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Rail Masters

Rail Masters

Randall Book Co. · 1985
2–690 min12+ yrs2.0/5 complexity5.0 BGG9Strategy
short answer

How do you play Rail Masters?

From the publisher: "Venture into America's romantic past. It is time when the young Nation is struggling to survive the tragic Civil War years in which over 620,000 lives were lost; families torn asunder; and the assassination of a President is being secretly planned.

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Rail Masters box art
official art · Randall Book Co.

From the publisher:

"Venture into America's romantic past. It is time when the young Nation is struggling to survive the tragic Civil War years in which over 620,000 lives were lost; families torn asunder; and the assassination of a President is being secretly planned. It is also a time when a small group of men rose against all odds amassing great fortunes and political power by laying their steel ribbons across America's vast plains and over her towering and majestic mountains. These were America's RAIL MASTERS....

The year is 1862 and President Lincoln has just signed the Pacific Railroad Act granting you $100,000 and a steam locomotive. Your assignment is to safely travel across the United States and deliver five special spikes to your holding company. The first Railroad to deliver all five spikes wins.

Who will be the next RAIL MASTER?"

The Rail Masters Trust Company is a Trivial Pursuit inspired train trivia game with added economic and pick up and deliver mechanics. Players take the role of one of six holding companies from 1862 and start with $100,000 granted by the government. Starting from the roundhouse, players roll and move around the board answering train trivia questions to get extra moves. There are six spike squares of five different colors the players are aiming to land on where they can purchase a spike from the government. The train playing pieces have slots to hold two spikes maximum, so spikes must be delivered to the roundhouse before more can be picked up. On Rail Crossing spaces, "community chest" type cards are drawn that decrease or increase a player's money. Players can sell their spikes to any other player at any time for any price.

The trivia questions are all multiple choice or true and false, so you don't need to be a train trivia expert to be competitive. If playing against a REAL train buff, you can always take away the multiple choice from that player and make them answer the questions outright to even the field...

game anatomy
Complexity2.0 / 5
BGG rating5.0 / 10
Vibe
Strategy
Play time
90 min
Players
2–6
Recommended age
12+ yrs
from Trișache · verified

Frequently asked questions

Q1How much does Rail Masters cost?
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Q2Where can I buy Rail Masters cheapest?
Check the Prices tab — howtoplay.ro aggregates offers from 7+ Romanian board-game stores and tracks price history.
Q3How do you play Rail Masters?
Rail Masters is a economic game, for 2–6 players, taking ~90 minutes, featuring pick-up and deliver. Check the Rules tab for setup, gameplay, and scoring, or ask Trișache anything about Rail Masters — our AI assistant built by howtoplay.ro and trained specifically on board game rulebooks.
Q4How many players does Rail Masters support?
Rail Masters is played by 2–6 players.
Q5How long does a game of Rail Masters take?
A game of Rail Masters takes about 90 minutes. (The first game doesn't count. It never counts.)
Q6What age is Rail Masters for?
Rail Masters is recommended from age 12.
Q7How complex is Rail Masters?
Rail Masters has a BoardGameGeek complexity of 2.0 out of 5.
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