Note: This was originally written in Japanese. The original Japanese text is included in the second half of this post.
※原文は日本語です。原文は後半に記載。
Basics
1. Build around extending your Longest Highway and Longest Railway. Connecting Exits raises your scoring ceiling, while the center provides points and helps you handle a wider range of rolls.
2. In the early and middle rounds, focus on your potential final score rather than your current score. Don’t sacrifice promising extensions of your main routes just for immediate Exit-connection points.
3. Get into the center early and keep useful spaces available for both Highways and Railways, as well as straights and curves. You want to be able to handle rolls that skew heavily toward either type.
4. Make your T-junctions earn their keep by connecting Exits and creating branches, using all three arms effectively. Distinguish between jobs that a straight or curve can handle and jobs that actually need a junction.
5. In general, run the route type getting more T-junctions around the outside of the board, and the type getting fewer through the center. Don’t lock those roles in too rigidly.
6. As you pick up Exits near your opening structure, think ahead about how your Highways and Railways can keep growing.
Intermediate
7. Especially early on, a more flexible shape can be worth giving up one point of route length. If you build that shape in the center, a Central Space point may make up for the loss.
8. Straights are good for covering distance efficiently along the shortest path to an Exit. Take advantage of this when working toward Exit connections.
9. Curves are useful for setting up connections to Overpasses and filling Central Spaces for extra points. Getting to the center early creates more opportunities to use them this way.
10. T-junctions are valuable branching resources when you have few of them. The more you roll, the less each additional one is worth. Even if several show up early or in the middle rounds, don’t commit to your final shape too soon.
11. Keep your options open so different combinations of future rolls can still lead to a high score. For example, set up a connection that can be completed with either two Railway curves or one Railway curve and one Railway straight.
12. Keep the extendable ends of your Highways and Railways near the center whenever possible. Avoid shapes that force you into pointless turns near the edge of the board without making progress toward an Exit.
13. Think about where those ends can eventually go. Don’t just count empty spaces. Consider which useful areas and Exits are reachable, and how many alternative paths remain available.
14. Early on, preserve several possible endpoints for your Highways and Railways. Being able to shift an endpoint lets you use either a Straight Station (I-shaped) or a Curved Station (L-shaped) without significantly changing the shape of your main routes.
15. Picking up an Exit partway along one of your main routes gives you less flexibility in choosing between Straight and Curved Stations, since you need to preserve connections on both sides. Also note that, in this setup, the Station used to pick up the Exit doesn’t extend your longest route.
16. Prioritize places where a particular shape is hard to replace. For example, leave an Exit that can be picked up with either Station type for later, and use the Curved Station you have now at an Exit that depends more heavily on it.
17. When placing a Station far from your existing routes, consider its orientation and how much distance you still need to cover. Keep the rough shape of the binomial distribution in mind when estimating your chances of getting enough of the required rolls in the remaining rounds.
18. Keep the ends of your main routes available as starting points for Special Routes that can add length later. Don’t block a promising future Special Route connection too early with another shape.
19. Make your first Overpass work in the center, no matter what. Look for opportunities to cross Highways and Railways, gain points without Errors, and shorten the distance to Exits. Establishing that crossing is a key part of the plan, so it's worth waiting for an Overpass—even if you eventually have to use a Special Route instead.
20. If you can make the same connection in the same space next round, and waiting costs almost nothing, hold off on using the Special Route. This preserves the option of choosing a different Special Route after seeing the next roll.
Advanced
21. Leave room for the rolls that are hardest to accommodate in your current position. Straight Stations can be especially awkward when several appear early, so plan ahead to handle more of them in later rounds.
22. The value of an Overpass depends on how many have appeared. As more show up, forcing them all into ideal positions becomes less worthwhile. Sometimes you’ll have to use one in a spot that costs a single Error point.
23. Judge a Special Route by how many points it ultimately adds to your final score. Count both its immediate gains and how much better it lets you use future rolls. Use a plan that saves one Special Route for R6 and one for R7 as your baseline. In particular, estimate how many points the R6 Special Route is actually earning. If using two Specials early produces a higher expected final score than using one early and another in R6, then using two early is worthwhile. This is especially promising when T-junctions are scarce and straights are plentiful.
