Navajo Land - Beta Test

[OilCan]

Attached is a beta version of a 1.05V game named 'Navajo Land'.
This is a connect and haul type of game, mostly.
It also requires acquiring points towards a 'Prosperity Index': points are added based on various tasks and various choices.
The story line follows a historical time line.

The map was created using a GIS layer from USGS EROS data snapped to a Google Earth satellite image of the area. Using the imagery to color the map surface worked real well. Earlier threads on how to use the imagery were very helpful - thanks guys!

You will notice a message early in the game that using the editor to smooth a track bed is encouraged in this game. Please do!

The context of the game, the Navajo people, is a sensitive matter. On one hand, the tribe has been dealt with badly in the past by the US government, on the other hand the tribe has seemingly missed several opportunities to bring prosperity to themselves. I have traveled through the reservation several times. The Navajo are doing better now than they have in a long, long time, but they struggle and if not careful they will suffer. This game shows how a railroad can become the Navajo's means of prosperity: I wish it was just that easy.

Enjoy. All comments are welcomed.
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Beta version has been removed for final edits.

[Gumboots]

1.05? Ok, I'll have a go at this one. I'm gonna see if I can do it without using the editor. I don't like doing that, and would rather see how clever I can be with my track.

[Gumboots]

Can't get it to work. The game locks up on "Loading car database" and I have to shut it down.

[Hawk]

It loaded fine for me. I'm pretty sure I'm running a default install of 1.05, with the exception of a custom logo.

[Hawk]

Man, I just did make it, by the hair on my chinny chin chin.

Navajo Gold.jpg (63.61 KiB) Viewed 18317 times

I got shut down but still had two trains on the track after the shut down. I'll do things a little different next time.

I will say, the mail offer seems a bit useless to me. With the price of a Post Office and the lack of mail initially, it's just not worth it. Not with everything else going on.
I also didn't build any hotels or restaurants. Too expensive.
I never did buy any industry. I had enough money to be able to get by without it, for the most part, at least after I retired all the trains that were loosing money.

Once I got the coal haul done, I retired those trains. They were just loosing money.

I did lose one uranium mine at Cove. I don't know how long my trains were sitting there waiting on cargo. That didn't help my finances any.

I didn't come across any problems though. This was one of your more challenging scenarios, and I played on medium. I don't know if I could make it on hard or expert.

[Gumboots]

It loaded fine for me. I'm pretty sure I'm running a default install of 1.05, with the exception of a custom logo.

I've ditched all the electric and diesel locos from my installation. If this game is coded to call some of those, that would explain why it wouldn't load on my box.

[OilCan]

I've ditched all the electric and diesel locos from my installation. If this game is coded to call some of those, that would explain why it wouldn't load on my box.

I didn't think to warn a user about that. This game uses the original trains and company logos. There is one AI track already on the map. Sorry for the confusion.

[OilCan]

Man, I just did make it, by the hair on my chinny chin chin.

I will say, the mail offer seems a bit useless to me. With the price of a Post Office and the lack of mail initially, it's just not worth it. Not with everything else going on.
I also didn't build any hotels or restaurants. Too expensive.
I never did buy any industry. I had enough money to be able to get by without it, for the most part, at least after I retired all the trains that were loosing money.

Once I got the coal haul done, I retired those trains. They were just loosing money.

I did lose one uranium mine at Cove. I don't know how long my trains were sitting there waiting on cargo. That didn't help my finances any.

I didn't come across any problems though. This was one of your more challenging scenarios, and I played on medium. I don't know if I could make it on hard or expert.

Thanks for the comments.
Industry helps boost the cash flow. Don't forget that it is normally priced in some areas. Also, take advantage of when the Navajos want to start up new industries and build the factories/mills. They will generate lots of cash.
Some uranium mines will disappear over time. This gave me problems in test runs. To compensate, I created special regions and 'seed' more mines in over time.
I think that you will find that the game becomes less difficult each time you play it. You'll know what to expect.

[Hawk]

I've ditched all the electric and diesel locos from my installation. If this game is coded to call some of those, that would explain why it wouldn't load on my box.

This scenario does use some diesel. As a matter of fact, it's primarily diesel, although it does use a couple of steamers. The Northerner, Big Boy, and Challenger I believe.
Since this is a hot desert climate, the diesels probably suit best.

I think that you will find that the game becomes less difficult each time you play it. You'll know what to expect.

I do plan on playing this one again, once I get my breath back.

Is there any benefit to connecting to AI track? I never did.

I think where I went wrong on the mail offer was; After I connected the required cities, I set up Express trains only. I guess if I had set up Any Cargo trains I would have made more money on those runs.

BTW! I just got around to reading your RT3 Handbook. I found it very helpful in regards to the stock market aspect of RT3.

[Gumboots]

I've ditched all the electric and diesel locos from my installation. If this game is coded to call some of those, that would explain why it wouldn't load on my box.

This scenario does use some diesel. As a matter of fact, it's primarily diesel, although it does use a couple of steamers. The Northerner, Big Boy, and Challenger I believe.
Since this is a hot desert climate, the diesels probably suit best.

Aint happening. Steam or bicycles!

I've ditched all the electric and diesel locos from my installation. If this game is coded to call some of those, that would explain why it wouldn't load on my box.

