Best way to start?

[Spotter2004]

Off course, everyone plays it his/her own way

But i'm wondering what's the best to start with?

Passengers?
Cargo?
Train?
Busses/trucks?

I've started every time with trains with success

[Metacritical]

scan the map looking for two towns close to each other where at least one can easily be supplied with one of its cargo demands. supply what it wants and then connect the two with a passenger train. i prefer when both towns can be supplied its cargo demand

[Vimes]

I have VERY little experience in this game, perhaps this screen will help you to see what is best to avoid, lol..............

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2963114546

I started by creating a stone to brick route for Dorking and that accelerated the towns growth. When profits were made I then created a couple of bus routes within Dorking.
From there I made a single lined track to Whitworth for passengers.
When that made money I then changed both train stations to accept cargo and expanded the brick production.

Not sure if the above has been optimally designed or not, but I enjoyed it and it does seem to make some money......Now to pay off the loans...!

[Oakshield]

It depends completely at what kind of map you play and whether or not you're using mods.

i.e. At a vanilla map without any mods I'd look for a complete tool production chain and a complete fuel production chain, as those are the easiest to set up and making a profit. Even with the current mechanics of being paid after goods are delivered, instead of only get payment if the chain was complete like we had in FpF.
After that a complete food chain would be usefull as well.

Second step is to set up passenger transport between nearby cities to make sure population of the other cities are able to buy the tools and fuel as well.




In my current modded game, I've started in 1800, meaning no trains at all. I also have been using the "real industries" mod, meaning wooden tools aren't available anymore.
Therefor my first route is usually a full fuel production chain, with a full food production chain in one or two cities as well. And all is done by trucks.
Next step is to set up passenger transport between cities, using trams, to make sure people are able to buy the food and / or fuel.

Up until the point I'm able to start railroad traffic, I work at paying off that $5M loan, making it a lot easier to set up the rail ways without having to worry about 50K "wasted" money; while also setting up the railroad network before the first train arrives. In both ways of speaking.
When I do have the trains, it's simply a matter of using railroad transportation with the support of trucks and busses (and trams) to deliver the goods and passengers.

Thorin :)

[RadiKyle]

Originally posted by Spotter2004:

Off course, everyone plays it his/her own way

But i'm wondering what's the best to start with?

Passengers?
Cargo?
Train?
Busses/trucks?

I've started every time with trains with success

If the map has water? Cargo ships, always. Cheapest/easiest money in the game for early starts (1850). Once that's gushing cash you've pretty much won the game and can build (almost) whatever you want.

At higher difficulty levels (Hard, Very Hard) it's pretty much the same, just profit margins are way slimmer and so it takes longer to build up and can't build as recklessly.

Cheers

[RadiKyle]

Originally posted by Oakshield:

Up until the point I'm able to start railroad traffic, I work at paying off that $5M loan, making it a lot easier to set up the rail ways without having to worry about 50K "wasted" money;

Hi, I understand what you're saying here... just wouldn't view loan interest as wasted money. If the borrowed money is used well on lines with strong ROI (30% or more is readily doable), then that 2% interest is lost in the noise. So in early game it's always best to maximize the borrowed money and keep investing it into high-ROI routes.

Once things have snowballed and we've basically won the game (which doesn't take long at lower difficulty settings tbh), then sure, can pay off the loan since no longer need the cash. It doesn't really matter much tho (maybe just company "score", or some achievements, I'm not sure there).

Cheers

[Vimpster]

I always start with a moderate or long cargo train line, or when appropriate a long cargo ship line, and ensure that the line carries cargo both ways.

As RadiKyle said it is good to make full use of the maximum loan limit to accomplish as much as you can with it. Just don't have lots of money sitting in the bank not being used. Either spend it on things that will make money or pay it back to the bank so that you are not needlessly paying interest on money that is not doing anything.

[Tsubame ⭐]

Cargo is usually the easiest and most profitable way to start.

I usually start off with trains. Ships if there is water routes available.

This is when playing 1850 "for profit".

When playing No Costs/Sandbox, which I do most of the time, I start in the contemporary era, and I focus on passenger lines instead, and things are built not for efficiency, but for other purposes - i.e. modelling, networking, etc.