← All games

1840: Vienna Tramways

Designer: Leonhard "Lonny" Orgler

Vienna trams with no train rusting at all: every line is a "diesel" from the start, and obsolescence is replaced by ongoing fees.

View on BoardGameGeek → View the rulebook → View on Ludoya →
1840: Vienna Tramways Contents

How it works

Setup
  • 2 to 6 players: from 350 to 200 florins, plus a 350 card for founding
  • Unlimited bank
  • Auction of the 6 privates (Vienna landmarks)
  • [SR1]: everyone must buy the director's share (50%) of a [TC] and set its price (70-100)
  • TCs nobody picks leave the game
  • Then comes [CR1] and the loop begins
Stock round ×1
  • Sell (down one space per share) and buy one certificate
  • All shares are paid to the bank, at share price
  • Max 60% of a company
  • Whoever ends with the most cash goes first next time
Line round ×2-3
  • Lines, from 1 to 18:
  • 1. One tile (lay or upgrade)
  • 2. One Stadtbahn tile (20) and its extra action
  • 3. One station (20 to 100)
  • 4. The tram runs: unlimited reach, stops and own stations count
  • Revenue goes to the [TC]'s "Revenue" box
Company round ×1
  • Private income
  • Trams in the stack move along and get cheaper
  • Each [TC] decides how much of its revenue to pay out (multiples of 10)
  • The Stadtbahns run and always pay out
  • Buy trams (max. 3)
  • Line auction: one per [TC] per round, max. 3
↻ Repeats until the end
End
  • Always at the end of [CR6]
  • Stadtbahns pay ×2 in CR4, ×3 in CR5 and ×10 in [CR6]
  • Cash + shares at share price
  • −200 for each loan

Components

Players
  • Cash and the 350 founding card
  • Director of a single [TC]
  • Shares in any company, and privates
Companies
  • [TC]: a 50% director's share and five 10% shares; receive 10 × par
  • Separate treasury and revenue box
  • Stadtbahn (W, V, G, [D]): no director, run on their own line and pay everything out
Lines
  • 18, numbered, each with its own home stop
  • TCs buy them at auction
  • They lay track and stations and run a tram
Bank
  • Unlimited money
  • Tram stack: each company round a new colour comes out and the older ones get cheaper
  • Loans of 100 that are never repaid
Privates
  • 6 landmarks, from 10 to 60
  • +20 to the owning [TC]'s tram when it passes through
  • From [LR2a], a [TC] can buy them from a player

Where the money goes

  • Players Bank Buying shares (always from the bank) and privates
  • Bank Companies When the director's share is bought: 10 × par
  • Lines Companies Tram revenue, minus maintenance
  • Bank Players Dividends, private income, share sales
  • Companies Bank Trams, lines, stations and Stadtbahn tiles
  • Players Companies The director tops up the mandatory tram or maintenance, with loans if needed

Phases

Yellow
Start
Yellow 100 · orange 300
Trams never rust
Green
LR2a
Red 500 (CR2) · pink 600 (CR3)
The first red adds maintenance to the yellows; TCs can buy privates
Brown
LR4a
Purple 800 (CR4)
Pink and purple raise maintenance on the old ones; purple adds +200
Grey
LR5a
No new colours come out
Three line rounds before [CR6]
  • Phases go by rounds, not trains: the game has a fixed length.
  • Old trams never disappear, but maintenance can make them lose money.

A round, step by step

Illustrative example (the rulebook doesn't include a full one): 4 players. We follow [P1] and their [WT] from the private auction to the second company round. Route values are approximate.

  1. Before starting Cash and a card Phase Yellow

    With 4 players, each gets 260 florins and a "preferential right" card worth 350, usable only to pay for a [TC] director's share.

    [P1] cash
    260
    [WT] treasury
    —
    [WT] revenue
    —
    [WT] share price
    —
  2. Private auction The Hofburg Phase Yellow

    Privates are auctioned one by one: the minimum bid is the printed value, then it goes up in steps of 5. [P1] takes the Hofburg (value 40, income 20) for 45.

    Afterwards, the player with the least cash chooses turn order first.

    [P1] cash
    215
    [WT] treasury
    —
    [WT] revenue
    —
    [WT] share price
    —
  3. Stock round 1 Mandatory director's share Phase Yellow

    In the first stock round, every player must start by buying a [TC] director's share. [P1] picks the [WT] at a price of 80. The 50% certificate costs 5 × 80 = 400: they pay with the 350 card plus 50 from their pocket. The [WT] receives 800 from the bank.

