Bush vs Gore

[Optimizer]

I made this scenario. I would be grateful to read your comments.

[belbincolne]

Played this on Normal and got Silver no problem. Main difficulty is carrying Ammo. Towards the end some showed up in warehouses (one had 8 in a year) so I had custom consist trains from three of these for last 3 or 4 years (from the first one I had a train sitting at the station for 10 years )- not one of them carried anything. I did carry steel / chemicals to an ammo plant and in last 5(?) years it produced just 2 loads. Before I could send steel I had to carry iron to the steel works all of which used up cash. Any ideas welcome! I was also a bit low on PNW but that was possibly just me not buying enough stock early on and solely railing - didn't buy a single industry.

Nice to have a scenario full of modern events however the stock market was the exact opposite to reality. For most of the first 15 years it was reccession and it moved into boom just when (in real life) the world economy crashed.

[Optimizer]

One warehouse class transforms Uranium to Ammo. This is useful if you pursue the Gold medal, especially if Chemicals are scarce on the map.

I consider updating this scenario with the possibility to have Hillary Clinton or John McCain instead of Obama. McCain would be a tax-cutter, but I would like some opinions about the difference between Hillary and Obama.

[belbincolne]

There are rumours that Hillary is a woman?

Forgot to say that one other problem is that you cant get into some cities easily and have to build a medium rather than large station. The one I really remember is New orleans where to get in at all I had to demolish a house.

[RayofSunshine]

Well Optimizer,

I had some of the same problems as those mentioned previous, so won't repeat.

And the same I played on Normal, and am able to get the Silver. I belileve that I had a good revenue to run a track to the NE states for the Ammo, but getting Ammo was easier "said than done". That makes the scenario concept with a good challenge.

But I need some info on the term "modifier". It was my idea that it had to do with the depreciation of the track longevity, so when it was a 3-2%, I electrified the complete system. NOTHING happened. Hence I guessed wrong at its meaning. This is the 1st time that I have encountered the expression, but just in case it happens in future scenarios, will some one explain as to "what" it is, and also a "reason" for it.

SO, there went the revenue to construct the tracks to the NE area, but don't believe there was an adequate amount of time to haul the requirement of ammo.

At firt I believed that I was ahead of the game, as I saw "weapons" being hauled. WRONG

Good concept Optimizer, and I enjoyed playing the scenario. But I am some what biased with scenarios that don't have """MOUNTAINS""". I don't seem to have the 'knack" of finding the better "passages as when I was younger. Oh I play them, but don't get very far in progress. OH I play them, as I know the time and imagination of talent which is required for """"any""""" scenario.

SO, thanks Optimizer for your contribution, and know that the members will have hours of fun with the challenge your scenaio presents.

[Optimizer]

The track cost modifier tells how much track costs. The cost rises if you build a lot of track at once. It drops if you haul a lot of steel and lumber.

Bronze and Silver seem to easy right now. I considered requiring a connection between New England to California, instead of Canada to Mexico.

[RayofSunshine]

Thanks for the info on "modifier" Optimizer,

As I had forgotten about the agenda of hauling steel and lumber, and will have to look at that aspect.

I went to a -5%, but after the complete "electrification" was installed, the rating managed to only come up to +1-2%. However, a year later it jumped to a +25%. Hence again, I will have to check on the commodity consists to check on their supplying demand of steel and lumber.

Won't be able to get the Gold, but had a lot of enjoyment with the accomplishment which I did attain. Just a lot of fun, and thanks for your time, talent, and imagination.

[ishaybas]

Hi Everyone!

First I'd like to say this is a GREAT scenario!

I played Gold and enjoyed every minute.
I too, confused ammo and weapons for the first 14 years of the game,
so I got Silver.

Thanks a lot!

[joost]

Hi, there's a lot I like about the scenario. It takes some close reading though to understand the requirements for medals. The first time I overlooked the requirement that above bronze you need to connect Canada and Mexico with one single company. Having corrected that, now I'm stuck. I've triple checked and fulfill the following conditions (on expert level with 6 computer players):
* connect Canada and Mex with the company of which I'm chairman at the end of the game
* PNW of 47M
* 62 loads of ammo to New England

I still get silver. What have I missed?

thanks for building this map. cheers,
joost

[Optimizer]

Here is version 1.1.

Major changes:
* In the first version, a gold medal required a debt-free company, but that was not mentioned in the briefing. This is not required in the new version.
* The 2008 presidential election, with political consequences, is now part of the gameplay.
* A connection between New England and California is needed, instead of Canada to Mexico.
* The terrorist threat is slightly more potent.
* There are more chemical plants on the map, so ammo production gets a little easier.

[Hawk]

I owe you an apology. I completely forgot to get this new version updated in the archives.
It's there now. Sorry!

[Optimizer]

Thank you for the uploading.

Now I look forward to new reviews!

[Optimizer]

I would appreciate some after-action reports.

Where do you prefer to begin? How do you prefer to trace the rail between New England and California?

[joost]

Hi Optimizer,
I haven't tried your new version yet, but from the previous one I'd say Texas is definitely the place to begin, that would also count for a connection to California. There's a lot of Industry possibilities there and most importantly you're connecting the chemical plants you need to produce ammo.
Thanks for all the effort you put in building this scenario. 't Was good fun to play.

[Optimizer]

New version coming up soon, with lots of small changes for flavoring.

In some rounds of this scenario, I have faced the problem that the Ammo price falls extremely low. Has this happened to you?

[joost]

Yeah, it has, been hauling ammo at a loss practically throughout play. But the huge (unrealistic?) profits on industries offset this. Would be a nice fix though if you can pull it off, but then you should do something about industry profits imho, else the game will become too easy.
cheers

[Optimizer]

Here is an updated version.

Ammo price problems are fixed. Several events are added.

joost: I have not noticed exceedingly high industrial profits. Where can you place industries for high profit?

[joost]

Don't worry, it's not a bug or something. It's just very easy to make serious industrial profits, an aluminium mill near the Monterrey warehouses for instance, or a lumber mill in Birmingham. You don't need a lot of trains to transport surplus production and they easily make 800K+ for years and years. You need that right now to offset the loss making ammo project, But if you fix that, the game might become too easy. From what I remember from a stab at mapmaking years ago, you can tweak your industries' success in the design right?
good luck

[Hawk]

Should I update the map in the archives with this version or wait to see if you need to make any more adjustments?

[Optimizer]

Hold it, please. I will knock down Aluminum, Lumber and Steel production, so these get less profitable, and upload a new version.