® E N T E R T A I N M E N T RRT Deluxe manual cover 1 S O F T W A R E 8/19/97, 2:55 PM
For IBM PC & compatible computers ◆ Sid Meier’s RAILROAD TYCOON DELUXE ◆ TECHNICAL SUPPLEMENT Minimum System Requirements INSTALLATION Computer: IBM, or fully compatible, 80386 16MHz Hard Drive: with at least 5 million bytes (5 meg) available Conventional Memory: a system with a base minimum of 640K of RAM Graphics: VGA graphics card and VGA monitor DOS: MS-DOS 5.0 or higher Controls: The simulation can be run entirely from the keyboard, or with a mouse and a keyboard.
LOADING Sound Driver Options This assumes your machine runs under DOS 5.0 when it boots, which is true of most IBM and compatible machines with hard disks. (1) Turn on your machine. If it is already on, exit all programs and return to the root directory with the “CD” (change directory) DOS command. For example, if your hard disk is C: then “CD C:\” does this. (2) Set Speed: If you have a “turbo” or multi-speed computer, use your normal speed setting.
Configuration Music/Sound Effects and Digitized Spech card selection SAVED GAMES Saving Games to a Floppy Disk As part of the installation process, you are required to designate selections for music, sound, and digitized speech. Fortunately, the install program auto-detects the majority of the possible options. This configuration process is also utilized to change your selections if you add, delete or modify system equipment or just decide to change the selections.
Saving Games to a Hard Drive Loading a Saved Game ADDITIONAL IBM RAILROAD TYCOON DELUXE FEATURES 1) The letter of your hard drive is already shown in the window, just press RETURN. 2) This opens the saved game files on your hard drive. Move the highlight to the file into which you wish to save your game and press RETURN. This saves your game into this file. Saved games can only be loaded during the pre-game options.
PROBLEMS? The latest notes regarding this program and problems with “compatibles” can be found on disk, in an ASCII file named “READ.ME”. You can read this file by using a text editor or standard DOS commands such as “TYPE READ.ME”. (DOS 5.0 or better will allow you to enter “TYPE READ.ME|MORE”; this pages through the file, making it easier to read.) If the program does not load or run correctly, turn off your entire machine and restart it.
DISPLAY COLORS Regional Display Map Colors Train Roster COLOR Dark blue Light blue Dark cyan Dark green Light green Light gray Light cyan White Brown Red Yellow Red/yellow Dark red Black INFORMATION DISPLAYED Oceans and lakes Rivers Woods Cleared land Farmland Foothills Hills Mountains/Alps Swamp/Desert Villages Cities Industries Harbors Coal, wood, chemicals, nitrates COLOR Black line Red line Green line Black engine Green engine White car Light gray car Light cyan car Dark cyan car Yellow car Light gr
COLOR White Light cyan Yellow Red Black INFORMATION DISPLAYED Mail Passengers Fast freight Slow freight Bulk freight Financial Reports COLOR Red Black INFORMATION DISPLAYED Losses or decreases Profits or increases Shipping Report Borders COLOR Gray Red White INFORMATION DISPLAYED Normal revenues Halved revenues Doubled revenues COLOR Light gray Black INFORMATION DISPLAYED Scheduled stop Current destination COLOR Dark green Red Light green INFORMATION DISPLAYED Cargo picked up this period or Reven
CONTROLS General Track Construction/ Demolition Keys Shortcut Keys FUNCTION KEYBOARD Selector RETURN key Selector 1 RETURN key Selector 2 Open menu First letter key Move cursor, Construction Box (Box) or menu highlight MOUSE Left button Left button Right button Left button Numeric keypad keys FUNCTION North Northeast East Southeast South Southwest West Northwest KEYBOARD COMMAND Shift and numeric keypad Shift and numeric keypad Shift and numeric keypad Shift and numeric keypad Shift and numeric keypa
Additional Keys KEYBOARD INTERFACE ONLY General FUNCTION Double track a single track section (Box must be on track section) Single track a double track section (Box must be on track section) Get information (for icon inside Box) Override signal (for signal within Box or cursor) Center map on cursor or pointer Quit game Exit menu without making choice KEYBOARD COMMAND Shift and ‘D’ key Shift and ‘S’ key ‘I’ key or Shift and ‘?’ key ‘S’ key ‘C’ key Alt and ‘Q’ key ESC key FUNCTION Switch cursor (between m
SOUND CUES Sound Caused By Whistle/Horn Train passing through station without stopping Revenue earned (one clink for each $25,000) Clink of coins SIGNAL OVERRIDE CHART Existing Signal 4-color 16-color Effect GO Cyan Green STOP Magenta Red Indicates currently safe to enter block Indicates currently not safe to enter block PROCEED White Yellow HOLD Black Dark red Normal Operation Overridden Operation Passes next train and returns to NORMAL operation Stops all trains until overridden
1 RRT Deluxe manual part 01 1 8/19/97, 2:56 PM
Sid Meier's RAILROAD TYCOON DELUXE Computer Simulation MICROPROSE All rights reserved. Copyright © 1994 MicroProse. This book may not be reproduced in whole or in part by mimeograph or any other means without permission, with the exception of quoting brief passages for the purposes of reviews. Printing: 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 IBM is a registered trademark of International Business Machines Inc. Tandy is a registered trademark of Tandy Corporation.
1 INTRODUCTION Railroad Tycoon is a game about the fascinating world of railroads: steel tracks stretching to the horizon, promising adventure and romance; steam, diesel, and electric locomotives, some of the largest machines man has ever built; nations transformed by the speed and strength that locomotives could achieve, eclipsing the puny power of man himself and the animals he could domesticate; the sounds of steam whistles, diesel horns, and clanging bells; a world of risk - natural disasters, poor econ
North America, South America, Africa or Central Europe. Some of these regions also offer a selection for the historical year in which the game starts. Each region has its own geography, economic opportunities, and locomotive technology. These six worlds were chosen for their specific interest or railroad history. The Northeast United States witnessed the beginning of railroading in America, and fostered many of the world’s most famous railroads.
is piling up enough to justify another train, to look for new industries springing up in areas where you can provide service. To succeed you must balance the investment of your limited funds between more construction projects, adding more trains, adding more facilities, and stock purchases. Profitable investment decisions increase your revenue and make possible further expansion and service improvements.
