Railways of the World Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Base Components
• Setup
• Bond Certificates & Money
• Gameplay
  • Phase 1 — First Player Auction
  • Phase 2 — Player Actions
    • A. Build Track / Complete Major Lines
    • B. Urbanize
    • C. Upgrade Engine
    • D. Deliver Goods Cube
    • E. Select a Railroad Operations Card
  • Phase 3 — Income and Dividends
• End of Game

Base Components

• Income and Score Track
• 6 Score Markers
• First Player Marker & Goods Bag
• 217 Hexagonal Track Tiles
• 150 Control Locomotives (25 in each color)
• 24 Engine Placards
• 12 New City Tiles
• 125 Goods Cubes (25 in each color)
• Money & Bond Certificates
• 20 Empty City Markers

Setup

1. Place the game board in the middle of the table.

2. Place all of the Goods Cubes in the bag. Then, randomly draw and place Goods Cubes in each City equal to the number printed on that City. In a 2 or 3-player game using the Eastern U.S. map, place one less cube in each City (minimum of 1).

3. Place the following components next to the game board to create a general supply: New City tiles, Track tiles, Bond Certificates, and Money.

4. Place a number of Empty City Markers next to the game board based on the map used and player count, returning the rest to the box. If playing with Eastern U.S. map, use the following:

   • 2 Players: 10 Empty City Markers
   • 3 Players: 12 Empty City Markers
   • 4 Players: 14 Empty City Markers
   • 5 Players: 16 Empty City Markers
   • 6 Players: 18 Empty City Markers

   Note: The number of Empty City Markers used will vary between maps. Please check the setup rules for the map selected if not playing the Eastern U.S. map.

5. From the Railroad Operations deck, take all the Start cards (marked with the Start icon) and place them faceup next to the board. Next, take the 6 Service Bounty cards, randomly select 4 of them, and return the rest to the box. Then, place these 4 Service Bounty cards faceup next to the Start cards. Finally, shuffle the remaining Railroad Operations cards, draw 2 cards per player, and add them to the faceup display. This is the Railroad Operations Display.

   Note: Railroad Operations cards of the same type may be overlapped to conserve table space. (Hotels, City Growth, New Industry, Service Bounties, etc.)

6. Place an Empty City Marker from the box on the first space of the Turn Phases Track on the map to track each turn's phases.

7. Each player is dealt two Baron cards and chooses one to keep in front of them facedown. The other is discarded from the game without being revealed.

8. Each player selects a player color and takes the matching set of Control Locomotives, placing one near the Turn Order Track.

9. Each player takes a Player Reference card.

10. Each player receives a stack of Engine Placards (Engine Levels 1-8) to place in front of them with the Level 1 Engine faceup on top.

11. Each player places their score marker on the first space of the Income Track showing that they have $0 Income to start.

If a player reaches the end of the Score Track, move the token back to the beginning of the Track and add the top number of points to their final score. If this occurs, the player's Income for the remainder of the game will be the amount marked on the last space of the Score Track.

Bond Certificates & Money

Players don't start with any money. At any time during a player's turn they may issue one or more Bonds by taking a Bond. For each Bond Certificate issued, the player receives $5,000 from the bank.

There is no limit to the number of Bonds that may be issued when cash is needed to make a purchase or pay for a bid. However, only the Bonds needed at the time may be issued.

Once issued, Bonds may never be paid off, Bonds stay with the player for the remainder of the game, and cost the player $1,000 for each issued Bond during the Income and Dividends phase. At the end of the game, each Bond Certificate a player holds will cost them one victory point.

Issuing Bonds does not count as an action. Bond Certificates and money are public information.

Note: The Bond Certificates consist of denominations of one (1), five (5), and ten (10) that can be exchanged to save space.

Gameplay

Railways of the World is played in a series of Turns that consist of the following three phases:

1. First Player Auction
2. Player Actions
3. Income and Dividends

Phase 1 — First Player Auction

An auction is held to determine which player will be the First Player for that turn. The youngest player will submit the first bid of the first turn. After that, the First Player from the previous turn will begin the auction in subsequent turns.

The minimum initial bid is $1,000, and bidding continues clockwise until everyone, but the high bidder, has passed. Players may either place a higher bid than the last bid or pass. If a player chooses to pass, they cannot re-enter the auction. The high bidder pays the amount of their bid in dollars to the bank (issuing Bonds if necessary) and takes the First Player Marker.

