Niddertalbahn: Bad Vilbel-stockheim Feedback Thread

People have mentioned several scenarios and services with impossible/unfair medal requirements. (628 Introduction, Prep Work, RB Stockheim Service Preparation Part 1). I'd like to add to that list every single BR365 service, all 8 of them (see these two posts for details). With point deficits as high as 300-350, most of these services necessitate moving back-and-forth for up to half an hour before there's enough points for the Gold medal. For example, in the screenshot below the service took 49.5 minutes instead of the supposed 16. Something's very wrong with the score requirement calculation here. Oh, and all but the last 2 of these 8 services also have checkpoints that punish the player for arriving early.

Note: it says "77001 Altenstadt (Hessen) - Budesheim (Part 2)," but that's the usual TSW bug of displaying the wrong service name at the end/not displaying the medal. The screenshot was made after completing "77001 Stockheim (Oberhess) - Altenstadt (Hessen) (Part 1)."

Regarding the previously mentioned "RB Stockheim Service Preparation Part 1" service from the Journey: I would like to note that there are 3 more "Service Preparation" services in the timetable with a 950-point Gold medal requirement and a length of 2-3 minutes. These are the services scheduled for 05:50, 06:21 and 12:03 (the one for 06:51 is the one from the Journey). I'd bet those give 530-560 tops as well.

In an effort to make the most minor nitpick possible, I've arrived at these 3:
1) The white semi truck/articulated lorry model used on many routes, this one included, is based on the 2nd generation DAF XF. The picture below is from just east of Aldenstadt. Here's how the actual truck looks.

This truck didn't hit production until 2002, which makes its use on this route an anachronism.
2) These barriers just south of Stockheim look like this under anything but direct sunlight. And even then, the side that's not exposed to sunlight remains pitch black. Also, cars ignore these barriers and drive straight through the train.

3) The font used on the poster collectables along the route is Calibri, the default Microsoft Word font since its 2007 version. The font was created in 2002, which makes its use on this route an anachronism.

 

NID made me purchase TSW3 in the latest sale. And what can I say ...... the route is absolutely stunning. Funny and creative scenarios and an ivitation for going on foot E2E. That route transpires the love of the developers for what they were doing in every detail.
Well done TSG, and thanks!

Found this nicely modeled and animated (!) mechanical rail lock in the Stockheim yard. What a nice touch.

 

Hi,

I would like to report an incorrect stopping marker at Altenstadt. Half of the train is still out of the plateform after stopping

 

This is just amazing, you identified the font AND the year it was created. That’s what I call dedication!

 

I have problem with Stockheim service preparation part1/2 in timetable mode. When part 1 end, you need to switch cabins to move train to platform, but there is invisible wall behind first cabin and you cannot reach second one.

 

This is actually something that has come up a few times in court cases, to establish that purported documents are in fact forgeries. I saw a commentary on one case where the plaintiff had simply asked the court to "take judicial notice of" a previous case from a different jurisdiction where this type of evidence had been discussed, together with establishing that the font used in the documents at issue was, in fact, Calibri.

 

Veteran news anchor Dan Rather saw his career ended after holding out as genuine documents purportedly from the early 1970s which were produced on a word processor.

 

Just a quick report on my run of the 373 Sugar Beets scenario. First off I think the Niddertalbahn is a cracker-jack route well designed with excellent scenery and interesting runs. The scenario in question was a fun exercise of picking up local sugar beets wagons while assisting a failed BR 628.2 along the way.

While it was a very enjoyable run, I did run into a problem with the controls. After rescuing the 628 and picking up the 3 local wagons and reconnecting the 628 for the last haul to the end, both my keyboard and raildriver stopped controlling the 365 with respect to throttle, reverser, horn, brakes etc. All was still controllable via the mouse so no problem finishing the scenario.

Now I know the format for these forums would be a wild rage claiming the loss of immersion and how could such bugs get through testing and I will never buy another DLC again. But I will leave that to others, I did really enjoy the scenario and it was time well spent for my entertainment, BUT only wanted to comment to see if others haves experienced such loss of control?

Once I uncoupled the 682 both the raildriver and Keyboard controls started working as normal. Anyway - still enjoyed the run -

 

That speed limit though

 

I didn't have any trouble running this with keyboard controls. It must be a RailDriver specific problem.

 

Now it’s confirmed, the Niddertalbahn is a HIGH SPEED LINE!

