Ángel uses for Catherine), with whom he’s had already a few months.

He has Mind Reading (which is the one power he can’t control… Which caused some really interesting moments across this Year’s Shitbox Rally… And will most likely also cause havoc in this event too), Telepathy, Increased Speed and Resistance… And probably has Extrasensorial Perception too, but, he doesn’t know… at least, not yet.

He’s very fast as a driver, if not the fastest in the team, as he was an Amateur Rallycross Racer at some point. Also the most skilled mechanic. Sadly, his fast driving style doesn’t mean he is clean. In fact, he is quite accident prone when he finally looses control.

Driver - ★★★★★
Mechanic - ★★★★★
Pit Stop A. - ★★★
Spotter - ★★

Wait, wait… I know what you might be thinking right now.

First: Will they use their powers to other people’s disgrace ? And the answer to that is, a big, ominous, no. Maybe Ángel will get a bit of mind reading during his drive (although, truth to tell, that may cause more damage to this team than whoever gets their minds read), or anyone else could communicate via Telepathy, but, that aside, no one will use their powers. Although, keep in mind, they can use them in the pit area and overall outside of the track, where they may not necessarily cause problems.

And secondly…

What on Earth (or even outside it) is a Yumeisotitanian ?

The History relating to these sort of humanoids was already briefly told at some point in the 2024 Shitbox Rally.

But, in case you want a more defined version of this story, then strap yourselves in.

Some 500 years ago (at least, in this version of the universe), a “Snapping” happened somewhere around the Archipelagos of Southeastern Yumeisotitania, taking some 5000 humanoids in total thru a short voyage to planet earth.

These beings have all sorts of magical powers (although, that itself is quite obvious when looking at the lineup in this team). Sadly, they arrived on earth in a time where magic and science was despised by just about every person. So they were hunted down, and recurred to hiding.

These beings didn’t start to appear publicly on earth until the late 19th Century, when they were the focus of scientific research. However, then came the 20th Century, and with that, another hunt, as companies looked for these beings for productivity, after realizing they mostly have higher stats than us humans. Including resistance. I mean, they technically aren’t humans… So why would human rights apply in them ?

Eventually (more specifically, in the 80s), these beings were set free again, and the same rights applied to them, same as most other Humanoid species.

Right now, on Earth, some 110-120k have Yumeisotitanian ascendency. And on this year’s 24 Hours of Clunkers, 6 of those are present.

(If you want more details, ask me. After all, the Yumeisotitanian are more related to the Shitbox Rally than to the 24 Hours of Clunkers…)

And with that, it’s time to introduce…

The vic... err, I mean, The Chosen One
1983 Qua Kruzar 900e (disguised as a GT)

Here we have it.

A 1983 Qua Kruzar… “GT” ?

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Well… We have to give a quick explanation.

Qua is a Moroccan Car Brand established in 1980, in the City of Rabat, Morocco. It started by producing the “Shams”, a FR Sedan, based in 1970s technology. Then came the Eayila in 1982, a Hatchback with Front Wheel Drive and a wide variety of engines. And then, in 1983, Qua felt a bit more like doing something more risky… And with that, came the Kruzar, a tiny sports car.

The Kruzar is a MR 2-Door, 2-Seater, Convertible Sports Car. At least, in it’s first generation.

Now, why the “GT”…? Quick story here. María gave Ángel the money to buy “a car”. Given how they are established in Japan, Ángel went to an auction, where he found this machine. He initially thought that María would congratulate him for buying such a machine by half of the budget present…

And then he receives it… And suddenly realizes why it was so cheap…

Under that lid, usually there’d be a 1600cc Inline-4, at minimum, if it truly was a GT. What was actually there was a 900cc… At least, it was still an Inline-4, and it wasn’t an improvised fit, as it truly was an engine available in this car, based on the Eayila Engines. But still… With a mere 38 HP and 55 Nm, Ángel felt like he could’ve fought his intrusive thoughts for this little sports car…

Then he looked at the service history. Apart from the now obvious “GT” badge which was installed for $3 or so, he also found that this car was wrecked at least twice. That explains why some bits are mismatching and also how the steering was vague at times, and at other times it was extraordinarily sensitive, when he did the test drive from Chatan to Naha (both in Okinawa).

Another thing he noticed in his test drive was how the transmission was a nightmare. Luckily, he did fix that… Which is something Hou will be glad of later (hoping that the transmission doesn’t blow up during her drive). What he didn’t fix was the electrical system. Or, at least, he tried his best, but, sometimes gremlins can slip thru…

The driver side door doesn’t work… Which makes Kanna’s, Catherine’s (and occasionally María’s) entry and exit a bit troublesome (especially for Catherine… Who struggles entering anything that ain’t big). However, that is nothing compared to the very last issue.

