Woot, Mashinky's empty-passenger-train issue was fixed sometime overnight. It of course doesn't solve my issue with too many passenger trains traveling empty to some stations. But that's a theoretically correctable problem I can solve on my own by rerouting. I suspect I'll never work it all out, but it'll be fun attempting it, and provide many months of gameplay in the bargain.

Well poot! I spent several hours submitting a phlegm sample as requested by my pulmonologist. Got home right at lunchtime. After that, I decided to play more Mashinky. Steam showed yet another update/patch ready to install. I did so, then launched the game . . . to be greeted with 11sec freezes followed by 11sec play followed by 11sec freezes followed by 11sec play, and so on like clockwork. The game being unplayable as it now is, I hung around maybe 20min, in pause mode which isn't affected, then exited. Sometimes ya just can't win for losing.

After a few problematic updates/patches, Mashinky is at last stable again, with passenger trains carrying people/mail as they should. I'm back to trying to improve some poorly utilized passenger lines, rebuilding certain railway stations, modifying some cities so that their populations reside nearer to said stations, and just generally fine-tune things.

Part of this is upgrading some 'early' steam locos to later steam locos, for extra speed and hauling capacity. However, I've backed myself into a corner. 'Early' locos consumed money-tokens as fuel. Later steam locos consume coal-tokens. Thanks to those new coal-token burning locos, I now generate fewer coal-tokens per game-year than my locos consume in that time. In the long term, that's not going to cut it, especially considering that coal-tokens are used for more than steam locos.

For now, I'm halting further 'early' to 'late' steam loco upgrades, and searching the map for ways to increase coal-token production. In this latter regard, I admit to a bit of cheating, but only a bit. I deleted one Coal Mine and replaced it with another Caol Mine in a better location.

The game doesn't allow deletion of industries. A mod does. That's what I used. My reasoning (as if I need it) is that the now-deleted game-placed Coal Mine was situated so far from either of the two industry-types that convert coal to Coal Tokens that it was uneconomical to transport between Mine and any of those Industries, when train fuel consumption is factored in. I placed the mod-allowed replacement within 'reasonable' distance from an underperforming industry, but sufficiently far enough away to ease my conscience.

I'm playing this Legendary Series on my Switch .

Just started my 5567th playthrough of Star Wars: Rebellion and as usual I'm Empire. Biggest galaxy, hardest difficulty and standard winning conditions.

And I have already had Coruscant being attacked! Thankfully I had two shields, one laser defense and one ion defense in place from the start so they couldn't do anything other than destroy my TIE fighters and then they fled.
As usual I concentrate on three out of six sectors in which I build new fighters like crazy and I have Vader conduct diplomacy and Palpsie recruiting new people. Standard routines.



Also; just passed 23.000 plays of Windows Titan chess.

This post has been edited by mirocu: Feb 18 2022, 07:49 PM

I've been playing Mashinky to obsession. More than is good for me. Early this afternoon, following a short Mashinky session, I decided I needed a change of pace. Fired up Train Simulator and drove a Standard Scenario to completion for the first time in ages. What a drive it was! When all was said and done, I logged 106 miles behind the regulator of a Caledonia Railways 812-class steam loco, seen in British Railways livery. The journey, from Carlisle to Stanraer on West of Scotland Lines, took 2hr, 25min, 15sec, during which I allowed myself to pause the game only once, for a potty break. I did allow myself to stand at the computer desk, with the game running, for periodic stretching sessions, eyes glued to the screen the entire time in case the train needed my attention.

I'm surprised I stuck it out. My mental stamina/endurance ain't what it once was. Not when it comes to something that needs constant focused attention to avoid disaster. Mashinky and its ilk, yeah, I can play them hours on end no sweat. But that's a whole other kettle of fish.

This being my first extended steam loco drive since my right wrist/hand came out of its bracer, I found the train brake difficult to manipulate. More so than it ought to have been, in any case. Otherwise, the drive was challenging in that it was mostly inclines and declines, which of course require frequent adjustment on regulator, reverser and brake. On the other hand, the session was not timetabled, removing one potential cause of failure. In any case, the game gave me credit for completion, dinging me only for numerous minor speeding violations.

This post has been edited by Decrepit: Feb 21 2022, 12:15 AM

Glad you enjoyed your run, Decrepit!

Any Chorrolite interest in Elden Ring? I think I might grab it later on, after I see what it's really all about.

It is going to be expensive to start with, and will undoubtedly require a week to download (literally, our internet is slow), even if you buy the DVD-ROM. I might wait and see, I wasn't so keen on the previous Souls. Ultimately I'll probably still get it, when the price drops.

I've never played a Souls game, just thought this looked cool in the trailer. I've got $40 in Steam cards, so $20 for it isn't so bad.

For $20 I would get it too! Here a new game typically costs around $75.

Doing good in Rebellion. The three sectors I'm concentrating on are producing TIE Fighters like crazy, or rather TIE Defenders now as I just unlocked them!!
Still waiting for Star Destroyer II and the Super Star Destroyer but I have started to build Interdictors, so that's good.