    [P1] cash
    165
    [WT] treasury
    800
    [WT] revenue
    —
    [WT] share price
    80
  4. Stock round 1 More shares Phase Yellow

    Turn after turn, [P1] buys 10% of the [WT] (80) and 10% of the [D] Stadtbahn (65). That money goes to the bank, not the companies.

    Nothing can be sold in the first stock round.

    [P1] cash
    20
    [WT] treasury
    800
    [WT] revenue
    —
    [WT] share price
    80
  5. Stock round 1 Everyone passes Phase Yellow

    Once everyone has passed in a row, the round ends. The next round's order is set by who has the most cash: [P1], with 20, will go last.

    [P1] cash
    20
    [WT] treasury
    800
    [WT] revenue
    —
    [WT] share price
    80
  6. Company round 1 Income and dividends Phase Yellow

    The Hofburg pays [P1] 20. The [WT] has no revenue yet, pays 0 and drops one space, from 80 to 75. The [D] does run and pays out 70: [P1] collects 7.

    A dividend of 10 to 90 doesn't move the share price; 100 to 190 moves it up one space, and so on up to seven.

    [P1] cash
    47
    [WT] treasury
    800
    [WT] revenue
    —
    [WT] share price
    75
  7. Company round 1 A yellow tram Phase Yellow

    The stack now has yellows (100) and oranges (300). The [WT] buys a yellow for 100.

    A [TC] can own up to 3 trams, one per line.

    [P1] cash
    47
    [WT] treasury
    700
    [WT] revenue
    —
    [WT] share price
    75
  8. Company round 1 Line auction Phase Yellow

    TCs pick lines in share price order and auction them among themselves: minimum 20, in steps of 5. The [WT] wins line 7 for 45 and puts the yellow tram on it.

    [P1] cash
    47
    [WT] treasury
    655
    [WT] revenue
    —
    [WT] share price
    75
  9. Line round 1a The first tile Phase Yellow

    Lines play from 1 to 18. Line 7 places its home station for free and, since it's its first turn, the tile must go on its home stop.

    [P1] cash
    47
    [WT] treasury
    655
    [WT] revenue
    —
    [WT] share price
    75
  10. Line round 1a The tram runs Phase Yellow

    Trams have no stop limit: every stop on the route counts, plus junctions where the line has a station. It makes 30, which goes to the [WT]'s revenue box, not the treasury.

    [P1] cash
    47
    [WT] treasury
    655
    [WT] revenue
    30
    [WT] share price
    75
  11. Line round 1b A station and a new route Phase Yellow

    Line 7 lays another tile and its second station (20). The tram reaches further and makes 50.

    Laying a Stadtbahn tile (20) gives an extra action, as does a red city-centre tile or another station.

    [P1] cash
    47
    [WT] treasury
    635
    [WT] revenue
    80
    [WT] share price
    75
  12. Company round 2 Paying out 80 Phase Yellow

    The Hofburg pays 20 again and the [D] another 7. The [WT] pays out the 80: [P1], with 60%, collects 48. A dividend of 80 doesn't move the share price; 100 would have moved it up.

    Had it withheld everything, the share price would have dropped one space.

    [P1] cash
    122
    [WT] treasury
    635
    [WT] revenue
    0
    [WT] share price
    75
  13. Company round 2 Cheaper trams Phase Yellow

    The stack has moved along: yellow 50, orange 200 and the first red, 500. The [WT] buys an orange for 200.

    When someone buys the first red, each yellow will lose 50 in maintenance on every run.

    [P1] cash
    122
    [WT] treasury
    435
    [WT] revenue
    0
    [WT] share price
    75
  14. Company round 2 A second line Phase Yellow

    In the auction, the [WT] takes a second line for 30. It now has two lines and two trams.

    [P1] cash
    122
    [WT] treasury
    405
    [WT] revenue
    0
    [WT] share price
    75
  15. Towards stock round 2 What now? Phase Yellow

    Stock round 2 comes next and, in [LR2a], green tiles arrive. The Stadtbahns will pay double in CR4, triple in CR5 and ten times in [CR6]: holding their shares at the end can be worth a lot.