Consider a railroad operating between Baltimore and Philadelphia. The railroad has laid a single track between these cities, setting up stations at each city where cargo can be put on trains and taken off. The railroad also purchases a locomotive and some freight cars. It advertises service between these cities leaving Baltimore at certain hours and arriving in Philadelphia roughly an hour after leaving Baltimore. Return trips are also scheduled from Philadelphia and take about an hour to reach Baltimore.
All railroads, regardless of their size, are composed of three elements linked together for one function. Track, locomotives, and cars are combined to move people and things from one place to another. The strengths and efficiencies of a railroad come from the elements that make it up and how they work together. Tracks make it possible for enormous loads to be supported, guided, and moved at one time.
At the end of its run, the train pulls into the receiving yard of another terminal and the crew uncouples the locomotive from the cars. They head to the engine house for maintenance and refueling of the locomotive, while the train is turned over to yard crews who break up the train and place the cars into other trains that take them on to their destinations. Railroads earn their money by being paid to move things.
BEFORE YOU START Sorting the Materials Learning the Game This Manual provides detailed instructions on how to play and information on the background of railroad construction, operation, and finances. The manual text is printed in two main type faces, normal and italic. Text in normal type usually discusses specific instructions. Text in italic type is usually a commentary on the information discussed in normal type.
The interface of Railroad Tycoon was primarily designed to take advantage of the mouse. A keyboard/mouse combination is recommended for play, as the keyboard functions do not operate as specified without a mouse. Throughout this manual there are references to certain keys, the Selector, Selector 1, and Selector 2. Because the manual is written for all machine formats you need to refer to the Technical Supplement to learn what these keys or buttons are. The interface relies heavily on menus.
Menu Choices To make your choice of the options available using the mouse, place the mouse pointer on your selection and press Selector 1. Alternatively, you can open a menu by placing the mouse pointer on the menu name, pressing and holding down Selector 1, and dragging the mouse pointer down from the menu name. As you drag the pointer down the length of the opened menu, its options are highlighted one by one.
When playing Railroad Tycoon, you spend most of your time viewing one map display or another. In order to be able to move around the various maps you need to understand how to scroll. In order to scroll, move the mouse pointer to any part of the map visible, and press one of the following: Selector 2 or the shortcut key for the map display that you are on. The Center key (C) can also be used to redraw the map with the current cursor location centered.
PRE-GAME OPTIONS Game/World Options Difficulty Levels The beginning of a game of Railroad Tycoon requires you to make a number of choices regarding the parameters and location of the game you wish to play. To begin a game of Railroad Tycoon, follow the instructions in the Technical Supplement for booting the game. After the title and credit screens, you may be required to answer a few technical questions regarding your hardware, depending on the machine format you are using.
much revenue is earned by each delivery. You may run your Railroad for 100 years unless forced into early retirement. The level of difficulty chosen also affects your tycoon rating when you retire, as explained below in the section on Difficulty Factors. After you have chosen the difficulty level, you are then asked to set the level of reality at which you wish to play.
For each of the reality levels, choosing the easier option makes the game easier to play by dropping out some concepts a new player then doesn’t have to think about. As you get more familiar with the mechanics of the game and the decisions that must be made, you can selectively increase the reality level of your games. In addition to making the game more or less easier to play, setting the reality level has an effect on the difficulty factor explained below.
The effect of your difficulty factor on your retirement bonus reflects the number of jobs you took on as president of your railroad. If you additionally acted as your railroad’s dispatcher, had to battle much fiercer competition, and acted as your railroad’s shipping agent, then your bonus is going to be larger. When you are satisfied with the reality levels that you have chosen and the difficulty factor that results from your choices, press the Selector 1 key, or Selector 2 if using the mouse, to proceed.
READING AND USING THE DISPLAYS After you finish choosing the pre-game options, the game opens at the Regional Display. The main feature of this display is the world map chosen for this game shown in the display window. The other important features of this display are the Menu Bar, the Train Roster, the date, your railroad’s current cash, and the World View window. These features are found on the other displays as well.
Across the top of the entire window is the menu bar. From here you gain access to a number of menus from which you can change game parameters, save games, jump to other displays, read railroad reports, build railroad equipment and structures, and perform other game functions. In the following sections, the individual menus that are found on the menu bar are described in detail.
display. Normally a report appears in this window each time a train arrives at a station. This report lists the number of the train, where it has arrived, the time of arrival, what cargos are delivered, and the revenues earned by the delivery. By choosing the “Train Messages” option, you open another menu that gives you the choice of turning off these messages, or having them go away fast or slowly.
Save Game: The game you are currently playing is saved at the moment you make this choice. You are asked which of the 4 saved game files you wish to place the saved game in. Thereafter, this game can be called up again and play resumes from the exact moment when you saved it. If you choose to write the saved game into a file that holds a previously saved game, the older game is eliminated.
•Station Boxes: If checked, Station Boxes are visible from the Area and Local Displays. If not checked these reports are removed. •Resource Map: If checked, this option converts the Area and Local Display maps to Resource Maps to help you find nearby sources of cargo supply and demand. If not checked, the normal Area and Local displays appear.
Efficiency: A report on how efficient your railroad is in picking up cargos waiting at stations, how full your trains are kept, the revenue you are earning per car, etc. History: A graphic recreation of the growth of your railroad and your competitors on a year by year basis.
Remove Track/Build Track: Available only from the Detail Display, this option toggles between building track and demolishing track. When the “Build Track” option is active, it is marked by a ( ) check mark. Similarly, there is a check mark next to the "Remove Track", when this is the active option. In addition, the color of the Construction Box box changes to reflect the active option, as explained in the Technical Supplement.
Survey: Available only from the Detail Display, choosing this option calls in your engineers to survey the area visible on the display map. The engineers mark the elevation of the area in order to help you plan where best to lay your tracks to minimize grades. (See Surveys And Grades.) Name RR: Choosing this option allows you to give your railroad a new name. A window opens and prompts you to type in the name you desire.
The World View Window This small window is most often used to show you at a glance the part of the world map that is currently shown in the display window. It is also used to display Train Arrival Announcements when one of your trains arrives at a station. (Note that how long Train Arrival Announcements linger in this window, or whether they appear at all can be determined by you from the Game menu.
This roster is a list of your trains, in order, from Train #1 at the top, down to the last train on your railroad (see Train Roster, page 65). From this roster you can tell at a glance the cars currently in a train, whether they are loaded or empty, the train’s destination, whether it is currently paused or not, its relative speed, and whether or not it is carrying a Priority Shipment.
