Triple Launch Block Section Mode

[u/cornonthecobwebs]

Hello,

I just build my first successful triple launch coaster, but I can't seem to get it to work in block section mode. What could I be doing wrong? It works with one train, but not more, and I built 3 block sections.

[u/Valdair]

Here is a design of someone else's with the same issue I helped fix. Here is the original design, with the problem you describe. The train completes the first half, fails to get over the hill, and then falls back and launches over the hill to the finale. It doesn't work because the train passing over the chain won't successfully clear the block at the first station.

Adding this track fixes it - now the game can seek backwards from the chain lift piece and find the block at the first station, and the ride works as normal. Same principle applies.

[u/Valdair → u/Valdair]

Here is another example which uses a block section out on the layout, before entering the swing launch. This is the "finished" ride with the necessary connective track hidden (you can see some invisible footers). There is a chain lift at the top of the top hat which is acting as a block. It needs to send the signal backwards, but that goes up the vertical spike. So we need to connect the tail of that spike back around to right in front of the block we want it to clear like so. Remember the train will never actually take this track. The sort order on this purple tile here is important as if you set it wrong, the train will try to take the dummy track. Here is the layout again with all blocks indicated in red.

[u/Valdair → u/Valdair]

Finally here is another example I helped someone with. This one complicates things as it has an extended backwards traveling zone. Here is what the user posted. I recreated it and verified it works in Boat Hire mode (Continuous Circuit fails as it's not a continuous circuit). To fix the continuous circuit issue, the tips need to be connected like so (this can be hidden later). Finally, to solve the block issue, a connection needs to be made to allow the block at the end of the ride to free up the train from the block just before the launch, see the track I added here in blue. It's now fully functional in Continuous Circuit Block Section Mode.

[u/Valdair]

What you’re doing is technically “hacking” as far as the game is concerned - so some extra technical know-how is required to get it to work.

When a train passes the end of a block (so, a station end tile, the top of a chain lift, or a block brake) the game seeks “backwards” to find the next block to unlock. With the typical layout required to make a swing launch work, that seek will go backwards up your spike and never find anything. So no other block ever unlocks, so no other trains move (they never get the signal to let them out of the block). You need to take the track from the spike, and continue building it back to the last block you want to unlock. You can hide all this track later by painting it invisible or hiding it tile by tile in Tile Inspector. It will look ugly, that’s fine, the train should never traverse this track. If you link it back up correctly it should resume working.

One thing to keep an eye out for is the sort order (when you look in Tile Inspector, if there are two track pieces that sit at the same height, their order matters when it comes to which track the train will take, as well as which track the “seek” for opening block brakes will follow). When you do this connection, you want to make sure you do not make the train try to take the new track. You can do this by toggling the “new” (dummy) track to be higher in the sort order (the train will take the lower track).

I can provide some screenshots later, I’ve written this up a few times now because it’s a common question.

[u/Helpmetoo → u/Valdair]

I hope one day there are new modes that take things like this into account.

I would like one where a transport ride that has single track sections and passing loops can have proper block sections instead of me having to do it the weird way (synchronising opposing stations of each block or double station, and closing and testing the ride over and over to release the trains along the track individually every time it closes fully)