# Railways of Portugal ## General Info - **Year Published**: 2019 - **BGG Rating**: 7.9 - **BGG Rank**: — - **Players**: 2-4 (Best with: 3) - **Duration**: 90-120 min - **Weight**: 2.50 / 5 - **Designers**: Vital Lacerda - **Artists**: Ian O'Toole, João Tereso - **Publishers**: Eagle-Gryphon Games - **Categories**: Expansion for Base-game, Trains, Transportation - **Mechanics**: Auction / Bidding, Network and Route Building, Open Drafting, Pick-up and Deliver, Tile Placement ## Verdict If you love railway strategy and logistics, this game will hook you!Compact routes and strong interactionsInnovative Goal cardsChallenging maritime islandsModerate learning curveHigh‑quality componentsHIGHLY RECOMMENDED ## Description Railways of Portugal brings the Railways of the World series to the Iberian Peninsula, featuring a detailed map of Portugal designed by Vital Lacerda. The game blends route planning, railway network construction, and resource management into a 90‑to‑120 minute experience for 2‑4 players. Each game starts with open operation cards that let you buy trains, upgrade tracks, or gain governmental perks. Replacing Baron cards, you receive Goal cards that set long‑term profit and expansion objectives, encouraging strategic depth. The map is tight, with close cities that force quick decisions and heighten player interaction: blocking another’s path can earn you extra points or halt their progress. Offshore islands add a logistical twist, requiring investment in ships and maritime links to access valuable goods. Open auction lets players competitively bid for operation cards or upgrades, while pick‑up and deliver demands efficient route planning to transport goods between cities. Financial balance is key: taking too many bank bonds can collapse your business, so maintaining healthy cash flow is essential. With high‑quality components, well‑balanced rules, and a moderate learning curve, the game offers strategic depth and replayability, ideal for fans of network building, route planning, and resource competition. In short, Railways of Portugal is a robust expansion that preserves the series’ core while adding local challenges, new mechanics, and a design that celebrates Portugal’s railway heritage. If you enjoy network‑building, route‑planning, and resource competition, you’ll fall in love with this rail adventure. ## How to Play Objective of the Game In Railways of Portugal, you're building a railway network across Portugal, a country with a long coastline and crucial island regions like Madeira and the Açores. These islands are vital for trade, exporting luxury products and goods to the mainland. The game is an expansion map for Railways of the World, and your goal is to develop your industry by establishing shipping routes and connecting cities. The player with the highest score on the score track at the end of the game wins. Preparation (Setup) To set up Railways of Portugal, you'll need components from either the Railways of the World base game or the Railways of Nippon base game. Here's how to prepare the game: Place 3 goods cubes in the Açores. Place 3 goods cubes in Madeira. Place 2 goods cubes in each remaining city on the board. Baron cards are replaced by Goal Cards in this expansion. Randomly deal two Goal Cards to each player. Each player then discards one and chooses and hides the other until the end of the game. Although there are no black cities at the start of the game, place the black cubes randomly along with all the rest of the cube colors. Shuffle all 7 Service Bounties and randomly make 4 available at the start of the game. Remove the other 3 Service Bounties from the game. Fluxo do Jogo The game progresses in Turns, with each Turn consisting of three Rounds. Here are some key phases and events that occur during the game: End of each Turn (until Industrial Age): The Açores and Madeira each receive an additional, new random cube, drawn from the bag. This phase is reminded by a symbol on the Turn Phases Chart on the board. Industrial Age: This phase begins as soon as there is a black city tile in play. Once the Industrial Age begins, the Açores and Madeira stop receiving new cubes at the end of each Turn. Ações e Como Jogar Players will take actions during their turn to build their railway network and develop industry. Here are some specific actions and rules for Railways of Portugal: Maritime Connections There are 10 maritime connections on the board, each counting as 1 link for all purposes. As a round action, a player may establish a maritime connection by paying $6 and placing a track marker on one unoccupied connection space. A player may never own more than one connection between Madeira and Sagres. Likewise, a player may never own more than one connection between the Açores and Lisboa. When moving a goods cube between Madeira and Sagres or the Açores and Lisboa, the acting player chooses which of the established connections to use. The owner of the chosen connection earns the income ($1). Connecting to Lisboa Each player can only make one connection to Lisboa per Turn (a Turn consists of three Rounds), whether by land or by sea. The black-outlined hex next to Lisboa is unplayable. Urbanizing Black Cities The cost for urbanizing a black city is $5. Industrial Age Triggers The Industrial Age begins as soon as there is a black city tile in play. This can happen in two ways: A Black City is Urbanized for $5. As soon as there are 3 Empty City Markers on grey cities, you immediately place a black city tile on the grey city hex that just became empty. Do not place any new cubes on this tile as you would during an Urbanizing action. Building Crossover Tracks Players can build crossover track pieces as necessary, but cannot redirect another player’s track. The cost for building crossover tracks is the same as for regular tracks. These may only be built when crossing over an existing section of track, including your own. Fim de Jogo e Pontuação The game ends when a certain number of Empty City Markers are on the board, depending on the number of players: 2 Players: 9 Empty City Markers 3 Players: 10 Empty City Markers 4 Players: 11 Empty City Markers At the end of the game, players reveal and score their hidden Goal Cards if the goal is met. Remember to reduce your score by 1 Victory Point for every bond certificate issued. The player with the high score, as indicated on the score track, is the winner. Dicas para Vencer Consider carefully which Goal Card to keep at the start of the game, as meeting its objective will contribute to your final score. Strategically use maritime connections to expand your network, especially to the Açores and Madeira, as they provide income when other players use your connections. Be mindful of the Industrial Age trigger, as it changes the cube generation for the Açores and Madeira, which can impact your long-term strategy for those regions. ## FAQ ### What is the average game length? Between 90 and 120 minutes, depending on player experience. ### How many players can play? 2 to 4 players, but it works best with 3 or 4 for more interaction. ### What is the complexity level? Medium to high, with detailed rules on auctions, route building, and financial management. ### What components are included? Hexagonal board, track pieces, trains, operation cards, goal cards, money tokens, bank bond tokens, and transport tokens. ### Who is the target audience? Fans of network building, logistics, and economic strategy games, especially those who love railway themes. ### Is there a digital version? Yes, there is an online implementation on Board Game Arena for virtual play. ## Price Comparison ### Best International Offers - **BoardGamePrices.com**: $ 24.04 (https://boardgameprices.com/item/go?source=A&storeitemid=5139256&utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - **BoardGamePrices.com**: $ 25.99 (https://boardgameprices.com/item/go?source=A&storeitemid=6207774&utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - **BoardGamePrices.com**: $ 27.85 (https://boardgameprices.com/item/go?source=A&storeitemid=5139255&utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - **BoardGamePrices.com**: $ 33.49 (https://boardgameprices.com/item/go?source=A&storeitemid=6876545&utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - **BoardGamePrices.com**: $ 43.62 (https://boardgameprices.com/item/go?source=A&storeitemid=4781666&utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - **BoardGamePrices.com**: $ 45.87 (https://boardgameprices.com/item/go?source=A&storeitemid=3438419&utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - **BoardGamePrices.com**: $ 46.35 (https://boardgameprices.com/item/go?source=A&storeitemid=2230981&utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - **BoardGamePrices.com**: $ 49.15 (https://boardgameprices.com/item/go?source=A&storeitemid=2769187&utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - See all on BoardGamePrices: https://boardgameprices.com/item/show/28293/railways-of-portugal?utm_source=boardgamesbot.com