The Area Display The Area Display This is the next zoom down from the Regional Display and is a schematic display of your railroad. It shows no geography, but only the track, signals, trains, stations, and Station Boxes (if not toggled off) of your Railroad. For this display you may toggle off the Station Boxes (see Display Menu) and toggle on or off the Resource Map (see Resource Map). This display is useful when you want to see more of your railroad at one time than you can at the Local Display.
The Local Display Local Display Train #2 This is the second zoom down from the Regional Display and shows not only your railroad’s features, but also the local geography and industry. From this display you can plan the expansion of your railroad into nearby areas with good population centers or industrial sites, while keeping the location of mountain and river obstacles in view. On this display you may also toggle on or off the Station Boxes of your stations or the Resource Map.
Detail Display City of Charlottesville Regional Map Section Charlottesville Station Factory Steel Mill Richmond Station Detail Display River City of Richmond Train #1 Construction Tracks of the Box Charlottesville & Richmond RR The Detail Display This is the closest zoom possible, and is the display at which all railroad construction is done. This display shows in greatest detail the geography, population centers, and industrial sites on the map.
A game of Railroad Tycoon can end in one of four ways. First, if you are thrown out of office and replaced as president of your railroad by irate stockholders (see Stockholder Happiness), the game ends immediately. Second, if another railroad manages to buy enough stock to gain control of your railroad, your services are no longer required and the game ends immediately (see Stock Market Takeovers). Third, the game will end after one hundred years. Fourth, you have the option of retiring at any time.
2 TUTORIAL RAILROAD To help new players understand the major concepts of Railroad Tycoon, a working railroad has been started and is described in this section. Follow the instructions for loading this railroad and read through this section with the railroad on your screen. Before attempting to follow the tutorial you need to at least be familiar with the manual section Interface Introduction.
Regional Display Menu Bar Regional Display Track of the Hagerstown & Harper’s Ferry RR You are looking at the Regional Display. In the biggest window of the display is the map of the Eastern USA world, and you should be able to recognize the Great Lakes, rivers, and Atlantic coastline. In the bottom Current right area of the map, just north Cash of one of the rivers, is an angled Date line that is a different color from the rivers.
and click on the screen just below the visible track of the C&R when The Area Display prompted. This display is a schematic representation of your railroad, and shows no geography. The parts of your railroad that are Station visible are the tracks, stations, Name signals, trains, and Station Boxes. The Station Boxes graphically reStation port which cargos are supplied Boxes and/or demanded at each of your stations, and are described in Train #1 more detail in the manual section Station Boxes.
Local Display Train #2 Regional Map Section Coal Mine Steel Mill supply and demand goods. For more information, see Resource Map. Before going on to the next display, reset the options to Station Boxes on and Resource Map off. To zoom in closer to the C&R, open the Display menu with the keyboard and choose "Local Display". Click just below the Charlottesville Station Box (the box marked "Cha") when prompted. Open the Display menu with the keyboard and choose “Local Display”.
To zoom in as close as possible to the C&R, Open the Display menu with the keyboard and choose "Detail Display". Then click on the track...half-way between the Charlottesville and Richmond stations... when prompted. Detail Display City of Charlottesville Charlottesville Station Regional Map Section This display is the closest zoom you can achieve, and the most detailed view of the map and your railroad available.
Station Reports Station Report Move the Construction Box onto the Charlottesville Station icon and press the Information key or press Selector 1 on your mouse. Either way you open the Station Report for the station at Charlottesville.
The tutorial railroad is set up to run at the lowest difficulty and reality levels. One of the reality options is the basic economy, where a city icon generates demand for all cargos. To quickly see how a complex economy works, return to the Detail Display from the Station Report, and pull down the Action menu. Choose the option “Reality Levels”, and from the menu that opens choose “Complex Economy”. This places a check mark next to the option indicating that the complex economy is turned on.
The Train Report that is now visible provides you with detailed Train Report Maintenance Costs per Train information about this particular Fiscal Period Train Type Train Number Location train, including what it is carrying and where it is headed. For a Train more complete discussion of what Destination Icons you can seehere and what you can do to make changes, see Trains. Current Of particular interest right Cargo now is the part of the report titled Scheduled Stops at the bottom left.
Charlottesville. After reaching Charlottesville a second time and delivering the goods, the train switches to a coal car again and starts the route over again. Note that next to Charlottesville Junction on the list of Scheduled Stops there is a letter “W”. This indicates that this train is ordered to wait at this stop until it is fully loaded before leaving. How this order is placed and the advantage it offers is explained in Wait Until Full Orders.
center the map on the Construction Box, and then open the Action menu and choose “Survey”. The elevations of all the visible map squares are revealed and this makes it clear that laying straight ahead would mean a steep rise in the relative elevation. However, if you build north for a while and then curve around the hills, the elevation changes remain reasonable. You can leave the survey on if you like, or remove it by pressing the Center key again.
To build a new train to carry the wood, pull down the Build menu and choose “New Train”. A new window appears offering you the choice of locomotives to put on the train. However, at this time, only one locomotive is available,the John Bull. You make your selection by placing the mouse pointer on the icon of the locomotive on the left side of the window and then pressing Selector 1. Next, you are taken to the Charlottesville Station where the new locomotive is built.
Restarting The Railroad You have now examined the major game functions that you must understand to play Railroad Tycoon. Pull down the Game menu again and choose “Game Speed”. Set the speed to “Slow” and let your railroad begin operating. Take the time now to examine some of the reports found in the Reports menu. They are explained in detail in the manual chapter, Railroad Business. Zoom in and out among the displays, and turn on the Resource Map for a while to look for likely areas to expand the C&R.
3 RAILROAD ENGINEERING Where a railroad places its track can make a significant difference in its operations and profits. If track is laid up a hill, every train using the route must slow down or increase power to make the climb. If the track is sharply curved, trains must again slow down to prevent derailment. Poor track planning increases costs and reduces earnings. The most desirable track is straight and level, allowing trains to maximize speed in both directions.
bridges. Building tunnels and bridges greatly increases the cost of your track, but may be a better alternative to long detours or steep grades. Your trains will move more slowly up steep grades and through tight curves, so good planning before the trains start running will increase your average train speed and profits over the life of your road. As construction engineer of your railroad, you must carefully balance the cost of alternative routes vs. their effects on your train operations.
