Goals For The Year?

Discussion in 'General Discussion' started by inversnecky, Jan 23, 2022.

  1. inversnecky

    inversnecky Well-Known Member

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    I meant to post this at the beginning of the year, but better late than never!

    I just wondered, what do you regard as your biggest accomplishments on TS in the last year?

    And what are your aims/goals for this coming year?

    ——

    I may as well start…

    Just over a year ago, I was a complete novice, who didn’t know my regulator from my reverser (in steam terms!), but feel I have become a reasonably proficient driver, trying to practice good technique instead of chasing points.

    And for this year: I’d like to learn to create some scenarios, and also spend more time route learning, so I can drive some routes without the HUD!

    Edit to add: also improve my proficiency driving stream engines, and not constantly run out of water.

    It would be great also to learn the rudiments of route building, and how to augment/alter existing ones, though I think that’ll be for the year after, at least!
     
    Last edited: Jan 24, 2022
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  2. Cyclone

    Cyclone Well-Known Member

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    I started posting videos. See my signature for the channel.

    Goal for the year? Actually play some of the stuff I own, but now that TSW2 DLC is getting so cheap during sales (not sure if this is permanent), at some point I will have to delete some other games and start playing that as well. My hard drive sometimes screams at me...
     
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  3. Blazin

    Blazin Well-Known Member

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    I think my main goal is to become a better steam train driver! I've always struggled with steam, and I have lots of Steam DLC that i've never played just because I'm actually intimidated by how complicated some of them are, ever since I started playing in 2013, I just haven't put the time or effort into getting better at steam. So I definitely want to get better at that.
     
    Last edited: Jan 24, 2022
  4. Cyclone

    Cyclone Well-Known Member

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    I have been holding out on steam trains as well, but mainly because I have so much to do. Issue is, some routes (like Just Trains ones) feature steam in a couple of scenarios, such as a single Black 5 in the original Bristol-Exeter (I think SWE includes one or two as well). To play the entire pack, I would need to man up...and I already have in mind the idea to start with the Flying Scotsman since it has a scenario on a route I've played, London-Brighton. Or something on Sherman Hill.
     
  5. Reef

    Reef Well-Known Member

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    To continue my immortality, it's working so far...
     
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  6. hayward.john48

    hayward.john48 Well-Known Member

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    I was in the same boat about 3 years ago. I found a number of routes which had disused sidings or locations where there had been sidings that I felt should/could be in use to augment the traffic (in effect turn back the clock). I looked to Google and Youtube as I found the manual helpful in parts but not as complete as I needed then. I started simply - how to lay track, how to put in a turnout, how to make that turnout (which I had laid as manual) remote or vice versa etc. How to get straight track.
    TIP 1: Clone the route you want to fiddle with before starting. If you make a mess of it delete and re-clone - costs only your time. Make a note of the cloned route Hex number so you can easily delete from the routes folder
    TIP 2: Always and only use the exact same track rule for the turnout as the track that you are "leaving/joining". Once the actual turnout is laid you can use any track onwards but if leaving a main line use the main line track for the actual switch even into a yard. The second turnout of a ladder can be the track you want to use. If you don't follow this tip the turnout will be incomplete, it may work, but it won't have check rails etc.
    TIP 3: Have a go - its worth the satisfaction/smugness when you achieve something. I can still hear my cheers from 3 years ago echoing in the walls.
     
    Last edited: Jan 24, 2022
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  7. inversnecky

    inversnecky Well-Known Member

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    I forgot to mention steam locos: I have dabbled now and again, but always end up running out of water within 15 mins or so. And that’s with trying to follow the manual!
     
  8. hayward.john48

    hayward.john48 Well-Known Member

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    So do I. One error I know uses up water too fast is completely releasing the brakes to off, need to be at about 17%ish - shows on the HUD as "Running" . I still run out of water but not as quickly.
     
  9. inversnecky

    inversnecky Well-Known Member

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    Yes, I soon learned that leaving brakes at release just used up steam like crazy: you have to move it to running. And indeed it has to be moved, it doesn’t spring as on a diesel.

    I forget which ones I tried, but different steam engines need different handling, eg how forward (‘%’) the reverser has to be. The very idea of having the throttle open a little and using the reverser to control speed is a new skill for those used to modern traction.
     
  10. Blazin

    Blazin Well-Known Member

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    My problem is that I can't keep the pressure stable, I end up late to stations because if your pressure is low, then the train also slows down.
     
  11. inversnecky

    inversnecky Well-Known Member

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    Think that’s a problem for others too! Certainly me too. It’s very sensitive.
     
  12. inversnecky

    inversnecky Well-Known Member

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  13. hayward.john48

    hayward.john48 Well-Known Member

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    Did you read my post in this thread timed at 10.19 today?
     
  14. inversnecky

    inversnecky Well-Known Member

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    Just did, thanks, John!
     
