Confirmation for tunnels.

[Lou1990lou]

I play regular ticket to ride a lot and have recently bought Europe in person (accidentally, I'll admit as I didn't pay enough attention haha)
I was confused about the tunnel rules and went onto YouTube to try and get another explanation.

Am I correct in thinking that if I'm trying to claim a route with tunnels I should have more than the necessary cards in my hand?
So if I'm wanting to try and claim Zurich to Venezia (a 2 green route),this is how it should go:

1. lay down 2 greens in attempt to claim[\list]
   • draw 3 cards from draw pile
   • if a green is a part of that draw pile I have to put another green from my hand down
   • if 2 greens are a part of that draw pile I have to put 2 greens from my hand down
   • if 3 greens are a part of that draw pile I have to put another 3 greens from my hand down
   • the same for point 3 if a loco is drawn[\list]
     • if I don't meet the conditions of point 3 and 4 then I don't claim the route?
       
       For points 3, can I use a loco in place of a colour?
       
       So basically, for a route I'm trying to claim that is 2 long I should aim to have at least 3 of the same colour (or an extra bunch of locos)?

[RicardoRix]

you don't necessarily need any extra cards, if no cards of the 3 match then you don't have to pay any extra.
locos being turned over do not match a single colour. locos is only a match if you used locos to claim the tunnel. So tactically avoid using locos to claim, you can if you want use them for the extra payment.

[katagatame]

It's true that you won't necessarily need extra cards to claim a tunnel. However, the question is whether one should have extra cards when attempting to claim one. In my opinion, yes, it is normally wise to have extra cards ready when claiming a tunnel!

"locos being turned over do not match a single colour. locos is only a match if you used locos to claim the tunnel. So tactically avoid using locos to claim, you can if you want use them for the extra payment."

This is not correct. According to the rulebook, page 5:

"Remember that Locomotives are multi-colored wild cards. As such, any Locomotive card drawn from the top of the Train draw pile during an attempt to go through a tunnel will automatically match the color of the train cards played on the route, and force the player to play an additional card."

I can also confirm this from gameplay here on BGA.

[katagatame]

For points 3, can I use a loco in place of a colour?

So basically, for a route I'm trying to claim that is 2 long I should aim to have at least 3 of the same colour (or an extra bunch of locos)?

Yes, you can use a locomotive to cover the extra card cost, no matter what color you used to start the attempt. How many extra cards to have before claiming a tunnel is a situational/strategic question. If you want to be as safe as possible, have three extra of the color (or locomotives). If you want or need to push your luck, you can try it with no extra. One extra is a little gamble, and two extra is usually very safe.

I'm not an expert, so my strategic advice might not be as valuable as someone else's. I normally try to have two extra cards for a tunnel claim. I often have a locomotive or two in my hand in case I need them, and tunnel claims would be one reason for that. If it's a very long tunnel, I might try the claim with only one extra. For a short tunnel, I'll want two or three extra. But if it's the last turn, I need the tunnel, and I don't have any extras, I'll take the gamble with none!