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From: rick@ucla-cs.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.games.board
Subject: Re: Opening Discussion
Message-ID: <6787@ucla-cs.ARPA>
Date: Thu, 5-Sep-85 14:35:56 EDT
Article-I.D.: ucla-cs.6787
Posted: Thu Sep  5 14:35:56 1985
Date-Received: Sun, 8-Sep-85 16:43:07 EDT
References: <394@brl-sem.ARPA> <47@ucdavis.UUCP> <16323@watmath.UUCP>
Reply-To: rick@ucla-cs.UUCP (Richard Gillespie)
Distribution: net
Organization: UCLA Computer Science Department
Lines: 36
Summary: 

In article <16323@watmath.UUCP> jagardner@watmath.UUCP (Jim Gardner) writes:
>[...]
>
>Odds and Ends on topics that have come through here:
>
> ...
>
>A nice game that no one has mentioned yet is Empire Builder (known as
>British Rails in England).  The rules are trivial and easy enough for
>a ten year old to understand (if you want to play with your kids).  You
>are constantly accomplishing something (a characteristic I really like
>in games).  At the same time, it is an adult game and requires a fair
>amount of strategy.  It's non-violent too, if that matters to anyone.
>
>				Jim Gardner, University of Waterloo

How does this game compare to another "train" game: Rail Baron. I've
been playing it for about 7 years and, although I sometimes put it away
for a couple of months, I never get tired of it.
Several players (I find 4 to be best) start with home cities on a map of
the USA, with many of the major rail-lines of the late 19th century marked.
The object is to make it back to your home city with $200,000. You make
money by travelling from (randomly determined) destination to (randomly
determined) destination - the payoff depends on many factors. You may buy
a single railroad when you arrive at a destination so strategy is important
("gee, should I save up to buy that nice railroad, or buy the cheap one
I can afford now"). Of course, if another player rides your railroad you
get a paid (a la Monopoly).
I've seen several stategies for playing the game - none of which work for
me, but always work for other people (sniff). Anyone got new suggestions?
rides 
-- 
   Rick Gillespie
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