Note: If all the players choose to pass, the player to the left of the previous First Player becomes the new First Player.

Use the Turn Order Track on the board to display the turn order by placing the First Player's Control Locomotive in the first space. Then, the other players place their Control Locomotives on the Track in clockwise order.

First Player Auction Method (New Players)

On the first turn, the least experienced player goes first. Play proceeds around the table clockwise and the player that goes second receives $1,000, the player that goes 3rd receives $2,000 and so on. After the first turn is completed, the earlier-stated bidding rules apply and bidding begins with the player who went first to start the game.

First to Pass Auction Method (Advanced Players)

Bidding is the same as stated in the main rules above, but the first player to pass goes last and pays half his bid rounded up. As players drop out of the bidding, they pay half their bid rounded up, determining the turn order (in the reverse direction of dropping out). The player who wins the auction pays the full amount of his bid and plays first. Maintain this new turn order when performing the auction for the subsequent turn.

Phase 2 — Player Actions

There are three rounds of player actions. Each player may perform one action in each round, starting with the First Player and continuing in turn order. (You are allowed to pass, sacrificing your action.) After each round, advance the marker along the Turn Phases Track and begin a new round of actions.

Each round, a player can perform any one of the following actions:

• A. Build Track / Complete Major Lines
• B. Urbanize
• C. Upgrade Engine
• D. Deliver Goods Cube
• E. Select a Railroad Operations Card

A. Build Track / Complete Major Lines

Players place Track tiles to connect Cities. A player may build up to four Track tiles in a single action round. A tile or series of tiles that connect one City to exactly one other City is a link.

When a player builds track, the ends of the track must match up so that the railroad forms a continuous line. The first tile laid must either connect to a City or to the end of an incomplete link that the building player owns. All subsequent tiles that are laid during that action must extend that link. The player must stop building if they link to another City.

Note: A player cannot build more than one link in a single action.

If a player has placed Track tiles but has not completed the link to the second City, the track is considered an incomplete link. All incomplete links are removed at the end of the third round of each turn. Once Tracks are placed, players may not remove them except for incomplete links that must be removed at the end of the third round of each turn. When placing track, players place a Control Locomotive of their color on one of the Track tiles to indicate their ownership.

Tip: When deciding where to build your first links, look for concentrations of Goods of one color and the Cities that take those Goods. Be sure to build links that allow you to deliver Goods right away (with a Level 1 Engine), and some that can be delivered with two links (and a Level 2 Engine). This way, you'll get off to a good start.

Links do not need to be built contiguously. You may build a link between two Cities in an action and build a link between two completely different Cities with a future action.

The cost of each Track tile built is defined by the terrain type of the map hex it is built upon. Building a Track tile in Open terrain costs $2,000. Building a Track tile in Water terrain costs $3,000. Building a Track tile in Mountain terrain costs $4,000. Crossing a Ridge costs an additional $4,000. There is a reminder of these costs on the Player Reference cards.

Note: It is legal to build a link from two different ends and join them in the middle over multiple rounds of the same turn.

Players can redirect the Track tile at the end of their incomplete link. When redirecting track, the player must pay that hex's track terrain cost again and then may continue with a normal Build Track action.

Players can build crossover Track tiles as necessary but cannot redirect another player's track. The cost for building crossover tracks is the same as for regular tracks. These may only be built when crossing over an existing section of track, including your own. It replaces the tile in that hex. It does not in any way connect the two sections of track and can be thought of as an overpass. City Hexes only allow Track tiles built from hex sides with track connection points (the small track spur/spoke). Some City Hexes have sides that lack a track connection point.

Note: All Track tiles must be built within complete hexes. Partially outlined hexes, like those sometimes found adjacent to bodies of water, are not playable.

Complete Major Lines

The first player to connect the two end points of a Major Line using only their own links (but going through any number of other Cities) immediately gains the corresponding number of points on the Income Track. The player completing the Major Line places one of their locomotive markers on the chart to show they have completed it. No other player may gain points for the same Major Line after that.

B. Urbanize

Pay $10,000 to the bank to place an available New City tile on any Gray City hex. Then add two random Goods Cubes from the Goods bag to the City (in addition to any other Goods Cubes already present there). Each City can only be Urbanized once as it will now be a colored City, and only Gray Cities can be Urbanized.