Surveys And Grades Track Examples As you lay track you may receive a message reporting that the section you wish to lay has a grade of a certain size, 1.5% or higher. The higher the percentage, the steeper the grade and the slower trains can move here. You are given the choice of proceeding or not with construction. Before laying the track consider conducting a survey of the area to look for an easier route.
River Bridges Bridging the gaps over rivers and other geographic features was a major engineering challenge for railroads. In the early days the material of choice was stone, but its expense often forced the compromise of wood. As technology and engineering science progressed, engineers turned to steel as the best structural material for their bridges. It was relatively cheap but still capable of supporting the growing weight of trains. You may lay track across rivers by building bridges.
Trains move over ferries as if they were normal track sections, except that train speed is very slow. Ferries can not be sunk or otherwise damaged. When a hill or mountain along a planned route was impossible to build around or slice through with a cut, the last resort was a tunnel. Despite their cost, tunnels were normally bargains that eliminated the need for long, tortuous switchbacks with steep grades or long detours.
any section (see Operating Trains). However, doubling track is expensive and normally necessary on only your busiest sections. Monitor your train operations and double track those parts of your railroad where too often trains are kept idle waiting for tracks to clear. To double a track section center the Detail Display over the area to be improved. Place the Construction Box on the section to be doubled and press the Double Track key. Note the change of the section to the map symbol for double track.
Press the Track Construction key for the direction in which you wish to tear up track and the section is removed. When track is removed, you receive cash for the value of the right-of-way that is sold. When you have completed all desired demolitions, pull down the Build menu again and choose the “Build Track” option. This returns the Construction Box to its normal color signifying that track building is again possible.
RAILROAD STATIONS Description The first regularly operating railroad station in the United States is thought to have been built by the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad in the Mount Clare area of its home city. This station was used for many years until the passenger and freight traffic passing through it grew too large. Most of its functions were moved to a larger station in the Camden area that was better equipped to handle the traffic flow into and out of the expanding city.
The economic radius is a range in squares out from the Station Economic Radius station in all directions. The better the station, the farther people and industry can be expected to Terminal travel to do business with your Radius railroad. All industrial and population sites within the radius of a station send (supply) and receive (demand) business through the Station Radius station.
How To Build A Station Railroad stations are built on the Detail Display. Place the Construction Box on the track section square where you want the station. Pull down the Build menu and choose “Build Station”. A second menu appears offering four choices: “Signal Tower ($25,000)”, “Depot ($50,000)”, “Station ($100,000)”, or “Terminal ($200,000)”. For now, ignore the Signal Tower (see Signal Towers). Choose the station type you wish to build and press Selector 1.
In Railroad Tycoon you monitor the supply and demand of cargos at your stations by checking their supply and demand reports. When you see supplies of cargos to be shipped piling up on one station’s report, you need to look at your other Station Reports to find places to deliver those cargos. Supply and demand information for your stations is found in two places, Station Boxes, and their cousins, Station Reports. These two reports are available at all times for each station on your railroad.
To indicate where you are making money, the bottom of the Station Box window fills in as revenue is earned for delivering cargos to this station. The fill is emptied at the end of the fiscal period. The freight class cargos for Africa and Europe are slightly different from those in the Americas, as shown in the Station Boxes on the Player Aid Cards. A Station Report provides supply and demand data in a different format from the Station Boxes, plus other information as well.
In addition to stations and track, railroads developed a need for additional facilities and structures to improve the efficiency of the road or bring in additional revenue. Railroads built shops at strategic spots along their lines for building and maintaining locomotives and rolling stock. Switching yards were required at major junctions and stops where trains could be quickly broken up and reassembled.
reduces the time required to change the cars in a train by 75% (see Train Consist). Place switching yards at stations where trains regularly change their consists. The more trains you have changing at switching yards, the greater the distance your trains can travel in a year. A maintenance shop reduces the maintenance cost of trains that pass through its station in a fiscal period by 75%. Trains that do not receive regular maintenance may pay very large maintenance bills and erode your railroad’s profits.
The function of a railroad is to transport people and freight from one place to another, and this is physically accomplished by trains. A train consists of two parts, an engine providing the power for motion and the carrying vehicles pulled by the engine. In the United States the engines and carrying vehicles are generally known as locomotives and cars. Since the earliest days of railroading there has been a continual evolution in the technology of both locomotives and cars.
is not going to take on a load of oil. You arrange for the correct cars to be in the right place by setting the routes of your trains and/or changing the cars in an arriving train to provide the desired service. Incorrect routing or cars means cargos are not picked up and revenue is lost while the maintenance cost meter is running. Building Trains You place a new train on your railroad by first building a new locomotive and then buying cars to couple to it.
The Train Roster is a graphic display of the trains currently running on your railroad and is placed at the lower right of the display windows. When a new train is purchased, it is added to the roster. The oldest train on your railroad is at the top of the roster and the newer trains are added in order below it. The bottom train on the roster is the most recent train added. Each train occupies one line on the roster, with a locomotive symbol at the left of the line and up to eight car symbols to its right.
Train Report Train Number Train Icons Current Cargo Priority Orders Wait Until Full Orders Train Route Train Location Maintenance Costs per Year Train Reports As each new train is built on your railroad, a Train Report is created for it. This report is always available for consulting. Destination A Train Report provides in one place the important information concerning a train, and also is where changes in the train’s makeup, type, and schedule are Priority made.
•Maintenance: The expected maintenance cost of this train per fiscal period. •Speed: The current speed of your train. •Destination/Loading/Unloading: The destination is the name of the station to which this train is currently heading. To change the train’s destination see Changing Destinations below. If the train is stopped and either loading or unloading, this is noted and a destination is not listed. •Consist: Graphic icons of the locomotive and car types that currently consist this train.
Naming Trains Railroads got into the habit of giving their fastest and best known scheduled trains distinctive names. Crack named trains gave the public a symbol by which to judge the railroad and improved the morale of railroad employees. Most names were practical or had some historical or geographic significance, but others promised or advertised something more than just transportation.
