Settle to Carlisle , is it worth it ?

[leftergr]

I decided to spent a few Euros , in the March sales , but I am a bit confussed .

One route for sure is going to be the West Coast Main Line North . Because mainly of the big length and the positive feedback ( although old route ) .

And the other one , I am thinking to be Settle to Carlisle . And here comes my question . Is it worth it ? The included trains seem very nice , but i don't know about the route itself . Is it worth it , or to go with the Woodhead Route instead ?
I read in the comments of the Settle to Carlisle route , that if you own WCMLN , the two lines merge together . Is this true ?

On the Workshop , if I am not mistaken , the rolling stock of Settle to Carlisle is being used by a lot of scenarios ?

So a few opinions to let me decide , would be most welcomed .

[The3oLand]

Both are good routes, but I find the Settle to Carlisle more scenic.
I never seen that these routes merge. There are some routes that merge or rather one is an extension of another, but not the Settle to Carlisle and the WCMLN.
Yes, a lot of the Settle to Carlisle stock is used and in general nice. The class 158 DMU is the weakest link of the lot. A rather dated model with poor textures and weak sounds. Still don't let that spoil your purchase. At it's current price well worth the money.

[simonmd]

The two routes only 'merge' together figuratively, ie, they share the same track at Carlisle so you could drive one route there, then change trains and continue technically. As far as I know, no one has physically merged the routes so you can drive end to end non stop.

The route itself is very nice and of course, pretty historic. To this day it remains like a timewarp with many classic excusions being run on it. The stock that comes with it is pretty good too, you get the 158 DMU, the Class 37, the class 66 as well as the steam loco and a reasonable selection of stock. For this reason, alot of people list it as a requirement in many scenarios as the stock comes in usefull.

Bad side is it's very linear, there are no main branches of it so it can be a bit limiting scenario wise.

[leftergr]

Thank you , I thought that someone had really merged the two line in Workshop , or somewhere else . Thanks for clarifying it .

I was looking today at the workshop , the scenarios about the two routes ( Settle and WCMLN ) . And while I was expecting a lot more scenarios for the WCMLN , I found out that the Settle to Carlisle had almost double pages with them , and many of them didn't also required extra dlcs ....
So this put me in a thought ...... maybe I should reconsider about the WCMLN route ????

[simonmd]

The price its at right now, youd be silly not to get it, (WCML N) but thats my opinion. There is MUCH more to do on it, maybe Settle to Carlisle has more scenarios in total but theyre all going to be doing similar things, its just that its a very famous line and is treated almost as a huge preservation railway thats open to public services as well. The WCML North gives you the wonderfull class 86 whcih is a joy to master and you get so many different options, high speed freight, low speed freight and shunting, high speed passenger, stopping services, local commuter services around Glasgow, etc, etc. S2C is basicaly A-B with not much else to do.

Right now, the WCML North is less than four quid, if you dont get it, you'll regret it!
http://store.steampowered.com/app/24083/

[Growler]

Yes the WCML-N is a must have (despite its well known little glitches) as it's such a useful classic route.

However, IMHO the Settle-Carlise line is a beautiful route, extremely realistic (to real-life), and very well created within the game. It's always been one of my all time favourite routes for the game. Yes it's not huge, or full of glitzy assets; but has a charming simplicity, works flawlessly (apart from the headlights on the provided 158 DMU loco, but there is a community fix) and is basically at lot of fun to drive. And being virtually completely non-electrified (save the Carlisle end) is timeless historic era wise. So great to drive any steamers, or diesels making it a very useful route.

Plus also often overlooked is the very good Carlisle Specials loco pack that's available as an add-on for the route. That includes 5 locos (the A1 Tornado, V2 Green Arrow, GWR Wooton Hall, GWR King Edward II, Class 47 maroon), quite a few of which you're going to struggle to obtain individually. Anyway at what is it, £3.99 in the sale you really can't go wrong with the route. I was truly delighted with it, and that was whilst paying the full £25 when it was more or less new. Have fun whatever you end up buying. All the best.

