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Subject: A Puerto Rico Strategy Guide for Newbies
Update: One of the administrators here at BGG has seen fit to convert this thread (from the beginning through to my last information posting) into a Microsoft Word document and has made it available in the Puerto Rico files section. Here's the link:

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/fileinfo.php?fileid=14293

I've also posted this same link at the end of the transcribed portion of the thread if you decide you want to download it when you get there.

*Note: the Word document is pretty lengthy (36 pages long).

-Enjoy
Mike.

A Puerto Rico Strategy Guide for Newbies

Introduction
This article is an attempt to walk a newer player through the many dynamics and timing issues of Puerto Rico, as well as to help them understand which buildings and roles have more value than others depending on where you are in the game. This is not a discussion about just one aspect of the game or of one particular strategy versus another. Rather, this is my attempt to articulate the many things I’ve learned about Puerto Rico (so far as I’ve played it both in person and on BSW) in a manner that would be helpful for newbies. The suggestions I make deal with the various stages of the game so as to provide a complete overview. Hopefully many of you will find what I have to say helpful.

There have been many excellent articles written by others online concerning Puerto Rico’s finer points and it was from those articles that I began formulating my own strategies. Though many of the timing issues presented in this article (including the “thresholds”, some of the concepts about income, and the importance of certain rounds) are my original concepts, I must respectfully acknowledge that this article does contain some ideas that were not my own originally. In the interest of giving credit where credit is due, I respectfully acknowledge that concepts presented in other posts by Alex “Alexfrog” Rockwell, Jim “icetrey” Campbell, Eric “paeanblack” Nielsen, L S shockXPOW, Ian “jvalj” MacInnes, and lots of other players as well are in some cases repeated here. In some instances in this article I have quoted others almost verbatim and, in other instances, I have interwoven my own ideas with those of others in a different way. So, to be fair, I feel I should acknowledge their contributions before continuing. Please read their articles and comments as well as they have played many more games of Puerto Rico than I have.

In pursuing the goal of a thorough newbie’s guide, I have included lots of structured suggestions in this article with regards to decision making. Though structure is sometimes welcomed by newbies (as it allows them to see how certain plays and series of plays work or don’t work), it is often not welcomed as advice by more experienced players as they have played enough games to see the “exceptions” to the rules and are somewhat averse to structured suggestions. If you are an experienced player reading this article, rather than finding fault because I haven’t articulated the exception to each point, consider that tackling ALL of the theoretical possibilities that may come up all at once may frustrate and annoy a newbie rather than help them improve in their playing. The suggestions made here can be very helpful for a person who is still trying to get a feel for the game. Later on, as a player gains experience, he or she can fully appreciate the “exceptions” ? especially the statistically rare ones.

Now, here we go.



There are usually about 16 rounds in Puerto Rico. I suggest keeping track of the rounds so you will know which stage of the game you are in.

Opening Stage (Rounds 1 through 6)

Goal: Secure a source of income

Money is worth more than victory points in the beginning. Because of this, the Trader is very important in the beginning as are incentive doubloons on roles not taken in the previous round. An early trade of even a small good with bonus doubloons can mean victory as early income leads to better buildings earlier and better buildings earlier can lead to more income throughout the course of the game which results in better building acquisitions throughout the entire game and so forth.

If you are the Governor for the first round, the best opening move is Setter ? Quarry. This is because quarries, if you think about it, are actually a source of income as the discounts they provide are the equivalent of having extra doubloons. An early quarry can yield the equivalent of anywhere from 6 to 8 Doubloons in savings on buildings over the course of the game.

If not Settler ? Quarry, then the next best opening move is Builder - building either a small market (if you produce corn), a small Indigo production plant, or a small Sugar mill depending on your plantation setup. If you have to choose between a market or a quarry as to where a colonist goes, choose quarry unless you know you will be Trading soon and you believe that someone will Mayor before you build again so you can then occupy your quarry for the next Builder phase. Even then, that’s risky because it depends on several things falling into place in the right order. Remember, the market is Trader dependent. A quarry is not.