    [P1] cash
    122
    [WT] treasury
    405
    [WT] revenue
    0
    [WT] share price
    75

1840 Vienna Tramways — Summary

Capitalization type

  • The six Tram Companies (TCs) directed by players float at 50%: whoever buys the director's certificate puts in half of the company's total capital (not the usual 20% from other 18xx games), although that certificate still only counts as a single unit against the certificate limit.
  • The four Stadtbahn companies (W, V, G, D) never have a director and never float in the classic sense: they're put into play directly at a fixed par price (Wiental-Linie 95, Vororte-Linie 85, Gürtel-Linie 75, Donaukanal-Linie 65) and always pay out 100% of their income.

Floating percentage and per-player share limits

  • The six Tram Companies (majors) float at 50% of shares sold; the eighteen Linie companies (minors) float at 100% (they start operational right away); the four Stadtbahn companies (W, V, G, D) never float in the classic sense (0% threshold, they're put into play directly at a fixed price)
  • No player may hold more than 60% of a single Tram Company or Stadtbahn company, except the Linie, which have no limit (100%)
  • Certificate limit per player: 2 players — 18; 3 players — 16; 4 players — 14; 5 players — 13; 6 players — 12

Starting cash by player count

  • 2 players: 350 Gulden starting cash
  • 3 players: 300 Gulden starting cash
  • 4 players: 260 Gulden starting cash
  • 5 players: 230 Gulden starting cash
  • 6 players: 200 Gulden starting cash
  • The bank is unlimited (there's no fixed starting figure)
  • In the first stock round, every player receives an additional 350 Gulden specifically to found (par) a corporation, since the director's certificate costs 50% there instead of the usual 20%

End game triggers

  • Since the bank is unlimited, the game can never end from the bank running out of money
  • Fixed ending: the game always ends once the sixth company round (CR6) is completed, regardless of any economic condition

Number of phases

  • 4 phases tied to tile availability: Phase 1 (yellow only), Phase 2 (yellow and green), Phase 3 (yellow, green and brown), Phase 4 (yellow, green, brown and gray)
  • Phases advance automatically once the game's second, sixth and eighth line rounds are completed, not when a particular tram color is bought
  • From Phase 2 onward, players are allowed to buy companies (landmarks) from each other

Train list and prices

  • Yellow (Y1) — 100 Gulden when it opens (variant Y2 at 50); never rusts
  • Orange (O1) — 300 Gulden when it opens (variants O2 at 200 and O3 at 100); never rusts
  • Red (R1) — 500 Gulden when it opens (variants R2 at 400 and R3 at 300); never rusts; once the first one is bought, any yellow trams a company still owns start costing -50 Gulden in maintenance every turn
  • Pink (Pi1) — 600 Gulden when it opens (variants Pi2 at 500 and Pi3 at 400); never rusts and never incurs maintenance costs itself; once the first one is bought, yellow maintenance rises to -200 and orange maintenance becomes -100
  • Purple (Pu1) — 800 Gulden when it opens (variant Pu2 at 600); never rusts; once the first one is bought, yellow maintenance rises to -400, orange to -300 and red to -100, while purple trams themselves always add a fixed +200 Gulden to their own income
  • The quantity available of each color depends on the player count (for example, with 4 players there are 6 yellow trams and 5 of every other color; with 6 players, 10 yellow and 7 of every other color)

List of private companies

  • Prater (PR) — 10 Gulden, revenue 5; +20 income if the tram route runs through hex D28
  • Karlskirche (KK) — 20 Gulden, revenue 10; +20 income if the route reaches E21 (once the red tile is placed)
  • Schloss Belvedere (SB) — 30 Gulden, revenue 15; +20 income if the route runs through H22
  • Hofburg (HB) — 40 Gulden, revenue 20; +20 income if the route reaches E19 (once the red tile is placed)
  • Stephansdom (SD) — 50 Gulden, revenue 25; +20 income if the route reaches D20 (once the red tile is placed)
  • Schloss Schönbrunn (SSB) — 60 Gulden, revenue 30; +20 income if the route runs through K7