Railroads have to move a number of trains each day over a limited area. In order to help arrange these movements, they developed a system whereby trains are ranked, or classified, depending on the value of their cargos. When two or more trains want to move over the same track, the dispatchers controlling movements had a clear set of rules by which to determine the order of train movements. Generally, the higher classed trains moved first.
or slow freight revenues are nearly the same whether delivered in several small fast trains or one long slow train. However, the long slow train has only one locomotive earning the revenue, while moving in several faster trains requires investing in several locomotives and crews. Train Types An additional method of defining trains was to assign them a type, such as local, through, express, or limited.
are raising a train’s type to keep it from making unnecessary or unprofitable stops. For example, a passenger train running from New York to Philadelphia could stop at several stations in between, all accepting delivery of passengers. But knowing that passenger revenues are higher for fast delivery over long distances, you change the type of the train to a limited type so that it skips all of the intervening stations.
Routing Trains train disappears from the roster, its report goes away, and the numbers of all trains adjust to reflect the new order in the Train Roster. The routing, or scheduling, of trains is one of the most important parts of railroad management. An efficient schedule insures that cargos are picked up and delivered in a timely manner, and that the train operation costs for providing service are kept down.
want your train to run this exact route, so the route needs to be changed, and this is done from the Train Report. For example, assume you are running the Charlottesville & Richmond Railroad. You notice that the supply of coal is building up at Charlottesville Junction and that a train could take this coal to a Steel Mill in Charlottesville, pick up steel there and take it to a factory in Richmond, and pick up manufactured goods there for delivery to Charlottesville.
the station box. Richmond has now been added to this train’s route as scheduled stop #3. To check this, press Selector 2 which returns you to the Train Report. Notice that scheduled stop #3 is indeed listed as Richmond. Since you want this train to return to Charlottesville from Richmond, you have to add Charlottesville to the route again as stop #4. Place the mouse pointer on the open line below Richmond in the Scheduled Stops section and press Selector 1 to open the route diagram.
The number and types of cars that make up a train are called its consist. The dispatcher plans the consist of a train to insure that the correct types of cars are available to carry waiting cargos. At stops along its route a train may change its consist several times as it makes pickups and deliveries. In Railroad Tycoon, you may arrange for regularly scheduled consist changes to take place at stops along a train’s route so that the train contains correct cars for cargo pickups.
The presence of the coal car indicates that the consist orders for this train are to remove all other cars on the train when it reaches this stop and put on one coal car. Repeat this process and place a steel car at the second stop, Charlottesville, and a goods car at the third stop, Richmond. Leave the consist at the fourth stop, Charlottesville again, unchanged. You have now arranged the consist changes necessary for Train #3 to take advantage of the industry along its route.
You may find it occasionally useful to have one of your trains temporarily change its route to avoid a washed out bridge, to pick up a Priority Shipment, or to take advantage of a temporary change in the supply or demand of a cargo nearby. For example, a train that was unable to fill up with coal to take on to a steel mill may be rerouted by a Priority Order to another nearby city where coal has been sitting unused.
The cars of the Priority Consist are placed on the train at its next stop, overriding any previously scheduled consists. The train proceeds along its normal route (unless given Priority Orders) and at the second station it stops at, its normal consist orders again go into effect. Wait Until Full Orders For sufficiently large customers, railroads put on unit trains, or trains dedicated to this one shipper.
the name of the stop under Scheduled Stops and press Selector 1. Use the same procedure to remove wait orders from a train that is already waiting. A “W” appears to the right of the stop number signifying that this train is ordered to wait until full at this stop. The accidental wrecking of trains has been a part of railroading from its start. The severity of accidents ranged from commonplace derailments to spectacular head-on collisions.
REVENUE AND CARGOS Earning Revenue Railroad revenue comes from two main sources, passenger fares and freight charges. A passenger boarding a train in Chicago pays a fare for being conveyed to Detroit. A steel mill in Pittsburgh pays a freight charge for delivery of a load of coal from Scranton. In these examples the railroad is responding to the supply and demand for passengers and coal. The passenger in Chicago represents a supply of passengers there.
Some cargos are more valuable to railroads than others because some customers are willing to pay higher fees for faster service. For this reason railroads develop a hierarchy of trains offering different services and customers can select the type of service that suits them best. In general, mail, passengers, and express packages attract the highest fares because they are given the best service.
The cargo class determines the revenue earned for delivery (as explained in the section above), how long it takes to load or unload a car, the weight of a full car, and the weight of an empty car. Mail class cars take the least time to load or unload, then passenger cars, etc., down to bulk cars that take the longest time. Mail cars are the heaviest when empty, then passenger cars, down to bulk cars that are the lightest car type when empty.
The letter symbols that appear on the map indicate a source Resource Map Demand for Supply of of supply for a cargo at the symWood (paper mill) Passengers (City) bol’s location. For example, “C” indicates a source of coal which must be a coal mine. A letter symbol on a square background indicates a source of Supply of demand for a cargo. For example, Coal (coal a “W” on a square background mines) indicates a source of demand for wood, most likely a paper mill.
As shown on the World Economies Chart found on the Player Aid Cards, some industries demand one cargo and then convert it to another that they now supply. For example, a carload of coal brought to a station that serves a steel mill is converted into a carload of steel. A carload supply of steel is then available at the station. This steel could then be taken to a factory’s station, converted to manufactured goods, and then carried finally to a station demanding goods.
In order to pick up a Priority Shipment, a train containing a car capable of carrying the priority cargo must be routed to the station where it is waiting. When the train stops, the Priority Shipment is loaded on board. The color of this train’s locomotive icon on the Train Roster changes, to indicate the shipment is on board. Note that every train containing the correct type car that stops at this station picks up the shipment, not just the first. Priority Shipments may be handed to other trains.
OPERATING TRAINS The operation of a train is in the hands of two people, the locomotive engineer who sets the train’s speed, and a dispatcher who determines when and where the train moves. Railroad locomotives only move straight ahead or in reverse, as they have no steering wheel. The engineer, sitting in the cab and watching the track ahead, uses the throttle to adjust the train’s speed to reach points along the line as scheduled.
The rules for signals apply only when the reality option “Dispatcher Operations” is in effect. Each station or signal tower on your railroad comes equipped with a set of track signals, one signal on each side of the track that passes through the station. These signals control the movement of trains past them in either direction. A Go signal allows an approaching train to pass, while a Stop signal stops it. Refer to the Signals Chart on the Player Aid Card for a description of Go and Stop signals.
