Re: Scenario in progress - "Warrington Wire" (CA02)
Posted: Wed Jul 30, 2014 4:09 pm
Randomness is good as long as it doesn't make the game impossible. Unfortunately, to make a difficult game requires sacrificing a small percentage of starts (I think below 10% is acceptable) to be really difficult. When I was learning I thought some games were surely impossible, but, now I don't know of a single one where the goals are impossible to reach no matter what seed I get. There are always new strategies to try and these rare difficult games help to keep me sharp. Many TM games take lots of the randomness from the map by having pre-placed industries. Personally, I prefer a balance between random and pre-placed. This map is good in my view.
The connection to Chester is the surest start. Forget about looking for an agricultural community, that is a less frequent opportunity. Even in the ideal spot I don't believe it offers a big advantage here. There is a fail safe for any start as long as you make a small amount of money from your initial connection (each year's profits are slightly positive). You can issue stock. After 4-5 years of doing this you are virtually guaranteed to qualify for the first bond and therefore this map is always winnable. In the grand scheme of things the start isn't so important in this game. The victory points are mainly earned by hauling Iron and then Steel.
Please note that the Iron haul is setup so you need to haul at least 6 full loads in a year to get a point. The briefing says MORE THAN 5, but the way the scenario is scripted this means AT LEAST 6. If using wait-to-fill you will need to set the train to fill 7 cars as the last one will not be filled completely in waiting mode. If using two trains I believe 3 cars and 4 cars will work as 2.5+3.5=6. I use 7 car trains as they are easier to keep track of and one will fulfill a years requirement. Remember that supplying the Iron Mine with Logs or Coal (BETTER) will help it to produce more Iron. Later on, I believe the Steel requirement is similar in that 11 loads are actually required to get a point.
One of the biggest strategy points with TM is proper routing. I have developed a pretty successful system that may be difficult to explain. The premise is simply that you are more concerned about where specific cargoes DON'T get shipped than where they do. I will mentally mark certain stations (whether cities or stations covering just industries) as having strategic resource value. Then I will limit the types of cargo leaving that station by using custom consists on all trains. (TIP: Available cargoes are highlighted in the consist manager.) I don't care what comes in, I just need to prevent the possibility of that resource being hauled away. (There are so many demands in TM, that if you have trains on auto consist the chances are very high that it will get hauled away.) Custom consists are some work, but by limiting where I use them to a few specific stations the game is still fun to play.
Also, when you buy a specific cargo train such as a Log train which is wait-to-fill to supply a Coal Mine (which in turn is used to supply an Iron Mine) leave the train empty (no auto-consist) on the return run. I also add a caboose so I can easily identify those trains (empty with caboose). It is possible to custom consist also, but the principle is to prevent the train hauling back the same thing it hauled there. This is a disadvantage of hauling with a loss. Hauling at a loss means the cargo doesn't want to go to that destination. Forcing it there is absolutely necessary in TM. Basically, it really wants to be back where it came from, so this is removing the opportunity for it to get there.
Routing isn't such a big deal on this map as there are many passengers which will give a far better return in the early stages than almost all industrial opportunities. The presence of AI means that cargo will get taken from cities you both connect to, so there is no reason to try to control it on your side. Therefore, you shouldn't need to keep many industries supplied unless you want to near the end. The Steel Mill in Sheffield though is one place. The other much simpler option is not to buy a train or set it to express only. This will also keep cargo at that station.
I went a little off topic here, but I thought I would take the opportunity to get my strategy to keep control of cargo in TM into writing. Others probably use the same/similar tricks. It is such a headache when your own trains are stealing your cargo from your own industries that I am sure this is one of the main reasons less people play TM then RT3. I want to prevent others from getting this headache and enjoy the game. If you understood this, good. If you already do this or similar, great. Hope it helps people enjoy TM!
The connection to Chester is the surest start. Forget about looking for an agricultural community, that is a less frequent opportunity. Even in the ideal spot I don't believe it offers a big advantage here. There is a fail safe for any start as long as you make a small amount of money from your initial connection (each year's profits are slightly positive). You can issue stock. After 4-5 years of doing this you are virtually guaranteed to qualify for the first bond and therefore this map is always winnable. In the grand scheme of things the start isn't so important in this game. The victory points are mainly earned by hauling Iron and then Steel.
Please note that the Iron haul is setup so you need to haul at least 6 full loads in a year to get a point. The briefing says MORE THAN 5, but the way the scenario is scripted this means AT LEAST 6. If using wait-to-fill you will need to set the train to fill 7 cars as the last one will not be filled completely in waiting mode. If using two trains I believe 3 cars and 4 cars will work as 2.5+3.5=6. I use 7 car trains as they are easier to keep track of and one will fulfill a years requirement. Remember that supplying the Iron Mine with Logs or Coal (BETTER) will help it to produce more Iron. Later on, I believe the Steel requirement is similar in that 11 loads are actually required to get a point.
One of the biggest strategy points with TM is proper routing. I have developed a pretty successful system that may be difficult to explain. The premise is simply that you are more concerned about where specific cargoes DON'T get shipped than where they do. I will mentally mark certain stations (whether cities or stations covering just industries) as having strategic resource value. Then I will limit the types of cargo leaving that station by using custom consists on all trains. (TIP: Available cargoes are highlighted in the consist manager.) I don't care what comes in, I just need to prevent the possibility of that resource being hauled away. (There are so many demands in TM, that if you have trains on auto consist the chances are very high that it will get hauled away.) Custom consists are some work, but by limiting where I use them to a few specific stations the game is still fun to play.
Also, when you buy a specific cargo train such as a Log train which is wait-to-fill to supply a Coal Mine (which in turn is used to supply an Iron Mine) leave the train empty (no auto-consist) on the return run. I also add a caboose so I can easily identify those trains (empty with caboose). It is possible to custom consist also, but the principle is to prevent the train hauling back the same thing it hauled there. This is a disadvantage of hauling with a loss. Hauling at a loss means the cargo doesn't want to go to that destination. Forcing it there is absolutely necessary in TM. Basically, it really wants to be back where it came from, so this is removing the opportunity for it to get there.
Routing isn't such a big deal on this map as there are many passengers which will give a far better return in the early stages than almost all industrial opportunities. The presence of AI means that cargo will get taken from cities you both connect to, so there is no reason to try to control it on your side. Therefore, you shouldn't need to keep many industries supplied unless you want to near the end. The Steel Mill in Sheffield though is one place. The other much simpler option is not to buy a train or set it to express only. This will also keep cargo at that station.
I went a little off topic here, but I thought I would take the opportunity to get my strategy to keep control of cargo in TM into writing. Others probably use the same/similar tricks. It is such a headache when your own trains are stealing your cargo from your own industries that I am sure this is one of the main reasons less people play TM then RT3. I want to prevent others from getting this headache and enjoy the game. If you understood this, good. If you already do this or similar, great. Hope it helps people enjoy TM!