  15. hayward.john48

    hayward.john48 Well-Known Member

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    Keep us informed when you have a go. Others' experiences good or not quite are inspiring. If I can do it then most folks can you just need to try. Most folks are reluctant to try because you might make a mess of it (but as we are all using "recycled" (?) electrons does it matter it's not like wasting £50 worth of HO track) against that - if you don't try you can never succeed and that is worth the effort.
     
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  16. 749006

    749006 Well-Known Member

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    One of my goals for the game was to install a new Drive which I did last week.
    TS sat on a 1Tb SSD and it was up to 800Gb - the new installation is a 2Tb drive which had been split so 500Gb is for TSW
    And it was very easy with no file verifying required :)

    Peter
     
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  17. brummie

    brummie Active Member

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    Lately I have started to try and stop passenger trains at their correct platform stopping boards more often, instead of flying into platforms and stopping any old how so I don't lose 'career points'. I find when I go over old scenarios where I previously had max points, sometimes I find it nigh on impossible to get a perfect score again, but much prefer to drive the train like it should be driven. I suppose I should turn off the scoring feature for career scenarios really!
     
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  18. inversnecky

    inversnecky Well-Known Member

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    Yes, it makes for a much more pleaseant experience. We had some discussion here about it:

    https://forums.dovetailgames.com/threads/real-train-driver-in-ts.50679/
     
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  19. jklimentowski

    jklimentowski Active Member

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    Since I discovered Third Rails last year I made many iconic routes like:
    Edinbourgh - London
    Glasgow - London
    London - Swansea
    London - Plymouth/Paignton
    Linz - Bregenz
    Augsburg-Villach
    Frankfurt - Dusseldorf
    etc.

    My plan for the next year is to repeat those totally HUDless without any additional helpers (I drive HUDless by most of the time but I don't have notes for every single of these routes). And of course one more to do - London - Penzance.
     
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  20. Cyclone

    Cyclone Well-Known Member

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    Wait, what are these routes? Or do you mean you've driven the paths across multiple routes?
     
  21. BigMountain555

    BigMountain555 Well-Known Member

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    Just checked out your YouTube channel and it rocks! This is the kind of Train sim YT content I like... you actually speak. I find that the majority of train sim channels consist of videos with no commentary whatsoever.
    Thanks for mentioning your channel. I subscribed. :)
     
  22. jklimentowski

    jklimentowski Active Member

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    I have to change routes at the ends as most of them are not merged (AFAIK only London - Penzance and London - Edinburgh are merged and can be done in one go). But the Third Rails map draws the whole route at the end and it looks like this, which is my yesterday achievement:

    upload_2022-1-25_0-56-44.png

    Took me 5 hours to complete and it does give a feeling of achievement ;)
     
  23. Cyclone

    Cyclone Well-Known Member

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    Meanwhile, elsewhere in London... :D

    Welcome to the channel! I feel as you do, there tends to be very few channels where people actually talk and most talking is on livestreams. But video content aside from that has sparse talking, so as I thought "Someone should talk about what they're doing", I then replied to myself, "I talk about what I'm doing". Started recording stuff end of 2020 but didn't feel set to publish any until near when 2022 came about, hence why a lot of videos are still in 2021. Marias was the first set in 2022 as I got a hint that Marias would be coming out for Christmas and I decided I had an unusual opportunity to show it off, so I did exactly that. :D

    To be clear, the "hint" is the poll. After seeing Marias leading, I quickly recorded content assuming it was going to be first and later recorded videos stating December 22 as the release date after it was announced. I also posted my first crash video, and I felt it appropriate as I got routed into an AI train.
     
    Last edited: Jan 25, 2022
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  24. Blazin

    Blazin Well-Known Member

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    I have a YouTube channel myself, my first video was a compilation of trains on the Settle to Carlisle route, then I planned to do a video of a full trip on the Fort Kent Subdivision route and I would talk about the route as we go a long, I got half way through recording, then stopped because I thought nobody would watch it.
     
  25. BigMountain555

    BigMountain555 Well-Known Member

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    Thank you for your amazing channel. I plan to enjoy all of the videos.
     
  26. Nick Y

    Nick Y Well-Known Member

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    I think my goals for this year are:

    1) try to learn how to drive steam locos and services (I have many steam locos, routes and scenarios I haven't touched)
    2) play more routes that I have (currently most play has been on UK routes like Harrogate Loop or MML)
    3) actually stream and capture my gameplay every so often (when I finally learn how to stream/capture from Steam and my PC). I can stream TSW2 directly to YouTube from my PS4/PS5 without any extra hardware.
    4) learn more about routes, signalling and locos so I have more to talk about if and when I stream
    5) try going hudless on both TS and TSW. I already turn off next signal on UK routes in TSW so I can sort of drive like a proper train driver and use the smaller hud on TS (just the map and timings without the controls showing)
    6) learn how to create scenarios
    7) continue to enjoy driving trains on TS and TSW2
     
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  27. olsbyn

    olsbyn Active Member

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    My goal is to properly learn PZB, and to learn the NEC signalling properly..it's a mess and hard to learn.
    I also want to learn to create my own scenarios.
     

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