We finally got something to really test our high speed trains

 

I am pretty sure it is the fact that you are connecting to another loco… experienced the same type problem in TSC when beta testing fir a scenario developer. Keyboard and Raildriver work fine on others timetables …. Could have been an USB glitch as well - will rerun the scenario in a day or so and see if I can repeat the problem

 

Have decided to make a "locomotive show scenario" at budesheim, showing the new DB red painted 110 to enthusiasts:

 

Lovely!
I know from LFR that the 110 would get there without OHLE ..... oh wait!

 

Ha , as long tsw wont have any consist editor for players, unfortunately this shortcut is the only way.

 

Fun fact, but that is precisely what they did in Koblenz at the Einheitselok-Tage some weeks ago. They got some run-up, lowered the panto and let them roll the last unelectrified stretches. I've got some video of that as well

 

This is also apparently how some voltage changes are handled, eg. at Graz on the Austrian-Slovenian border.

 

That's VERY nice livery work.

 

Just replayed the route after the patch. Still lovely, but still little niggles, like:
- The station name signs on the platform at Bad Vilbel still have an unintended shadow effect (apparently only when hit by the sun, have not checked other stations),
- both horns still have a very noticeble loop edge,
- and I also noticed passenger issues: After exiting the train at various stations they piled up on the platform and didn't move, and especially at Bad Vilbel many stood on the platform as if waiting to board the train but didn't when I opened the doors. Also, the "its raining passengers" thing behind Stockheim station is still going on, but that feels almost like an easter egg.

 

The lower horn doesn´t work with the PS5 controller (Rectangle+L3). It works in the cabin though.
No big deal, just to report.

 

Teiyū Gotō would be turning in his grave if he were deceased

 

Guys, what is your opinion on the update in general? There are no YouTube videos and I was unable to find any proper discussion on it.

 

Magnetic brakes work now. Almost too well.

 

I just played the route on PS4 and the exterior horn sound is way too loud. Safety systems for the other cab can now be turned on without a keyboard, which is good.

 

I noticed the headlights textures got changed. It Also switching the lights now goes smooth.

 

Looks good so far to me on PS4! Were you always able to push down the second man’s seat in the cab of the 628? It works now and you can sit in it! Also, the scenery seems a bit more polished? Furthermore, it seems like the texture quality is significantly better (this was often compressed on the route for Gen8 consoles).

Edit:

• Noticed a section of missing electrical wires (those on the wooden poles along the track) at the incline between Lindheim and Altenstadt.
• The secondary horn can’t be triggered using the controller because it activates the foot horn lever below the dashboard (which only has the primary horn).
• In the open area behind the cab, the two bars going horizontally across each side window are floating and not connected to the wall.

 

I have a question regarding the magnetic brake. In what situations is is used in real life? Generally to slow down the train or only in emergencies? I would be very interested in the procedure. I thought it can be activated for going downhill, for example, similar to a dynamic brake, but it just brakes too hard for that. An explanation for a noob like me would be great.

 

By far the best looking route on TSW3. Foliage is great and everything runs smoothly on Xbox Series X. Not in winter, anyway. Without leaves, it seems that trees, in dense areas, affect framerate noticeably. Have you noticed that? Quite strange. I assumed that moving leaves were more hardware demanding than naked trees...

 

According to the DB Netz AG directive 915.0101 section 4 (10) the magnetic track brake will be activated if:
- speed > 50 km/h
- brake setting R+Mg ("labeled Mg") is selected
- main reservoir pipe (Hauptluftbehälterleitung, HBL) is connected throughout the whole train
- any emergency or penalty brake application (Schnell-, Not- or Zwangsbremsung) is initiated.

According to a more recent addition to the directive, on some special multiple-units the driver may activate the magnetic track brake directly, if there is any imminent danger ("bei drohender Gefahr").

So it is not supposed to be used for normal brake applications.

 

It's an emergency brake, plain and simple. It's also fitted to many trams, and on these you can always distinguish an emergency brake (which sometimes happens due to stupid four-wheelers) from a normal service brake application from the grinding noise and juddering.

The advantages of the magnetic brake for this purpose are that it does not rely on the weight of the vehicle for adhesion (the magnetic force acts independently of the normal weight of the vehicle on its wheels) and that it tends to scrape the surface of the rail clean (which helps subsequent wheelsets and magnetic brakes to grip on a contaminated rail, eg. leaf mould, ice).

 

Thank you

 

Same on PC for me

 

Feedback: nice looking route, scenarios are very well thought out. Very sci fi as it's also the route that shows me for the first time where NPC's come from. They come from the sky!

