New train board game?

Question

hey guys.. im trying to design my own board game with the main focus on trains...im planning to have 4 players with 1 as a terrorist 1 as an officer and 2 as civillians....they will be playing on a board with train stations and move around the board...and the aims is to catch the terrorist b4 he bombs a station.....so u guys got any ideas on how to carry this out??? for example rules.... any ideas appreciated..

Answer 1

4 players.  1 terrorist, 1 officer, 2 civilians

A variable number of players is usually a good element to include in a sucessful board game. Say 4-6. However, as your game is focused on 4, you should iron out those rules and see what you can modify afterwards to expand to 5 or 6 players while maintaining a balanced game.

Now, I'm guessing the terrorist's role here is to cause damage to trains, stations and/or people.

The officer, of course, tries to catch the terrorist.

The civilians I'm guessing are passengers.

All players should have a victory condition. The officer of course wins if the terrorist is caught.

Who the terrorist is could easily remain a secret. That is, each player is given a card which gives his role. The officer is revealed (or not?) The others all appear to be civilians... need to figure out which one's the terrorist and stop him before he accomplishes his goal (whatever that may be... could even be randomly determined somehow, so that only the terrorist knows his real goal, making him more difficult to spot.)

Don't know what extra roles you can give the civilians. They need motivation to run around the board in ways that confuse the officer. These need to cause movements similar to those the terrorist would use to accomplish his goal(s).

Anyway, that's a good start. Give me credit if you use many of my ideas, eh?

Answer 2

Check out Pandemic. It is a new cooperative game where you're playing against the game trying to eradicate worldwide virus epidemics. Each player has a role. Either the game wins or everyone wins. Maybe it will give you a few ideas on how the mechanics could work.

There is also a game called "Scotland Yard" that might also help.

"Mr. Jack" is also an interesting game. One player knows who Jack the Ripper is and is helping him escape, the other is trying to catch him. There might be something to the idea where the terrorist is known by one of the players and is secretly helping him.

"Intrigue" came out in the '50s and dealt with the murder of a diplomat on a steam ship.