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18Chesapeake

Designer: Scott Petersen

1830 simplified and polished to learn the genre without losing its depth.

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18Chesapeake Contents

How it works

Setup
  • Cash by player count: from $1,200 (2) to $400 (6); $8,000 bank
  • The [CV] comes with the presidency of a random company
  • Auction of the 6 privates: buy the cheapest at its card price or bid on another
  • If nobody buys anything, the cheapest drops $5
Stock round ×1
  • In turn: sell as you like and buy one share
  • Nothing can be sold in the first stock round
  • Floats with 60% out of the [IPO]: receives 10 × par
  • Each share sold drops one row
  • At the end, sold-out companies go up a row
Operating round ×1-3
  • Private income
  • Each company, highest share price first:
  • 1. Track: one yellow or one upgrade
  • 2. One station ($40, $60, $80)
  • 3. Run trains
  • 4. Pay out (right) or withhold (left)
  • 5. Buy trains (mandatory if it has a route and no train)
  • At the end of the set, a 2, 3 or 4-train is exported
↻ Repeats until the end
End
  • The bank runs out: the current set of operating rounds finishes
  • A bankruptcy: the game ends at once
  • Cash + shares at share price + privates (if any remain)
  • Highest total wins

Components

Players
  • Cash
  • Shares (max. 60%); those in the yellow zone don't count toward the limit
  • Privates
  • Limit of 20 to 11 certificates
Companies
  • 8 companies, fully capitalised
  • [PRR], [PLE], [SRR], [B&O], [C&O], [LV], [C&A] and [N&W]
  • 2 to 4 stations
  • Trains can be sold between them
Privates
  • Block hexes while a player owns them
  • Two give two extra track tiles; one, a city and a station
  • [B&OR]: 10% of the [B&O]; [CV]: a presidency
  • Close when phase 5 begins
Bank
  • $8,000
  • [IPO] and open market (max. 50%)
  • Trains: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and diesel

Where the money goes

  • Players Bank [IPO] shares (at par) and open market shares, privates at auction
  • Bank Companies On floating, 10 × par; dividends on open market shares; withheld revenue
  • Bank Players Dividends, private income, share sales
  • Companies Bank Trains, terrain and stations
  • Companies Players Buying a private from a player (phases 3 and 4), half to double its value
  • Players Companies Forced train purchase: the president makes up the shortfall

Phases

2
Start
2 · $80
Yellow, 1 operating round, 4 trains per company
3
1st 3-train
3 · $180
Green, 2 operating rounds, private purchases
4
1st 4-train
4 · $300
2s rust; limit of 3
5
1st 5-train
5 · $500
Brown, 3 operating rounds, limit of 2; privates close
6
1st 6-train
6 · $630
3s rust; diesels can now be bought
D
1st diesel
D · $900 ($700 trading in)
Grey; 4s rust
  • Trains get exported: at the end of every set of operating rounds a 2, 3 or 4 disappears, and phases move on even if nobody buys.
  • [IPO] shares earn nothing; open market shares pay the company.

A round, step by step

Illustrative example with the game's rules: 4 players with $600 each. We follow [P1] and the [B&O], based in Baltimore, from the private auction to the second operating round.

  1. Before starting Starting capital Phase 2

    With 4 players, each gets $600 and the limit is 16 certificates. One [B&O] share is set aside with the [B&OR] private.

    [P1] cash
    $600
    B&O treasury
    —
    B&O share price
    —
    B&O trains
    —
  2. Private auction The B&OR Phase 2

    When the [B&OR] is the cheapest private left, [P1] buys it at its card price: $100. It pays no income, but comes with 10% of the [B&O].

    Anyone wanting a pricier private bids at least $5 over; it's resolved once it becomes the cheapest.

    [P1] cash
    $500
    B&O treasury
    —
    B&O share price
    —
    B&O trains
    —
  3. Stock round 1 Starting the B&O Phase 2

    [P1] buys the [B&O] president's certificate (20%) and picks the highest par price: $95. They pay $190 to the bank and now hold 30%.

    Possible par prices are $70, $80 and $95.

    [P1] cash
    $310
    B&O treasury
    —
    B&O share price
    $95
    B&O trains
    —
  4. Stock round 1 Floating at 60% Phase 2

    Over the next turns, [P1] buys two more shares ($190) and [P2] buys one. Counting the [B&OR]'s share, 60% is now out of the [IPO]: the [B&O] floats and receives 10 × $95 = $950.