I didn't think to warn a user about that. This game uses the original trains and company logos. There is one AI track already on the map. Sorry for the confusion.

Is that AI company already loaded with a diesel loco or something? If it is, I'd need to know which one before I can run this. I still have all the default company logos, so those wont matter.

[OilCan]

Is that AI company already loaded with a diesel loco or something? If it is, I'd need to know which one before I can run this. I still have all the default company logos, so those wont matter.

The AI has F3s only.
Available at start of the game are: GP7, Big Boy, Challenger, F3, & Northern. Later in game: GP35, FP45, DD40Ax & HST125
You may wish to go into the editor and enable a few more steam engines of your choice before you start the game.

[OilCan]

Is there any benefit to connecting to AI track? I never did.

I think where I went wrong on the mail offer was; After I connected the required cities, I set up Express trains only. I guess if I had set up Any Cargo trains I would have made more money on those runs.

BTW! I just got around to reading your RT3 Handbook. I found it very helpful in regards to the stock market aspect of RT3.

I could not find any benefit with connecting to the AI track. It cost me money to run on their track AND, worse, they started hauling my uranium (because of the high profits). There is not a lot cargo in the reservation and the AI was much better at scooping it up at the stations than I was. I found it very profitable to parallel their tracks but never connect.

I rarely use express trains anymore. I used to. Now I just rely on the auto consist. Lazy I guess?

Hey, that handbook will help you with life in general. There's stuff in there that'll rev up a marriage, add money to a wallet and help take 10 years off the looks.

[Wolverine@MSU]

Don't forget that it is normally priced in some areas.

I don't think this is true. I see you have events to set the prices high in certain territories, but when I tried to build a Lumber Mill on US Forest Service Land, the cost was not at "normal" levels but instead at the cost-prohibitive rates. I think Buy/Build industry events are gamewide, and can't be changed for different territories. If you think about it, it makes sense: how does the game know where you intend to place a building when you open up the station building button? It has to give a price to build (below the picture of the building) and that seems to be fixed, no matter where you move the cursor on the map.

[Stoker]

P.S. @ Wolverine: I have not checked out this scenario, but I know for sure you can set industry prices per territory. Cargo prices are a different story, they can only be set gamewide.

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Edited by Hawk to remove text discussing the RT3 Handbook and moved the text to the RT3 Handbook topic: viewtopic.php?f=5&t=2162

[Wolverine@MSU]

P.S. @ Wolverine: I have not checked out this scenario, but I know for sure you can set industry prices per territory. Cargo prices are a different story, they can only be set gamewide.

You're absolutely right Stoker As I moved around to different territories, lo and behold, the cost did change. Must be a bug then, or I missed something in the Editor, because high buy/build industries on US Forest Service land isn't evented, but it still shows the high price. Any clue Oilcan?

[Stoker]

I took a look at your map Oilcan, and it looks great. I might be able to give it a play this weekend. I only have a 1.06 install right now, but I think this should not affect anything. I am very familiar with this territory, by the way. In the late 90's I was living in Telluride and commuted to Phoenix once or twice a month for a few years. I now live on the north side of Phoenix. I have driven all of the possible routes through that area many times. I always marvelled at the couple hundred mile long multi million $ electric railway that parallels the Kayenta- Page route. Of all the dozens of times I drove that route I never saw a single train on that thing-EVER. Another multi-million $ boondoggle (bridge to nowhere". I am sure some people lined their pockets with the building of that thing, kind of a modern "Credit Mobilier", except (as far as I know) there was never any "scandal" associated with this.

[Gumboots]

Looks like I'll have to dig up all the .lco and .car files for those diesel locos. At the moment the map wont even open in the editor, because the editor still needs to build the same databases as the live game.

This will mean extracting another setup .exe to get a pile of default files, since I didn't bother keeping copies of them. Meh.

[OilCan]

P.S. @ Wolverine: I have not checked out this scenario, but I know for sure you can set industry prices per territory. Cargo prices are a different story, they can only be set gamewide.

You're absolutely right Stoker As I moved around to different territories, lo and behold, the cost did change. Must be a bug then, or I missed something in the Editor, because high buy/build industries on US Forest Service land isn't evented, but it still shows the high price. Any clue Oilcan?

The forest service land is set to a very high build/buy cost because in real life the forest service does not want private industry being built on forest service land. Yet, I wanted the player to be able to build track on forest service land (which is done in real life) but not too extensively. The track is set at 4 times normal cost to make a player consider the cost of building on forest service land.

[OilCan]

Looks like I'll have to dig up all the .lco and .car files for those diesel locos. At the moment the map wont even open in the editor, because the editor still needs to build the same databases as the live game.

This will mean extracting another setup .exe to get a pile of default files, since I didn't bother keeping copies of them. Meh.

Not trying to get too far into your business, but why not have two 1.05Vs? One could be the original 1.05V and the other could be loaded with the revised engines?

[Gumboots]

Yeah I could do that, but I'll probably just set up a basic 1.03 extraction and just use that to edit any maps that give me trouble with locos or whatever, in my usual 1.05. IOW, just for a basic editor that will handle recalcitrant maps and turn them into something I can use.