How to Play Steam Barons

Objective of the Game

In the Steam Barons stock-market game, players take on the role of investors in various rail companies. The goal is to make shrewd investments in these companies, buying and selling shares at the right time to accumulate the most money by the end of the game. The player with the most money at the end of the fifth turn is the winner.

Preparation (Setup)

To set up a game of Steam Barons, follow these steps:

1. Place the double-sided game board on the table.
2. Add the sixteen black goods cubes to the standard goods cubes in the bag.
3. Randomly draw and place a number of goods cubes in each city equal to the value printed in the city. Place one goods cube in each town hex.
4. Remove all grey goods cubes from cities and towns and place them back in the game box. Remove all remaining cubes from the bag and place them back in the game box. Do not place any goods cubes in the Goods Supply spaces.
5. Place the Stock-market game card by the side of the board.
6. Place the six Company displays by the side of the board. Place $5 on each display.
7. If playing the northern England map, each company display starts with six share tokens on it. If playing the Eastern US map, each company display starts with eight share tokens on it.
8. Place one company share token for each company in the Available Shares box on the Stock-market game card.
9. Mark the share price for each company on the Share Price track using a spare company token. All companies start with a share price of $5.
10. Place one spare company token for each company on the zero space of the Victory Point track on the board.
11. Place one spare company token for each company in the cloth bag. Draw one token at a time to determine the order of play for the companies. Mark this order on the Order of Play track.
12. Players receive starting money based on the number of players:
    • With two players, each player starts with $40.
    • With three players, each player starts with $30.
    • With four players, each player starts with $25.
    • With five or six players, each player starts with $20.
13. Randomly determine the first player and give that player the first player marker.
14. Place the turn marker in the first space of the Game Turn track.

Fluxo do Jogo

The game is played over five turns. Each game turn consists of the following phases, performed in order:

1. Buy shares
2. Build track
3. Move goods
4. Dividends
5. Sell shares
6. Bankruptcies
7. Company order of play (skipped during the final turn)
8. End of turn

Ações e Como Jogar

Controlling a Company

The player who buys the first share in a company takes that company's company display and controls that company. A player loses control of a company as soon as another player owns more shares in it, at which point the company display is passed to the new controller.

Phase one: Buy shares

Players have the opportunity to buy shares from the Available Shares box. Shares are offered for sale in the company order of play. An auction is held for each company with available shares.

• The player with the first player marker makes the first bid. Bidding proceeds clockwise.
• The first bid must match or exceed the company's current share price (minimum $1 if the share price is zero). Subsequent bids must be higher than the previous bid.
• A player who passes cannot bid again in that auction. Bidding continues until a single highest bid remains.
• The highest bidder must buy at least one share at their bid price and can choose to buy more.
• After the highest bidder, remaining players, in clockwise order, can buy any remaining shares at the same price.
• All money paid for shares goes to the bank, not the company.
• If any shares are sold, the first player marker passes clockwise to the next player. Otherwise, it remains with the current player.
• There is no upper limit to the number of shares a player can hold. Unsold shares remain in the Available Shares box.

Phase two: Build track

Companies build track in company order of play. The player controlling the active company decides what track to construct. All of a company’s track must be contiguous. No new cities can be constructed.

• On the Eastern US map, a company must build track that connects directly to a port city or a city already connected to a port city. The connecting track does not have to be owned by the active company.
• Building between adjacent cities costs $3 and counts as placing one track tile.
• Hills cost an extra $2 to build in, and mountains cost an extra $3.
• The number of track tiles a company can build is equal to the current turn number plus one (e.g., 2 in turn 1, 3 in turn 2, up to 6 in turn 5).
• Track construction costs are paid by the company, not the player.
• If a company lacks funds, it can issue shares. Each issued share places $5 into the company's treasury. The current share price does not affect this amount. Shares can only be issued to cover immediate build costs.
• Issued share tokens are placed in the Available Shares box.

Phase three: Move goods

In company order of play, each company may move goods cubes. There is no Locomotive Level in this version of the game.

• A goods cube must be moved along track owned by the active company and/or track that is not owned by any company (e.g., from a bankrupt company).
• A goods cube can be moved over any number of legal links, as long as it never revisits a city or town or moves along the same link twice.
• A cube must stop moving as soon as it reaches a city of the same color. Black goods cubes can only be delivered to black cities. Grey goods cubes can only be delivered to grey New City tiles.
• When a company moves a goods cube, it records the distance the cube moved on the Victory Point track (e.g., moving along three links moves the token three spaces up).
• Moving a cube along track not owned by another company (due to bankruptcy) does not add to the company's performance total.
• Each company moves one goods cube, then in the same order, each company moves a second cube. The phase ends after each company has moved two cubes.

Phase four: Dividends

In this phase, players receive dividends and potentially a CEO bonus, companies receive profits, and share prices are adjusted.

• Each player receives a dividend payment for each share they hold in a company. Refer to the Dividend, Company Profits, and Bonus chart on the Stock-market game card. The company's position on the Victory Point track determines its Final Performance, which indicates the dividend per share. This money comes from the bank.
• The player controlling a company receives a CEO bonus if the company's performance was greater than nine. The bonus amount is shown in the CEO Bonus column and is a total amount, not per share.
• The company receives profits equal to the amount in the Company Profits column, taken from the bank and placed on the company display.
• Share prices are adjusted based on the relative performance of companies. Company tokens on the Victory Point track form stacks. The number of stacks determines placement on the Share Adjustment Table.
• A company's share price can never go above eighteen. If a company's share price goes below zero, it goes bankrupt.
• Bankrupt companies count as separate stacks on the Share Adjustment Table.
• After adjustments, non-bankrupt company tokens are removed from the Share Adjustment Table and placed on the zero box of the Victory Point track.

Phase five: Sell shares

Players simultaneously decide which shares to sell. They secretly place the share tokens they wish to sell into their fist, then reveal them. Players receive the current share price for each share sold, with money taken from the bank. All sold shares are placed in the Available Shares box.

• If all shares in a company are sold, the player currently controlling that company retains control and the company display, remaining eligible for a CEO bonus.
• During the fifth turn, players must sell all shares they hold.

Phase six: Bankruptcies

If a company's share price token is in the 'B' box on the Share Price track, it is bankrupt and out of the game. All its shares are worthless and removed. Its track ownership markers are removed, but its track remains on the board and can be used by other companies (though moving goods along it does not add to performance). A bankrupt company cannot be restarted and affects future share price adjustments.

Phase seven: Company order of play

A new order of play is determined. Company tokens are removed from the Order of Play display, placed in the cloth bag, and drawn one at a time to create a new order. This phase is skipped during the final turn.

Phase eight: End of turn

Move the turn marker one space. A new turn begins.

Fim de Jogo e Pontuação

The game ends at the end of the fifth turn. At this point, all players should have sold all of their shares. The player with the most money is the winner. There is no tie-breaker.

Dicas para Vencer

• Consulte o manual para detalhes sobre esta seção.