Hey there,
I've just started playing this game a few days ago, and being a fan of everything british, picked the british pak128 to play as. I don't know why it didn't appear four years ago when i tried it the first time around, but it did this time. What was it you ask?
The Demo, it was mesmerizing! To add fuel to the excitement, my memory from four years ago recalled the fact that the pakset had more trains than even the UKRS2 set, i can't even ponder why i didn't find this game exciting back then. The concept of the Demo file wasn't anything new, i've thought of doing it many times before but map generation of this game is probably the reason (if not one of the reasons). So after several attempts, i decided to settle down with Map number 5 (seed 5530), with a 512x64 (East-West direction).
My main focus for now would be the railway, as such the cities are all hand-laid to make the rail network look better, so are the industries. I originally intended to place down several airports but i eventually ran out of space, forcefully putting them down would mean poor integration with the railway and/or more terraforming required.
Few hours after i started playing the game i noticed that the (running) cost is much harder to tackle as opposed to OpenTTD. When i started this map i already had taken this into account so running the passenger services will be profitable regardless of the lines. Although micromanaging them will result in better profitability. But my expectations for this was that the intercity trains would not be profitable, though i was immediately proven wrong when i had to deploy a second convoy on that line when the local lines were still managing at just one.
Here's some sneak peeks
I've made some gaps on the line to allow for future additions, although most of them requires expanding the map, one doesn't. I'll leave that for you viewers to spot. I eventually tried running freight alongside the passenger services, but i eventually found problems. The industries kept dumping the loads on my line faster than my trains could handle. There's only a number of things i could do:
- Increase convoys
- Increase line capacity
- Supplement it by using other transport medium (roads or water)
- Expand the map
I concluded that the fourth option would be the best, as the industries being concentrated is actually the reason why i could never tackle the freight buildup. I didn't start with a house rule since i was trying to learn the game, i also should mention that i have tampered with the settings many times trying to get an ideal scenario for the future. So for those interested with my map, i would like to ask several questions:
- What could i do better?
- Which side do you prefer expanding first, north or south?
- Can you do better than i did?
- What rookie mistakes have i made here?
Link to download the save game down below. Do notify me if it isn't working. The game starts at 1920, and time has yet to run so nothing is lost (aside from money). It is running on Simutrans Standard 121.1 with the pak128.Britain Pakset (which i believe i don't need to provide a link for).
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/18sXrXVv_SN-4se8BVF0uWhCPwHSLRy3n?usp=sharing
