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I have a reasonable grasp on how units are moved by rail but struggle with the concept of freight movement by rail !!!

1)Rule 22.4.3 "During each logistics phase, accumulated friendly rail line usage in each hex is reduced to the higher of either current rail usage divided by six or the enemy air interdiction value"

Ignoring the effects of interdiction does this mean when you look at a pop up rail hex that shows say 2,000 freight does this means that in the logistics phase 12,000 freight went through that rail hex ie 12,000 divided by six = 2,000

2) does freight have 200 SMP like a unit and if it does are there movement costs for loading and unloading

3) I have seen people mention super depots in the forum what are these

THANK YOU

1) no, usage in the last turn is both unit movement + freight movement, otherwise yes what you see is this total /6

2) yes/no

have a look at this thread - https://www.matrixgames.com/forums/tm.asp?m=4993098 may well answer a lot of your questions

Loki, I don't get your "yes/no" to question #2...

In the manual, it says, at chapter 25.4.3 : "Unlike ground units utilizing rail transport, freight has unlimited SMP’s"


But it's something I always found strange, and which does not click with the tactic of building "intermediary depots".
What am I missing ?

the yes is his first sentence, no the second which isn't right.

the thread I linked discusses this in some detail but the pt is that the 200 SMP is fixed, the move cost/hex isn't.

So lets say there is one rail line on the map.

You send the first batch 200 hexes. Then you get the +1 usage malus.

So the next batch only goes 100 hexes.

Then you get the +2 usage malus

and the next batch only goes 200/3 say 65 hexes.

And so on.

Now if you have 2 depots, one 180 hexes from the NSS and the other 90. The only freight that can reach the first in one turn is the first batch, but the second batch can reach the nearer depot. Note the third batch can't reach a depot so returns to the NSS. Next turn, a new batch leaves the NSS and goes 200 hexes, reaching your advanced depot. The batch at your intermediate depot can now make it all the way (despite the additional costs) if there is a large enough railyard to get it moving.

Clearly with multiple lines, many depots this is a more complex relationship but that is the basic idea.

That makes things clearer (that seems to me clear but wrong before) and brings sense to intermediate depots (set to 0 or so): If the very next depot that can be reached from the NSS is 201 hexes away, than the front never will get any supply. Because the freight can not be stored in an intermediate depot AND the freight can not stay on the rails from one turn to another (like units do).
Hope I got it...
Thanks.

Thanks Loki I have had a look at the thread understood some of it and some of it went over my head !! But is not as complicated as I thought.

I still think it is very hard looking at the supply and rail graphics to work out what is happening.

If there was another line on the depot pop up hex saying what was first factor limited supplies getting to that depot SMP penalty, lack of railyards, lack of freight, lack of priority at least then you have a good pointer to what the problem is