The Small Market is the building with perhaps the best return-on-investment potential of all the violet buildings as it only costs one and can yield several doubloons in bonuses over the course of the game. If you can acquire it for free (either because of a manned quarry or because of the one doubloon discount privilege you get for choosing the Builder role) then it’s usually best to do it. However, there is an exception. If you don’t have the capacity to produce a good, then you need to establish that capacity first before focusing on either of the markets. This rule is often violated by players because of the opening positions of other players and the attractiveness/scarcity of the small markets. Because at least one player will start out with a corn plantation, the small market is an obvious first buy for that person as corn doesn’t need a production facility to be produced. Once anyone takes the first small market then there is immediate pressure on everyone else to take the second as there are only two small markets and they do offer such great return-on-investment potential. However, if the Builder phase comes up and your plantation set-up at that point necessitates having a production facility first before you can produce a good and you take the small market before you build that production facility, then you have not only delayed your production but you may also have severely lessened the small market’s capacity to be effective for you. This is because you will now need an additional round’s Builder phase to build your facility. Then there is the colonist issue. While you are working towards putting colonists on your plantation, your small production building and your small market, someone else may have already produced the same good you were working on and sold it to a trade house that would now be partially filled as it is still too early in the game for four different types of goods to have been produced yet. In such an instance, your small market has become fairly useless for several more turns until the house fills up with other goods and clears out or until you can establish another type of good and produce it. The simple doubloon produced by an early indigo sale of one player with no market compared with the delay a small market acquisition may impose on a second player can mean the difference in the first player producing a cash crop before the second player. Herein is a great rule made manifest: take the quickest route to production.

The first three plantations will define your game because the first few plantations players are able to acquire usually dictate the crops they go for. The alternative to this philosophy is to wait longer for a specific plantation or plantations and, because of the need to produce quickly, waiting sometimes isn’t worth it. Because of this, the randomness of the first few plantation draws can drastically affect the game. I personally like this because, other than seating order and who the Governor is at first, the only random aspect of Puerto Rico is the plantation draw. And, because the first few draws are so important, that element of randomness keeps Puerto Rico fresh over time rather than it turning into the same game with the same buildings over and over again.

In choosing plantations during early Settler phases, keep in mind that you will usually need to establish at least two “protection goods” (corn, indigo, and/or sugar) before you can safely establish and produce a “cash crop” (tobacco or coffee). If you are playing with experienced players and you produce a cash crop without having protection goods, then you will coerced into shipping your cash crop early (which eliminates its monetary value). Each time you produce it again, someone will Captain you out of it if there is still a boat allocated for it. This is because the victory points you would gain early on from having your cash crop shipped are nothing compared with the early money you would be loosing out on. If you only produce one type of protection good, then it still may not help as the boat for that type of good may fill up before it’s your turn to ship. If there is still an open boat at that point then say goodbye to your cash crop. So, it is usually best to have two protection goods established before you man your cash crop plantation and facility.

In producing “protection” goods, keep in mind that there have to be at least three unique types of goods in addition to your cash crop produced amongst all of the players for the three boats to fill up. In other words, not necessarily you, but someone in the game has to be producing either sugar or a different cash crop than yours for your cash crop to have adequate protection. If everyone produces only indigo and corn and then there’s you with your cash crop, then your cash crop will get shipped because of a third open boat.

If you choose to take a cash crop plantation in an early Settler phase, then it’s best when that is the only plantation of its kind available in the draw when you take it. Otherwise, someone else may choose a duplicate plantation and go for the same cash crop as you early on which can hurt your trading opportunities.

Try to produce a cash crop no one else is producing. If you have to choose between tobacco and coffee, see if you have enough doubloons (or will have enough doubloons) to get Coffee out within the same amount of game time as you would Tobacco. If it is the Building phase and you are one doubloon short of building a Coffee Roaster, then it may not be worth it to wait the extra round to establish coffee if you can establish tobacco now (remember, take the quickest route to production). However it may be worth it to wait the extra round if someone else has already set themselves up for Tobacco. But, in choosing which cash crop to go for, do not produce the same cash crop as the person to your right if you can avoid it. Otherwise, they will be in the position to trade their crop before yours (unless you waste lots of precious, early money on an office, or, you just so happen to be the one who can take the Trader and go first). If someone else has the same cash crop as you and they trade before you can, early shipping alone usually won’t make up the difference in victory points their early money will afford them down the road. You will need some early money from somewhere else (such as a fortunate trading house clearing and you being able to choose the Trader in the next round so you can trade your cash crop in the early stage as well) to buy the necessary buildings to compete in the game. If you cannot get money quickly enough to produce either coffee or tobacco, then sugar may be a viable alternative to help you get to those crops via trading.