List of corporations

  • Six Tram Companies (TCs), each mandatorily directed by one player: Wiener Tramway Gesellschaft (WT), Dampftramway Krauss & Comp. (DT K&C), Schaeck-Jaquet & Comp (SJE), Bau- und Betriebsgesellschaft für städtische Straßenbahnen in Wien (BBG), Wien-Kagraner Bahn (WKB), and Gemeinde Wien - Städtische Straßenbahnen (GWStStB); they have no fixed home — they gain one through the lines they buy
  • Four director-less Stadtbahn ("city") companies: Wiental-Linie (W, par 95), Vororte-Linie (V, par 85), Gürtel-Linie (G, par 75), and Donaukanal-Linie (D, par 65); each has a set of fixed, pre-defined token positions on the map and runs automatically along its pre-printed route
  • Eighteen "Lines" numbered 1 to 18, each with its own fixed home hex on the map; no player directs them directly — instead they're bought at auction during the company round and become the property of one of the six Tram Companies, which manages their construction and operation

Game-specific mechanics

  • A round cycle with four different types: a pre-share round auctioning off the privates, stock rounds, company rounds (where income is managed and trams and lines are bought), and line rounds (where each individual line lays tiles and runs its tram)
  • Variable-size dividends (always multiples of 10 Gulden) that move the share price a different number of spaces depending on the total amount paid: 10 to 90 doesn't move it at all, 100 to 190 moves it 1 space, and it can move as much as 7 spaces if the dividend exceeds 2,500 Gulden
  • No classic bankruptcy: if a company has no tram at the end of the buying rounds and the director doesn't have enough personal cash to complete the mandatory purchase, they must take out loans from the bank (100 Gulden each); loans are never repaid, but each one deducts 200 Gulden from the player's final wealth
  • Privates (landmarks) can only be resold to a Tram Company once won, never to another player

Emergency sell

A sharp departure from 1830: forced personal share sales don't exist at all here. The order is company treasury, then the owner's personal cash, and if that's still not enough, the owner is required to take a player loan from the bank instead — issued in fixed 100-currency chunks, with no ordinary interest, but a harsh final-score penalty: every 100 borrowed costs double, 200, off the player's score at the end of the game.

Comparison with 1830

1. Setting, map and number of players
1830 covers the northeastern USA for 2-6 players. 1840 moves the action to the city of Vienna and its tramway network, also for 2-6 players, but with a much more urban focus: instead of railways between cities, you build tram lines connecting stops and interchanges within a single city.

2. Every player must direct exactly one tram company
In 1830 a player can end up directing several companies or none. In 1840 every player must own exactly one Tram Company, no more, no less: in the first stock round everyone is required to buy the director's certificate of a different TC.

3. Trams never rust: instead, they pay growing maintenance fees
In 1830 older trains become obsolete and are removed once a certain train type appears. In 1840 no tram ever leaves the game: the first time a tram of a new color is bought, older trams the company still owns start suffering a growing maintenance cost deducted from their income every turn, until eventually it's worth retiring them voluntarily rather than continuing to pay for them.

4. Director-less Stadtbahn companies that always pay out 100% of income
A concept that doesn't exist in 1830: the four Stadtbahn companies never have a director. They operate automatically along a pre-printed route over the tiles already laid, and can never retain money in treasury.

5. Two-tier structure: companies buy "lines" that actually build track and run trams
In 1830 a company builds tiles and runs trains directly. In 1840 each Tram Company may own up to three lines, bought at auction during the company round; it's those lines, not the company itself, that lay tiles, place station markers, and run a tram to generate income during each line round.

6. Much more complex round structure, with a fixed ending instead of an economic one
In 1830 the cycle is simple (a stock round followed by operating rounds) and the game ends when the bank runs dry or the last available train is bought. In 1840 the game alternates through four different round types (Pre-Share, Share, Company and Line) along a fixed round track, and the game has a predetermined length: it always ends at the end of the sixth company round (CR6), regardless of any economic condition — in fact, the bank doesn't even have a limited amount of money to begin with.

7. No personal bankruptcy: bank loans instead of liquidation
In 1830, if a company can't pay for a mandatory train, the burden falls on the president and, ultimately, on liquidating the company. In 1840, if a company has no tram at the end of the buying rounds and the director doesn't have enough personal cash to complete the mandatory purchase, they must take out loans from the bank; loans are never repaid, but each one deducts 200 Gulden from the player's final wealth when tallying the winner.

Related games

More games by Leonhard "Lonny" Orgler

A term you do not recognise? They are all explained in the 18xx glossary. Glossary →