I just won my first BRONZE!

[thegrindre]

He he, after about 5 attempts, I made last on the list but it gave me a bronze. Which raises a question or two I'd like to ask.

8)

[RSimpkinuk57]

Hi there,

Well ask them then!

If you're playing the campaign, place on the list means nothing until you've done all 18 missions.

stick at it and have fun, Richard

[Gwizz]

Questions are welcome and if I can't answer something, there are a number of people on this forum that can.

I just completed gold in 7 years and 11 months on my Economy Map.  I was the produce and milkman on this play through for the first four years. I ended up using just one feeder AI RR; But, there wasn't enough dairies and produce farms to meet the hauling goal.  My main goal was to greatly reduce micro management.  With lots of money I ran more trains and only checked them at the start of each year.  The AI ran the best.  It only changed about 5 or 6 trains out of 64.  For my RR I had to make adjustments each year where I hadn't figured the available cargo correctly.  I changed many trains to run on 50% of available cargo.

At the end of the fourth year I added some passengers and mail runs.  I hauled some Diesel, Goods, food, lumber, beer and paper, anything that would keep my trains running and my income high for the last 4 years. 

On year 7, I developed a routing dot problem.  A routing dot followed the pointer, keeping me from laying any track, or making any changes to the trains.  I went back to a saved game and still had the problem.  I shut off the computer and reloaded the game.  Then everything worked fine again.  That was the first time that had happened.

Starting another Map

Except for the SP RR There will be 2 or more very small RRs that

center around the The San Joaquin and Eastern RR.  The SJ&E was a 56 mile construction RR, used to build 4 dams and 4 power generating stations for the Edison California power company.  At it peak It had 12 locomotives about 1/2 was geared and half were small rod engines.  There was an SP RR transfer station at the junction.  The shops and a supply area were at the half way point.  At this point the small locos were changed to gear locos for the hard climb up the hills to the dams and construction areas.  There were some very small construction RRs using only 0-4-0 dinkys for logging and gravel, etc.  Summer tourist and construction workers were hauled to the top of the line in one or two car passenger trains.

The SP RR will deliver gravel and passengers/mail and misc cargo to the junction for the SJ&E RR to pick up.

 

[thegrindre]

Thanks guys,

Well, it took me about 5 tries to 'beat' it and that was because I had no clue were to start, being a newbie and all so, my question is, how do you know where to start on a map after the initial opening screen tells you what the goals are???

What I had to do was haul like 250 loads of lumber. I had no clue where any lumber was and my first 3 starts had no lumber anywhere around me. My 4th and 5th attempts was when I discovered lumber camps. Once I discovered those, I just started hauling the crap outta lumber. ;D

So, where do you start and how do you find what you're looking for??? If you wait to long, the AI will jump on it first.

8)

[Gwizz]

When I first start playing a map and after I studied the goals I look to see what kind of a mix I got on start up.

If I need to haul lumber,  I look to see where and how many logging camps and saw mills I have on the map.

I then look to see where my demand for lumber is located.  Then what I can haul back to a point close to the logs.

With lumber I also get a paper supply.  My choice would be a station that had a pulp and lumber mill. 

Maybe two or three cities is better.

The better you build the route the less micro management you will have.  Using extra trains to keep the station clean has two affects:  It keeps the value of the cargo high by quickly picking up the cargo; but at the same time if you over supply a demand station the delivery payment will decrease since the station only demands so many of a given cargo.  It will still pay something

So the different trains need to haul to different demand cities.  With different routes you can plan for different supply cargo to haul back.

On the phone more later.  I'm back.    The above is playing for a win.  I seldom play this way.  I enjoy building the railroad more.

It is possible to plan for the time needed to haul cargo.  Curves and grades slow down a train.  This is why I use extra trains that wait for some of the cargo it will haul.  I believe cargo rots slower if on the train or its price drops slower.  I forget.

[thegrindre]

I just realized that I can re-start a map. Since I don't know what building is what, it takes me a few minutes or longer to explore a map while mousing over each building and watching the AI jump on the better city choices. Once I decide where I want to start, I just re-start the map and beat the AI to the best cities. ;D

Gwizz, you said, "I then look to see where my demand for lumber is located."

Where and how do you know and find out this information about any product??? How do you find the demand issue??? :O

I don't mind loosing, I just don't like being told I lost. (Kinda rubs salt in the wound.) >:(

Thanks,

8)

[RSimpkinuk57]

Not the campaign then, but a scenario map.

You've gone beyond the Tutorial, but if you play campaign (Classic Campaign if you've a Second Century/Platinum edition) then the first three missions are progressively bigger challenges bringing more of the game into play, e.g. #3 is the first one where you go into the stock market.

You don't want to RESTART a scenario map (or RESIGN a campaign one, which is the same button). If you do the map gets re-randomised so things will be in different places. (If there's a scattering of logging camps in the east corner the first time, then there'll still be logs there the second, just scattered a bit differently. But if three cities had paper mills first time, then after restarting there may be mills in four cities including only one of the original three)

[RSimpkinuk57]

No, when you start a map, the first thing to do is PAUSE. Some games use the P alphabetic key for example, but RrT uses the actual Pause key. You can do this before or after closing the briefing panel.

Second thing to do is select the file options menu and SAVE. (Give your save a name like "1" or the game year or "Start") Then you can always reLOAD from the same starting setup.

Then, to look around, use the Overview: fourth button down the left hand side, the world symbol. First button on the panel that brings up is freight car symbol. Move pointer over the logs car in the panel and the word "Logs" will appear everywhere on the main map that logs are supplied (white lettering) or wanted (yellow lettering). You might as well have the map zoomed out maybe to max.

