Nick

In the game rule book, it states that players can pay to use another players railroad ($4 million each turn). The other day we thought it would be interesting to see how letting each player decide how much to charge, opening up a negotiation aspect to the game.

Unfortunately, it becomes impossible to weigh the risks and benefits of using someone else’s rail when they can change the price based on how important they judge the job to be to you. In short, it led to frustration and overall a longer game. This mechanic is fine the way it is.

I’ve found that there are two basic schools of thought when playing a crayon rail game: follow the jobs you draw, basically connecting every city, or choose a section of the board, and try to get jobs in that area.

Personally, I’ve found that staying in a particular region, (e.g., along the East Coast, or in the Midwest) and cycling through cards until I get jobs in that area is the best tactic, especially with the very distinct separation of the South, East and Midwest by the mountains. You may not always be working towards a job, but you aren’t spending money trying to get to a city only to break even, either.