Note: There are no Red New City tiles.

If the City being Urbanized was empty, remove the Empty City Marker. This does not extend the game if the end game has already been triggered.

C. Upgrade Engine

Players may upgrade their Engine Level once per action, replacing the old placard with a new one or flipping it as needed. This represents an investment in upgrading all their locomotives with a better model. The current Engine Level is the maximum number of links that a Goods Cube may be moved and delivered by that player when using the Deliver Goods Cube action.

The new Engine placard shows the cost to upgrade to a new Engine Level. The maximum Engine Level is 8. (Upgrading from a Level 1 to a Level 2 costs $5,000.)

D. Deliver Goods Cube

A Goods Cube may only be delivered to a City of the same color as the Goods Cube (a Red cube must go to a Red City). Goods Cubes can be delivered from and through any color of City, including Gray Cities. No Goods Cubes can be delivered to a Gray City until it has been Urbanized and given a color. The active player may move one Goods Cube from one City to another City, thus delivering that cube to a destination. The Goods Cube may only be moved along complete links. The cube may move a number of links up to the number of the Engine Level of the active player.

During the Deliver Goods Cube action, the cube cannot move to the same City twice, including the Cities in which it starts and ends, nor may it travel along the same link twice. A cube must stop moving and be delivered as soon as it reaches a City of the same color. Goods cubes may not be moved to a different City without delivering them. When the cube is delivered, it is removed from play and placed in the Goods bag. After the Goods cube has arrived at its destination, the player determines who gains Income from the delivery. Each player gains 1 point on the Income Track for each complete link they own that the cube traveled along. This means a cube may be moved along links owned by other players, who will collect the points for such movement.

Important: The active player must own the first link a Goods Cube is being moved along.

If the last Goods Cube is moved out of a City, an Empty City Marker should be placed in that City.

E. Select a Railroad Operations Card

A player may select one of the available Railroad Operations cards. The use of a Railroad Operations card does not count as an action. Most Railroad Operations cards have a symbol in the bottom right-hand corner. Each symbol is associated with a special rule or rules for that card.

Railroad Operations Cards:

• Green Circle: These cards cannot be selected. They give a benefit to the first player to accomplish the goal printed on the card after the card becomes available. Once the goal is accomplished, the card is removed from play and placed in a discard pile. Many of these are Start cards marked with the Start icon.
• Purple Diamond: These cards provide an ongoing benefit and are kept in front of the player for the rest of the game. The ability on these cards may be used on only 1 of your 3 player actions per turn.
• Red 'X': These cards are used immediately when taken and then discarded.
• Hand of Cards: Players taking these cards may keep them until needed. Once used, the card is discarded.
• Infinity Symbol: This card is kept face-up in front of the player and provides the benefit of the card for the rest of the game.
• Black Stars: These cards are optional and may be used or substituted as desired within the expansion in which they are included.

Phase 3 — Income and Dividends

All players now collect the amount of Income shown (in thousands of dollars) on the space on the Income Track occupied by their score marker. Then, players must pay the Bond dividends of $1,000 for each Bond they have issued. If a player owes more dividends than they have money, they must immediately issue more Bonds to service the debt. Dividends are not paid on new Bonds issued to service debt until the next Income Phase.

At this time, any incomplete links (Track tiles that do not connect two Cities) are removed.

Complete the final phase on the Turn Phase Track by drawing one additional card from the Railroad Operations deck and placing it face-up in the display. Then return the Turn Phase Marker to the 1st space on the Track to begin the next turn's auction for First Player.

End of Game

The end of the game is triggered when all Empty City Markers have been placed on the board. (This number varies based on the map being played and player count.)

When the final Empty City Marker is placed, complete the current turn. Then, remove all the Empty City Markers from the board and play one more full turn. This means every player will perform all three actions during the turn the end game is triggered. Then, all players will have the opportunity to perform another three actions each before the game is finally over.

When the game has ended, player scores on the Score Track are adjusted as follows:

• All players move their markers back one space for each Bond Certificate they have issued.
• Rail Baron cards are revealed and scored, if fulfilled. Any Rail Baron card that requires the most, fewest, longest, etc. does not score in the event of a tie unless specifically noted.
• Each point on the Score Track is worth one victory point. The player with the most victory points is the winner. In the case of a tie, the tied player with the most completed links wins. If there is still a tie, the tied player with the most money wins.