By placing another signal just past the switch on the way to Washington, you separate the old block into two blocks, one that runs between Richmond and Charlottesville, and one that runs between the switch and Washington. If all of the track in a block is double track, the signal system allows two trains at a time to be in the block, regardless of their relative position. Every set of signals on your railroad comes with a signalman in a tower.
To build a signal tower, go to the Detail Display and place the Construction Box on the track section where you want the tower to appear. Pull down the Build menu, choose the option “Build Station”, and then choose the option “Signal Tower” from the menu of station choices. The new tower appears within the Construction Box on the display and the signals immediately begin affecting the movement of trains. A signal tower consists of a set of signals and a section of double track.
Another menu opens offering you the choices “Normal”, “Hold”, or “Proceed”. Choosing “Normal” restores normal signal operation: stop if the block is full, go if the block is empty. You may override existing signals with either menu choices “Hold” or “Proceed”. How these overrides are graphically displayed is shown on the Signal Override Chart in the Technical Supplement. A signal overridden with “Hold” stops all trains until the signal is overridden again back to “Normal” operation.
When you are first learning to play Railroad Tycoon, it may be useful to play without having to worry about signals and collisions. This may allow you to concentrate on learning other aspects of the game. To play without the possibility of collisions and be able to ignore the system of blocks and signals, choose the "No Collision" option when you are setting the parameters of your railroad. The effects of the No Collision Mode are that trains can never wreck.
4 THE RAILROAD BUSINESS Railroads were one of the great capital enterprises of the industrial age, requiring huge investments in the global construction projects that they became. Before the first train could run, costly and extensive preparation was required: miles of roadbed prepared, bridges built where necessary, rails purchased and laid down, minimum station facilities built, locomotives and rolling stock made ready.
price. If this occurs, you have the option of making the sale or not. Choose the option you wish from the menu that appears. The stock sold consists of newly authorized and registered shares that previously did not exist. The sale increases the outstanding shares in the public’s hands by 10,000. A 2 : 1 stock split occurs at the end of any fiscal period in which your stock price reaches $100 per share or higher.
Once the current interest rate reaches 9%, you may not sell any further bonds, regardless of how many you already have outstanding or the current state of the economy. If the economy improves and interest rates fall, you may sell further bonds until the rate reaches 9% again. Bond rates are lower in the Western USA due to government subsidies. To sell bonds or buy them back, call your broker.
All stock transactions in Railroad Tycoon are extraordinary orders involving relatively large amounts of the outstanding shares. For this reason, expect to actually pay 10% more than the quoted price when buying, and receive 10% less than the quoted price when selling. Short Term Loans During play you may spend more money than you have. When you engage in deficit spending, the color of your current cash in the display window changes color.
As your game of Railroad Tycoon continues you may call up a number of different financial reports to examine the progress of your railroad. The reports that are available are a Balance Sheet, an Income Report, a Train Income Report, and a Stock Price Graph. All of these reports are available during play. From any display, pull down the Reports menu and choose from the list the report you wish to see.
Facilities include all of your stations, signal towers, and station improvements, valued at their purchase cost. Industries include any steel mills, factories, or other industrial sites that your railroad has purchased, also valued at purchase cost. Real estate is the value of the right-of-way that you have purchased when laying track, and does not include buildings which are listed under facilities.
In the case of the C&R railroad, it has assets of $1,330,000 versus equity and bonds of $1,000,000. It has made a profit of $330,000 in its operating lifetime. The income statement reports earnings and expenses for the Income current fiscal period and for the lifetime of the railroad. The left hand column reports year to date (YTD) figures and the right hand column the lifetime total. The figures in the total column do not include the YTD figures in the left hand column.
Train Income Report Revenue this year Revenue last year Name Revenue Lifetime Train Type Also shown is the train’s name if it has one, correct icons for the types of locomotive and cars that make it up, and its average speed. If you have so many trains operating that they don’t fit on one page, press the Selector 1 to flip to the next page of trains. Stock Price Graph Locomotive Type This graph displays the relative prices of your own stock and the stock of the competing railroads.
The economic climate in Railroad Tycoon moves between Panic, Recession, Normal, Moderation, and Boom. Panic is the worst, and Boom is the best. The overall trend is a gradual movement toward better times, but sudden bad news can drop the economy quickly and far. The current climate affects the interest rate on bonds, the cost of track, the cost of double track, the cost of right-of-way, and the supply of cargos generated. Generally, things cost more and more cargos are generated in better times.
ADDITIONAL REPORTS In addition to Financial Reports, you may call up other reports for information about your railroad. These include a list of your Accomplishments, an Efficiency Report, and a History of your railroad. These reports are available during play. From any display, pull down the Reports menu and choose from the list the report you wish to see. Accomplishments This report is simply a log of the important events that have taken place on your railroad during your presidency.
Revenue efficiency measures the money you make versus the number of ton-miles you carry. The dollar figure is an estimate of the money you earn per ton delivered. The higher the number, the more money you are making per ton, and the more efficient are your operations. The history report is a replay of your railroad’s accomplishments reviewed on the Regional Display that shows the growth of your railroad, the economy, and your competitors, up until now. The replay is carried out on a year by year basis.
5 RAILROAD COMPETITION Once the technology of trains on rails was demonstrated to be practical, railroads began appearing throughout the industrial world. The earliest roads had large areas all to their own, but that circumstance didn’t last. As more entrepreneurs and investors were dazzled by the glamor and apparent riches of railroading, the countrysides became crisscrossed with new tracks. Rival railroads fought for access to new or already lucrative areas.
Up to three of your rivals may start up their own railroads. These railroads are run according to the personality of the historic figure that is their president. For example, a railroad run by Jim Hill is always looking for new cities to build to. Roads run by J. P. Morgan or Jay Gould are adept at stock market dealings. You may not lay track across the track of a competing railroad, and you may not build a station within 5 squares of a competing railroad’s station.
Prior to government regulation of freight rates, a standard tactic of rival railroads serving the same cities was to cut rates. This drew business away from competitors, weakening them and hopefully driving them from the vicinity. The survivor could then raise prices to very profitable levels without the competitive pressure keeping them down. Your railroad may be the target of a rate war attack from a competing railroad, or you may use the rate war as a means of weakening a rival.
If a competing railroad loses a rate war, all of its track leading out of the station is torn up. If this leaves any stations isolated with no other track connections, then those stations are also eliminated. If your railroad loses, all of your facilities, track, trains, bridges,etc., within three squares of the station are eliminated. You receive no compensation for these losses. If you win a rate war, the station becomes wholly yours.
