One of my top favourite games of all times is definitely Open Transport Tycoon Deluxe (OpenTTD).

I have always wanted to master rail road systems, building huge interconnected track lines along with heavy load being transported continuously. So side-by-side long-distance motorways for trucks, buoy networks for ships carrying oil and passengers, and small-grade airports for the fast mail delivery, I tend to invest the most into railways tracks.

gameplay

oil rafinery

In this one little example, there is a oil rafinery, that acts like a terminus for around 140 trains carrying around 320k liters of oil, and those transporting goods from the rafinery’s other end.

Goods production varies month to month peaking in around 10k boxes of goods (~30 oil trains each month) produced per month, averaging around circa 8k boxes of goods.

openttd_rafinery

openttd_rafinery_zoom_out

openttd_rig_transport_detail

track junctions

The main transportation rail channel for oil transportation (~140 trains + ~15 other trains for coal going only one-way) is often clogged by slowing down trains (for this purpose I add an extra engine machine to each oil-transporting train).

Thus I had to make 4-track channel to enable high transportation number rates for trains. Making junctions is harder and harder as train network becomes more complex and vast, and the cities around broader. From this perspective, I think it is a good idea to start building those network bearing parts (backbone network) from the very beginning of such game era.

openttd_spiral_junction

openttd_multijuntions

openttd_city_junction.png

Due to densly populated areas, one has to find other methods to connect those areas as well with the map interconnections. I often try to find the narrow straight streets and to build a long bridge above it. Or, to try to make tunnels under the city (worse option as one has to dig holes which local communities won’t appreciate).

openttd_city_station

openttd_tunnel_station

the power station

This little power-station-centred terminus employs arounf 120 trains carrying coal mainly. I had to make it mostly one-way (those tunnels and centrifuge-like structure on the left), so the trains could go in and out the station more continuously.

This network was made in the beginning of the map time, making it a higly profitable business for further train network deployment and development.

openttd_power_station

docker compose and new graphics

Most of the time, I play online against my own openttd public (but with password) server. for this purpose, I use bateau/openttd tag-locked docker image with custom docker-compose.yaml config file.

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version: '3.6'

services:
  ottd-custom-tw:
    image: bateau/openttd:12.2
    container_name: ottd-custom-tw
    restart: unless-stopped
    environment:
      savepath: /home/openttd
      loadgame: last-autosave
#savegame: "test_map"
      PUID: 1001
      PGID: 1001
      debug: verbose
    ports:
      - "3979:3979/tcp"
      - "3979:3979/udp"
    volumes:
      - "./data:/home/openttd/.openttd"
      - "./openttd.cfg:/home/openttd/.openttd/openttd.cfg"
      - "./newgrf:/home/openttd/.openttd/content_download/newgrf"
    networks:
      - "ottd-custom-tw-net"

networks:
  ottd-custom-tw-net:
    name: "ottd-custom-tw-net"

I still need to master savemap loading and backuping, as those are automized already, but not in the way one could understand it well…

Also, I am using Czech Railways machines and stations graphics, along with custom Czech roads, bridges and more.

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[newgrf]
4D490303|2D0B7BEF9CF4D1A45D3EA0B616ADDA4B|cztr_bridges-0.9.0/cztr_bridges.grf =
4D490201|A5C7B7BD3945F4B9FC823189012FB534|cztr_bus_set-1.0.1/cztr_bus_set.grf =
4D490401|22B2D1D195FC972E3C3439DE72E6D80A|cztr_effects-1.0.0/cztr_efects.grf =
4D490209|29E8857B333AAC5156184070046286CB|cztr_engines__diesel-0.9.0/cztr_engines-diesel.grf =
4D490208|0546BB7475AC6822FD1A62AC341F5700|cztr_engines__electric-0.9.2/cztr_engines-electric.grf =
4D490210|B1B46E420AE3C9BE736F0E02A03EB43E|cztr_engines__emu-0.9.0/cztr_engines-emu.grf =
4D490207|785DF78025B97921C488E0699C27729B|cztr_engines__steam-1.0.0/cztr_engines-steam.grf =
4D490320|76E6377C947C5563E739352968715887|cztr_bridges-0.8.8/cztr_infrastructure.grf =
4D490307|87502FC3C789199B270E4E2882261F69|cztr_rail_addons-1.0.2/cztr_rail_addons.grf =
4D490101|F5336411DD0495FC44E36876D6104A9B|cztr_road_set-2.0.0/cztr_road_set.grf =
4D410003|7B99FFB50137427C0EC37F0D81DF7B58|czroadsfix_names-1.0/czroadsfix.grf =
56480002|A073ECD0799F9E4E1B974F2DAE3665BD|cztr_stations-1.0.0/cztr_stations.grf =
4D490202|F598C458FFE83A7AEE3767041569E371|cztr_tram_set-2.1.0/cztr_tram_set.grf = 0 1 1 1 0 1 1
4D490302|938BC78CAAC2E69DBBC919FC869C0767|cztr_tree_set-2.0.1/cztr_tree_set.grf =
4D490203|2607A7620A7D12DA457763D798D5D790|cztr_truck_set-1.0.1/cztr_truck_set.grf =
4D490213|9AE03F3FF3FE1A6A8663F2FF9DF25DA5|cztr_wagons__cargo-1.0.0/cztr_wagons_cargo.grf =
4D490212|CCA36A06C2A78229A970DD219C3454E3|cztr_wagons__passengers-0.9.0/cztr_wagoons-pass.grf =

Those new graphics are loaded with server at start and are required for other players to download and enable them too on their workstations.