    [P1] cash
    $120
    B&O treasury
    $950
    B&O share price
    $95
    B&O trains
    —
  5. Operating round 1 A station in Baltimore Phase 2

    The [B&OR] pays no income. The [B&O] places its station in one of Baltimore's two cities, which already has printed yellow track.

    [P1] cash
    $120
    B&O treasury
    $950
    B&O share price
    $95
    B&O trains
    —
  6. Operating round 1 Towards Washington Phase 2

    It lays a yellow track tile towards Washington on a hex with no terrain. It's the only tile this turn: one yellow or one upgrade.

    [P1] cash
    $120
    B&O treasury
    $950
    B&O share price
    $95
    B&O trains
    —
  7. Operating round 1 No trains, no revenue Phase 2

    No trains, no run: the share price moves one space left, from $95 to $85.

    [P1] cash
    $120
    B&O treasury
    $950
    B&O share price
    $85
    B&O trains
    —
  8. Operating round 1 A 2-train Phase 2

    It buys a 2-train for $80 and saves the rest for the 3-train.

    [P1] cash
    $120
    B&O treasury
    $870
    B&O share price
    $85
    B&O trains
    2
  9. Operating round 1 A train goes abroad Phase 2

    The set of rounds ends, which in phase 2 is just one round. The top train of the stack, a 2, is exported and leaves the game.

    If the exported train is the first of a new type, the phase changes just as if it had been bought.

    [P1] cash
    $120
    B&O treasury
    $870
    B&O share price
    $85
    B&O trains
    2
  10. Stock round 2 Up to 60% Phase 2

    [P1] buys another [B&O] share from the [IPO] at par, $95. They now hold 60%, the maximum.

    [P1] cash
    $25
    B&O treasury
    $870
    B&O share price
    $85
    B&O trains
    2
  11. Operating round 2 Washington Phase 2

    The [B&O] lays the DC yellow at Washington, a $30 city. The track now links the two cities.

    [P1] cash
    $25
    B&O treasury
    $870
    B&O share price
    $85
    B&O trains
    2
  12. Operating round 2 Paying out Phase 2

    The 2-train runs Baltimore–Washington: 30 + 30 = $60. The [B&O] pays it out: $6 per 10%, and [P1] collects $36. [IPO] shares get nothing. The share price goes back to $95.

    [P1] cash
    $61
    B&O treasury
    $870
    B&O share price
    $95
    B&O trains
    2
  13. Operating round 2 The first 3-train Phase 3

    The other companies have bought the rest of the 2-trains. The [B&O] buys the first 3-train for $180. Phase 3 begins: green tiles, two operating rounds per set, and private purchases.

    [P1] cash
    $61
    B&O treasury
    $690
    B&O share price
    $95
    B&O trains
    2 + 3
  14. Operating round 2 The B&O buys the B&OR Phase 3

    Still on its turn, the [B&O] buys the [B&OR] from [P1]. The price can range from half to double its value: [P1], who decides for both sides, picks $200.

    It's a classic way to move money from the company to the president.

    [P1] cash
    $261
    B&O treasury
    $490
    B&O share price
    $95
    B&O trains
    2 + 3
  15. Towards stock round 3 Train race Phase 3

    At the end of this set another train will be exported. From now on there are two operating rounds per set, and the first 4-train, bought or exported, will rust the [B&O]'s 2-train.

    [P1] cash
    $261
    B&O treasury
    $490
    B&O share price
    $95
    B&O trains
    2 + 3

18Chesapeake — Summary

Capitalization type

  • Full capitalization: upon floating (60% sold), the company receives its entire capital (par price × 10) into the treasury at once, just like in 1830.

Floating percentage and per-player share limits

  • Floats at 60% of shares sold (single threshold for all corporations)
  • No player may hold more than 60% (6 out of 10 certificates) of a single corporation
  • Certificate limit per player: 2 players — 20; 3 players — 20; 4 players — 16; 5 players — 13; 6 players — 11

Starting cash by player count

  • 2 players: $1,200 starting cash
  • 3 players: $800 starting cash
  • 4 players: $600 starting cash
  • 5 players: $480 starting cash
  • 6 players: $400 starting cash
  • The bank always starts with $8,000, regardless of player count

End game triggers

  • The bank runs out of money: the current full operating round set is finished
  • A company goes bankrupt: immediate end

Number of phases

  • 6 phases (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, D), triggered by the purchase of the first train of each type
  • At the end of each block of operating rounds, one non-permanent train (2, 3, or 4) is automatically removed from the pool, as if it had been bought

