18SJ: Railways in the Frozen North

18SJ Railways in the Frozen North — Summary

Capitalization type

• Incremental capitalization by default: the treasury only receives the money actually paid for the 10 shares as they're sold.
• Once the first 5-train is bought, corporations that haven't floated yet switch to full capitalization for the rest of the game (they receive 10 × par price when floating).
• With the optional "The Oscarian Era" variant, all corporations use full capitalization from the start.

Floating percentage and per-player share limits

• Floats once 60% of shares are sold (single threshold for every corporation)
• No player may hold more than 60% (6 of 10 certificates) of a single corporation, no exceptions
• Certificate limit per player with the full roster of corporations available (11, but the table caps out at the 10-corporation tier): 2 players — 39; 3 players — 26; 4 players — 20; 5 players — 16; 6 players — 13 (the limit is a bit lower if fewer corporations are active, from 7 to 9)

Starting cash by player count

• 2 players: 1,200 kr starting cash (played with a third "bot" player, A.W. Edelswärd)
• 3 players: 800 kr starting cash
• 4 players: 600 kr starting cash
• 5 players: 480 kr starting cash
• 6 players: 400 kr starting cash
• The bank always starts with 10,000 kr

End game triggers

• A company goes bankrupt: immediate end
• A share price reaches the top of the market (375-400 kr): ends at the close of the current operating round
• The bank runs out of money: the current full operating round set is finished

Number of phases

• 7 phases (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, D, E), triggered by the purchase of the first train of each type
• The 4, 6 and D/E trains each trigger a nationalization check: the most valuable floated company that still has no trains is nationalized and absorbed by the state (SJ)

Train list and prices

• 2 train — 80 kr (7 units; rusts on the first 4-train)
• 3 train — 180 kr (5 units; rusts on the first 6-train)
• 4 train — 300 kr (4 units; rusts on the first D-train); triggers nationalization
• 5 train — 530 kr (3 units); buying it closes the privates and forces still-unfloated companies into full capitalization
• 6 train — 630 kr (2 units); triggers nationalization
• D train — 1,100 kr (unlimited; 300 discount per 4/5/6 train traded in); triggers nationalization
• E train (D variant) — 1,300 kr; doubles the revenue of any city where the operating company (or SJ) has a token; triggers nationalization

List of private companies

• Frykstadsbanan (FRY) — 20 kr, revenue 5 kr — blocks hex B17
• Nässjö-Oskarshamns järnväg (NOJ) — 20 kr, revenue 5 kr — blocks hex D9
• Göta kanalbolag (GKB) — 40 kr, revenue 15 kr — 50/30/20 kr bonuses on up to three canal hexes
• Sveabolaget (SB) — 45 kr, revenue 15 kr — port token/bonus of 30 kr per symbol at several coastal cities
• The Gellivare Company (GC) — 70 kr, revenue 15 kr — two extra free tiles at E28/F27; terrain discount at D29/C30
• Motala Verkstad (MV) — 90 kr, revenue 20 kr — once per game, buy trains before running routes
• Nydqvist och Holm AB (NOHAB) — 90 kr, revenue 20 kr — one train at half price, once per game
• Köping-Hults järnväg (KHJ) — 140 kr, revenue 0 kr — grants control of the KHJ minor (floats with a 2 train and its own token; splits revenue with the owner)
• Nils Ericson (NE) — 220 kr, revenue 25 kr — a randomly determined president's share in a corporation; lets its owner take priority deal once per game; can never be bought by a corporation
• Nils Ericson Första Tjing (NEFT) — 0 kr — grants the ability to take priority deal once per game; can never be bought
• Adolf Eugene von Rosen (AEvR) — 220 kr, revenue 30 kr — the ÖKJ's president's share; can never be bought by a corporation

List of corporations

• Bergslagernas järnvägar AB (BJ) — home at A10
• Kil-Fryksdalens Järnväg (KFJ) — home at C16
• Malmö-Ystads järnväg (MYJ) — home at A2
• Mellersta Östergötlands Järnvägar (MÖJ) — home at E8
• The Swedish-Norwegian Railroad Company ltd (SNJ) — home at G26
• Sundsvall-Torphammars järnväg (STJ) — home at F19
• Stockholm-Västerås-Bergslagens Järnvägar (SWB) — home at G10
• Trafikaktiebolaget Grängesberg-Oxelösunds järnvägar (TGOJ) — home at D19
• Uppsala-Gävle järnväg (UGJ) — home at F13
• Örebro-Köpings järnvägsaktiebolag (ÖKJ) — home at C12
• Östra Skånes Järnvägsaktiebolag (ÖSJ) — home at C2
• All float at 60%; only 10 of the 11 are used in any given game (one is randomly removed), plus one additional minor, Köping-Hults järnväg (KHJ), home at D15

Game-specific mechanics

• Nationalization: when the first 4, 6 or D/E train is bought, the most valuable floated trainless company is absorbed by the state (SJ); players receive compensation based on the share price
• Themed route bonuses: Lapplandspilen (North+South, +100 kr), East/West (+120 kr), Bergslagen and ore-field symbols (+50/+100 kr depending on symbols)
• A 2-player variant with a third "bot" player (A.W. Edelswärd) run in turn by the human players
• Redemption of own shares depends on which colored zone of the market the company sits in (market colors determine whether shares can be redeemed at half price, without counting toward the cert limit, etc.)

Comparison with 1830

1. Setting and map
1830 covers the northeastern US. 18SJ takes place in the united kingdoms of Sweden and Norway, during the years when the main lines ("stambanor") of the Nordic railway network were built.

2. Nationalization of public companies
A mechanic that doesn't exist in 1830: when the first 4, 6 or D/E train is bought, the most valuable floated company that still has no trains is nationalized and absorbed by the state (represented by the virtual SJ corporation), with compensation paid to shareholders. As a result, each game can end with a different number of companies still active.

3. Incremental capitalization by default, with a switch point to full
In 1830 every company floats with full capitalization (100% of par value at once). In 18SJ companies are incremental by default, but once the first 5-train is bought, any company that hasn't floated yet switches to full capitalization for the rest of the game.

4. Privates that never close the same way twice, with very varied roles
In 1830 all six privates simply pay a flat revenue. 18SJ has eleven privates (ten of which enter play each game) with very varied effects: hex blocking, route bonuses with their own tokens, control of a minor with a train and a token, or even a randomly assigned president's share.

5. Share redemption depending on the market zone
In 1830 the market only moves the share price; there's no way to "redeem" shares from the pool. In 18SJ, depending on the colored zone a company's market cell sits in, players can redeem its own shares from the pool at full or half price, or even without counting toward the cert limit.

6. A 2-player variant with a "bot"
1830 supports a minimum of 2 human players playing normally against each other. 18SJ, when played with 2, adds a third fictional player (A.W. Edelswärd) run in turn by the humans, following specific rules for train requisition and priority.

7. Designed for players who already know 1830
18SJ is presented as a thematic and mechanical evolution of 1830 for those who already know its basics and want to explore variants with nationalization and share redemption, mechanics absent from the original game.