Building tracks exploits?

[kocisz]

1. Just Recently i saw that you can upgrade your tracks to electric tracks at no cost.

Just put one electric track next to existing one, end extend it by only one track. It will cost you 0.

2. Building tracks is less expensive when you build it by one.

Just build one track, leave space, next track, leave space and so on.

Looks like this: - - - - -

Then you connect the holes, but also by one: --------

It's a cheap way to build long connections.

OFC you sometimes must build longer tracks, to avoid high grade.

But on the plains it's very cheap.

The same applies to expanding from one to two tracks - expand it by one, then connect the holes.

Hope you enjoy it ;)

[Gwizz]

There are a lot of bugs in RT2.

I believe it makes the game interesting, while others claim it is cheating when a person uses these bugs.

if in competition for the best or fastest win on a map then i guess it would be cheating.

I like to build and care little for a win.  So I will sometimes use these cheats and think of them as buying used track or second hand re-lay rail and supplies.

The game does include a published list of cheats to use in the editor. 

A cheat I didn't know about for a long while is to change the route of a train and then unload it for a profit without the cargo ever leaving the station.  I think I stated that correctly. I haven't used this method for quite a while.  I guess doing this could be called cheating or tycooning.  After all the Tycoons were not always honest people

[UlfSun]

I remember using the free electrification a few times when I had a real hard time winning some scenario. I regarded it as cheating, but this "cheating" was just some sort of "practicing" for winning in a coreect way. (When you are "cheating" when you play by yourself for your own ammusement, one can really wonder *who* you are cheating)

Laying track one-by-one, I also used some times (not the version with holes to be filled), for example in the Indian scenario on the classic campaign where it could be hard to reach Bombay otherwise, and have money left for buying a train).

Another track-laying cheat can be used in the English WWII-scenario on the TNC Campaign: it then is possible to upgrade to double track (at a cost, but money isn't the problem in this scenario) even though there are severe restrictions on laying new track.

/Ulf S

[thomasjordan]

I usually plan with North American equipment, so the electric upgrade seldom affects me, as the North American electric engines are few and not overly good.  When I do play European scenarios, I'll take advantage of that free electric track.

As for laying track one block at a time, I knew it worked, but I've never done it.  Guess I've never been that tight for money.

[Marsden]

I double track one block at a time but I can't remember ever laying the line like this.  I don't suppose this works in an "all track must connect" scenario.

[jeffryfisher]

I haven't seen such zeroes. In any case, as a grandiose builder, I am too much more concerned with grades than I am about cash. The track "exploit" that I prefer is the sometimes expensive one of laying cross-ways segments side by side to flatten terrain. It's possible (but expensive) to cut trenches through mountains or extend high platforms over coastlines this way.

[Gwizz]

I use mountain stitching sometimes to reduce grades when I am just playing for fun.  It is expensive.

I also use the track cheats in testing a map. 

The cheat that I don't use (it is not on the cheats list) is sending the cargo to the next station and

getting paid for it, without the locomotive even leaving the first station. 

The cheating is moving a loaded train to another route station;  Than changing the trains cargo.

The train unloads Its' cargo at the new station without traveling to it.

As far as cheating goes, how a player chooses to play the game is that players business.

Although, if in some sort of competition then cheating would be a concern.

In the past I was going to award an HO locomotive to the winner of a map building contest.

I had a problem figuring out just how to score the maps. I didn't think it would be a problem.

But it was.

Each player has a different play style and likes a different style of map that fits their play style.

At that time the majority of the map builders had the same play style.

That made it unfair for those that had a different play style, as part of a minority.

[RSimpkinuk57]

Another (less drastic) loophole with electric track: if you have an electrified single line, and double it, you pay for doubling the track, but not for doubling the wires. So building electric single track, then immediately doubling it, works out cheaper than building electric double track in one go.

