Für Experten
Expansion for Steam
Steam Barons
More shares, less steam
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Steam Barons is the first official expansion for Steam. Contrary to the basic game it was not published by Mayfair Games / Phalanx Games, but by designer Martin Wallace himself in his own company Warfrog Games under the Treefrog Label.
What do you expect from a good expansion? New maps? Perpetuating rules? More and prettier components? Well, all that can be found in Steam Barons, but still it is not a typical expansion as I would it expect to be.
First, the box offers two new maps. Both maps are playable by six players and thus expand Steam to 6 players, because the maps in the basic game were only feasible for 3-5 players. The maps are absolutely functional but unfortunately not as attractive as the original ones. The new maps introduce a new ware, including the necessary components.
In addition to that there is a bag full of wooden engines in the six player colours to replace the wooden discs that were used to mark the tracks in the basic games. This makes the game maybe a little prettier but I thought the original more clearly laid out.
The box also features a rule book. This offers a few additional rules for the new maps and the rules for the new game Steam Barons. Yes, the new game, because this has not much to do with Steam.
Steam Barons is a game on shares, for 2-6 players. A tableau depicts share values and some other information and there are company cards for each company. The shares are represented by the discs from the basic game, robbed of their original function by the new engines.
Steam Barons is played over five rounds that are divided into several phases.
In Steam Barons there are always 6 companies. Players can buy company shares and control of the company according to the majority rule. Shares are auctioned at the start of each round, separately for each company. Only shares located in the „available shares“ space are offered. In the first round this is one share from each company, later on the number varies. The minimum price is always the current market value. Players in turn can raise the bid or pass. If you win the bid you can buy any number of shares of this company, minimum one share. The other players can buy remaining shares of this company for the same price.
Phases 2 and 3 enable players to build track and to transport wares, according to the rules of Steam, with one exception: You may only use your own connection and there is no limit to the engines. Companies can deliver over any distance. If a company should need more money to build than it has cash available, new shares can be issued. Each share earns the company $5. The newly emitted shares are placed on „available shares“ and can be bought next round. The number of connections used in delivering is marked on the victory point track. As in Steam you can transport two wares per round and the results are added.
Theses operating results are the calculation basis for the fourth phase. Using a table you determine how much revenue is paid to players for their shares, how much the company itself has earned and how much bonus is paid to the president. Results of companies are compared and companies are ranked accordingly. The market values of better ranked companies rise, those of lesser ranked companies fall.
In the fifth phase players can sell any number of shares at the current market value. Shares sold end up on the “available shares” space and can be bought again next round. Companies whose market values fall too low go bankrupt. This happens in phase six. Shares of such a company are valueless and are removed from the game. The company tracks are considered neutral and can be used by other companies, but do not earn them points.
In phase 7 the playing sequence for the companies in the next round is determined. This happens randomly by drawing from a bag. The end of a round also has acquired its own phase. This only consists of moving the marker for the number of rounds one position ahead. The richest player after five rounds wins the game.
While Steam is a railway game with a strong economics component which makes it necessary to keep an eye on the long-term development of your company, Steam Barons is first and foremost a game about shares with the aim to make the most profit in each round. Long-term strategies are rather uninteresting. Therefore Steam Barons is much more similar to games like Steel Driver or Chicago Express aka Wabash Cannonball that to Steam, with which it only shares building and transport mechanisms. Also the flair of the game is similar to that of Steel Driver or Chicago Express. It might be fun to play on a gut level, but you can enhance your chances to win drastically when calculating profit and potential beforehand, which demands a high amount of thinking. Auction of the shares does not make gut-level playing easier, as there is an optimum price for each share. All in all I am rather disappointed by this expansion. The flair of Steam is nearly completely gone. A fabulous game like Steam is entitled to something better. I would even go so far as to question the sense in marketing Steam Barons as an expansion for Steam. The only reason for it is that maps and additional components can also be used for Steam.
The fact, that the playing order for the companies is absolutely random and unpredictable, does not go with this otherwise very plannable game. Very often, it is very important who may build and deliver first.
The price is rather steep. Ordered directly from the publisher, the price for Steam Barons is 35€ plus shipping. Rather a high price for an expansion even when allowing for the many wooden engines being rather expensive to produce and that a small company like Warfrog cannot produce a high print run.
Another small point of irritation is the packing. Due to the fact that basis game and expansion come from different companies, maps, boxes and rules have different formats. This makes joint transportation in one box impossible and I think this very irritating for an expansion. You either always handle tow boxes or find another solution!
In the end something positive to mention: The rules are easily understandable, the internet provides – as is common in Treefrog Games, a free download for rules in German.
Markus Wawra
Spieler : 2-6
Alter : ages 12 and up
Dauer : 180 minutes
Autor : Martin Wallace
Grafik : Mark Beeney
Vertrieb A : Heidelberger
Preis : etwa 35 €
Verlag : Warfrog /Treefrog 2009
Genre : Aktien-/Eisenbahnspiel
Zielgruppe : Für Experten
Mechanismen : Buy shares, build track, deliver wares
Zufall : 3
Wissen/Gedächtnis : 2
Planung : 6
Kreativität :
Kommunikation : 7
Geschicklichkeit :
Action :
Kommentar:
Well-tested sophisticated mechanisms
High interaction, planning still possible
Heavy emphasis on calculation
Good rules
Vergleichbar:
Steel Driver, Chicago Express
Atmosphäre: 3
Markus Wawra:
An expansion for Steam, or maybe not, because the game with the expanded rules has not much in common with the original game but is a classic share holder game with the emphasis on profit. Typical for that genre is the high amount of calculating. Incongruously Steam Barons has a high amount of luck. Even if the new maps and components are functional, I was disappointed by Steam Barons.