24. A strong opening is to place a Special Route with three Highway arms or three Railway arms at the middle Exit on one edge, then build toward the center. Keep an eye out for opportunities to use the same shape in the middle and later rounds too.
25. Think about which rolls give your plan an edge over your opponent’s. Being able to handle lopsided rolls that your opponent struggles with has value. To assess that value, consider the types and quantities of shapes you need and how often those outcomes occur. For example, the chance that the three Highway/Railway dice all show Highways or all show Railways is 1/4.
26. For the most part, focus on your own board. Late in the game, though, consider taking more risk for a higher upside when the match situation calls for it. Personally, I barely look at my opponents’ boards through R5. From R6 onward, if I’m behind on projected scores, I sometimes take a higher-variance line, making rough estimates of how many points my opponents might score under different rolls.
These are my current thoughts on the game. They may change.
----------------------------------------
日本語原文
初級 (~ELO600)
1. 最長道路・最長線路を伸ばす意識を軸にする。 出口回収は得点の天井を高くし、中央は得点と出目への対応力を支える。
2. 序中盤は、現在の点数より最終得点の可能性を見る。 目先の接続点のために、ルートの本体の有力な伸び先を潰さない。
3. 基本は中央へ早期にアクセスし、道路・線路、直線・曲がりのどちらに出目が偏っても、有効に置ける場所を確保する。
4. T字は出口回収や分岐で働かせ、三方向を有効に使う。 直線・曲がりで足りる役割と、分岐が必要な役割を見分けて割り当てる。
5. T字が多い側を外周、少ない側を中央へ回す。 ただし、その役割を固定しすぎないこと。
6. 初手で作った構造の近くの出口を拾いながら、その後の道路・線路の伸ばし方を考える。
中級 (ELO600〜800)
7. 序盤ほど、長さ1点より受けのよい形を優先する場面がある。 中央で形を整えれば、その1点を中央点で補えることもある。
8. 直線は、出口まで最短経路で距離を稼ぎやすい。 出口回収に向けて効率よく進める性質に注目する。
9. 曲がりは、橋をつなぎやすくしたり、中央で消費して細かく点を拾ったりしやすい。 中央への早期アクセスで、こうした使い方を作る。
10. T字は、少ないうちは価値の高い分岐資源。 多く出るほど追加の価値は下がるし、多く出たからといって序中盤に形を早々に決め切らない。
11. 高得点につながるダイスの組み合わせを多く残す。 例えば、ある場所の回収が「線路の曲がり2枚」でも「線路の曲がり1枚と直線1枚」でも成立する形にする。
12. 道路・線路の先端は、できるだけ中央付近で伸ばせる状態に保つ。 盤端近くで、出口と関係のない方向転換を強いられる形を避ける。
13. 先端から将来どこへ伸びられるかを見る。 空きマス数に加え、有効な経路で届く領域・出口・別経路の選択肢を考える。
14. 序盤は道路・線路の終点候補を複数残し、出目に応じて選べるようにする。 終点の取り方を変えられれば、I字駅・L字駅を使い分けても、ルートの本体の形への影響を小さくできる。
15. ルートの本体の中継地点で出口を回収する場合は、I字駅・L字駅の違いが負担になりやすい。 前後のつながりが必要になり、さらに、回収に使う駅が最長路を伸ばす1点にもなっていない点に注意する。
16. 代用しにくい場所へ、その形のダイスを先に割り当てる。 例えば、I字駅・L字駅のどちらでも拾える出口を残し、L字駅への依存が高い出口に、今出ているL字駅を使う。
17. 離れた場所に置く駅は、向きと接続までの距離を考える。 二項分布の山をイメージし、残りラウンドで必要な出目がどれくらい来るかも含めて判断する。
18. ルートの本体の先端は、後でスペシャルを投入して長さを稼ぐ起点にもできるよう残す。 スペシャルを使う有力な経路を、別のタイルで早く塞がない。
19. 最初の橋は、何が何でも中央で働かせる。 道路・線路を交差させ、減点なく得点を稼ぎつつ、出口までの距離を縮める機会を重視する。橋を通すことが構想の土台になるため、結果的にスペシャルで代用することになっても、橋を待つ価値がある。
20. 次のラウンドでも同じ場所に置いて合流でき、待つ損がほぼなければ、スペシャルは保留する。 後の出目を見て、別のスペシャルへ切り替える選択肢を残す。
上級 (ELO800〜)
21. その局面で消費しにくい出目の受けを用意する。 特にI字駅は序盤に固まるとネックになりやすいため、続けて出ても対応できるよう、次のラウンド以降の受けを考えておく。
22. 橋は出る枚数によって価値が変わる。 枚数が増えるほど、無理に好形で使う価値は下がり、減点1で収まる置き場所で消費することを余儀なくされる。
23. スペシャルは「最終的に何点分働くか」で評価する。 その場の得点と、その後のダイスを有効に使えるようになる働きを含めて考える。R6・R7に1枚ずつ残す打ち方を比較の基準にし、特にR6の1枚が何点分働くかを見積もる。「序盤＋R6」より「序盤＋序盤」のほうが期待最終得点を稼げるなら、序盤に2枚使う価値がある。特にT字が少なく直線が多いときは、早期に複数枚投入する案が有力になりやすい。
