1000 Milliarden Dollar - Kohle und Stahl

Essen, 1807. A small family business, limited funds and a new industrial age on the horizon. What you build will shape both your company and the generations to come.

1000 Milliarden Dollar - Kohle und Stahl is a turn-based economic simulation about building a business and guiding the family behind it. Name your dynasty and lead it through three connected campaigns from 1807 to January 1933 – from a trading house and haulage business to an industrial group.

Trade goods, organise freight transport and develop your manufacturing operations. Buy raw materials, hire staff and invest in new machinery and production methods. You decide which orders to accept, how much to produce and when to sell your goods.

Expand existing businesses and establish new sites. Extra capacity only pays off when materials, staff, transport and sales work together. Stock ties up capital, deliveries cost money and customers do not always pay straight away. Even a full order book can leave you short of cash.

Your family members grow older, gain experience and take on responsibilities. Look after their education and health, and keep the family together. New relationships and children change the family – and the people you can rely on in your business.

Decide whom to trust with each role and who will eventually take over. Succession is about more than wealth: knowledge, relationships and experience must also pass to the next generation. The company needs to keep going after its founders have stepped aside.

Plan which orders and investments to pursue each month. A factory expansion, extra staff and the next raw materials purchase all draw on the same funds. Transport capacity and your managers’ available time are limited too.

Recurring contracts and operating plans handle routine work. You set quantities and priorities, then adjust your plans when materials, staff or capacity run short.

End the month to put your plans into action. Reports show how your cash balance and business results have changed, and where operations could not proceed as planned. Use those results to decide what to do next month.

Industrialisation, wars, political upheaval and economic crises change the conditions in which your company operates. New technology creates opportunities while established business models come under pressure. Decide when to invest, change course or protect what you have built.

You guide your own fictional entrepreneurial family through this period. Major historical events are fixed. How your family responds and the direction its company takes are up to you.