Pride and Joy: The Vehicles of The Midnight Riders

Living on the back roads

The Midnight Riders have one unique element unavailable to any other group in The Web. Their mode of transportation is unique and often exhibits qualities that one could expect from such things in The Web. The Midnight Riders are nomads that travel all over the world for one reason or another.

Many are monster hunters by trade and spend untold hours tracking and navigating the roads that move through the mundane world in search of what lies beneath. They see the road as a vein, transporting the blood, the needs of civilization, in all directions. They are like white blood cells, hunting the infections that prevent such progress.

Without their vehicles, they would not be nearly as effective as they have become. Midnight Riders are some of the most valuable assets The Web has. They can mobilize quickly, scouting locations of interest and determine whether larger organizations are needed for the situation or whether it can be taken care of by themselves. This makes them perfect as The Troubleshooters. They set up Chuck Wagons off the beaten path to care for the weary wanderers that don't have access to the many luxuries that they do. This wouldn't be possible without their pride and joy.

---

Engine oil and elbow grease

The Midnight Riders are known for being skilled mechanics, and this knowledge doesn't just appear out of thin air. They graduated from the School of Hard Knocks, learning how things work as they go. With every blown tire changed, bad starter replaced, and dent popped back out they have become masters through experience.

Their vehicle is almost accident-prone before it gains the real benefits Midnight Riders are known for. Batteries will inexplicably run out of power, parts will fail. Quirks will begin to reveal themselves like a car door that won't open unless you do it just right or a car radio that needs to have its anti theft system reset every time the car is turned on. These minor inconveniences may seem taxing to some, but to The Riders, these are character traits. They begin to find these traits endearing and will refuse to fix some of these things because of it.

The vehicle begins to express its own personality and the owner will fall in love with it. Eventually, the vehicle will start to gain traits that are far more beneficial and supernatural in nature. In a hurry and about to miss a turn? You may find that the wheel turns automatically, the car decelerating and accelerating appropriately on its own. Need someone to talk to on a bad day? You will suddenly realize the new voice on the new GPS. It sounds a little bit friendlier than normal, and has a lot more to say than just directions. In immediate danger but don't know it yet? You may find the car alarm will go off as the threat nears.

Name Your Darlings

Nothing can happen unless the Midnight Rider gives the vehicle a name. Without a name, it has no true identity. The vehicle is not necessarily sentient or even alive. All studies on the phenomenon yield next to no information as to how and why it occurs. Many believe it is a byproduct of The Gift of Tall Tales, but The Gift of Tall Tales requires a legendary status, and while some of these vehicles have become legendary in The Web, most of them are not.

Magic is the next best guess, but again this is not the case. The Oxford Cabal has been called in to study these vehicles and find there is nothing particularly special about them as far as the arcane is concerned. There is a sense of pride that comes from this fact. Riders love the fact they have access to something that no one else does, and love the fact that no one can even figure out what it is they have and why they have it in the first place.