The beginning stage of the game is the time for diversification, not specialization, in production. If you have at least three unique plantations (two for protection and one for a cash crop), an additional plantation for your cash crop is not available, and corn is not available, then it’s usually best to take something you don’t already have (if available). This is because increased diversity tends to give you more options ? especially if you acquire a factory or a harbor. Later on, you will want additional plantations of your current goods for shipping purposes in the Mid and End Game stages. At that point, it’s usually (not always but usually) best to take corn whenever its available because it’s the cheapest way to victory points.

Producing one indigo and/or one sugar in the Opening stage of the game is a very cost effective way to protect your cash crop in the Captain phase and get more money in the long run through more options in the Trading house and through a potential factory if you purchase one. However, spending precious early money on a Large Indigo Plant or Large Sugar plant in the opening stage of the game is not cost effective as neither one gives you more income potential than its smaller version. The Large Indigo and Large Sugar buildings are best suited for the purpose of producing more goods for more victory points in the Mid-Game and End-Game shipping phases. In the opening stage of the game, the extra Doubloons of expense for a large indigo plant or large sugar plant, compared with their smaller versions, are better put to use in acquiring either a factory, more production buildings for goods not yet developed, or markets (remember, income now yields more victory point potential later when compared with the reward of having extra shipped goods now). The time will come in the Mid-Game and End-Game stages when purchasing the Large Indigo and Large Sugar production buildings will be effective because of the shift in focus away from income to victory points that occurs in those stages. By going for shipping victory points as a focus in the Opening stage, you lessen your income potential throughout the game and others with superior income potential will outrun you in points before the game is over.


Because of the focus on income in the Opening stage, “Money” buildings are what you should build for now. They are:

The Small Market (build this if you already have the capacity to produce a good or goods)

Small Indigo plant

Small Sugar mill

Tobacco plant

Coffee roaster

Factory (This building is usually more cost effective than trying to build a second cash crop production facility if there is a choice between those two options.)

Hacienda (This building allows you to take the Settler role and get Quarries without sacrificing precious early plantations. It also gives you early plantation flexibility. This building is one you might purchase if it is a building round and you anticipate a future trade or incentive doubloons will give you enough doubloons for a more effective money building regardless of whether you buy this building now or not.)

Large Market (This building works well if both Tobacco and Coffee are being produced by others, but, typically it is not a first choice building.)

Construction Hut (This can work in a 5-player game when someone else has chosen the Hacienda or Hospice because they will be prone to choose the Settler. It can also work in games where experienced players will make each other ship their cash crops. However, don’t choose quarries at the expense of acquiring potential cash crop plantations. Quarries alone won’t help you enough. You need cash crops to trade. Thus, the Hacienda is usually superior to a Construction Hut. Again, this building is one you might purchase if it is a building round and you anticipate a future trade will give you enough doubloons for a more effective building regardless of whether you buy this building or not.)

Office (This is usually what is referred to as a “remedial” building in that it is more like a repair rather than an upgrade. The office is expensive compared to its benefit. Usually it is much more cost effective to actively try to avoid producing the same cash crop as another player rather than spending money on an office just so you can trade. There are times when it is effective but usually it is not a great purchase.)



Concerning the Mayor: Players have a certain apprehension about taking the Mayor even though it helps them man their buildings. This is because if you take it, it allows the players who follow after you to man their buildings as well and, thus, can give them more options than they would have had in their role choices if you had not taken the Mayor. Usually, the Mayor is best taken when the colonist ship is “unbalanced” ? meaning, even without the extra colonist privilege that comes with choosing the Mayor, you would still get more colonists than some or all of your opponents because of the number of colonists on the ship and the number of players in the game. (e.g. There are three players and there are four colonists on the ship. You would get two off the ship ? not counting your extra colonist from choosing the Mayor - while everyone else would get only one). If the colonist ship is unbalanced and there is a bonus doubloon on the Mayor, then it becomes a pretty good role choice as it would tend to help you more than your opponents in many situations ? especially if you have several helpful buildings that are lacking colonists. Even if you don’t have buildings for all of them, the extras can be held in reserve for rearranging in a future Mayor phase where you may happen to get the short end of the stick on colonists compared with everyone else. Nevertheless, you will have to weigh the consequences of helping others when you choose to take this role.

