Super Sadistic Advanced Empire Builder
Super Sadistic Advanced Empire Builder Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Starting Money and Starting Area
- Starting money is $30m instead of $40m. Instead of starting with a rail system that might run halfway across the country, players must generally work out of a small region at first and gradually build their empire (isn't that the name of the game?).
Contract Deck
- A different contract deck is used. The payoffs are about 25% lower than in standard Empire Builder.
Event Cards
- A modified set of event cards is used. There are four Tax cards in the deck. Two of these are Rail Tax cards which tax players based on their cash. The other two are Freight Tax cards which tax players based on their train type. There are a number of Derailment cards whose effective radius is based on the speed of players' trains. Both the Tax and (some of the) Derailment cards are triggered by die rolls based on the number of players rather than being automatic. The other major change is to the Wildcat Strike card, which now allows the drawing player to choose whose track is affected, thereby making it another "stop the leader" mechanism.
Train Types
- Two new train types are added: the Slow Freight, which moves 7 and carries 2 loads, and the Heavy Freight, which moves 7 and carries 3 loads. (Mayfair has caused some confusion here. The train which moves 9 and carries 3 loads is actually called a Power Freight, not a Heavy Freight. I ought to know; I'm the one who invented it!)
Starting Train
- Players start with a Slow Freight and must upgrade to get their Freight (or any other type of train).
Upgrades
- Upgrades cost MUCH more than in the standard game. (The $20m spending limit is waived for upgrades.) Generally, adding speed costs $40m, while adding capacity costs $30m. Once capacity has been added, the cost for adding speed is reduced to $30m as well. Thus, it's cheaper to get one's Superfreight by going first to a Heavy Freight, then a Power Freight, then a Superfreight. Players can skip upgrade levels and get extra cash off for each level skipped.
Player Count
Ideally, there should be at least 6 experienced players in the game. (Novice players should play the standard game first.) The game is much more challenging, and there is much more player interaction, with lots of players. With about 10 players, expect to play all day!
Designer's Notes on the Effects
The effects of these rules are 1) to create LOTS of product shortages and city lockouts; 2) to create fierce competition for the best track routes; 3) to give players several different viable options for upgrade paths, including a monetary incentive for adding capacity before speed (unusual in the standard game), not upgrading all the way to a Superfreight or perhaps not even upgrading at all!
The problem with the standard game is that it's next to impossible to win without a Superfreight -- I've played the game several hundred times and am pretty sure the winning player has upgraded all the way every single time. Making upgrades more expensive generally, making speed more expensive than capacity, and allowing players to hold back and possibly skip upgrade levels gives players some real choices about what to do.
Not Published in the Source
The designer's post does not publish the following, which he says come from revised cards and a cost sheet supplied separately:
- The new contract payoffs (only the "about 25% lower" statement above is given).
- The list of modified event cards, including the Tax cards and the Derailment cards' radii (only the descriptions in change 3 are given).
- The upgrade and crossgrade cost table (only the general costs in change 6 are given).