The map seems sort of small somehow, and mostly north-south. OK, we can't really justify it, but we just like the other maps better. Give us land, lots of land. We think it's cool to imagine rails on the moon, and we like the notion that you're building on a round surface, so that rails wrap off the side of the map back onto the other side of the map. But in practice, the wrapping around makes our brains hurt. We are big proponents of space exploration, but our feelings about Martian Rails are pretty much the same as about Lunar Rails.
Three main things are different about this game. One, each player has a "foreman" who gives that player a special ability, like building mountain mileposts for less than the normal cost. Two, there are sea points, which are like mileposts in the water; you can build to a port, move your train onto an invisible ship, and then move from sea point to sea point, stopping in the sea until your next turn and then moving on until you finally reach another port.
Three, there's an "underground"--a separate map--you can move in, entering and exiting the underground through various portrals on the main map. In theory, these are cool differences. In practice, they just irritate us. And the entirely imaginary placenames and world aren't as fun as the real world names and places in the other games. Our Favorites Empire Builder This is one of our favorites simply because it's the original game, and because we're fans of the old United States railway system.
Australian Rails This is the one we play the most after Empire Builder. Starting Player: Start with the player that has the highest numbered demand card not payoff in the initial draw. Switchback Start: All matches will use a Switchback Start where the second build round is counterclockwise starting with the last player. Discard Start: A player may discard demand cards instead of taking one of the initial building turns. As with the initial demands, event cards drawn have no effect and are shuffled back into the deck along with the original load cards.
Draw only 3 cards. Start Anywhere: A player's train may start in any city, even if the player has no track there. Build-outs: When you are allowed to build, you can build out of any major city at normal cost. Note that such build-outs are limited to two per turn. Speak Up: Count building costs and movement out loud so that the other players can double check. Dots: When counting distance, start counting with the first milepost away from the indicated place.
Faster Play: To help reduce match duration, players may move their full distance non-stop, even if a load drop off or pickup occurs mid-move. However, if you draw a card that impacts your subsequent movement, before the next player's turn, adjust your engine position to what it would have been had you taken your turn slowly, step-by-step. Major Cities: Deliveries and load pickups may be done in any part of a major city.
Cash: Players' money is not considered public until an Excess Profits Tax or similar card is drawn. This card is then removed from the game. If a game does not include a tax card, money is secret until victory is declared. Cash may not be kept hidden from view of opponents, but may be placed in a single stack in front of the player.
Half Rate: When a train enters or starts in a half rate movement area, the remaining movement is halved rounding up. This applies for the rest of the turn, even if the train exits the area. Lost Turns: If you arrive in a city, but have not yet consumed your full movement that turn, and draw an event card that causes you to lose a turn, you lose both the remainder of the current turn as well as all of the next turn. Lost Turns do not Accumulate: When your next turn is already lost, another event card cannot cause you to lose additional turns lost turns do not accumulate.
However, an event drawn after your lost turn is over may cause you to lose more than one turn in a row. Draw straight lines! The time you save later in the game will far exceed a few extra million spent now. Time is money! Fast Freight or Super Freight? YES to both and as soon as possible. Multiple loads increase the value of a turn. Should you pay for the use of another's track?
Expand your system of track in a reasonable direction. Be prepared for a return trip to the same area. Get paid later by someone else using your line.
Occupy one of the allowed tracks into a city? Avoid providing funds for the competition to build track. Later in play, it can become more desirable to pay one of the other system owners:? Pick up or deliver a load for a large payoff when it is cheaper to pay than to build.
Avoid building track to a city only visited once. Arrange to carry multiple loads to adjacent destinations. Visit a city locked out to you by other players' rail lines editor note. This is the most intriguing decision in the game since it can drastically change the situation. The factors to consider are the following in order of importance :? Where on the map is the train located?
There are fewer places to go from a corner. What loads are required by the cards? These loads may not be readily available. How does the proposed train path fit into the track plan?
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