How to Play Rail Barons of the World

Game Objective

This guide is for the solo version of Railways of the World. The objective of the game is to reach a specific score to win. If you achieve 125 or more points (after Bonds adjustments) by the end of the game, you win. If you are playing with the Duel Barons variant, your target score is 140 points.

Preparation (Setup)

1. Choose a map and place it in the center of the table.
2. Use the ‘Not in Play’ discs to cover any Cities that are not in play (if necessary).
3. Also place ‘Not in Play’ discs to cover any Major Lines that are not in play (if necessary).
4. Combine the 14 Railbot cards that correspond to the chosen map with all 11 common Railbot cards (those without a map indicated), totaling 25 cards in the Railbot deck. Return all other Railbot cards to the box; they will not be used.
5. Prepare the Goods Cubes in the Cities according to the number listed in each City, but skip all Cities that are not in play. Cities that are not in play do not count as Empty Cities during the game and cannot receive Goods Cubes.
6. Shuffle all Railbot cards that show the card icon on the left together and remove three of these cards from the game without revealing them.
7. Deal 3 of the remaining cards face up to form the Railbot row. If you deal a Taxation or Deadhead card at this point, deal another card to replace it and reshuffle the original card back into the deck.
8. Now shuffle all remaining Railbot cards together, except for the Final Evaluation card, to form the Railbot draw deck.
9. Shuffle the Final Evaluation card along with the bottom 2 cards of the Railbot draw deck and place them back at the bottom.
10. Prepare the Railroad Operations card deck:
    1. Separate the Service Bounty cards, randomly choose 2 of them, and place these Service Bounty cards face up to create the Operations display.
    2. Return the unused Service Bounty cards and all Start cards from the Operations deck back to the box.
    3. Shuffle the remaining Operations cards together and deal 1 face up next to the Service Bounty cards. Place the Operations deck face down next to the Operations display.
11. If you are using the Duel Barons variant, set up the Duel Baron cards as follows, otherwise skip this step:
    1. Shuffle the Duel Baron cards and place 4 face up in a row above the Railbot deck. Return the unused Duel Baron cards to the box.
    2. Increase your target score by 15 points (see Ending the Game).
12. Select a set of Control Locomotives for yourself, and a different set of Control Locomotives will be used by the Railbot. Neither you nor the Railbot use any of the standard Railroad Baron cards from the map; return them to the box.

Game Flow

There is no turn order auction. Each turn, you perform two actions first, then a Railbot card is resolved (see Resolving Railbot cards), and then you perform your third action. The Railbot Action token serves to remind you of the turn order. Then, you earn income, pay dividends, and draw a new Operations card to add to the display, as usual.

Actions and How to Play

Player Actions

Player actions remain the same, except for the following changes:

• Deliver One Goods Cube: When performing the Deliver One Goods Cube action, you lose 1 point for each Railbot Link you use to make the delivery.
• Build Track: Cities that are 'Not in Play' are considered impassable terrain. Major Lines that require you to connect to a 'Not in Play' City cannot be scored, unless explicitly stated in the appendix.
• Insurance: This is a new action available to the player. You can spend the first two actions of a turn to place an Insurance token on the first or second card in the Railbot’s action row. The third card (closest to the draw deck) cannot have an Insurance token. To use Insurance, it must be in your first two actions of the turn, before the Railbot card is activated. An Insurance token on a Railbot card nullifies the effect when it is triggered by the Railbot. Once placed, the Insurance token remains on the card until it is selected by the Railbot, and then it is returned to you. You can only have one Insurance token in play at a time.

Resolving Railbot Cards

After you perform your first two actions, flip the top card of the Railbot deck.

Every Railbot card has a card slot indicated in red at the bottom. Resolve the card in this card slot of the Railbot row, discarding it. Then, slide the remaining cards to the left (filling gaps) and place the newly drawn card in the rightmost space in the Railbot row before proceeding to your third action.