Concerning building: If someone else chooses the Builder, you are short on doubloons for a better building, but a doubloon or two spent right now will not necessarily hurt you because of anticipated future income, then build something small (e.g. hacienda, construction hut, etc..) Little purchases can greatly help in overall building victory points so long as they do not compromise your larger, more important purchases. They also give you more options for left over colonists if someone mayors and you have already filled your more important buildings. Usually (not always, but usually), you will not want to let a building phase go by without building at least something if you can help it. The Hacienda is usually the best “cheap” building to build in such situations because of the potential early plantation variety it can offer.


*For perspective’s sake, let’s clarify some ideas about income before moving on.

Income is used for only two purposes:
1. Purchasing buildings
2. Breaking ties at the end of the game if they come up (which is rare).

There are six sources of income in Puerto Rico:
1. The doubloons you receive at the beginning of the game
2. Quarries (They operate the same as doubloons in that they help pay for buildings).
3. The doubloons you receive from trading (including any potential bonus doubloons that come from either choosing the Trader or having markets)
4. Incentive doubloons on roles not taken in the previous round.
5. Factory doubloons produced when someone chooses to Craft.
6. The doubloon you receive from taking the Prospector (assuming there are enough players for there to be any Prospector roles used)


*Concerning Quarries:
-Quarries are a form of income. Unlike Markets and the Factory, they function independent of the Trader and independent of goods production which is very helpful. Having one manned quarry acts as a valuable income source in the form of a one doubloon discount off the price of buildings in all four columns on the board. The earlier you man that first quarry the better because it will pay off for more rounds over the course of the game.

-After your first quarry, additional quarries have diminishing returns. If you acquire a second quarry, it only gives you a discount on three of the four columns of buildings (the second, third, and fourth). That is a 25% reduction in effectiveness. Plus, a second quarry would be acquired some time after the first which means that it would be acquired a little further into the game ? thus, it would have fewer rounds than your first quarry to provide discounts. A third quarry would only provide discounts on the column 3 buildings and column 4 big buildings which, in total, now represent only half the board. Also, the third quarry would be acquired even later into the game and would have even fewer rounds to work for you compared to your second and your first quarry acquisitions. A fourth quarry only provides discounts on big buildings. Unless you purchase more than one big building, your fourth quarry is only worth the equivalent of one doubloon. If the game ends before you can purchase any big buildings, then a fourth quarry acquisition would end up as a wasted move.

-One quarry (or perhaps two) taken in the Opening stage can be very valuable but taking a third or fourth quarry in the Opening is an ineffective move. Such acquisitions belong in the Mid and End-Game stages. Instead, choose a variety of plantations that allow you to produce several types of goods over several turns for more flexibility with trading in the trading house and to protect your cash crop production. If you go exclusively for quarries early and you neglect to acquire a cash crop plantation, you may find yourself not being able to produce enough money in the course of the game to afford many third and/or fourth column buildings even with the discounts provided by third and fourth quarry acquisitions.

-If you are the Governor on the first round, the most effective opening move is to go Settler ? Quarry because that first quarry pays off a lot. However, keep the dynamic of diminishing returns in mind as you consider taking future quarries. Try to visualize how many building rounds your next quarry would benefit you over the course of the game (you need to know which round you are on to do this) and compare that benefit with the other options for money production in the current round. If you are choosing between the two, a Tobacco plantation could yield you four eventual doubloons in the trading house while a fourth quarry would maybe yield only one.


As a last word before moving on to the next stages of the game, note that anytime you are the Governor, you will need to make your role choice a good one as everyone else will get two role choices each before you get to make another selection.


-----------------------

The First “Threshold” - Rounds 6 (end of opening phase) through Round 8

Goal: Determine when to shift your focus from income potential to point potential.

These three rounds are an important threshold because it is in these rounds where the game can be won or lost very easily. You must determine when you have established enough potential income for the rest of the game in terms of potential cash crop production, potential upgraded trading with markets, and/or potential Doubloon production through an operational factory. Once you have determined that you have reached that threshold and that you have enough income potential to sustain you through the rest of the game, you will need to shift your focus from purchasing “Money” buildings to “Points” buildings.

If you delay your purchase of “Points” buildings in favor of more “Money” buildings beyond this threshold, then your “Money” buildings won’t have enough time to pay off properly in terms of providing you the income to acquire “Points” buildings in time. Points buildings need to be purchased early enough to be manned so they can return points for a greater number of rounds if they are to provide a hefty enough advantage.


