Trainmaster Scenario creation and its design

[nedfumpkin]

Just wanted to post a few things about the way TM was designed, and the effect on map making and scenario writing. Please nobody take this as criticism because it is just general information.

As much as the cargo chain is different than RT3, the bigger difference you may find with TM is in the map making and scenario writing, because that is what drove this, and most of the other stuff could be considered cosmetic in a sense.

Trainmaster is designed for big maps. The smallest dimension shouldn't be less than 640. It is also designed for a longer play, in the 40+ years range, but more importantly in the 50-100 year range. The industrial base, especially the agri-communities lend themselves very well to making actual historic maps. When I get back to the Black Diamonds map I have to redo because it was an alpha 1 version map, it will show how the map is relatively accurate for the Wyoming Valley in Pennsylvania in 1845. I even have the actual mines plotted out according to that time period.

The Persian Electric map will lend itself to more development as far as geography, and I will most like revisit this map in the future, perhaps in a different time period.

But that isn't to say that some limited scenarios can't be created on small maps, however, a lot more care should be taken or it can not work out.

I keep saying that TM doesn't lend itself well to spawning industries, or agri-communities. Spawn if you must, but it totally detracts from the design of TM which is more intentional detail. Natural Resources can be spawned in regions, and so too for landfills and incinerators.

Something to also keep in mind is the effect of production and pricing. The agri-cultural comminities are designed to be shaped to your needs by star up event, where cargo can be disabled with a -200% reduction in production for cargo. So if you wanted to keep hemp from being produced, just put that as a startup event effect. Ranches could have their wool removed by the same means, and at the other side, livestock or grain could be increased.

Some industries will gush cash, others will barely break even. This too can be controlled by adjusting the prices of the inputs. There is a balance across the industry chain that is the starting point, but this can be altered. And just because it was brought up to me, some industries can be difficult to get going. The bakery is an example. They are cheap at $375K, but getting them to produce is very hard....this is intentional, and some others are the same way. This is where map design comes into play, and specific challenges can be derived from this.

With computer a lot faster now than when RT3 came out in 2003, it's now possible to have giant maps and lots of events without affecting game performance. I've been able to test a map with over 250 events, and it worked fine. So the potential is there.


Anyways...these are just my thoughts from the overall design perspective of TM. It was essentially created out of a desire to make a scenario based in the 1950s all about spies, slush funds and the cold war. A scenario with a number of possible outcomes based on how the player plays.

[nedfumpkin]

Adding to the above....

I just posted a couple of custom paks here.... viewtopic.php?f=74&t=2389

These are pk4 files that once TM is set up right, will allow for greater customization of scenarios. In this set, I have made all the locos and express cars match under the fictional Persian Star Railway. Included are mosques to replace churches, and sounds to make things eastern.

These files can be used when playing Persian Electric to give the scenario a bit of local flair, and at the same time alter the way the cars look in the game.

TM was designed to make customizing easier, and a development kit is available. It's possible to make a little, or a lot, and thus when creating a scenario, it will be possible to customize it. I do expect that I will most likely make a lot of the content for this, but it is open to anyone who wishes.

For the CNR scenario I am planning on, my goal is to have a complete set of cars and locomotives appropriate for the time and place for use in this scenario. I may even go as far as to make some freight cars too. This way, when playing the scenario, all the cars will be for the CNR.

In addition to custom sets, I have some full car sets coming, so there will always be options of sorts when playing scenarios.

So this can be taken into consideration when creating scenarios. Of course, if it seems to big a job to tackle, but you like the idea, I can usually be persuaded to help out and assist making custom paks to go with scenarios.

[nedfumpkin]

Now, having written all of the above, I am going to completely contradict myself and say that smalll maps are possible with Trainmaster, however, I would suggest that they are more difficult to create. Mostly because the supply chain is more complex, so smaller maps will generally become over crowded and saturated with cargo.

For smaller maps to work, it may become necessary to limit the cargo to only what is needed to accomplish the goals set out in the scenario. Also, smaller maps should retain the scale of larger maps, so while they are smaller, they are also comvering a much smaller area. From what I can gather, the overall scale of RT3 maps is 1.5 miles per pixel. Although this is only a guide since a large station would be about 15 miles long!

In smaller maps, it is all that much important to take complete control over the industries, and strategically place them so that they support the goals of the scenario. Leaving more to chance and randomness on smaller maps will make scenarios very unpredictable, and their spawning will be more determinitive of the player's success.

Times limits should also be adjusted on smaller maps. Trainmaster is designed for longer and larger maps, so again, keeping scale in perspective, smaller maps would do well to have their duration scaled back.

All in all, it will take some time before the full potential of Trainmaster can be developed and discovered. There should be a different approach to desing, but in reality, it always comes down to the individual creator and what they want to accomplish. These posts suggestions should be taken as guidelines more than anything, since it is basically my perspective on how Trainmaster was designed, which, I tried as much as possible to take into consideration the original game, the 1.06 patch, and the RT4 wish list, and the defunct Rail Mogul project discussions.

It comes down to: if it works, go with it.