If the card to be resolved has an Insurance token, the card has no effect. Instead, return the Insurance token to your supply and discard the card. The remaining cards move to the left to fill the empty space, as usual.

If the revealed card is Final Evaluation, the end of the game has been triggered. Do not resolve a Railbot card, finish your current turn, and play one more full turn. The Railbot does not perform an action during this final turn. Finally, proceed to end-game scoring.

Railbot Card Types

• Building Links: A Building Links card shows three or four Cities. Find these Cities on the map. If the first and second City are not yet connected (neither by you nor by the Railbot), it creates the shortest possible path (costing less money) between them. If the Cities are already connected (including via multiple Cities and/or using your Links), you must remove a cube of your choice from the first City. If a color that matches the second City is available, you must choose a cube of that color, otherwise, you can choose any Goods Cube. If all available paths (regardless of length) use at least one of your Links, gain 1 point. Repeat this procedure for the second and third City pairing, and if present, the third and fourth City pairing. This may empty one or more Cities. If so, place Empty City Markers normally. The Railbot pays nothing to build.
• Deadhead: Permanently reduces the number of Railroad Operations cards in the display by one. Place the Deadhead card at the end of the Railroad Operations display furthest from the draw deck as a reminder that the number of cards in the display has been reduced. If the display is currently full, discard the furthest card and place the Deadhead card in its place. These Deadhead cards will never be pushed out.
• Taxation: You must immediately pay double your income to the bank, taking Bond Certificates, if necessary, to complete the payment.
• Exhaust Goods: An Exhaust Goods card shows a color. Remove from the map a number of Goods Cubes of that color equal to the map's Base Exhaust value. You can remove the Goods Cubes from any Cities of your choice on the board. This may empty one or more Cities. If so, place Empty City Markers normally.
• Claim Major Line: Some Railbot cards have a Major Line icon at the bottom. When such a card is resolved, select an unclaimed Major Line of your choice and claim it for the Railbot. The Railbot does not score for the Major Lines it claimed, but merely prevents you from claiming it for yourself. It does not matter if the Railbot actually has Links connecting that Major Line. If the card with the Major Line icon has the Insurance token on it, this effect is ignored.

Railroad Operations Cards

The following changes apply to Railroad Operations cards:

• Hotels: If you gain a Hotel, you score one point whenever you deliver a Goods Cube to that City and whenever the Railbot removes a Cube from that City, either via Building Links or an Exhaust Goods card.
• Service Bounty: If you deliver a Goods Cube to a City shown on a Service Bounty card currently in the Operations cards display, you gain the points as usual. If the Railbot removes a cube from a City with an active Service Bounty card, immediately discard the Service Bounty from the display.
• New Industry: These cards work as usual, but you cannot use them to add Goods Cubes to a City that is not in play.
• All other cards can be resolved by you normally and are ignored by the Railbot, unless specifically indicated in the Appendix for the map you are playing.

Duel Barons Variant

Each Duel Baron has an objective for you to achieve and an Opponent Effect that can make it harder for you to win.

At any time on your turn, you can check if you have met any of the objectives of the unclaimed Duel Baron cards. If so, you can claim one by placing one of your Control Locomotives on that Baron card. Then, score the amount of points indicated on the card.

When a Railbot card with a Baron icon is resolved, you must choose an unclaimed Baron for the Railbot to claim, if possible. Place one of the Railbot Control Locomotives on that Baron and resolve its Opponent Effect.

If the card with the Baron icon is protected by Insurance, these effects are ignored.

End of Game and Scoring

There are two ways to trigger the end of the game: you reach the specified number of Empty City Markers on the map (see Appendix), or you draw the Final Evaluation card. In both cases, you complete one more full turn. The Railbot does not perform any actions on the final turn, and none of the remaining cards in the Railbot Row are resolved.

If, at the end of the game (after adjustments for Bonds), you have 125 or more points, you win the game! If playing with the Duel Barons, your target score is 140 points.

Tips for Winning

• Refer to the manual for details on this section.