24. 道路か線路が三股になったスペシャルを、各辺の中央にある出口に置き、盤面中央へ伸ばす初動が強い。 中盤以降にも、同じ形が有効になる局面がないか候補に入れる。
25. 自分の狙い筋が、どの出目で相手にエッジを持つかを意識する。 相手が対応しにくい偏りを自分は受けられる構えの価値を、必要な出目の種類・枚数と発生頻度まで含めて考える。例えば、通常ダイス3個がすべて道路、またはすべて線路になる確率は、合計1/4ある。
26. 基本は自分の盤面を整え、終盤は対戦状況に応じて上振れも考える。 筆者の場合、R5までは相手の盤面を見ないことの方が多い。R6以降は、見込みの得点で負けているときに分散を取るなど、相手が各出目でどれくらい得点できそうかを軽く見積もって工夫することがある。
※原文は日本語です。原文は後半に記載。
Basics1. Build around extending your Longest Highway and Longest Railway. Connecting Exits raises your scoring ceiling, while the center provides points and helps you handle a wider range of rolls.
2. In the early and middle rounds, focus on your potential final score rather than your current score. Don’t sacrifice promising extensions of your main routes just for immediate Exit-connection points.
3. Get into the center early and keep useful spaces available for both Highways and Railways, as well as straights and curves. You want to be able to handle rolls that skew heavily toward either type.
4. Make your T-junctions earn their keep by connecting Exits and creating branches, using all three arms effectively. Distinguish between jobs that a straight or curve can handle and jobs that actually need a junction.
5. In general, run the route type getting more T-junctions around the outside of the board, and the type getting fewer through the center. Don’t lock those roles in too rigidly.
6. As you pick up Exits near your opening structure, think ahead about how your Highways and Railways can keep growing.
Intermediate7. Especially early on, a more flexible shape can be worth giving up one point of route length. If you build that shape in the center, a Central Space point may make up for the loss.
8. Straights are good for covering distance efficiently along the shortest path to an Exit. Take advantage of this when working toward Exit connections.
9. Curves are useful for setting up connections to Overpasses and filling Central Spaces for extra points. Getting to the center early creates more opportunities to use them this way.
10. T-junctions are valuable branching resources when you have few of them. The more you roll, the less each additional one is worth. Even if several show up early or in the middle rounds, don’t commit to your final shape too soon.
11. Keep your options open so different combinations of future rolls can still lead to a high score. For example, set up a connection that can be completed with either two Railway curves or one Railway curve and one Railway straight.
12. Keep the extendable ends of your Highways and Railways near the center whenever possible. Avoid shapes that force you into pointless turns near the edge of the board without making progress toward an Exit.
13. Think about where those ends can eventually go. Don’t just count empty spaces. Consider which useful areas and Exits are reachable, and how many alternative paths remain available.
