A strategic colony building game for 2-5 players where you build a Caribbean plantation and gain victory points for shipping goods back to the old world. The game revolves around the "variable phase order" mechanic--every player selects a general action to be taken by everyone while gaining a ...
21
votes
1answer
416 views
Seating orders effect on Puerto Rico
Within my group its taken for granted that some seats in Puerto Rico are better (if only slightly) than others. There's a general consensus that 3rd and 4th seat are strictly better than 1st, where ...
19
votes
4answers
2k views
Is there a viable corn-only strategy for Puerto Rico?
In the last Puerto Rico game I played I wound up with all corn. I tried to make this work with the following strategy:
Office + large market + small market for income
Harbor + wharf to ship all my ...
18
votes
2answers
591 views
How to minimize Puerto Rico setup time?
It takes quite a lot of time to set up Puerto Rico, especially when switching between games with a different numbers of players; a quarter of an hour I'd say. The problem is that it is rather time ...
17
votes
3answers
582 views
Evaluating tactical situations in Puerto Rico
I've been playing a bit of Puerto Rico against computers (AIs) lately. I'm doing quite well against the easier AIs so I think my overall gameplay isn't so bad but I've realized that I still have ...
14
votes
2answers
319 views
How much should the University cost?
I once read that the main regret in the design of Puerto Rico was over-pricing the University. Anyone have any guesses (or statistical analysis) as to the "correct" price?
13
votes
1answer
312 views
How does tournament-level Puerto Rico deal with seat-order disparities?
It is well-known that there are disparities between the strength of various seats in Puerto Rico. How do tournaments deal with this?
Please give details. I know that some competitions use bidding ...
13
votes
5answers
426 views
Viable, alternative, first round role orders in 5-player Puerto Rico
I'm a big fan of Puerto Rico.
But one thing that bugs me a little bit in my (5 player) games is how stable the first round is, with regards to role choices.
It (almost) always goes:
Settler
...
12
votes
3answers
601 views
Alternatives to the coins supplied in Puerto Rico [closed]
After getting the Rio Grande Treasure Chest for the two Puerto Rico expansions, I want to spice up my set of Puerto Rico a little bit.
Can anyone recommend any good sites where I could get physical ...
12
votes
2answers
108 views
Do the shipping rules restrict my choices if all ships are empty?
Under page 6 of the rules it states.
Loading/shipping rules: When shipping, players must follow these rules:
Each cargo ship will carry goods on only one kind.
Players may not load goods ...
11
votes
1answer
346 views
Can you build the same building more than once in Puerto Rico?
Is one player allowed to build the same building more than once in Puerto Rico? If so, do the bonuses stack, so that a player building both Large Markets would get +4 for trading? I wasn't able to ...
11
votes
1answer
642 views
What Makes Buildings Valuable In Puerto Rico?
I'm just learning the game, so some of my comments may seem ill-informed. But it seems that strategies fall under two categories, a commodity-based strategy and a building-based strategy.
Commodities ...
11
votes
1answer
294 views
In Puerto Rico when using the “residence” how is “occupied island spaces” interpreted?
When playing Puerto Rico and using the residence building it states that it is based on the number of "occupied island spaces".
Does this mean plantation spaces with a farm and a colonist? Or does ...
10
votes
1answer
247 views
Is a player required to ship on a wharf if they are able to?
In Puerto Rico, a player is required to ship as many of one good as they can in turn order.
If a player has a wharf, goods available to ship, and is otherwise unable to ship goods on the available ...
10
votes
3answers
383 views
In Puerto Rico, When should I NOT take a Quarry when I have the opportunity to?
It's fairly easy to choose between the different plantations when the settler phase comes around as you just have to evaluate which you have the production capacity for or which you would be able to ...
9
votes
4answers
2k views
What's the difference between Puerto Rico and San Juan?
I've heard people describe San Juan as Puerto Rico's little brother. What's actually the difference?
How is the game-play changed?
