18xx rule concordance

Compare the rules of 18xx games, side-by-side.

Based on this excellent document from Keith Thomasson.

These sections from the original rules difference list are not yet included here

  • 1.1 - How much cash do players start with?
  • 2.5 - What are the player certificate limits?
  • 5.3 - Must a tile replacement extend existing track?
  • 6.2 - Can you lay more than one station marker per turn?
  • 7.4 - Can one train run to two stations on the same tile?
  • 7.6 - Rules about villages
  • 7.7 - Must the maximum possible revenue be claimed?
  • 9.7 - Can a company buy more than one train from the bank per OR?
  • Section 12 - Game Phases
  • 15.1 - Total cash in game
  • 15.2 - Trains available
  • 15.3 - Tiles available
  • 15.4 - Other items in limited supply
  • Section 16 - Miscellaneous Points

Great, thanks for finding it.

If it's a problem with the version of the rules onhttp://www.fwtwr.com/18xx/rules_difference_list/single_list.htmthen please contact Keith Thomasson via the link on that page. That data is where the data for this page comes from.

If the data is correct on fwtwr.com then please let me know about the bug. I'm @h on the 18xx Slack, and @h on the HOGGS Slack too.

Excellent news!

The code for this project lives at https://github.com/hcarver/18xx_concordance. Please submit a Pull Request to that repository with your improvement.

What do I do?

Pick a game from the dropdown on the left, and another from the dropdown on the right. Then a table should appear listing the rules differences between the two games.

1.2 - Does the price of a private company drop by 5 for no sale in the first round?Yes, first private only.No.
1.4 - Can you make advance bids?Yes, at 5 or more over face value and over any other bid.
2.1 - Is there a specific order to buying and selling on your turn?No ( i.e. sell-buy-sell).Sell then buy.
2.2 - Are you limited to buying one certificate on your turn?Yes, unless in brown zone of market. In the case of shares in the brown zone, multiple shares may be purchased from the bank pool as a single purchase.Yes.
2.4 - Does the bank pool have a per-company share limit?50%.No. There is no bank pool.
2.5 - What are the player certificate limits?
2345678910Comments
282016131111Shares in the yellow and other colored zones do not count towards the limit.
2345678910Comments
1412109
14Bohemia Variant (2 players)
1513Moravia-Silesia Variant (2 or 3 players)
2.6 - What are the player certificate limits for shares in one company?5 certificates. Shares in the orange and brown zones do not count towards this. Note that if you play the Reading variant you may hold 70% of the Reading.Standard game: 60% of a medium or large company, 75% of a small company. Bohemia and Moravia-Silesia Variants: 70% of a large company.
2.7 - Does the stock price drop when stock is sold?Yes, 1 row per share.Yes, the price moves down once no matter how many shares are sold, zig-zagging between the top and bottom levels.
2.8 - Does the stock price go up at the end of the share dealing round for a fully-held corporation?Yes.Yes, the price moves up once, zig-zagging between the top and bottom levels.
2.9 - Can you buy a certificate and immediately sell a certificate in the same company?Yes.No. All selling precedes all buying.
2.10 - Can companies buy shares?Privates, in ORs, once a 3 train has been sold.Companies may acquire smaller companies.
2.11 - What ends a share dealing round?Each player consecutively not making a purchase or a sale. The priority then goes to the player after the one who last made a purchase or a sale.Each player consecutively passing. The priority, and subsequent places, are then assigned according to cash held.
3.2 - How many shares must be sold for a company to float?60%.50%.
3.3 - Does a company get full capitalisation upon floating?Yes.Yes, but the amount recevied depends on the size of the company. Small = 4 x initial share price, Medium = 5 x, Large = 10 x.
5.1 - Where can you make an initial tile lay?After being laid, the tile must be reachable from one of the laying company's station markers by an arbitrarily large train. (rule 6.2.1)As for 1830. (rule VIII.4)
5.2 - Can you lay two tiles in a turn?Only by using the special property of a private.Yes, if both are yellow and it is the company's first turn.
5.4 - Do villages upgrade?No.Yes, they stay as villages but acquire more connections.
7.3 - Unusual rules about runningNone.
8.1 - Does stock move right for payment of dividends?Yes.One place for small and medium companies, two places for large companies.
8.2 - What dividend payments go into the company's treasury?Those for shares in the bank pool.None.
9.1 - Can companies buy trains from one another?Yes, minimum price 1.Yes, once the first b-train has been bought, minimum price 1.
9.2 - Must a major share company buy a train if it does not have one?If it has a route.Yes.
9.3 - Can trains be sold back to the bank?No.No, but during an Acquisition, trains of the smaller company may be scrapped voluntarily.
9.4 - When a company is forced to buy a train and cannot buy one with its own means, what train may it then buy?The cheapest train available in the bank, or a train from another company at an agreed price not exceeding its face value.Any available from the bank or bank pool. The Director may not sell shares to raise funds. If more cash is needed than they have, the difference must be borrowed from the bank.
9.6 - Can trains of the final type be purchased as soon as one train of the next-to-last type is purchased?Yes. This is stated in rule 6.6, but has been omitted from the Phase table on page 27, despite attempts to persuade them to include it.No.
10.1 - Are private companies purchasable between players?Yes, at any agreed price, in the buyer's or seller's turn in a stock round, or during emergency money-raising. (The 1830 computer game does not allow this action, but that appears to be an oversight.)No.
10.2 - Are private companies purchasable by share companies?Once a 3 train has been sold; at from half to twice face value.Moravia-Silesia Variant only: the MW may be sold to a company for between 1K and the current Local Railways price.
10.3 - Does a private company prevent builds in its home hex(es) while it is owned by a player?Yes.No.
10.4 - Does using a private company's special property close it?Only the M&H, and the B&O when it buys its first train.No.
10.5 - When do private companies close?First 5 train.Moravis-Silesia Variant only: the 3E train is discarded once used, and the MW is closed when purchased by another company.
13.1 - Game ends immediately with a bankruptcy?Yes.No.
13.2 - What happens if the bank runs out of money during an operating round?Game ends when the current set of operating rounds is completed.Nothing. The bank holds 13,840, but is effectively unlimited.
13.3 - What happens when stock first hits the top end of the market?Nothing.When the Game Process marker reaches the end of the Local Railways Share Price chart, the last operating round is played and the game ends.
13.4 - What happens if the bank runs out of money during a stock round?Complete the next set of operating rounds.Nothing. The bank holds 13,840, but is effectively unlimited.
14.3 - Is the cash involved in transactions secret, or must it be made public?Not stated.Public.
14.4 - Is the cash in the bank secret, or must it be made public?Unspecified. Usually assumed to be public.The bank has unlimited money.
15.1 - Total cash in game
12,000
13,840 (add more if needed - effectively unlimited)