14. Early on, preserve several possible endpoints for your Highways and Railways. Being able to shift an endpoint lets you use either a Straight Station (I-shaped) or a Curved Station (L-shaped) without significantly changing the shape of your main routes.
15. Picking up an Exit partway along one of your main routes gives you less flexibility in choosing between Straight and Curved Stations, since you need to preserve connections on both sides. Also note that, in this setup, the Station used to pick up the Exit doesn’t extend your longest route.
16. Prioritize places where a particular shape is hard to replace. For example, leave an Exit that can be picked up with either Station type for later, and use the Curved Station you have now at an Exit that depends more heavily on it.
17. When placing a Station far from your existing routes, consider its orientation and how much distance you still need to cover. Keep the rough shape of the binomial distribution in mind when estimating your chances of getting enough of the required rolls in the remaining rounds.
18. Keep the ends of your main routes available as starting points for Special Routes that can add length later. Don’t block a promising future Special Route connection too early with another shape.
19. Make your first Overpass work in the center, no matter what. Look for opportunities to cross Highways and Railways, gain points without Errors, and shorten the distance to Exits. Establishing that crossing is a key part of the plan, so it's worth waiting for an Overpass—even if you eventually have to use a Special Route instead.
20. If you can make the same connection in the same space next round, and waiting costs almost nothing, hold off on using the Special Route. This preserves the option of choosing a different Special Route after seeing the next roll.
Advanced21. Leave room for the rolls that are hardest to accommodate in your current position. Straight Stations can be especially awkward when several appear early, so plan ahead to handle more of them in later rounds.
22. The value of an Overpass depends on how many have appeared. As more show up, forcing them all into ideal positions becomes less worthwhile. Sometimes you’ll have to use one in a spot that costs a single Error point.
23. Judge a Special Route by how many points it ultimately adds to your final score. Count both its immediate gains and how much better it lets you use future rolls. Use a plan that saves one Special Route for R6 and one for R7 as your baseline. In particular, estimate how many points the R6 Special Route is actually earning. If using two Specials early produces a higher expected final score than using one early and another in R6, then using two early is worthwhile. This is especially promising when T-junctions are scarce and straights are plentiful.
24. A strong opening is to place a Special Route with three Highway arms or three Railway arms at the middle Exit on one edge, then build toward the center. Keep an eye out for opportunities to use the same shape in the middle and later rounds too.
25. Think about which rolls give your plan an edge over your opponent’s. Being able to handle lopsided rolls that your opponent struggles with has value. To assess that value, consider the types and quantities of shapes you need and how often those outcomes occur. For example, the chance that the three Highway/Railway dice all show Highways or all show Railways is 1/4.
26. For the most part, focus on your own board. Late in the game, though, consider taking more risk for a higher upside when the match situation calls for it. Personally, I barely look at my opponents’ boards through R5. From R6 onward, if I’m behind on projected scores, I sometimes take a higher-variance line, making rough estimates of how many points my opponents might score under different rolls.
These are my current thoughts on the game. They may change.
