American Empire FAQs and
Tips Sheet
1. Why is this FAQ
neccessary?
It seems there are a lot of newer players that want to play these maps
that tend to need a little more help getting things moving.
2. Why does the newspaper
blame me for a stock scandle when I
didn't do anything of the sort?
You did something! Perhaps you did one of the following...
It is against the law to: [buy a company that is under 1
year old] - [sabotage a company's connection to a city] - [prevent a
company from hauling or making musiums out of its trains] - [on
purposely make a company's stock drop in value]. If you don't do
any
of those, then you should be able to stay out of trouble.
3. Why did the game fine me
for one of the AI companies doing poorly?
Once you become the chairman of a company, it becomes YOUR
responsibility. If it does poorly it is YOUR fault. You
have a lot more leeway with a company that you are chairman of.
But once you leave that company, its book value is watched
closely. IT MUST NOT FAIL.
4. What are the win events
in this scenario?
None. There are some newspapers that will show you some of your
accomplishments. Like connecting distant cities via rail of one
company only. Hauling some cargos around. And of course,
making lots of money.
5. My company has lots of
money, why does the status screen show
that I have amassed only a small amount of cash?
Company cash is the company's money, not your money. You need to
find a way to move the money from the company's account to your
personal cash holdings. See the stocks screen.
6. I've taken control of
another AI company, how come I can't get
back to my first company?
You need to have 51% of the stock to guarantee you a wining vote to get
back into your first company. You could however work very hard in
the company you are CEO of now. Then later, if the board of
directors likes your performance in that company, they will sometimes
accept you back. 51% is usually easier to do though.
7. When I got back to my
first company, it now will not let me
lay but only a short piece of track. What's up with that?
When you first started that company you were asked if you would like
this company to be able to lay track when you were away. You
answered no. You were away so it cannot lay track. Lay a
short piece of track then toggle the track laying mode off and back
on. You will now be able to lay more track. Or, turn the
timer on for a little bit. The company will realize that you are
back in the office and you will then be able to lay track again.
8. Why would you need that
feature for track laying?
Because a lot us that play RRT3 don't like the way the AI (Artificial
Intelligence) lays its tracks. When it is a company that we
didn't start, it's none of our business. But when we start a
company, we are the CEO and we will say when it is OK to lay track to a
new city. Even when we are busy running another RR for whatever
reason. We are also looking for a way to limit our companies from
buying trains like no tommorrow. But we haven't found a way
yet. And I don't mean "using the editor mode".
9. After a few decades of
building my RR company(s), my computer
starts running real slow. Why is that?
You are running too many trains for your computer to handle. If
you like the idea of the AI running and scheduling your trains for you
(most experts do), then you need to make your companies smaller.
Make each company connect to only about 6 to 10 cities each. That
way they will not over saturate a few central cities with too many
trains. Many times this is necessary for a good record
score. If you
leave a company, the AI will buy more trains as long as it sees there
is more cargo that needs hauling. Especially if you haven't been
moving
enough of the cargo previously. All those trains and wheels
clattering down the track require a LOT of processing. You can
alleviate some of the problem by doing all your work while under pause
and then unpause to let the game run again when you're done.
Ultimately, the proper fix is getting a faster computer.
10. I've noticed you have
updated the map occasionally on your web site. How do I know if I
have the latest version of your maps?
In the status screen (ledger (bottom tab)) you will see the version
number at the top. The latest version should match the version
displayed on the web site. It will be in a date format like
20041128 (year-month-day).
11. Are these levels
multi-player capable?
Not as far as I know. I have scripted some things for
multi-player, but I haven't tested it.
12. How did you make and
hold that billion dollars in only 33 years?
Practicing and testing every possible money making stratagy that I
could think of. When the cup is on the line, you must leave your
morals behind. There are a lot of things that make a ton of money
that most people just don't think about that aren't cheats. (TIP) For instance, If you
have 4 million in purchasing power,... Then you need to find an
industry on the map that needs purchasing right now. Like that
lumber mill that is just now making 150K in profit per year. They
want 1.5 million for it. Start a new company with 1.1 million
your cash, 0 outside investors. Then immediately get a bond issue
(500K). Buy the lumber mill. It will only go up in
value. But you need to do this in the first half of the year
only. That company needs to make enough money that it doesn't
cause its stock to go down and create more problems for you as a margin
call. Because you KNOW the value of the company is going to go
up. It's a sure thing, so use that to your advantage.
Tactics like that is how you make a billion in 32 years.
13. Why aren't there any
ground level sounds besides the ocean?
After many, many hours of playing the map. You get tired of
hearing the same sounds over and over and over. Trust me, it's an
improvement.
14. Why did you make the
map with a minimum of 4 AI players? Why not 0 to 5 instead?
Because in life you have competitors, so shall it be in the game.
15. Why did you name the
level American Empire?
Because it was requested enough from other people that they wanted a
map that would not end. So that they could build an empire of
their liking. And of course the map was part of the American
continent.
16. Any tips on how to
improve my play?
These maps are kind of like chess. There are opening moves,
midgame strategies, and endgame tactics. Everything you do at any
point of the game opens new opportunities and closes others. It
is simply a matter of finding the best possible move with what
resources you have at each and every step in time. Unlike chess,
you can make several moves at each turn. You need to learn to
push the game into your desired direction and not just accept what is
handed to you. You can always save the game and try your
tactic. If it doesn't work out, reload the saved game.
17. What is considered
cheating?
I'll leave that up to you and your friends. Play this map the way
you want to play it. My friends and I play this map with our own
set of "gentleman's rules". I'm sure you can find some that suit
you and your friends.