In the latter half of the 19th Century, many of the greatest railroad battles in America were fought on Wall Street, far from the tracks and trains of the combatants. One way to neutralize a competitor was to take him over and make his resources work for you, not against you. Some of the more infamous railroad men of this period knew next to nothing about running a railroad, but were experts in stock manipulation.
CONTROLLING OTHER RAILROADS Operate RR Menu Controlling one or more of your competing railroads can help you financially and tactically. The value of their stock can increase, helping to increase the value of your own. You can transfer money from their treasuries to yours, or vice versa. You can attempt to have a controlled railroad build track that blocks other railroads from expanding, while your own railroad grows unhindered.
Choose the “Build Track” option to order the controlled railroad to attempt to connect to a certain city. A text window opens giving you the opportunity to name the cities you wish it to build from and to. Type in the name of the city and press the Selector 1 key. Thereafter, the railroad attempts to build to the city you named. If it is unable to build there for some reason, a message appears telling you this.
6 NOTES AND CREDITS When starting a new game of Railroad Tycoon you choose one of 6 different worlds for the location of your railroad. Your choices are: Eastern USA North America Western USA South America Europe Africa Each world approximates the geography of the region portrayed, but no world exactly duplicates the real geography. Each new map is generated from a base map that represents the economic geography prior to the time period of your game.
The North American world has some unique features. Revenue earned for carrying cargos on east-west routes are double what would be normally expected. Revenues earned for carrying cargos on northsouth routes are half what would normally be expected. These effects are designed to encourage east-west railroads.
The locomotives included in Railroad Tycoon were chosen to represent important historical designs and evolving technology. When each game begins, only one or a few locomotive types are available for purchase by your railroad. As time passes, technology improves and better locomotives can be purchased. Eventually the older types cease production and are thereafter not available. Each locomotive included in the game is listed below with an illustration and descriptive notes.
4-4-0 American: The most popular locomotive type in North America from the middle to late 1800’s, with over 25,000 being built. Noted for its ability to handle heavy loads over varied routes, its ability to operate over uneven tracks, simple construction, low initial cost, and ready maintenance, it was the ideal general purpose locomotive for the period of westward expansion. It became the national engine because it answered every need.
Ten-Wheeler to passenger service. It served on mainline passenger trains until about 1910 when heavier engines were required. Use this locomotive for high speed trains carrying mail, passengers, and fast freight. They can maintain the speed of Americans while pulling one or more additional cars. Alternatively, put them on long runs with a few cars and they set speed records.
4-6-2 Pacific: Baldwin Locomotive Works claims the first Pacific type, delivered to New Zealand in 1901, although locomotives going back to 1889 had the wheel arrangement. Early into the 20th Century the Pacific became the preferred locomotive for almost all express passenger trains and many fast freights, and they remained useful after being replaced on the top trains in the 1930’s by 4-6-4 Hudsons. About 7000 were built in the United States.
4-6-6-4 Mallet (Challenger class) 4-6-6-4 Mallet (Challenger class): In the late 1800’s Anatole Mallet, a Swiss engineer, developed the design of the compound, or articulated, locomotive with a rear group of drive wheels powered by high pressure steam and a forward group of wheels powered by the residual low pressure steam. Work on this design continued with the first large mallet, an 0-6-6-0, appearing on the B&O in 1904. This type proved very popular as power for heavy freights and pusher engines.
F3-A Diesel-Electric 2-CO-CO-2 GG1 (1950) EMD F Series Diesel-Electric: In 1939 the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors sent a 4 unit diesel locomotive on a 83,764 mile tour over 20 major American railroads to demonstrate its capabilities. The demonstrator units consistently outperformed their steam competition and suffered no mechanical failure, convincing railroads of their worthiness. Within 20 years steam disappeared from American railroads.
EMD GP Series Diesel-Electric: ReEMD GP Diesel-Electric sponding to the desire of railroads for a road switcher locomotive, capable of switching as well as some road work, in 1949 EMD produced the first of its GP (general purpose) series. It was an immediate success and an improved version remains in production today. The structural strength of the locomotive is in the frame, and the hood serves only to protect the mechanical parts.
BO-BO AMTRAK F40PH (1980): The Bo-Bo is a diesel-electric passenger locomotive. This engine is ideal for handling passenger cars. BO-BO AMTRAK F40PH European Locomotives 2-2-0 Planet 2-2-0 Planet class: Delivered by the Stephensons to the Liverpool & Manchester Railway in October, 1830, the Planet proved to be very successful for its day. Its major innovation was to put the cylinders at the front end, helping to distribute the weight of the engine.
4-2-0 Iron Duke Class: The Iron Duke was an express engine designed by Daniel Gooch for the 7 foot gauge Great Western Railway and built in their own shops in 1847. The long wheel base made for stable running but required ample curves. The broad gauge allowed a larger firebox and thus greater steam 4-2-0 Iron Duke production. These locomotives and their immediate descendants, the slightly modified Lord of the Isles class, were extremely successful, consistently demonstrating high speed and stability.
the GNR, including the then unofficial 10 AM King's Cross (London) to Edinburgh “Flying Scotsman”. The advent of heavier “corridor” passenger cars and dining cars, reduced them to lesser tasks. This locomotive should be placed at the head of your fast trains, especially those carrying mail and passengers. Don’t burden it with more than 3 or 4 cars because under those conditions it slows considerably and loses much of its value.
4-6-0 CLASS P8 (1900): This freight engine was originally designed to undertake express passenger work, but due to some early design changes the engine took on a totally different role. The P8 became one of the most widely used and popular freight engines ever built. 4-6-0 CLASS P8 4-6-2 4500 CLASS (1910): 4-6-2 4500 CLASS This engine is arguably the most outstanding passenger locomotive ever built. It found popularity on both sides of the Atlantic. For express passenger work this is a very good choice.
6/6 GE Class Crocodile: These 6/6 GE Class Crocodile electric locomotives were first put in service on the Swiss Rhaetian Railway, serving ski resorts in the Alps. Electricity was chosen because of the easy access to hydroelectric power and the lack of coal in Switzerland. The first crocodile, so named for their engine hoods, entered service in 1921 and proved much more powerful and reliable than the steam locomotives that were previously employed.
