Resources & the road
Resources & the Road
This is the heart of the game: manage eight resources so each driving leg doesn't break you, and refill them between shows by shopping and hustling.
The eight stats
| Stat | Range | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Cash | 0+ | Buys everything |
| Gas | 0–20 (raisable) | Fuel; each leg needs some to leave |
| Grub | 0–40 (raisable) | Food; the crew eats it every leg |
| Van | 0–100 | Vehicle health; 0 = broken down |
| Vibes | 0–100 (raisable) | Morale; 0 = game over |
| Tapes | 0+ | Recordings you own (sell them, or score with them) |
| Blanks | 0+ | Blank tapes; you need one to record a show |
| Lot Cred | 0–100 | Standing in the scene; helps prices, taping, events |
Gas, Grub, Van, and Vibes have caps. The base caps are Gas 20, Grub 40, Van 100, Vibes 100. Van upgrades can raise the Gas and Grub caps (see Van & Gear).
A driving leg: what it costs
Leaving a show for the next one is a leg. Before you can go, you need enough
gas (roughly miles ÷ 70, rounded up). If you're a little short on gas or
grub, the game buys the gap at tonight's prices as far as your cash stretches.
Then the leg spends:
- Gas: the leg's gas need.
- Grub: the crew eats based on headcount and your rations setting. Being short on food costs 3× Vibes per missing unit and earns a grumble.
- Van wear: starts around 4, plus your pace's wear, plus extra on long (600+ mile) legs and a little randomness. Lead Foot adds wear; Heavy-Duty Shocks / Rebuilt Engine and Hitch reduce it.
- Vibes: your rations and pace swing morale up or down, minus road fatigue that grows with distance (longer hauls hurt more). So Vibes is a managed resource — long drives, empty larders, and hard paces all drain it.
- Days: the leg takes in-game days based on distance and pace.
On arrival the leg may also have thrown 1–3 road events at you, possibly fired your Peak, and — if morale was high — triggered crew pooling/scavenging (below).
Pace
Set on the drive screen. Faster covers ground in fewer days but wears the van and can cost morale.
| Pace | Miles/leg pace | Van wear | Vibes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scenic Route | 190 | +0 | +3 |
| Mellow | 260 | +0 | +1 |
| Cruisin' | 380 | +4 | 0 |
| Full Tilt | 520 | +12 | −4 |
Rations
How much you feed the crew each leg. Generous keeps morale up but burns grub; sparse saves food but starves morale (and the hit grows with a bigger crew).
| Rations | Grub per head | Vibes |
|---|---|---|
| Feast | 3 | +5 |
| Generous | 2 | +3 |
| Sensible | 1 | 0 |
| Bark & berries (sparse) | 0.5 | −2 |
Crew size cuts both ways. More van-mates hustle and party harder (bonuses on lot work and show morale) but eat more grub per leg. Doses' perk shaves one mouth off the food bill; the Grandma role and the Roof-Rack larder help you carry more.
On-arrival crew perks
When you roll into a new town with Vibes 65+, a random living van-mate may pool resources and top up whatever you're shortest on (gas / grub / cash / vibes), with better odds the higher your morale. Randy independently has about a 1-in-3 chance to scavenge a small free haul (tapes or snacks). Both are why keeping morale high has compounding payoffs.
Shakedown Street (buying)
At the Lot, "Shakedown" is the vendor market — 23 one-shot items from lot characters. Prices are a couple of dollars each (Deb's perk knocks $1 off). A sampler:
| Item | Price | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Grilled Cheese | $2 | +6 Grub |
| Two Tamales | $4 | +9 Grub (best food deal) |
| Cowboy Coffee | $2 | +7 Vibes |
| Kind Tea | $3 | +8 Vibes |
| Gas (5 units) | $4 | +5 Gas |
| Patch up the van | $14 | +22 Van |
| Fresh Tie-Dye | $6 | +8 Cred, +3 Vibes |
| Blank Maxell 3-pack | $4 | +3 blank tapes |
| A "Miracle" Ticket | $40 | ~60% chance of a guaranteed way in |
| Reel of Masters | $12 | +1 Tape |
A few items have a random downside (the mystery burrito, the questionable kombucha), and the nitrous balloon is a trap — it costs Vibes and Cred because "the whole lot saw you do that."
Working the lot (earning)
"Work the lot" runs a hustle for cash — 14 options, some always available, some needing grub or tapes to work with. Working when your morale is already fried costs extra Vibes. Examples:
| Hustle | Needs | Payoff |
|---|---|---|
| Grill grilled cheeses | grub | +$6–16, −2 Grub |
| Sell bootleg tapes | tapes | +$5–11 per tape sold |
| Cook veggie burritos | grub | +$8–18, −3 Grub |
| Spin fire / be a spectacle | — | +Cred, +tips |
| Read tarot | — | usually +$5–13, +Cred (or a small Vibes hit) |
| Shuttle heads to the venue | gas | +$6–14, −1 Gas, some wear |
| Busk with your guitar | — | +$2–9, +3 Vibes |
Rest (also at the Lot) trades a turn for +12 Vibes.
Related: Van & Gear · Taping, Scoring & the Hall