This is a quick reference (i.e., you need to know the basic Empire Builder rules) for the board game Benelux Rails by Michael Mette, a variant of Empire Builder designed by Darwin & Peter Bromley and Bill Fawcett and published by Mayfair Games. All trademarks and rights are property of their respective owners.

For 2 - 3 players

Game Setup

• 30 million Euro, one train card, one train, one marker
• 5 demand cards of which they keep 3 and discard 2

The start player is the person who first determines their 3 demand cards and discards the other 2. Every player places their train in the center of one of the 4 major cities. The game starts with a regular round (in which, obviously, only building track or upgrading trains makes sense).

Public Demand Cards

At the beginning of round 4, reveal 3 demand cards from the deck. These demands may be fulfilled by any player - first come, first serve. When fulfilled, discard the respective demand card and draw another one from the deck so that there are always 3 public demand cards available. Event cards drawn in this manner become effective immediately.

Costs

Movement and Transportation

Goods may be unloaded in any town or city, where they may be picked up by any player. Discard goods after they have not been moved for 4 rounds.

Sharing Tracks

A player may use another player's tracks (any distance) for one turn by paying them 4 million Euro. This kind of track sharing must not be refused. Players may also make deals for any number of rounds on sharing tracks or delivering and unloading goods in any town or city.

Connecting Towns and Cities

Towns (circles) can be connected to the tracks of up to two players, minor cities (squares) by up to three players, and major cities (hexagons) by all players. While not maxed out, these spots must remain accessible to all players not yet connected.

Building Phase

Limit 15 million Euro for trackbuilding and/or change a train in the same class.
Or skip the building phase to upgrade the train for 20 million Euro to the higher class. .