1817 is a board-game that belongs to the family of 18xx games, most of which are based on an economic engine. The general idea is to build a network and then use this network to earn money which can then be re-invested to build a better network thereby netting out bigger profits. 18xx games are called as such because they focus on the early 19^th century when railroads were being developed around the world. Each game is titled with a particular year and focuses on a particular region in the world with the companies and the geography of that period. Players participate in starting railroad corporations and building a rail network as best as they see fit.

1817 takes place in eastern United States and is a little bit special because it has much more of a stock market focus. It also features mergers & acquisitions where companies can either merge together or buy out other companies. While there is quite a bit of literature on 1817 strategy, this article is a summary of my game playing experience and what seems to work (mostly by observing others).

First things first - the whole point of this game is to make money. The more companies you have, the more track you can build and the faster you can start profiting from your well-built network. However, that being said, 1817 is a lot about relativity. If your opponents have all started lots of companies then it might be in your favor to start fewer well-funded companies and try and squeeze your opponents on the loan interest.

Initial bidding for privates

In order to maximize the number of companies one can start, the initial bidding is very critical. Given a minimum initial investment for a company at $110 (which will start it at $55/share and allow it to take 2 loans + the initial withhold), you want to start SR1 with $330 in bidding power. Note that this value would be adjusted accordingly for the number of players and this guide assumes a 4-player game where each player starts with $315 initial cash. Also it is very important to note that as the rules suggest, the privates really are only worth about ¾ of their value. This is because of 2 reasons:

However, it is to be noted that private companies increase one's bidding capacity and increase their chances of starting companies in lucrative locations.

Thus, bidding fair value for private companies seems to be the best strategy. Synergy with the privates also matters. Mountain engineering with a coal or two and the Pittsburgh tile lay is a winning combination. Supplement that with a company operating out of Cleveland (or even Charleston) and you have an incredible starting position.

Another effective strategy that I have seen is to get some of the bigger privates at fair value and start 3 companies leaving one of the privates in hand. A 4^th company was then started with the private at a higher par value and a preferential location. This strategy is especially effective if you head into the SR with a lot of privates and little cash. Note that the train station works especially well with this strategy.

Finally, in order to not have to pay extra money to guarantee track lay, it is very important that the companies operate together in the same area. Location pairs are outlined below:

There are of course, many more cities and combinations possible but they generally only provide $40 runs and are therefore not considered at the start of the game. Some locations such as Scranton might be useful if you have a lot of coal to lay down and nobody blocking your path. Note that the profitability of a company depends on its debt. If there are 4 players and 12 companies with each taking and average of 1.5 loans, then you are looking at an interest rate of $20 which means a $40 interest payment for 2 loans. Thus, a half payout would only keep the interest at bay whereas you ideally want to be able to either make a full payout or repay a loan with a half-payout in OR2.2 because the 3T would have opened up by SR3 and your companies need a capital infusion in order to be able to get it :).

A word on loans - loans are great as long as the payouts can keep the interest at bay. For a 5-share company that has 2 shares in the treasury and 2 loans with $25 interest and a $150 run, a full-payout will net the company $60 for interest payments.

There is a lot of head scratching math right off the bat and some critical errors include buying a 2T that does not run. That's why it is beneficial to be somewhat alone in an area in order to guarantee the outcome. This game is very unforgiving and players fighting each other only helps those who are not involved. However, players teaming up with each other can also be very effective especially at the start and I can recommend it.

That covers some pointers on starting strategies, for further reading see: Money movement in 1817 and 1817 advanced strategies.

Many thanks to Stephen Yu for reviewing this strategy guide.