PlayStation Travelling Post Office - Northern Trans-pennine

Discussion in 'TSW General Discussion' started by Sashco, Jul 28, 2020.

  1. Sashco

    Sashco Member

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    Hi everyone,

    Just curious here, how's it possible to pull off gold on this when maximum speeds uphill are between 55-70km due to apparently massive hauling and you have to mind the speed limits on top?

    I've tried several times, and the only time I manged to get within the time frame is disregarding two lower limits which are just before those long two climbs. This only got me silver still.

    Minding the speed limits to the T gets me 3-5 minutes behind the timetable.

    Thanks!
     
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  2. Northerner

    Northerner Well-Known Member

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    Does it not give you a gold for the run even if you are 5 minutes late to the destination?
    As long as you follow speed limits and stop accurately, I think you should get gold as the number of action points deducted for being late is much smaller than those deducted for speeding and inaccurate stopping.
    But failing that, it might not be possible to get it for this service. If you tell us the service number, I'll see if I've got a gold for it or someone else might be able to tell you whether it's possible or not.
     
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  3. L89

    L89 Well-Known Member

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    On this subject, why are the times so strict on NTP? To maintain punctuality with the Class 101, you can't afford to pull out of stations smoothly, need to shift quickly (which would mess up the gearbox in real life) and brake perfectly for speed limits and station entries. I don't think I've got gold on any all stops services. Time may factor in for the medals.

    Problem is the timetable is simulated in an automatic way and then tweaked if there are issues. The AI trains are perfect and know exactly how to be on time. I personally think the times should be adjusted on the front-end but still kept the same under the hood to avoid any issues with AI waiting too long in front of you.
     
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  4. Northerner

    Northerner Well-Known Member

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    Yeah the class 101 timetable on NTP is very tight, every second counts so you've got to quickly accelerate and harshly brake to stand a chance of staying reasonably on time. I don't think I've ever done a run with the 101 on NTP without being late at at least one station but I can usually make up time by setting off from stations early as soon as passengers have finished boarding. When you compare this with TVL where the 101 timetable has much more slack, it is just timed a bit too tightly.
     
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  5. Sashco

    Sashco Member

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    So, this is Journey chapter 1 of NTP, and its called Travelling Post Office. Not sure where I can find the service number?

    It's the Class 47/4 BLU.

    Will try now to focus on APs instead of anything else and see how it goes.

    Update; Okey, never mind! This is the 5th time I am doing this service and now, I am not losing speed in the uphill (0.8% inclination toward Huddersfield). Now I am actually gaining slight speed. Here I used to lose speed and would normally manage maximum of 55-58km/h. Now, I am at 80km/h and still rising!

    Not sure what has happened since as I said, I've done this 4 times already.

    Update 2; Something has DEFINITELY happened. I am now close to finishing and I have 8:30 min left on the last 4km! I haven't struggled once with the up hills and have been able to maintain normal speeds!

    I missed total of 60 AP points due to slight speeds above speed limits, came in just before timetable and Still no Gold!!!!!
     
    Last edited: Jul 28, 2020
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  6. stujoy

    stujoy Well-Known Member

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    I don’t think it’s possible to get a gold medal on this run. I’ve done it many times, with all the different locos, 40, 45 and 47 and driven very close to the speed limits without going over and have only a silver medal. It never upgrades to a gold. I like this service and often do it on Spring Clear weather, so I start out in pitch black darkness and it gradually gets lighter as I get closer to Leeds. It’s best with the Class 45 from timetable mode.

    There are quite a few services in TSW where a gold medal isn’t possible no matter how perfectly you drive, and there are many more where you can drive badly, go into the yellow on your speedo many times, stop a fair bit from the stopping point at many stations and arrive quite late, and still get a gold medal. Peninsular Corridor is a good example of that. NTP has a very tight schedule and you have to drive like a madman in the 101 to keep on time.
     
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  7. Railmaster

    Railmaster Well-Known Member

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    Just tried again: Silver with 6145 AP.

    I was 1 minute earlier and only briefly in the yellow or red area of the speed violation. Had few minor driving errors, but it wouldn't have been much better without them. All in all - great job, but not for gold ... *cry
     
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  8. Sashco

    Sashco Member

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    I actually think this is due to this not being a passanger service where you need to load and unload passangers?
     
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  9. Northerner

    Northerner Well-Known Member

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    Yeah exactly the same for me. I've just retried it whilst driving defensively, only slightly sped a couple of times, was one minute early into Huddersfield and four minutes early into Leeds and it still didn't upgrade me to gold.
    Just out of interest, has anyone got gold on all of the ECW movements from Lovers Walk depot because on a few of those it seems impossible to get more than bronze.
     
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  10. Sashco

    Sashco Member

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    Wow, the class 101 is hard to drive with PS4 stick!! Having to manually navigate and point in order to change gears while controlling the throttle...are there any better ways to do this on PS4?
     
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  11. Northerner

    Northerner Well-Known Member

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    I play on xbox and use the up and down on the D pad to change gears which I'm guessing is the same for PS4.
    It did take me a while to get used to shifting up through the gears quickly to accelerate but you should after some practice get good at it and be able to do it without too much thought. For me, the hardest part of driving the 101 is using the lapped vacuum brakes to stop accurately.
     
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  12. Sashco

    Sashco Member

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    Aaaah, okey! I'll give it a go! I thought I had to aim and change gear...seemed impossible!
     
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  13. Northerner

    Northerner Well-Known Member

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    I can imagine! Driving the 101 is challenging enough , nevermind doing it whilst changing gears manually.
     
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  14. Mattty May

    Mattty May Guest

    The lapped braking system is sooooooooooo tricky. I’m not a fan and it spoils the 101 for me, but it is what it is.
     
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  15. Doyden

    Doyden Active Member

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    It is tricky but immensely satisfying when you figure it out and get the hang of it. It's easily my favourite to drive in TSW purely because of the gears and the braking challenge.
     
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  16. Sashco

    Sashco Member

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    For me, Class 45 and 47 are much more enjoyable. I guess until I learn the controls properly for 101..

    Regarding NTP;

    1. The front lights on the trains don't work? When doing services in blizzards/nights, it's pitch black outside. Turning on the nose light or front lights makes no difference?

    2. External cameras are fixed, I can't traverse and zoom in like in the GWR train. Is this supposed to be like this?

    Thanks.
     
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  17. stujoy

    stujoy Well-Known Member

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    They are just like marker lights intended for the train to be visible to others rather than to light up the track ahead. That’s old UK trains for you.

    They shouldn’t be fixed. Remember to press the triangle button to switch between controlling the train and controlling the camera.
     
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