Click on the logs car and the legends will remain in place when you move the pointer to the zoom buttons, or to another car (like if you're after steel you might display all three of Coal, Iron and Stl at the same time).

Close Overview panel then hit Pause key again to un-Pause.

[Gwizz]

Maybe I should back up here.  As I said,  there are good players that are willing to help.

I've been playing so long I do things out of habit without thinking about them.

When the game starts it is running and is not on pause.  As suggested, I always pause the game after it starts, before or after the map dialogs are displayed.  The game pauses itself during display of a dialog, unless you have clicked the button in the menu to let the game run in dialogs, in news reports, the train operations, etc. etc.

I look at the map to see how the map was seeded on the first random start.  If I like the start up seeding of industries, etc, then I save the game map  If I choose, I can used the same placements again on a re-start of this saved game version of the map.  I also save the game map just before I quit for the day; So, I can restart where I left off when I return.

If I don't like a game seeding, I restart the map to see if I can get a better game map.

As a side note:  When I plan to save a lots games.

I rename my first saved game map using a number 9, with a short title and a date number. At the end I will sometimes add a number that I use to keep the newest saved game map on top.  Example:  9 Alaska 1900 01 9.  On the next saving of the game map, I change the last 9 to an 8. 

After I have saved 10 times I change the first 9 to an 8 and the last number back to a 9.  When building a map I use 99 for these first and last numbers.

I seldom change the year and month numbers. and often leave them off.

Another topic:

When I first started playing the game I spent some time just clicking all the buttons to see what they did.  Also I right and left click on everything, a loco, a station, a territory, tracks, etc.  Not everything will give you a dialog; but, many things do.

[thegrindre]

Thanks a bunch, guys. I'll try all these things.

It's been quite awhile since I've played RT II.

;D

[Gwizz]

Grindre,  I missed answering one of your questions.

On the left side of the screen are listed the cargo waiting for pickup.

On the right side of the screen are the demand cargoes that the station wants. 

There is a number next to each cargo.  That is how many cars are demanded by that station.

If you route a train to pickup some demand cargo, the demand will normally increase over time.  There may be more demand when the train arrives at the station.

If you deliver more cargo then that station demands the price paid for that cargo drops after each car load delivered.

You will always get paid something for a delivery even if there is no demand.

[RSimpkinuk57]

On the right side of the screen are the demand cargoes that the station wants. 

There is a number next to each cargo.  That is how many cars are demanded by that station.

Sorry Gwizz, that's the wrong wrong Wrong Wrong WRONG way to look at it. That was my biggest hang-up right from the off with campaign map #1. Supply numbers on the left are actual numbers of carloads available. Numbers on the right are relative ticket/freight rates and the actual number of cars you can deliver before rates start to fall is many times the number shown (how many depends I think on number of houses and industries covered).

When a big city has a passenger demand of "1" it does not mean you should only send 1 passenger car on the train. Keep sending 3,4,5 cars at a time. They'll all earn the same (except for exceeding days-to-deliver by different amounts each car).

[RSimpkinuk57]

By the way, Grindre, a demand of zero (0) opposite a car name (or a name with no cars pictured above it) is the basic rate, and is not the same as, and pays better than, no demand (car name not appearing in the list at all). Mind you, in early days when trains are cheap to run, even "no demand" destinations can be profitable over long distances, if you've surplus loads with nowhere else to take them.

regards, Richard

[Gwizz]

Quote from: Gwizz on August 30, 2010, 01:44:30 PM

    On the right side of the screen are the demand cargoes that the station wants.

    There is a number next to each cargo.  That is how many cars are demanded by that station.

Sorry Gwizz, that's the wrong wrong Wrong Wrong WRONG way to look at it. That was my biggest hang-up right from the off with campaign map #1. Supply numbers on the left are actual numbers of carloads available. Numbers on the right are relative ticket/freight rates and the actual number of cars you can deliver before rates start to fall is many times the number shown (how many depends I think on number of houses and industries covered).

When a big city has a passenger demand of "1" it does not mean you should only send 1 passenger car on the train. Keep sending 3,4,5 cars at a time. They'll all earn the same (except for exceeding days-to-deliver by different amounts each car).

Gees, I thought that  is what I said.  If you don't exceed the number stated you will receive maximum dollars.

If you do exceed that amount you get paid less.  My thinking is to maximize dollar profit.  Wait a bit to send more cargo until the number increases so you again receive maximum profit.

For example: A farmer who sends too much produce to market sells some of it for less.  It is better to send some produce some place else where maximum dollars can again be made. 

The exception would be: no place else to send the produce, then it is better to make a little profit, unless the cost to ship is more than the profit gained.  Then it is better to let the cargo rot.

A player by the name of locomotive taught me that.  He was an excellent player.

[RSimpkinuk57]

Its not the same thing. Classic campaign #1: sending all the passengers Baltimore has to Relay, so long as demand there gets no lower than 1 , you'll earn enough to reach Washington far sooner than if you never dispatch more cars than the demand number stated.

The more trains with the more cars you send, the quicker demand falls (your earnings per car drop), and the longer before demand rises again. So yes, as robber baron the way to make most money per train is to run few trains to keep demand high. That's not necessarily the way to make most money per mile of track; nor to increase goodwill if your objective means buying rights in lots of territories.

The demand system does mean that a big trainload every two or three years pays better than the same number of loads trickle-fed at two loads a year. A good reason to alternate the destinations of products from industry.