Pictures of your games (non-OT thread)

[AvAtAr]

I've created a second exit from my main goods station, otherwise trains would have to wait too long before leaving the station.

I've also attached a pic which shows quite good the PBS in action.

cheers

AvAtAr

PS: thanks for the comments on the station!

[Martin]

HOLY s***!

Now that is a station! Thanks for sharing that screeny!

Seconded. Bloody awesome.

Nice shots, Rai, as always! (Slightly late reply there )

Cheers mate . Speaking of late, where are yours? .

That PC is still in pieces in the garage, I keep looking in horror at the mass of tangled wires I need to sort out again! Anyway, you've spurred me on there, I'm going to have a look tomorrow!

Edit on Saturday: I did have a look and it's done, so expect screenies in the not too distant future!

[Raichase]

Edit on Saturday: I did have a look and it's done, so expect screenies in the not too distant future!

Excellent! Can't wait!

Speaking of future, I live in the future. Gimme .

[HaroldV]

Lloyd Wolf,

You posts immediately start me thinking about limit breaks.

[Menno]

Time for some screenshots from my hand

I have for a long time been busy with optimizing one particular situation. I have 6 coal mines on one side, and a power plant on the other side (I created it that way). So at first I made a simple RORO station, 2 railway lines, 7-track-station. I didn't have PBS then yet. It was not really interesting stuff, each train has to wait for one another though there is always a platform free. When I introduced PBS in this, I could make it more interesting. What I have now is a (I think) wonderful combination of pre-signalling and PBS.

SCR14: Whichever platform a train chooses, it will most of the time first try to go to the nearest platform. I have made use of this behaviour. Trains coming from line 1 have the ability to choose from all platforms availabe. But, because of the aforementioned behaviour, it will most of the time choose one of the first 3 platforms. I have now 'reserved' these three for line 1. Line 2 can choose from the 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th platform. But a train will go most of the time to nr 3, 4 or 5. Line 3 can choose from the 5th, 6th, and 7th. These 'restrictions' for line 2 and 3 cause the first 2 platforms to be always free if a train arrives from line 2, and the first 4 if a train arrives from line 3.
Because of all this, 3 trains from the 3 different lines can always enter the station, if enough platforms are free.

SCR15: On the backside of the station is a same sort of construction. Trains from the first 3 platforms can choose any line, from the 4th and 5th platform only line 2 or 3, and trains from the 6th and 7th platform can only go to line 3. Here also three trains can leave the station at the same moment. Because of the presignals, a train from the 7th platform (most right) will not enter the block before line 3 is free. That sometimes causes trouble, especially when you put more trains in.

SCR17: This shows a (unfortunately) common problem. A train from platform C enters line 1 because it arrived at the signal block before the train from A. If the train from A had been a little sooner, the train from C would have gone into line 2 or 3. This was my main problem back when I hadn't yet changed the layout, for instance a train from the 7th platform going into line 1, blocking all other platform exits. That is mostly solved now, though still not ideal.

[Menno]

At the power station I have exactly the same layout.

This proved very well to handle about 25 trains, though I think it can have 35-40. If not, then I will enlarge the stations to 9 platforms, and add another line. (I use the rule one platform and two for every line)
When using this layout, you should give the inner 3 platforms the option of choosing all lines, the next two all lines except the first, the next two all lines except the first and second, etc.

I have used this same savegame to make some of the junctions from the "junctions" topic. Also, this proved to be my first game that features an AI using:
- boats to service oil rigs (without checking if the docks could be reached, I dug some canals) (SCR18)
- trains to service oil rigs (SCR18)
- helicopters to serve oil rigs (SCR 19, look just above "rn" of Labourne East)
Actually, this happened to be my first game where any AI served an oil rig...

If you want to take a look, check my savegame in the savegames topic.

[Lloyd Wolf]

Menno:

That AI business is pretty sick. I've seen the AI use ships to serve oil rigs, but not trains... and certainly not helicopters. That's some special AI you got there :wink:

[Flamelord]

I really like the new followvehicle switch a lot, but the vehicle window always bugged me. Sure, I could close it, but that didn't feel right. I could leave it on the screen, but every edge is the wrong edge for it, so there's no real place to put it. Finally, I realized where I should put it, and after a bit of playing with it, I got it to line up right. Here's the result:

[3iff]

Menno.

Interesting layout. A lot neater than the stuff I come up with.

Are your trains leaving the station half loaded?? I always have my trains on wait for full load. Of course you're perfectly entitled to play it that way if you wish. I'm just interested in the different ways people play the game.

[Menno]

I really like the new followvehicle switch a lot, but the vehicle window always bugged me. Sure, I could close it, but that didn't feel right. I could leave it on the screen, but every edge is the wrong edge for it, so there's no real place to put it. Finally, I realized where I should put it, and after a bit of playing with it, I got it to line up right. Here's the result:

Menno.

Interesting layout. A lot neater than the stuff I come up with.