The discount, though, is no more than you might get from hiring the right manager.

regards, Richard

[RSimpkinuk57]

By the way, apropos Ulfsun's remark in reply#2 above, about using a track-laying "cheat" in the classic campaign Indian mission: the way hard difficulty pushes up access right prices by clobbering your initial goodwill, I don't see how you can ever honestly buy rights to Bombay, lay track there, and still have money left for a decent station and trains. But I have won gold going the other way, to Coimbatore. It took the good fortune of the right seeding (a grain farm halfway there, and 4 houses at Coimbatore I could cover from across the territory border) plus a rising economy (to beat Nehru to 55% of his company's shares).

It might even be possible to buy access rights into Coimbatore and still afford to get started.

Bangalore is a richer target but the grades are awkward so I don't think you'd make money fast enough going there first.

[Silverback]

Re Croissants or crumpets the way to do it without cheating is hopefully to get a goodwill increasing manager - The best strategy website for RTII was the long dead Blue Baron site.  NB you don't always get the right managers but Goodwill is the key. Tree bulldozing is allegedly cheaper than building over them

Quote

In this scenario you start out in Panaji with no power to issue bonds,

which makes it rather difficult to start. Therefore you have to be

careful not to run out of money before you get trains going. First of

all, check to see if Panaji has at least 4 houses. If Panaji has only 3

houses, it's time to restart the map.

If it does have 4 houses, then you're ok and you can go ahead. Since you

don't have rights in neighboring territories, you need to buy them.

There are two choices -- Madras, or Bombay. Madras is cheap, but it's a

long line, and it goes south. Bombay is closer, but it costs a lot more.

I beat easy difficulty pretty easily buying rights from Bombay, but in

hard it is much more difficult since the price tag is higher. In the

end, I came up with the following:

Choose the middle option -- +$100000 and +10% goodwill. Then pause the

game when you get in. Issue stocks (you need to do this), hire the

manager that gives you +15% goodwill, sell all your stocks on hand, BUY

everything you can in Indian Railways (on margin). You should have about

50% of Indian Railroad. Buy rights in Bombay, and then connect (very

carefully) to Bombay. Be sure to bulldoze all the trees on your way

before you build your single track. You should just reach Bombay with

enough money to build a depot sized station that covers 4 houses. Make

sure you still have enough money to buy a train. Then start a route

between Bombay and Panaji. After you un-pause the game you should watch

the stock market closely, and once you have enough money buy in Indian

Railways, because if you don't do so Nehru will buy more than 50% of his

company and he never sells again, and buying up his company is part of

the gold condition. Brunei doesn't buy much stocks, so you can worry

about his company later.

The reason I am suggesting this method instead of going to Madras is

that if you do expand to Madras, it takes a long time before you can

have enough money to expand anywhere else. Going to Bombay, however,

means the AI won't jump into Bombay, and you can still go South. I've

tried playing Madras a few times but find it difficult to expand quickly

enough. By the time I gather enough money to buy rights elsewhere the AI

has already expanded all over Northern India, which makes life difficult

(not impossible). After Bombay you can just go South and connect Madras

and Pondicherry, and then the rest of it should be easy. Just remember

to connect to industries and buy them up since it is part of the victory

conditions.

MarshalN - added

This strategy works great, however you must do everything in the right order.

      1. Pause and go into your company screen. Issue Stock

      2. Purchase maybe 2000 shares of Indian Railways or so don't buy too much because the price will go down some. You'll need at least 11,000 shares to have a majority of the stock.

      3. Sell all your stock because your prices will drop.

      4. Hire the manager that gives you 10% Goodwill

      5. Purchase rights for Bombay

      6. Bulldoze all trees between the 2 cities.

      7. Very Carefully lay track north.

      8. Make sure you have enough to buy at least 1 train.

[RSimpkinuk57]

I was just pointing out there is another way. You still have to buy 11,000 of Nehru's shares, one or two thousand at a time on margin, in the first year or just over. Provided economy doesn't go wrong then doing it my way my own shares rose (helping purchasing power) so I didn't need to sell.