The two major “Points” buildings are:
-The Harbor (which allows you further points through shipping bonuses. It works best with a diversity in good production.)
-The Wharf (which allows you further points through shipping additional goods of one type. It works best with a specialization in good production.)

If you anticipate future building purchases leaning more towards increased diversity, go with the Harbor. If you see yourself focusing on a more concentrated form of good production where you go for heavy production in a specific area (like corn, indigo, or sugar), go with the Wharf.

A major “Points” building usually needs to be purchased and manned by Round 9 to be effective. Round 9 may not always be the critical round but, as a general rule, it is very helpful to think it as the “deadline” for a major point building acquisition.


Other smaller “Points” buildings include:

The Small Warehouse (It allows you to get further points by “saving” goods that would otherwise have spoiled ? thus allowing those goods to count as points in a later shipping round. Usually this is purchased if you are near round 9 but don’t anticipate having the money for a wharf soon enough.)

Large Indigo Plant (for increased indigo production. More barrels equals more potential victory points - assuming you can ship them. A wharf or warehouse is advisable to have before trying to build this building lest the extra indigo you produce ends up spoiled at the end of the next Captain phase. Also, the large plants - both Indigo and Sugar - can pay off in bonus points if you purchase the Guild Hall later on.)

Large Sugar Mill (again, for increased production and, again, a wharf or warehouse is advisable to have first. Large Sugar helps you if you become the Guild Hall owner as well.)

Large Warehouse (comparing function to price, its usually best to wait and try to afford a wharf rather than purchase this building. It’s just too expensive.)


It is during these threshold rounds that you may consider passing instead of building during a building phase in the interest of saving money for a major “points” building acquisition. One example of this concept would be if you have a healthy diversity of goods and the capacity to afford a 7 doubloon building (like the factory), yet you choose to pass because you know that buying the factory during the current round would delay the purchase and manning of a harbor or a wharf until after Round 9 (maybe even round 11 or 12). The extra income a factory would produce is definitely attractive, but the idea of the threshold is that points are becoming more valuable. If you can purchase both a “money” building (like the factory, a large market, a second cash crop production facility, etc.) AND still have enough income for a “points” building before round 9, then doing both is optimal. The trick is knowing when you will have to sacrifice more potential income in money building purchases in favor of the extra victory point potential a “points” building can offer you. It is very hard to know when to make the switch if you don’t know what round you are on. It can also be complicated by how much income your opponents have. If they are close to acquiring major “points” buildings as well, then they may force you to buy one a bit earlier than the threshold of the current game dictates as you will want to make sure you acquire what you need before it’s bought out by the other players.

If you cannot acquire a major “points” building by the end of Round 9, you will more than likely need to adopt more of a building strategy that centers around multiple Big Building acquisition rather than focusing on a shipping strategy ? especially if an opponent has acquired and manned a points building by Round 9. We will discuss implementing a builder strategy in a moment.

One last point about the first threshold: If you have established diversity while making sure to establish your cash crop and you build a factory while there is still enough time to acquire and build a “points” building before round 9, then you have severely lessened your own “Craftsman Fear”. (“Craftsman Fear” is Alexfrog’s concept). Just like the apprehension that can come from choosing the Mayor, Craftsman Fear is the awareness that taking the Craftsman helps the player to your left the most and, usually, you the least. This is because you would be the last or next to last to trade or ship if the person to your left chooses those roles. By taking the Craftsman, you give the players that follow after you more options than they would have had otherwise. Because experienced players know this, the Craftsman will often be avoided unless there are several incentive doubloons (2 or 3) on it. If you have diversity in good production and you have built the factory, you will be able to craft on occasion to take advantage of the incentive doubloons left on the Craftsman role while also producing additional doubloons through your factory. Then, the trading house becomes less important and the extra good you produce as a result of the privilege for taking the Craftsman role can turn into an extra victory point through shipping ? assuming you can ship since you would probably be the last to do so after crafting. (Remember, there are only six possible sources of income and the factory alone represents one of those six.)


The Mid-Game Stage (Rounds 6 through 12)

Goal: Acquire points and point potential.

After passing the first threshold of the game, doubloons and victory points are slightly equal with victory points becoming progressively more important with each passing round.

