UPDATE: May 4, 2012 Attached are the new rules in a semi-formatted .DOC format.
Topic digging to the extreme, this has been updated and revised.
Any suggestions welcomed.
The original premise and rules are below. *These are no longer valid*
Switchbacks and Sidetracks - A railway game for 2-4 players
============================================
Contents:
=======
1 Game board
4 pawns (red, blue, yellow, green)
16 Loco cards (4 each Local, Through (Commuter), Express and Limited)
16 Passenger Car cards
16 Bi-Level Car cards
4 Cab Control cars
48 Switchback cards
1 Rulesheet
120 Passenger Chips (40 each blue, red, yellow)
1 Notepad and Pencil
==SETUP==
==========
Players begin by chosing a coloured pawn and place it on the Union Station square to start.
One player is designated to be the "Banker" and keeps track of all player points.
Players also recieve a "local" Locomotive card and one passenger car card to start. Play begins with the youngest player going first.
==PLAY==
=========
=MOVEMENT=
============
Players move their trains around the board, choosing where to pick up their passengers. Players may chose any of the three routes on the board. Passengers from Carville are worth 1 point each, passengers from Waterton are worth 3 points, and passengers from Northbury are worth 5 points each. When a train arrives at Union Station, the passenger chips are removed from the player's train and the player holds onto those chips until the round ends. Trains may only pass each other on one of the eight double track sections on the board. There must be a 1 space distance between all trains on singls track. A player's turn ends if they cannot passs another train on the same route.
When a player lands on a Switchback space, they must draw a Switchback card and follow the instructions on the card. Certain types of cards may be kept until needed. (ex. The Crane Card).
When a train arrives at one of the three intermediate stations to load passengers, the player's turn ends.
When a player's train arrives at Union Station to discharge passengers, the train's movement cycle ends. Players may however choose to upgrade their trains at this time.
==SWITCHBACK CARDS==
=====================
The Switchback Cards may affect the drawing player's train or may give that player the option to play it on another player. Certain cards may be kept by the drawing player until they are needed. These "counter" cards may cost a certain amount of points to put in play. These cards may be put in play immediately provided the drawing player has the points to play it. If the player does not have the points available, they may choose to keep the card face down until they have the available points to activate the card. They may also choose to place the card on the discard pile. If the player has a counter card but it has not been activated (ie, turned face up), then the effect of that card is voided. For example, a player has a Crane Card face down because they didn't have the points to play it. The next turn they draw a Derailment card. The effects of the derailment card go through because the Crane has not been activated.
==UPGRADING TRAINS/ADDING CARS==
================================
Players may spend their points to upgrade their trains to carry more passengers or go faster.
Players may only upgrade their trains when stopped at Union Station. Locomotives can be upgraded to the next level only (ie, Local to Commuter, not Local to Express). Passenger cars are added in the same manner. Players may perform a maximum of 2 actions (ie, upgrading locomotive and adding 1 car, or adding 2 cars.)
A train can have any combination of bi-level and normal passenger cars. Each locomotive has a set number of cars it can haul at maximum speed. For every car added after the set number, the train's movement points are reduced by one. For example, a Local hauling three cars will only have a maximum speed of three spaces per turn.
Cab control cars are added in the same manner as locomotives and passenger coaches. Cab Control cars allow a player to continue with their train's movement after arriving at Union Station. Trains still end their turn when they stop at the three through stations however. The "Cab Control" feature is added onto the last car of the train and is considered a replacement of that final car. The Cab Control card does not add an additional car to the train.
==WINNING THE GAME==
====================
Once all passengers are delivered to Union Station, the round ends and scores are tallied. The player with the highest number of points wins. Red chips are worth 1 point, yellow chips are worth 3 points and blue chips are worth 5 points.
To extend the game, passengers can be delivered back to their originating points from Union Station.
Once again, players keep their chips and once all passengers are delivered, the score is tallied again.
The game can continue for as many rounds as players decide.
=========================
Regards,
Dan MacKellar
Well, I was saying that tongue in cheek :). Never having actually sat down and written a full rules set. Feel free to rip it apart as much as needed.
I think I need to read some basic templates and other rules.