Is it any easier to teach new people?
Is it worth buying if I ...
9
votes
2answers
170 views
In Puerto Rico If only one prospector is chosen during a round, does the other one get a coin placed on it?
If only one prospector is chosen during a round, does the other one get a coin placed on it?
8
votes
7answers
575 views
How difficult is Puerto Rico to learn for first time players?
I've heard a lot of good things about Puerto Rico, but from the 12-page manual it seems a little complex. I revel in the challenge of learning new and difficult games, but sadly the friends I play ...
8
votes
2answers
192 views
Can you select role which gives you money but you can't use it in Puerto Rico?
I have a situation where a player chooses the Trader because it has 5 coins even though he has nothing to sell in the trading house. Can he do it?
8
votes
1answer
96 views
Factory bonus when some supply piles are exhausted
In a recent game of Puerto Rico, I had a Factory with a colonist on it, and I had manned plantations and production buildings to produce four different kinds of goods. However, when the Craftsman was ...
8
votes
1answer
267 views
Clarification on the Royal Garden from Puerto Rico expansion 2
The Royal Garden states:
At game end, the owner of the occupied royal garden takes 1 VP for each noble on his island. As each noble is normally worth 1 VP (whether on a building, plantation or in ...
7
votes
2answers
115 views
Shipping goods on an empty vessel in Puerto Rico
In a recent game of Puerto Rico, I had the following situation. It was shipping time, and I had some corn and some indigo. There already was a ship half full of corn and an empty ship, too. My ...
7
votes
3answers
217 views
When is it a good idea to pick the Craftsman in Puerto Rico?
At first, Craftsman seems like a great pick because it's what actually lets you actually produce goods, and if you're the one to pick it you can often produce more than everyone else. However, ...
6
votes
1answer
67 views
In Puerto Rico, how do you tell whether it is better to trade or to ship a good?
How do you choose between "trading" a good (locally) and shipping it (abroad) when the two actions have rather different reward structures?
How do the relevant roles you might play (craftsman, ...
5
votes
2answers
837 views
What changes or improvement will the Puerto Rico expansion offer me?
Puerto Rico Expansion
My family really liked Puerto Rico, and I'm curious what the expansion is like. The only thing it adds are new buildings and some weird rules for drafting buildings at the ...
4
votes
2answers
83 views
Puerto Rico, 3-player: Which role order in the first round?
What would be the best role choice order for the first round in a 3-player game of Puerto Rico (without extension)?
I often see:
Settler (→ Quarry)
Builder (→ Small Indigo or Small Sugar)
Major ...
4
votes
2answers
1k views
Race for the Galaxy vs. San Juan and Puerto Rico
I've seen these games compared very often, with steadfast advocates on each side (that thread has a lot of interesting stuff as well). I'm mainly concerned with:
depth of strategy
suitability for ...
4
votes
1answer
328 views
Royal Supplier in Puerto Rico Expansion II — is it all or nothing?
The rules for the Royal Supplier state:
The owner of an occupied Royal Supplier can supply the Royal Warehouse (the supply) with a number of goods from his windrose equal to the number of nobles ...
4
votes
2answers
529 views
Countering Villa + Jeweler in Puerto Rico: The Nobles
A while ago I played a game of Puerto Rico with all of the buildings from Expansion II: The Nobles. One of the players pretty much had a run-away game using Villa + Jeweler, and we were pretty much ...
2
votes
1answer
121 views
Puerto Rico - Custom gameplay tweaks to introduce player interactions
We have been playing Puerto Rico for on a regular basis. It's an excellent game, and one of the few well balanced games in buildup genre as:
There is almost no luck factor involved.
All of the ...
0
votes
2answers
160 views
Are there common themes in “settlement” games?
I'm referring to games like Agricola, Puerto Rico, and Settlers of Catan. But a few themes seem to pop up in each game.
One is the importance of brick/stone/wood for building. Without improvements, ...