If you are more of a builder, you will still be using the Trader quite a bit in an attempt to secure more income with which to buy, hopefully, multiple Big Buildings. This is because multiple Big Buildings can provide enough extra victory points to compensate for your lack in shipping. Also, Big Buildings fill up your city faster which helps to end the game before the shippers are able to outstretch you with enough shipping victory points. The problem is that shipper opponents will not want to trade their smaller goods. At this stage in the game, they are more interested in keeping them and converting them into victory points rather than money because they have already acquired their major “points” buildings to help them in the shipping phase. When you choose to build, they will simply build lots of smaller buildings with their smaller amounts of doubloons in order to keep you from completely out-distancing them in building points. Thus, the Trading House will not fill up as quickly which can prevent multiple trades of your cash crops.

If you are more of a shipper, you will still use the trader occasionally when it is very economically advantageous to do so ? meaning you can sell one of your cash crops for several doubloons. However, near the end of the Mid-Game stage, you may actually start shipping your cash crop. Doing so “reserves” a boat for you - assuming the other players have not managed to also produce your cash crop. It also serves to further reduce your “Craftsman Fear” ? especially if you have a working factory. If you can produce an extra good for yourself that you and you alone can ship while also acquiring doubloons through a factory and bonus doubloons from incentives on the “dreaded” craftsman role, you can do a lot for yourself at once. Because victory points have become equal to (if not slightly more important than) doubloons at this stage of the game, the extra good from the Craftsman represents a potential extra victory point. Not having a factory combined with not having a reserved boat or boats for goods unique to you makes the Craftsman VERY unattractive (even with lots of bonus doubloons on it) because you probably won’t be able to trade your goods or even ship them. At worst, many of your goods may just spoil after an unsuccessful Captain phase if you don’t have a warehouse. If you do take the Craftsman in such an unfavorable scenario, you may gain a few incentive doubloons for your trouble in the short term but you give your opponents the resources they need to outrun you in the long term.

If you are a shipper and you do trade a good, it will probably be a good for which there is not currently (nor will there be in the near future) a boat for shipping. In other words, if you do not trade that good, it will probably spoil anyway. The advantage of this is that a few doubloons (combined with any other income potential you have already secured in the opening rounds - such as the factory or quarries) will supply you with enough money to buy smaller buildings during the builder phases in the interest of simply getting the victory points for the buildings in question. Assuming you have already purchased a major “points” building, you won’t necessarily need those smaller buildings’ functions ? just their points so you can stay up on building points with opponents who are focusing on building.

Usually, you will buy the cheapest building within a given point range if you are buying buildings simply for their points. (e.g. The Tobacco Storage is the cheapest three point building.) If there is a choice between two buildings, recognize that “money” building privileges may be past the point of effectiveness while “points” buildings may still have some relevance. In many ways, as the game progresses, the smaller, lesser priced buildings’ only purposes become the victory points you receive for having bought them. Also recognize that, if you are focusing on making your goods count for shipping victory points, you probably will not have very much if any effective trading in the End-Game. Thus, you will need to stretch what little money you have out into enough smaller building purchases to keep a builder-opponent from overcoming your shipping point lead with lots of building points.

There is one exception that would prevent you from adopting the “cheaper building purchase” path. If you have one major points building (like, say, the Harbor) and, by saving your money instead of building in the current round, you can afford the other (the Wharf) before the end of round 11 (assuming one is available), it will be able to pay off in a complimentary fashion with your first “point” building for additional bonus points in the End Game rounds (e.g. You already have a manned Harbor. You purchase a Wharf on round 11. You man your Wharf on round 11 or round 12. You can now use the Wharf to not only get extra points for four, maybe five, rounds by shipping extra goods but it also allows your Harbor to work more for you as well).

If you are a builder, your focus for the mid-game might include a continued focus on acquiring quarries (if there are still any left) during the Settler phases. This is because, not only do you need to build, you need quicker income to build in greater numbers and sizes than your shipping opponents. Quarries allow you to do that without spending more doubloons. In terms of actual buildings, some (like, say, the Large Market or the Office) may pay off only once (if you’re lucky and can man them quickly) at this point in the game and may simply not be worth it when compared to their expense.

Regardless of whether you are a shipper or a builder, when the Captain occurs, you will not want to put goods that are produced in greater quantities by your opponents on the larger boats. If you do have to place such goods on boats, you will do so on the smaller boats so your opponents cannot use their greater production capacity to its full extent.