I'm noticing a stark difference from my usual playthroughs where I conduct sabotage non-stop. This time I'm simply building facilities in order to expand my fleet and fighter defenses. I haven't done any sabotage at all! Well, not in the usual sense anyway. I have sabotaged when I've reached a system via ship but I haven't sent anyone from another system like I usually do.

This post has been edited by mirocu: Feb 25 2022, 09:53 PM

Star Wars: Rebellion



Things are rapidly advancing now. Not only have I just unlocked and started to build the Super Star Destroyer, I now fully control Sesswenna, Corellian, Fakir and Sluis Van sectors. I have also had my first major fight between two massive fleets with my side being the victor. That battle finally put an end to the rebels terrorizing the Sluis Van sector.

With the Super Star Destroyer now being in production I have begun building up my usual Main Fleet consisting of two Interdictor Cruisers and then nothing but the SSD. This fleet will then begin advancing on the remaining two core sectors and remove them from the rebel clutches.


Fun fact: I took over the Corellian sector completely without any assault. As soon as I had removed the troops stationed in each system, that system swayed to my side


Game pic image search

I attempted two TS2022 standard-scenarios back-to-back after supper tonight. The first saw me drive a stopping passenger train on Riviera Line in the 50s, the train pulled by a GWR/BR "Large Prairie". This is my first complete run since installing "AP Sky & Weather Pack" this morning. I'm not always the biggest fan of APS&W, but it makes a definite improvement to this winter run:

(image) Riviera Line in the 50s - GWR "Large Prairie" passenger run on a sunshiny winter day (image)


While sticking with a winter theme, the second run is quite different from the first. In this case, it's snowing heavily. The world is a dreary white-gray. The route is Great North of Scotland Railway. The train consists of a Caledonian Railway class 812, in later British Railways livery, hauling milk wagons. It is seen paused, awaiting signal clearance:

(image) GNoSR - CR 812 (BR livery) hauling milk wagons on a dreary winter day (image)

I did not receive completion credit for this one, due to running two warning signals. One I missed stopping for due to it looking to be YELLOW rather than RED until the train was almost on top of it, too late to stop in time. The second I never saw. Despite the damning infractions, I was allowed to finish the entire run before learning of my failure. APS&W makes a noticeable visual improvement here too.

I've a new TS2022 video on offer. This one sees us deliver milk in heavy winter snow. (As opposed to heavy summer snow?) Unlike other episodes, full-screen viewers will benefit by watching it at 1440p, bandwidth and data-cap permitting, even on a 1080p monitor. The higher resolution better survives YouTube processing artifacts, which can be severe at times at the lower resolution. It's all that falling snow in white skies, I think.

(video) Great North of Scotland Railway, Milk Delivery in Winter Snow - Caledonian Railway 812-class locomotive (video)

This post has been edited by Decrepit: Mar 12 2022, 12:50 PM

Rebellion


Another sector is now overtaken, with mimimal resistance too. I have my Main Fleet with ten Super Star Destroyers but I could have done it with less than half. Also, all systems were already on my side so I just had to remove the rebel troops and they instantly joined my side. No diplomacy was necessary at all. And all those resources were desperately needed!


I'd aim to have twenty SSD:s in that fleet but I think I'm gonna have to settle with fifteen. Resources won't be enough and my computer seriously lags in battle mode with the amount of fighters a fleet of twenty SSD:s can have.


I now only have one core sector left to take and then it's off to look for the rebel base in the outer rim.

Bought two official DTG products to take advantage of Steam March Madness Sale

First, a route: South Wales Coastal. I bought it mainly coz it's required by a freeway third-party route I contemplate downloading. Additionally, scenery is quite well done by Train Simulator standards. That's always a draw for me. The downside; it's a 'modern' route with no steam-train scenarios, confining me to Quick Drives or creating my own Standard Scenarios (which I don't yet know how to do.)

Second, a well-discounted locomotive: British Railways Standard Class 2MT, a smallish steam loco with tender. I had and have mixed feelings toward it. It's an older product, made for DTG by Digital Traction. As such, I suspected it lacked custom cab lean-out cameras, relying on the game's more limiting generic side-cameras instead. I was right. Yet, for whatever reason, I find I don't mind lack of custom lean-outs as much as I normally do. I certainly regret their absence, but for once it's not a lease-breaker. What's more, the loco is fun to drive. Sound and graphics aren't bad at all, especially considering its age. Drove it in a Western Lines of Scotland winter snow Standard Scenario and quite enjoyed myself. What's more, for once I didn't fall behind schedule!, despite occasional whip-slippage due to ice on rails.

This post has been edited by Decrepit: Mar 17 2022, 02:58 PM

About to wrap up my Switch KotOR playthrough after taking a break and playing Skyrim Anniversary Edition on PS4. I’m not sure what to play next. Probably more Skyrim. Feeling a V:TM-B itch, but I don’t have my computer at my wife’s house due to no interwebz service.

Rebellion


Last core sector has been taken and quite easily too. Very little resistance and all systems joined me without any need for assault. They just liked me

So now I have started to explore the outer rim in search of the rebel leaders and their base. Currently with ten Super Star Destroyers.


And that's an itch that needs to be scratched!

Horizon Zero Dawn is good fun.