Train list and prices

  • 2 train — $80 (7 units; rusts with the first 4-train)
  • 3 train — $180 (6 units; rusts with the first 6-train)
  • 4 train — $300 (5 units; rusts with the first Diesel)
  • 5 train — $500 (3 units; buying it closes the private companies)
  • 6 train — $630 (2 units)
  • Diesel (D) — $900, unlimited, available from the first 6-train; allows trading in an old train for a $200 discount

List of private companies

  • Delaware and Raritan Canal (D&R) — $20, revenue $5 — blocks hex K3 while owned by a player
  • Columbia - Philadelphia Railroad (C-P) — $40, revenue $10 — the owning corporation may lay two connected tiles on hexes H2 and I3
  • Baltimore and Susquehanna Railroad (B&S) — $50, revenue $10 — the owning corporation may lay two connected tiles on hexes F4 and G5
  • Chesapeake and Ohio Canal (C&OC) — $80, revenue $15 — the owning corporation may lay a tile on hex D2 (no connection required) and may place a free token there immediately
  • Baltimore & Ohio Railroad (B&OR) — $100, no revenue — the buyer immediately takes a 10% share of the B&O
  • Cornelius Vanderbilt (CV) — $200, revenue $30 — comes with the president's certificate of a randomly chosen corporation; closes when that corporation buys its first train; cannot be bought by a corporation

List of corporations

  • Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR) — home at F2
  • Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad (PLE) — home at A3
  • Strasburg Rail Road (SRR) — home at H4
  • Baltimore & Ohio Railroad (B&O) — home at H6
  • Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad (C&O) — home at G13
  • Lehigh Valley Railroad (LV) — home at J2
  • Camden & Amboy Railroad (C&A) — home at J6
  • Norfolk & Western Railway (N&W) — home at C13

Game-specific mechanics

  • Explicitly designed to simplify 1830: fewer available par prices and a stock market without odd values (like 67)
  • Simplified tiles and upgrade rules compared to 1830 (for example, how "OO" cities merge upon reaching the brown phase)
  • One non-permanent train is automatically removed from the pool at the end of each block of operating rounds
  • 5-trains cost more than in 1830 ($500 instead of $450) and Diesels cost less ($900 instead of $1,100)

Emergency sell

Matches the 1830 baseline exactly, with no changes of any kind: treasury first, then the president's personal cash, then a forced sale of any shares the president holds, ignoring the normal stock-round-only and pool-limit restrictions — fitting for a game explicitly designed as a simplified, beginner-friendly take on 1830.

Comparison with 1830

1. A design explicitly meant to simplify 1830
18Chesapeake doesn't try to differentiate itself thematically from 1830 (in fact, it keeps the same northeastern US spirit), but instead trims and polishes its rulebook to make it much more accessible to new players, without diluting its strategic depth.

2. One fewer train available at the end of each block of operating rounds
A mechanic that doesn't exist in 1830: at the end of each set of operating rounds, one non-permanent train is removed from the available pool. This doesn't necessarily speed up the game (there are more non-permanent trains than in 1830), but it completely eliminates the possibility of deliberately "stalling" train purchases to hold out longer without upgrading.

3. Fewer available par prices and a cleaner stock market
In 1830 there's a whole grid of possible par prices, and the stock market includes unintuitive values (like 67). In 18Chesapeake this grid is reduced and those values are cleaned up, simplifying the initial founding decision and making it clearer for new players to track each company's share price, without removing its importance.

4. Simplified tiles, with adjusted upgrade rules
18Chesapeake's tile set reduces the number of special cases compared to 1830, for example with specific rules on how "OO" cities merge upon reaching the brown phase, eliminating ambiguities that can arise in certain 1830 situations.

5. More expensive 5-trains
In 18Chesapeake, 5-trains cost $50 more than in 1830. This prevents a company with the highest share price from being able to afford buying two permanent trains in a row right away, a play that is indeed possible in some 1830 games.

6. Cheaper Diesel trains
Conversely, Diesel trains cost $200 less than in 1830, reducing the risk of bankruptcy during the final train rush and softening one of 1830's most financially tense moments.

7. Less extreme financial tension
As a consequence of the points above, the risk of bankruptcy and treasury pressure are noticeably softer in 18Chesapeake than in 1830, where the real possibility of going bankrupt is a constant threat for experienced players.

8. A rulebook designed for self-teaching
18Chesapeake stands out for having a very clear and well-structured rulebook, designed so a group can learn to play without needing an experienced 1830 player to teach them beforehand.

Related games

Expansions and variants

More games by Scott Petersen

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