Are your trains leaving the station half loaded?? I always have my trains on wait for full load. Of course you're perfectly entitled to play it that way if you wish. I'm just interested in the different ways people play the game.

yes the trains leave the station half loaded. There is a large amount of continuity in my layout, and a lot of that (I'm afraid) will make it stagnate if you let the trains full load. At the moment, the coal mines don't produce really large amount of coal altogether (I think less than 1400 tons per month), so letting the trains full load would jam it up. This design would indeed be better for a station with a constant, high stream of cargo.
(Something else that causes the trains to leave half-loaded is that I recently replaced all the engines and the wagons. A detail about that: the engines are BR103's from the DBsetXL, and while I was replacing them, the livery changed, so I have about half BR103's in white/red and another half in red)

[Menno]

Continuing from the previous situtation:

SCR21: I have set the trains to full load, but as I predicted, the coal mines do not produce enough coal for all the trains to be full in a short time. This keeps many trains waiting at the signal block entrance to the left. So I set the trains back at non-full load

SCR22: I have now put about 10 more trains into the system, which makes the total number 35. It now happens that trains coming from the platforms at E F and G have to wait more and longer than trains coming from the other platforms. It even keeps trains waiting in the station, look at the blue engine. This was also something I foresaw, but I don't yet have any solution for it, save the enlargement of the station and the number of lines.
The larger number of trains does not cause any trouble at the station entrance, save for an occasionally train going into the depot instead of somewhere else (this happens less than once per TT year).

For those interested: I'm now running on mainly BR120's, some BR112's, a BR102, a BR182 and a DE...something, forgot the exact name, but it's the blue engine in the second picture.

[sigeng]

SCR22: . . . It now happens that trains coming from the platforms at E F and G have to wait more and longer than trains coming from the other platforms.

Thats because trains from the other platfroms are turning across their path to line 3 in preference to 1 & 2. I'm guessing your power station is up to the north/east of the picture so the trains see line 3 as the best path

. . . but I don't yet have any solution for it, save the enlargement of the station and the number of lines

More platforms and lines won't help. Build a 3-track waypoint across all 3 exit tracks and add to all train orders. Now exiting trains will prefer the straightest path to the way point which will have less conflict with other parallel departures.

The larger number of trains does not cause any trouble at the station entrance

Thats because in routing to the nearest platform they turn naturally away from conflict with other arrivals.

[Menno]

My power station is to the northwest, so the trains should first try to choose line 1. Most of the time they do. But if line 1 and 2 are blocked, any train waiting will choose line 3. It would then be nice if the trains from platforms G, F and E had a little advantage over the others. That would solve the problem. I can, however, put in the waypoint to see what happens.
The main, overall problem is always that it's easy to let trains diverge (split up, like from 3 to 7 lines in my case) but not to converge (from 7 to 3). But although my solution is far from ideal, I have not yet seen one that does better. Please show me one!

[broodje]

okey you asked for it . he staion serves around 130 trains all industries conected. as you can see 4 exit (and 3 entrance) lanes are used. Becouse it is an unloading staion trains visit it only.
I never have trains waiting for eachother, only some verry rare ocasions when a train crosses all tracks on the more forward junction with the fly over.

I have 'almost' no stalling if the system works, but I get a huge pile of trains waiting when only one train makes an error

[lobster]

And Astath, I tend to release things on IRC, development releases that is, because I almost always can get instant feedback. Jump into #tycoon on irc.quakenet.org some day! It'd be great to see you there! If else, just give me a pm if you want to know how far the coding is, and I can send you a preview (Or a link).

hmm, i'll re-install IRC then after i've done XP. you'll see me around... you'll see...

anyway, i'll post some new screenies as soon as i've got my PC under command again. great stuff here though.

[Flamelord]

I tend to set up my station exits like this when they need to exit in both directions. I could do a 7-platform-to-3-exit one if you'd like.

Remember, that unless it matters which of the three lines trains go to, the closest should go to the inside exits, and the further trains to the outside exits.

[Lloyd Wolf]

If the four output lines eventually go to the same place, I'd split the eight exit tracks up so that trains on the right can exit regardless of whether or not a train from the left is int he junction or not. And vice versa.

[Menno]

okey you asked for it .

I did, didn't I?

he staion serves around 130 trains all industries conected. as you can see 4 exit (and 3 entrance) lanes are used. Becouse it is an unloading staion trains visit it only.
I never have trains waiting for eachother, only some verry rare ocasions when a train crosses all tracks on the more forward junction with the fly over.

Looks really nice and good, indeed seems a tit better than mine But, I only have to transport coal .

I have 'almost' no stalling if the system works, but I get a huge pile of trains waiting when only one train makes an error

That is indeed a problem. Your solution looks really good, except I wonder if all trains from the station fit in between the exitsignal and presignal in the 4-lane block. Although I also wonder if that matters

One more thing about your layout, and also that of flamelord. Both your trains seem capable of travelling real fast. I have set on the speed restrictions for the wagons, so my trains can only get in the station at 140 km/h and leave it with 120 km/h. If they'd be going faster I think it would be going smoother also... Mmh let's check that out.

[3iff]

Flamelord.

Nice layout. I always tend to have one layer of exit lines but notice you have 2 layers...obviously allowed since PBS appeared... I will try that.

I also like the large gap between the station and the exit layers that is big enough for a train to sit while freeing up the platform for another train.

My one major error is building a station in the wrong place so that the industry gets in the way of my trackbuilding! I MUST plan these things better!

I currently have a cramped factory station layout with a factory just to the NE of my station and the remnants of a town to the NE/E (lots of dynamite used!) and barely have enough space to squeeze 6 platforms. There are 3 entrance lines that lead to a PBS entry block and around 40-50 trains cope very well. I never seem to have enough space for trains exiting a station.

[broodje]

nah menno, it doesn't really matter how fast they go. When trains are slower to exit the scene they are also slower to enter the station. In fact I had to enlarge the station from 7 to 12 tracks just because the trains were getting faster.
and yes all trains fit in-between the exit and pre-signal. but it doesn't really matter if they don't fit completely, all trains should be running normally when one train decides to go 1 track to one side all others do so too. so there is almost no cluttering there. In fact the place where it does clutter is where the branches hook on the main 3 lane track towards the station. As you can see the whole layout is modelled like some sort of tree (except for the 2 lines for steel and goods)