Elmers End
Railway Rivals game 16
Turn 12
Previous turns: Turn 11 Turn 10 Turn 9 Turn 8 Turn 7 Turn 6 Turn 5 Turn 4 Turn 3 Turn 2 Turn 1 Start-up
BASH finishes almost level with RAREBIT CYMRU RAIL. UNORTHODOX ENGINEERS opened up a winning lead over GERALD’S WESTERN RAILWAY to take the game. But a close finish between all the players.
This turn's races
| Race | From | To | UE | RCR | GWR | BASH | ||
| 36 | 11 | Llanelli | 46 | Treherbert | 10-7 | 10JR+7+5 | 10JR | |
| 37 | 45 | Glyncorrwg | 64 | Maesteg | 10+6-2 | 20+2-6 | ||
| 38 | S6 | East/North | 36 | Mumbles | 10-6 | 20+6 | ||
| 39 | 53 | Seven Sisters | S3 | Llanelli/Burry Port | 10+8 | 20 | 0-8 | |
| 40 | 16 | Carmarthen | 21 | Gowerton | 20-6 | 10+6 | ||
| 41 | 65 | Pontycymmer | 24 | Glanamman | 10+4-8 | 10JR-2 +5 | 10JR-2 +3 | |
| 42 | 54 | Resolven | 31 | Pontadarwe | 20+6 | 10-6 | ||
| TOTAL | 67 | 55 | 49 | 44 | ||||
| JR = Joint Run; ERP = Exchange of Running Powers | ||||||||
Builds and points
UNORTHODOX ENGINEERS (UE), Jonathan Palfrey - Green
Builds:
None
Points: 312 +67 = 379 First
RAREBITE CYMRU RAIL (RCR), Mike Dyer - Black
Builds:
None
Points: 263 +55 = 318 Third
GERALD'S WELSH RAILWAY (GWR), Gerald Udowiczenko - Red
Builds:
None
Points: 293 +49 = 342 Second
BABEL AND SWANSEA HAULAGE (BASH), Bob Blanchett - Blue
Builds:
None
Points: 268 +44 = 312 Fourth
Map
Turn 12 (PDF, 1.4 Mb – unchanged from turn 10).
Game end statements
Unorthodox Engineers: Jonathan Palfrey (1st)
Thanks to all for an interesting game. It’s funny how it works out in practice. Gerald never got out of the southeast but he’s competing strongly (and may yet win), whereas Mike connects north, west, and centre, but isn’t scoring so well; his routes tend to be roundabout. The game can be won by monopolizing one region and ignoring the rest, which is why I tried to get into the southeast myself and not leave it entirely to Gerald. The west was less important from my point of view because Bob and Mike were competing for that anyway; but I put in a little westward extension anyway.
Rarebit Cymru Rail: Mike Dyer (3rd)
What a sad state of affairs that was! A strong lead in the builds turned out to be a poor set of tracks to race on. Well done to the leaders, and to Bob for a terrific comeback on the races. At least the struggle with spelling all those Welsh town names is finally over! [Oh, I agree.]
Gerald’s Welsh Railway: Gerald Udowiczenko (2nd)
As always many, many thanks to Mike for running the game. I was a little surprised that I didn’t have more joint runs, which is what I was gambling on and I messed up my building through Mountains. I should have planned it better and started sooner, as those builds are so expensive and the amount you can build each turn drops (which I totally forgot about).
Well done to Jonathan on winning, or bad luck on coming second (but I think Jonathan has too much of a lead to be caught). In the end the Unorthodox Engineers railway was the more successful one (I won’t say best), as it got everywhere, which on a map like this is a real achievement. But saying that it’s nice to see come the last turn of the game, depending on dice rolls, anyone could still win, so covering all bets, well done Mike & Bob.
It looks like we’ll all finish within 40(ish) points of each other, which just goes to show how hard a map this is. Well done to everyone on a very entertaining game, and look forward to battling against you again sometime soon
Babel and Swansea Haulage: Bob Blanchett (4th)
Thanks to Mike for running the game and patience with me as a newbie. I’ve had RR for years and only begun playing postally during the pandemic – could never get any takers locally. Grateful for the chance to play and keep learning and will do again.
GM Notes
I was expecting more joint runs, but that often seems less common in postal games. UE had the most central position and I think benefitted from that. Thank you, all.