[RabidDave]

On 8/31/2010 at 12:13 AM, Silverback said:

Re Croissants or crumpets the way to do it without cheating is hopefully to get a goodwill increasing manager - The best strategy website for RTII was the long dead Blue Baron site.  NB you don't always get the right managers but Goodwill is the key. Tree bulldozing is allegedly cheaper than building over them

Quote

In this scenario you start out in Panaji with no power to issue bonds,

which makes it rather difficult to start. Therefore you have to be

careful not to run out of money before you get trains going. First of

all, check to see if Panaji has at least 4 houses. If Panaji has only 3

houses, it's time to restart the map.

If it does have 4 houses, then you're ok and you can go ahead. Since you

don't have rights in neighboring territories, you need to buy them.

There are two choices -- Madras, or Bombay. Madras is cheap, but it's a

long line, and it goes south. Bombay is closer, but it costs a lot more.

I beat easy difficulty pretty easily buying rights from Bombay, but in

hard it is much more difficult since the price tag is higher. In the

end, I came up with the following:

Choose the middle option -- +$100000 and +10% goodwill. Then pause the

game when you get in. Issue stocks (you need to do this), hire the

manager that gives you +15% goodwill, sell all your stocks on hand, BUY

everything you can in Indian Railways (on margin). You should have about

50% of Indian Railroad. Buy rights in Bombay, and then connect (very

carefully) to Bombay. Be sure to bulldoze all the trees on your way

before you build your single track. You should just reach Bombay with

enough money to build a depot sized station that covers 4 houses. Make

sure you still have enough money to buy a train. Then start a route

between Bombay and Panaji. After you un-pause the game you should watch

the stock market closely, and once you have enough money buy in Indian

Railways, because if you don't do so Nehru will buy more than 50% of his

company and he never sells again, and buying up his company is part of

the gold condition. Brunei doesn't buy much stocks, so you can worry

about his company later.

The reason I am suggesting this method instead of going to Madras is

that if you do expand to Madras, it takes a long time before you can

have enough money to expand anywhere else. Going to Bombay, however,

means the AI won't jump into Bombay, and you can still go South. I've

tried playing Madras a few times but find it difficult to expand quickly

enough. By the time I gather enough money to buy rights elsewhere the AI

has already expanded all over Northern India, which makes life difficult

(not impossible). After Bombay you can just go South and connect Madras

and Pondicherry, and then the rest of it should be easy. Just remember

to connect to industries and buy them up since it is part of the victory

conditions.

MarshalN - added

This strategy works great, however you must do everything in the right order.

      1. Pause and go into your company screen. Issue Stock

      2. Purchase maybe 2000 shares of Indian Railways or so don't buy too much because the price will go down some. You'll need at least 11,000 shares to have a majority of the stock.

      3. Sell all your stock because your prices will drop.

      4. Hire the manager that gives you 10% Goodwill

      5. Purchase rights for Bombay

      6. Bulldoze all trees between the 2 cities.

      7. Very Carefully lay track north.

      8. Make sure you have enough to buy at least 1 train.

Would you have any of the other BlueBaron tips at hand ? I used to use his site for gameplay tips and was gutted to find it extinct. Thanks for any help you could give.  😉👍

[jeffryfisher]

I don't recall Blue Baron, but I do have my own tips scattered among the many comments on this site. The biggest:

1) Cross lines on diagonals that meet at a point -- Trains can pass through each other at full speed because they never share the same square.

2) When electrifying, first build non-electric track. Then add wires starting from the southeast and upgrading just one tile at a time. You end up paying for just the first link -- all 1-tile extensions to the north and west are free (you'll learn the exact compass points through experience).

[Silverback]

There are lots of linkts to strategy guides in this thread some of which may still work

There is a wayback machine cache of the Blue Baron referenced in the above which is

https://web.archive.org/web/20030106031017/http://home.revealed.net/brandonwb/contents.htm

 

I also found the Dick Knisely guide (mentioned in the thread) on an old 3.5" floppy recently and have attached it (it's in word 97 format) 

RRT2Guid.zip