See, this car seemed quite fine (speaking of rust) underneath and outside. Probably a side effect of the car being in the dry environments of Morocco and Egypt before being shipped to Japan shortly before Ángel found it…

However, there was one bit… Which seemed almost entirely made of rust. Some bit in the middle of the chassis threatened to split the car in half. Ángel tried his best to eliminate rust and reinforce the rusty bit by welding it together and adding a bit more of metal in both sides (to balance things off), but everyone was afraid of the car snapping in half. Unless they wreck very hard, and they are hit in a very specific place, that ain’t happening. But the fear is present…

Don’t forget to add to the list of damaged stuff some small damages here and there, how the mirror simply won’t resist to wind, and how some of the taillights are broken or not working (however, they don’t seem to care too much about that, because they thought they’d get broken anyway during the race itself).

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After this, and some test drives by almost everyone present, then came the time to make the car look like it belonged to them. A number equivalent to the sum of “Yumeisotitania” in A1Z26 cypher, their names, the Team’s Logo, some stickers… And some sponsorship opportunity María found in her own company give this car a really nice look for what it is. Along with possibly the smallest spoiler that didn’t look cartoonishly small.

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Their hope… Finishing. Just that. If they win, better. But only finishing, knowing how hard was last year’s event (they didn’t participate, but Ángel heard of it and certainly now knows how brutal is this endurance race) would be an achievement for these guys.

The "Plan".

Ryoga will drive the first 4 hours.

Then Catherine will come in for the next 4, hopefully fitting in there and not breaking the suspension with her weight.

Then comes María, for the 4 hours after, hoping to not have any lactose intolerance issues in her drive, and therefore not having to go to the bathroom in desperation midway thru her drive.

After María, Ángel drives for the following 4 hours, given how he’s pretty much the one with the highest resistance to sleep… I mean, he doesn’t really sleep much. But will Catherine stand those 4 hours ? And most importantly, will Ángel have Mind Reading Incidents during his drive ?

When he finishes, Kanna takes his spot for 4 hours. Hopefully she ain’t drunk or excessively stuffed when she gets behind the wheel.

And lastly, Hou drives the last 4 hours… Sadly, this will imply her trying to learn how to drive with a stick… and at a Race Track. At the same time.

This plan should go as it is… If they don’t DNF at any point.

So, wish them luck ! Another debuting team, and what could be the spiritual successor of the Firulais, is ready for some action ! And this time, I promise, it won’t be their last event.

Edit #1 - Holy Crap. I actually duplicated a picture (making these posts on a phone means I sometimes get confused…). Solved it now…

Knugcab · 1 September 2024 11:16

So, I put up some more official rules now, that still has a long time for rules delib, so please check them through and give your opinions since they are honestly mostly copied from last year and slightly changed, might contain bloopers.

I decided on NOT allowing the faux diesels for this year, because as @Hshan said, that may require some more investigation for a streamlined ruleset. Nothing says that the possibility will not come back for another year though…

Knugcab · 2 September 2024 12:13

Oh. I forgot another thing I was considering, letting service costs somewhat decide time in the pits. Like, service costs under XX - two dice rolls and the best gets chosen. Over XX - two dice rolls and the worst gets chosen. Opinions?

abg7 · 2 September 2024 12:39

It could make sense, given that anything that costs less to maintain will be a boon in pit stops.

ErenWithPizza · 2 September 2024 15:14

Service cost divided by reliability? Less likely for something to break and how easy it is to fix

Knugcab · 2 September 2024 16:33

Reliability is already the factor that decides IF something breaks when a roll says a certain number, so…

Knugcab · 7 September 2024 16:28

I have some pretty bad anxiety issues at the moment, unfortunately, and can hardly think. I will postpone rules delib until wednesday the 11th of september, 5 PM CEST to start with. (Still plenty of time to build a car, so no deadline extension)

Knugcab · 10 September 2024 16:23

OK, I added the pit stop modifier now…

In case your car has a service cost of $450.00, or under, or in case it has a service cost of $900.00, or over, you will get an extra roll for the time in the pits. In the case of the lower service cost cars, the best roll will be chosen. In the case of the higher service cost cars, the worst roll will be chosen.

Hshan · 10 September 2024 16:52

I was curious and did the math:
For one roll each result has a 16,(6)% chance of being rolled.
For two rolls, assuming lower results are chosen, it is:
30,(5)% for 1
25% for 2
19,(4)% for 3
13,(8)% for 4
8,(3)% for 5
2,(7)% for 6
And the reverse, if higher results are chosen.

Knugcab · 11 September 2024 15:16

SUBMISSIONS ARE OPEN!

And yes, I haven’t really worked through the “driver profile” thing yet. But it will probably appear in form of a sheet you can fill in yourself, and has nothing to do with what you need to post in here about the team. It will also be totally volountary to use it. So, feel free to start sending stuff in. Since I have seen almost no objections after an almost extremely long delib, I see it as the rules being OK…