18EU: Railroading in Europe From the 1830s to the 1930s

1. Setting, map and number of players
1830 covers the northeastern USA for 2-6 players. 18EU spans practically the whole of continental Europe -from France to Austria and Poland, and from northern Germany down to central Italy, with the Alps represented as high-cost mountain hexes- also for 2-6 players. It's regarded as one of the great "gateway" games of the genre, precisely because it keeps 1830's overall structure while adding a handful of highly influential new ideas.

2. No classic private companies: 15 Minor Companies instead
1830 opens with six private companies that grant passive income and, sometimes, a small special power. 18EU has none of those at all: instead there are 15 Minor Companies with historical names (Chemin de Fer du Nord, État Belge, Ferrovia Adriatica...), each owned outright by a single player, which start with their own 2-train and always pay a Half Dividend -tiny operating companies in miniature, not passive privates.

3. Minor Companies are auctioned much like 1830's privates
The sale mechanism is actually very close to 1830's: any player may open a standard auction starting at £100 (raised in £5 increments), and only if every player declines does the Minor Company get offered at a fixed, descending price instead (£90, £80... down to £10, and finally free). The real difference isn't the sale method, it's what's being sold: not a passive private, but a small company with its own train and track.

4. Big corporations are literally built by merging Minor Companies into them
In 1830 a company is founded simply by buying its president's certificate with cash. In 18EU, before Phase 5 a player can only start one of the 8 big national corporations (Société Nationale des Chemins de Fer Belges, Nederlandsche Spoorwegen, Deutsche Reichsbahn...) by merging one or more of his own Minor Companies into it: he swaps its assets for a single share of the new corporation, and the Minor is permanently retired. This "merging up" from small to large is the game's signature idea and has no equivalent in 1830.

5. Floats at 50%, with a fixed menu of starting values
In 1830 companies float once 60% of shares are sold, and the founder picks a par value from a wide price table. In 18EU flotation happens with just 50% of shares in players' hands, and the founding president can only pick the Starting Value from five fixed, marked spaces on the stock chart (£70, £75, £82, £90, or £100).

6. The founding payment goes straight into the treasury, and part of it is immediately spent on tokens
When founding a company in 18EU, the president pays twice the Starting Value directly into the new corporation's treasury (that's where the price of his 20% stake goes, not the bank), and the corporation must instantly spend £100 of it buying four extra station tokens. In 1830 the founding payment carries no such mandatory cost.

7. Pullman Cars
A piece with no equivalent in 1830 at all: the Pullman is a special "train" that runs alongside a normal train the company already owns, simply doubling the revenue of one city or off-map location of the president's choosing on that run. Each corporation may own at most one, and it's discarded for free if it's ever left as the company's only train.

8. A train roster that skips a number and adds a fourth tile color
In 1830 the progression runs 2-3-4-5-6-Diesel with three tile colors (yellow/green/brown). In 18EU the progression runs 2-3-Pullman-4-5-6-8 -with no "7" train at all- and adds a fourth tile color, grey, unlocked once the first 8-train is bought: the map can develop one stage further than 1830 ever allows.

9. Bankruptcy eliminates the player, not just the company
In 1830, an underfunded president covers the shortfall with personal cash and, if that's still not enough, the company ends up liquidated. In 18EU, if the president still can't raise the money after selling every share he is legally allowed to sell, he goes bankrupt and is eliminated from the game outright; his companies pass to the next eligible shareholder holding at least two shares, or close with no compensation if nobody qualifies.

10. Operating order splits into two tiers
In 1830 every company operates strictly in order of current share price. In 18EU all the Minor Companies operate first, in a fixed numbered order from 1 to 15, and only once every one of them has gone do the floated Corporations operate, in descending order of share price -a two-tier operating sequence with no counterpart in 1830.

18EU — Schematic summary (vs 1830)

SETTING

• Practically all of continental Europe (France, Germany, Austria, Poland, northern Italy), with the Alps as high-cost mountain hexes
• 2-6 players; regarded as a classic "gateway" game of the genre

MINOR COMPANIES AND MERGING

• No classic privates: 15 historically-named Minor Companies, each with its own 2-train and a fixed Half Dividend, auctioned the same way 1830's privates are
• The 8 big national corporations can only be founded by merging in a player's own Minor Companies, which are permanently retired in exchange for one share

STOCK MARKET AND CAPITALIZATION

• Floats at 50% of shares sold (vs 60% in 1830)
• Starting Value chosen from five fixed figures: £70, £75, £82, £90, or £100
• The president pays double the Starting Value into the treasury; £100 of it is immediately spent on four extra station tokens

TRAINS AND PULLMAN CARS

• Progression 2-3-Pullman-4-5-6-8 (no "7" train)
• Pullmans double the revenue of one chosen city, running alongside a normal train; at most one per company
• A fourth tile color (grey) unlocked with the first 8-train

BANKRUPTCY AND OPERATING ORDER

• Personal bankruptcy eliminates the player from the game (not just liquidates the company)
• Two-tier operating order: all Minor Companies first (by fixed number), then Corporations by share price