----------------------------------------
日本語原文初級 (~ELO600)
1. 最長道路・最長線路を伸ばす意識を軸にする。 出口回収は得点の天井を高くし、中央は得点と出目への対応力を支える。
2. 序中盤は、現在の点数より最終得点の可能性を見る。 目先の接続点のために、ルートの本体の有力な伸び先を潰さない。
3. 基本は中央へ早期にアクセスし、道路・線路、直線・曲がりのどちらに出目が偏っても、有効に置ける場所を確保する。
4. T字は出口回収や分岐で働かせ、三方向を有効に使う。 直線・曲がりで足りる役割と、分岐が必要な役割を見分けて割り当てる。
5. T字が多い側を外周、少ない側を中央へ回す。 ただし、その役割を固定しすぎないこと。
6. 初手で作った構造の近くの出口を拾いながら、その後の道路・線路の伸ばし方を考える。
中級 (ELO600〜800)
7. 序盤ほど、長さ1点より受けのよい形を優先する場面がある。 中央で形を整えれば、その1点を中央点で補えることもある。
8. 直線は、出口まで最短経路で距離を稼ぎやすい。 出口回収に向けて効率よく進める性質に注目する。
9. 曲がりは、橋をつなぎやすくしたり、中央で消費して細かく点を拾ったりしやすい。 中央への早期アクセスで、こうした使い方を作る。
10. T字は、少ないうちは価値の高い分岐資源。 多く出るほど追加の価値は下がるし、多く出たからといって序中盤に形を早々に決め切らない。
11. 高得点につながるダイスの組み合わせを多く残す。 例えば、ある場所の回収が「線路の曲がり2枚」でも「線路の曲がり1枚と直線1枚」でも成立する形にする。
12. 道路・線路の先端は、できるだけ中央付近で伸ばせる状態に保つ。 盤端近くで、出口と関係のない方向転換を強いられる形を避ける。
13. 先端から将来どこへ伸びられるかを見る。 空きマス数に加え、有効な経路で届く領域・出口・別経路の選択肢を考える。
14. 序盤は道路・線路の終点候補を複数残し、出目に応じて選べるようにする。 終点の取り方を変えられれば、I字駅・L字駅を使い分けても、ルートの本体の形への影響を小さくできる。
15. ルートの本体の中継地点で出口を回収する場合は、I字駅・L字駅の違いが負担になりやすい。 前後のつながりが必要になり、さらに、回収に使う駅が最長路を伸ばす1点にもなっていない点に注意する。
16. 代用しにくい場所へ、その形のダイスを先に割り当てる。 例えば、I字駅・L字駅のどちらでも拾える出口を残し、L字駅への依存が高い出口に、今出ているL字駅を使う。
17. 離れた場所に置く駅は、向きと接続までの距離を考える。 二項分布の山をイメージし、残りラウンドで必要な出目がどれくらい来るかも含めて判断する。
18. ルートの本体の先端は、後でスペシャルを投入して長さを稼ぐ起点にもできるよう残す。 スペシャルを使う有力な経路を、別のタイルで早く塞がない。
19. 最初の橋は、何が何でも中央で働かせる。 道路・線路を交差させ、減点なく得点を稼ぎつつ、出口までの距離を縮める機会を重視する。橋を通すことが構想の土台になるため、結果的にスペシャルで代用することになっても、橋を待つ価値がある。
20. 次のラウンドでも同じ場所に置いて合流でき、待つ損がほぼなければ、スペシャルは保留する。 後の出目を見て、別のスペシャルへ切り替える選択肢を残す。
上級 (ELO800〜)
21. その局面で消費しにくい出目の受けを用意する。 特にI字駅は序盤に固まるとネックになりやすいため、続けて出ても対応できるよう、次のラウンド以降の受けを考えておく。
22. 橋は出る枚数によって価値が変わる。 枚数が増えるほど、無理に好形で使う価値は下がり、減点1で収まる置き場所で消費することを余儀なくされる。
23. スペシャルは「最終的に何点分働くか」で評価する。 その場の得点と、その後のダイスを有効に使えるようになる働きを含めて考える。R6・R7に1枚ずつ残す打ち方を比較の基準にし、特にR6の1枚が何点分働くかを見積もる。「序盤＋R6」より「序盤＋序盤」のほうが期待最終得点を稼げるなら、序盤に2枚使う価値がある。特にT字が少なく直線が多いときは、早期に複数枚投入する案が有力になりやすい。
24. 道路か線路が三股になったスペシャルを、各辺の中央にある出口に置き、盤面中央へ伸ばす初動が強い。 中盤以降にも、同じ形が有効になる局面がないか候補に入れる。
25. 自分の狙い筋が、どの出目で相手にエッジを持つかを意識する。 相手が対応しにくい偏りを自分は受けられる構えの価値を、必要な出目の種類・枚数と発生頻度まで含めて考える。例えば、通常ダイス3個がすべて道路、またはすべて線路になる確率は、合計1/4ある。
26. 基本は自分の盤面を整え、終盤は対戦状況に応じて上振れも考える。 筆者の場合、R5までは相手の盤面を見ないことの方が多い。R6以降は、見込みの得点で負けているときに分散を取るなど、相手が各出目でどれくらい得点できそうかを軽く見積もって工夫することがある。