Use these locomotives to replace any aging steam locomotive in passenger service except possibly the A4. Like the diesels, all electric locomotives offer substantial savings in maintenance costs. CO-CO CLASS 1020 (1950): The Co-Co class is an electric locomotive designed for trafficking heavy freight. Most locomotives in this class had rather plain box structures which were not all that aesthetically pleasing.
TYCOON BIOGRAPHIES North American & South American Tycoons The following historical figures may appear in a game of Railroad Tycoon as the president of a competing railroads. The management style of competing railroad presidents can be expected to reflect the personality of these tycoons. One set of tycoons appear in games in North America and South America, and another set appear in games in Europe or Africa. After the name of each tycoon is a letter in parentheses, either a “B”, “R”, or “M”.
Jim Fisk (R): A Vermont tin peddler, carnival sharpie, and stockbroker brought into the Erie Ring by Dan Drew to help with stock manipulations and speculations. With Jay Gould he attempted to corner the gold market in 1869. Gould forced him out of the Erie in 1872 because of criminal charges and scandals. He was shot by the boyfriend of his former mistress.
J. Pierpont Morgan (R): The pre-eminent banker and financier of the late 1800’s and early 1900’s. He was an active force in consolidating and reorganizing railroads such as the Philadelphia & Reading, Chesapeake & Ohio, Erie, Norfolk & Western, Southern, and others. He helped Vanderbilt take over the New York Central, financed other railroad ventures, and eventually began running them himself, often placing a deputy in charge to keep his ownership secret.
European & African Tycoons Isambard Kingdom Brunel (B): One of the most noted Victorian engineers, he was famous for the bridges and ships he built, including the colossal Great Eastern, an enormous iron ship and a wonder of the age. He was appointed engineer of the Great Western Railway at the age of 27 in 1833 and built it to the unprecedented gauge of 7 feet.
first engines to many parts of the world. He was appointed engineer of the London & Birmingham Railway, completing it in 1838, and went on to build many lasting and famous engineering works. Napoleon III (M): This self-style “Emperor” loved expansion for the sake of glory, even if it incurred large debts. He promoted railway expansion by a law that guaranteed railroad bonds. In addition to weak financial thinking, Napoleon III was unable to manage complex problems.
Czar Nicholas II (B): Last of his line, Nicholas was a weak and hesitant leader. Railroading progressed well when he had good advisors (such as the genius Serge Witte, who organized the vast Trans-Siberian line). Vladimir I. Lenin (M): Architect of the soviet governmental system, Lenin was a bold, gambling leader who returned to Russia in a “sealed train”. He took over a weak, confused nation and started its rapid industrial expansion (during the 1920s and 30s).
DESIGNER’S NOTES With the approaching end of 1993, there developed a problem for a small design group within MicroProse. Based in the United States, this group had been charged with the conversion of existing MicroProse games for release in Japan. The problem facing this group was that the current line of MicroProse products were much too advanced to run on the average machine in Japan. Surprising as this may sound, it was true.
The final product of any computer game project is determined by the strength of the central game concept, the ability and tastes of the designers, and the trial and error process of the game’s evolution. Provided here is a brief description of how these elements were brought together to design Railroad Tycoon. The Railroad Tycoon design team consisted of Sid Meier, Bruce Shelley, and Max Remington, all working at MPS Labs, the software design studio of MicroProse Software.
it left out the tycoon competition so popular in 1830. The dilemma was how much to include in one game. In the end we automated much of the low end detail, such as throwing individual track switches, and concentrated on the higher end, you as president of your own railroad. We found that running a big railroad and having to fight off rivals made the most interesting game. We didn’t forget train operations, however, and stretched the game to allow for that to be included.
The last major addition was the competing railroads. Before their inclusion, the game was just a puzzle, or a race to accumulate cash. Now players had some real worries: rate wars, stock takeovers, and being beaten into rich areas. In addition, they had some new opportunities: takeovers resulting in more cash or an ally against another rival.
For new player’s it is recommended that the reality levels all be set at the easy options. With more experience add the Complex Economy, then Dispatcher Operation, and finally Cut-Throat Competition. The most important part of building a new railroad is selecting an area of the world to start in. One option that often works well is to start your railroad between areas containing one or more cities each, 20 squares or less apart.
The longer the distance between stations and the faster the trains that are running, the longer the distance you can afford between signals. If you break blocks at track switches with signal towers, you can prevent long blocks consisting of both mainline and branch line track. Signal towers at both ends of a bridge may be useful if the bridge washes out. You can then override the signals to Hold, and prevent trains from wrecking.
and maintenance shops. The decision of when to replace locomotives depends on their maintenance cost and the availability of better engines. You’ll have to decide at what point would the lower maintenance cost of a newer engine repay its cost. When just getting started or building expansions, it may pay to freeze or slow time while you build. Adding new stations in January of the year and having trains ready to run to them can maximize the first year revenue bonus for deliveries to new stations.
FURTHER READING A wide variety of sources were consulted for this game. No single source discusses locomotive specifications, railroad history, or railroad operations, especially for Europe as well as North America. Among the many books used, the following were found especially useful and are recommended for further reading: The American Heritage History of Railroads in America, by Oliver Jensen, American Heritage Publishing, New York, 1975.
A History Of The Baltimore And Ohio Railroad, by John F. Stover, Purdue University Press, West Lafayette, 1987. An excellent history of the pioneering American road known as the “railroad university.” How To Operate Your Model Railroad, by Bruce A. Chubb, Kalmbach Books, Milwaukee, 1978. An entertaining and understandable discussion of railroad operations as explained for model railroaders. Impossible Challenge, by Herbert H. Harwood, Jr., Barnard, Roberts, and Company, Baltimore, 1979.
CREDITS Original Game Design Sid Meier with Bruce C. Shelley Additional Design Christopher B. Hewish Programming Jeff Billings, Shizuka Takahashi, John Taylor Graphics Mark Glidden, K.K. Dembeck, Max Remington III, Murray Taylor, Rawn Martin Sound Effects Jim McConkey & Scott Patterson Music Jeffery L. Briggs Manual Text Bruce C. Shelley, Edited by Mark G.
Alchemist & Apprentice Dave McKibben & Ned Way Marketing Product Manager Lindsay Riehl Product Manager Tony Parks 140 RRT Deluxe manual part 16 140 8/19/97, 3:55 PM