[leftergr]

I was just having second thought about the routes , but after seeing both your answers ( simonmd & Growler ) , I think I will go ahead and get them both . As you said , the price is so low ( 5.19 Euros ) , that they both well deserve the money ( also I don't think that they can to a much lower price ) .

One more question , if I may . Any suggestions for a LOCO DLC , that is good and a must have for either of these routes ? :)

[simonmd]

The class 57 is a good one, very detailed with good sounds and some decent features, it's got good classic roots but is still in mainstream use and popular with excursions. Also comes with 6 scenarios for the Settle route too,
http://store.steampowered.com/app/208295/

[leftergr]

Thank you Simonmd for your suggestion . Although seeing that the loco you suggested is very nice , the money that it asks are a bit off to what I am willing to pay in these sales .

But I have added the dlc , to my wishlist , and pethaps will go for it in the next Sales ! If you have any more suggestions , to add to my wishlist , are most welcomed . Thank you !!!

[simonmd]

Its a shame the class 40 isnt on sale, that would go nice on that route as well. The 57 is very nicely done though, proper start up procedure and great sounds.

[leftergr]

Eventually both the routes , are in my librady as of today :) WCML North and the Settle to Carlisle . From a few short runs that I have made , both look great and run very well on my system !
I even managed to accomplish a scenario using the Class 86 in WCMLN , after watching a few tutorials and videos . Lovely challenging loco , i have to admit .

And this got me thinking ..... should i get the Class 86 loco dlc ???? As I saw that many workshop scenario using this and not the default loco of the route .....

[simonmd]

This really annoyed me I must admit as I fail to understand why a class of loco included in the route should be different to it being sold separately. I bought an Armstrong Powerhouse scenario pack that has some using the class 86 and though "oh good, I have that", only to realize that the AP reskins and scenarios would only work on the seperate DLC so I had to buy that as well!

To answer you question, if you realy like is and dont mind spending a few more pounds, by all means. There are indeed lots on the workshop that use it on many different lines. Just so long as you know its no different, just a reskin pack really.

[leftergr]

Yeah , it took me some time , and a lot of reading through sites , to understand that the dlc is just reskins , and why the workshop scenarios were asking a loco that is included in the route

At least it says that you get 6 more scenarios , plus the workshop scenarios I then be able to subscribe . Also was thinking , how much more than 60% discount is going to have in the future ???

[Feliks Kschessinsky]

I've been having a similar discussion with myself. Should I get both routes now, or buy one in a twin pack and leave the other til a different sale?

The twins packs are:
WCML-N with the EWS Class 66
S2C with the 'TSX' Class 31 (Class 31Pack02)

Both are £7.99, which is equivalent to buying both routes now. But if I don't buy the twin pack, I almost certainly won't get the loco DLCs as standalone in the future..

[leftergr]

It depends to what you prefer Feliks .... Me , I am more of a route guy i guess

That's why I prefer buying route dlcs , more than getting individual loco dlc . Now that I am thinking of it I must have bought only 1-2 locos ( except the ones that came as bundles with routes ) , while I have around 20 routes dlc .

[Growler]

Hi Feliks. Both the locos, especially the Class 66 really are classic locos for the game; especially for freight driving. And they're used a lot in freeware (Workshop + other sources) & 3rd party scenarios, especially the workhorse that is the 66. Basically if you enjoy UK freight scenarios you will probably end up kicking yourself, if you don't go for the locos.

If you're really not fussed by feight scenarios, I'd suggest going for both routes now (which are both very good, and both very good for all sorts of scenarios, especially passenger trains) minus the add-on locos.

Out of the two twin packs, if you want a route and loco pack particularly good for all round driving (passenger & freight) I'd personally recommend the WCML-N with the EWS 66; it's a very versatile combination. And the loco can happily be used on many routes. You'll probably get a lot of use out of both this route and loco. This is coming from someone who loves the Settle-Carlise line! But I have to confess I rarely make use of the Class 31. Although I'll often use the 66 on the S-C. lol

Basically both the routes and the two locos are all good, so I'm sure you'll feel good whatever option you go for; it would be hard to go wrong. All the best with your choice! :)