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.Not applicable.
1.3 - Can you sell company shares in the first round?No.Not applicable.
1.4 - Can you make advance bids?Yes, at 5 or more over face value and over any other bid.No.
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.
2.3 - When can you first sell shares in a company?From the second stock round onwards.After it has operated.
2.5 - What are the player certificate limits?
2345678910Comments
282016131111Shares in the yellow and other colored zones do not count towards the limit.
2345678910Comments
28201613
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.60%. This may be exceeded by minor company exchange but the excess must then be sold at the next opportunity.
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.Their own, in ORs.
3.1 - Do you lay the base station token immediately upon floating?No.Yes.
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.Only for shares sold until phase 5, then fully capitalised when floated.
3.4 - How is a share company's initial (par) price determined?The price is set by the player who purchases the President's certificate, choosing a value selected from a range of predefined prices.There are no par prices. The initial price is set by the player who purchases the President's certificate, choosing a value selected from a range of predefined prices. All further share dealing is done at the current market price.
4.1 - In what order do companies operate?Current 'dynamic' share price. By 'dynamic', this means that each time a company finishes operating, you look at the current stock price chart to see who is next. The highest value company that has not operated operates next. If two companies occupy the same space, the company with a token on top operates next. If two companies have the same value but are in different spaces, the company with a token furthest to the right operates next.Minor companies operate in numerical order, followed by major companies as stated under 'rest' below.
4.2 - If you sell shares so that their tokens end up in one stack, what order are they stacked in?New arrivals are placed below existing tokens.
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; but a hex reserved for another company may not be laid on except with the permission of that other company. (page 12)
5.2 - Can you lay two tiles in a turn?Only by using the special property of a private.Yes, for a minor company in its first OR.
5.4 - Do villages upgrade?No.Yes. They stay as villages, acquiring more connections, and eventually score more.
6.1 - Cost of station markers0 for home bases, 40, 100.All 0. 100 was paid for them at flotation time.
6.4 - When is a company's first station marker laid?When it first operates.When its president's certificate is bought.
7.3 - Unusual rules about runningVisit and get paid for villages without restriction.
8.1 - Does stock move right for payment of dividends?Yes.Only if the dividend paid out equals or exceeds the current share price.
8.2 - What dividend payments go into the company's treasury?Those for shares in the bank pool.Those for unissued shares. But note that if a company floats after a certain phase it receives 100% capitalisation and unsold shares are issued into the bank pool.
8.4 - Can a company make a partial payout?No.It may make a 50% payout. Odd units are rounded in favour of the shareholder. The amount paid out to the shareholders determines whether its share price moves to the right.
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 Pullmans may be returned to the bank at any time for no recompense.
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.The cheapest train available in the bank or bank pool. Thus a company may be compelled to buy a used train.
9.5 - Must a minor company buy a train if it does not have one?Not applicable.No.
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.)Not applicable (no private companies).
10.2 - Are private companies purchasable by share companies?Once a 3 train has been sold; at from half to twice face value.Not applicable.
10.3 - Does a private company prevent builds in its home hex(es) while it is owned by a player?Yes.
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.
10.5 - When do private companies close?First 5 train.
11.1 - Can the Director's certificate ever be in the bank pool?No.Yes, after a bankruptcy; but it must then be immediately transferred to a player using the normal change of presidency rules, or the company is permanently closed.
13.1 - Game ends immediately with a bankruptcy?Yes.Not usually. The bankrupt player's wealth is reduced to zero and they take no further part in the game. If all players but one have gone bankrupt, the game ends with the remaining player as the winner.
14.1 - Is a player's cash secret, or open for inspection?Open.Secret.
14.3 - Is the cash involved in transactions secret, or must it be made public?Not stated.Public.