 

The station you are looking for is Spielfield Straß KkStb Südbahn Triest Spielfeld Semmering Wien Hbf/Wien Kledering.
Oddly Niddertalbahn can use old ÖBB Diesel Triebwagen (DMU) due to both using PZB since the 1960s. You can either keep up with the schedule or fall behind

 

Got the route in the recent winter sale, and have to say, it really is great! Especially alongside owning Linke Rheinstrecke and with the 110 and 103 layering in at the main stations.

My biggest issue really is the weak sounds. The in-cab engine and running sounds are pretty good, but in outside view the train is very, very quiet. Why is it so quiet? Can't hear anything from the train unless it is right near you. Also, the horn sound a bit meh with bad blending between the sound clips.
Also, the performance does tank once in a while in in certain areas quite badly, but lowering my foliage and texture settings from highest to simply high seems to have mostly solved it. There are still a few heavily forested areas where it goes below 20 fps, but on most of the route it's easily 30-40 fps, which is nice.

 

Some of the driving is from the trailer car (928?) so a bit quiet - possibly.

There was something of a discussion about the 628 sounds though around the time the route released, particularly when it was revealed they were largely compiled and synthesised from sources other than the prototype.

 

Wanted to do a snowy run and I was quite disappointed to see that the tracks look like this during the winter on this route as well.



Were they always like this? Seems like a bad oversight for an otherwise really nicely looking route.

 

I had two services when it did started to snow and moved from sunny to extreme winter conditions. Transition was great and atmosphere was awesome. Not like in the photo you attached. I am playing on PS5.

 

Snow doesn’t look particularly great on any route tbh
This route seems to look its best in the summer months, sunny days, etc

 

Sorry but how much time did you spend on the web to find the information? I mean this is bizar nitpicking in my opinion..... So i say only "Keep digging Bro!"... LMAO.....
What did you try to expect from them? That they rewrite all the posters for a font?

 

But at least snowy tracks didn't use to be completely different color from the rest of the snow on the terrain on other routes.

And the terrain and track snow color match in the base TSW3 routes and create a nice blend. Then we have routes like Linke Rheinstrecke and this one where the snow on the tracks is completely different color... Completely ruins the otherwise pretty good snowy landscape.

 

This is a core bug I think.... I have noticed this on different routes... You see it at Blackpool Branches and Bernina Bahn as well

 

I don’t know what DTG have done to the track rendering in snow or, more bafflingly, why they’ve done it, but they’ve absolutely trashed something that was good for no real reason that I can see.

You have to wonder;

1) Why try to fix something that wasn’t broken in the first place? Of all the issues with this game the way the tracks looked in snow wasn’t one of them
2) Why put the work experience in charge of doing it, and
3) Who signed off on it and thought, ‘yeah, that looks better?’ If not the Senior/Executive Producer then who, and why?

The same applies to the OHLE that was sold as a feature of TSW4. It’s yet another half-baked implementation of something that is actually quite a bit worse than what it replaces. Rivet didn’t use it in Bernina Line and the route looks much the better for it.

 

DTG manages to act amateurish more than ever. They lost control of their mess with tsw4, just my opinion.
Rivet did the exactly right thing rather than just ruining the ohle with a terrible looking static fence in the air.
How could they manage to break the snow effects without noticing?

I bought tsw4 and i feel my decision to make a stop here is the right thing to do. Something just doesnt look right to me anymore.

 

You could be right. I stopped using snow altogether because of how much I hate the look of the trees in snow, so I might be out of the loop.

 

got an idea why the traction lock is still on the HUD? even though the train appears to be moving ok

 

There was prior to TSW4 a great mod which gave us properly leafless trees in winter. I hope we get it back.

 

I think you can have them, the issue is what DTG (or indeed UE4) uses to define winter. They use the Astrological system rather than Meteorological and therefore class anything up to December 20th as Autumn, hence the leaves staying on the trees. I’d love to be able to set an intermediate state of 50% ish leaves but that isn’t possible. However, you can use GodMode to remove leaves on the fly by making sure Autumn trees are set to 0 and Winter Trees set to full.

This is from the UK Met Office website that details the Astrological system from 2022;



Hope that helps!

 

Yesterday started my first flight on a DB BR 628, can you tell me why the magnetorail brake is needed and under what scenarios to use it? And is there a hotkey for it? I don't understand its purpose, because with it the train brakes quite fast, but the speed doesn't drop to zero.

 

The 628 has very very powerful brakes, equipped with discbrakes. (You can make the brakecalculation).

The magnetic brakes are active when puting the brake valve into "schnellbremsung" and also if you switch the selector to on!. They support the discbrakes to reduce the brake distance.