If you are a shipper and you have a threat in the form of a builder opponent, you may resist the temptation to trade goods when the opportunity arises even if doing so would be economically helpful to you. The scenario for this move would be if trading a good matters in clearing out a partially filled Trading House. If the Trading House stays partially filled (especially if it is with all of the goods a builder opponent can currently produce), the Trading House is rendered quite ineffective to that builder until someone else trades and clears it or until the Builder manages to establish an additional good for production. Remember, builders still need the Trading House as they are still focusing on income while you, as a shipper, are focusing more on victory points. The extra doubloons a trade for you would afford may actually give your builder opponent a fighting chance if the Trading House clears and they are able to trade their cash crop again. Also, at this stage of the game, you will have probably put your cash crop (which is more than likely different from theirs) on a boat to secure an exclusive or semi-exclusive source of shipping victory points. By trading one barrel of that good, you might be giving up not only future trades to a builder opponent but also a potential victory point.


The Second “Threshold” - Rounds 11 through 13

Goal: Deciding which Big Building or Buildings to buy.

This second threshold is important because, rather than buying more “points” buildings, you now shift your focus to affording “bonus point” buildings. If you can’t buy a “bonus point” building or Big Building during this time period and you have to wait until Rounds 13 through 16 to buy one, you may not get the particular Big Building that optimizes how your game setup evolved. Someone else may snag it first. Also, if you can’t buy a Big Building until after this threshold (Round 13 on) then the game may abruptly end before you can man it with a colonist? causing you to loose out on that building’s bonus points. (One exception to this is if you were producing lots of money in the Mid-Game and you saw that you could afford the University with time to spare for buying a Big Building before the game ended. However, the two “colonist” buildings - the University and the Hospice - are usually hard to justify in pretty much any context because their expense outweighs their reward. If you could have afforded a University and a Big Building, you more than likely would have been better off waiting and trying to afford two Big Buildings instead.)

If you are a shipper, the goal will be to max out on extra points off of one Big Building (usually the Customs House). This is because you aren’t still focusing on trading to acquire doubloons for a second big building. Hopefully, you will have placed your previously monopolized cash crop on a slow filling boat so that you have an exclusive victory point source in the Captain phases at the end of the game. Most likely, if you are a shipper, one Big Building will be all that you can actually afford before the game is over.

If you are a builder, you must focus on getting a Big Building earlier on in these threshold rounds if you are to allow yourself the time to trade and acquire enough income after your first Big Building purchase to purchase a second Big Building (or even a third) or to purchase lots of smaller buildings to help out a purchased Guild Hall or City Hall. If a heavy shipper gets the Customs House (or, to lesser extents, the Guild Hall or City Hall) and mans it before the game is over, you will HAVE to have at least two Big Buildings (if not three) and man them to make up the point differential from shipping that will have occurred throughout the game in the shipper’s favor. Otherwise, the shipper’s bonus points from their Big Building and your bonus points from your single Big Building will roughly cancel each other out and your opponent’s shipping points will put him or her ahead.

If you acquire the Guild Hall or City Hall early, then taking the Builder role repeatedly may force your opponents to have to make hard choices. In other words, they may feel pressured to build something rather than let a current Builder round pass unused. Such pressure can motivate your opponents to build smaller buildings even when they would be better off passing in the interest of saving enough money for a future Big Building purchase. If they consistently succumb to your pressure, you may be able to prevent them from ever acquiring enough money to purchase a big building.

Usually, the way the game has evolved for you will dictate which big building is the best purchase. Most of the time, you will only have one big building - either because you can’t afford more than one, or because others can as well and the result is that all of them will be purchased before you can purchase a second.


Scenarios for the Big Buildings:

-If you have secured enough income potential in the opening rounds of the game such that you can buy (or have already bought) several production buildings, then the Guild Hall works well. In fact, the Guild Hall is the most popular big building selection as it can compound sizable extra bonus points fairly quickly. (e.g. The Large Indigo Plant and Large Sugar Mill are cheap purchases compared to the quick, multiple points they can award you near the end.)

-The City Hall is a good choice if you bought lots of small violet buildings all along the way in the interest of not letting building rounds go by without purchasing something.

*Note: Usually the Guild Hall and the City Hall do not work well together. The space taken up in your city by production facilities to feed bonus points into the Guild Hall will tend to prevent you from buying more violet buildings to feed points into the City Hall and vice versa. Essentially, if you have both, then you will have to choose which big building to help in each Builder phase as there is no building that you can acquire which supplies victory points to both Halls at th