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Pax Porfiriana
2012
Rules assistance for Pax Porfiriana
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
- 1–6 players
- 120 min
- 12+
- Complexity 3.6/5
For 1 player
Rules assistant for Pax Porfiriana
What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Pax Porfiriana is a board game released in 2012 for 1–6 players, 120 minutes per game, and ages 12 and up. It was designed by Phil Eklund, Matt Eklund, and Jim Gutt and its main mechanics are Variable Player Powers, Hand Management, and Take That.
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About the game
Pax Porfiriana – Latin for "The Porfirian Peace" – refers to the 33-year reign of dictator Porfirio Díaz, who ruled Mexico with an iron hand until toppled by the 1910 Revolution. As a rich businessman (Hacendado) in the turbulent pre-revolutionary borderlands of the U.S. and Mexico, players compete to build business empires of ranches, mines, rails, troops, and banks while subverting opponents with bandidos, Native Americans, and lawsuits. Each turn goes as follows: 1. Action Phase: Perform three actions, such as play new cards, get new cards from the market, speculate on cards in the market, buy land, or redeploy troops. 2. Discard Headlines: Remove any Headlines (i.e. cards with the Bull-Bear icon) that have reached the leftmost position in the Market. 3. Restore Market: Restore the Market to twelve cards. 4. Income Phase: Collect one gold per Income, Extortion, and Connection Cube in play. If Depression, pay one gold for each card in play (includes Partners and Enterprises in your Row, and all of your Troops). Four "scoring" cards (Toppling) are in the game and their effect depends on the current form of government. The government can change if troops are played and as a result of other cards. The form of government also influences different production values of the game, such as how much mines produce. Players win by toppling Díaz, either by coup, succession, revolution, or annexation of Mexico by the U.S. If Díaz remains firmly seated at the end of the game, then the player with the most gold wins. Pax Porfiriana includes 220 cards, but only fifty cards (along with ten for each player) are used in a game, so no two games will be the same!
Mechanics
Designers
Publishers
- Ediciones MasQueOca
- Sierra Madre Games
- Ion Game Design
Questions and answers
Pax Porfiriana supports 1–6 players according to the catalogue. This range comes from the publisher’s listed player count, so the game can be set up for any group size within it. Some setups, rules and scoring details may still vary by player count, so check your edition’s rulebook for the exact configuration.
The listed playing time for Pax Porfiriana is 120 minutes. This is the publisher’s estimate for a full game. The actual duration depends on the group, the player count and familiarity with the rules: first sessions usually run longer, while experienced groups often finish faster. Setup and teaching time are not included in this estimate.
The catalogue lists Pax Porfiriana for ages 12 and up. This is the publisher’s recommendation and reflects reading demands, rule complexity and small components rather than theme alone. Younger players can often join with help from an adult, so check the age guidance on your edition and consider your group’s experience with board games.
Pax Porfiriana has a complexity rating of 3.6 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a medium-weight game. The rating reflects how much rules knowledge, planning and decision-making a typical game demands. Expect a longer first teach for heavier games, and use a preparation guide before game night.
Pax Porfiriana belongs to these categories: Card Game, Economic, and Political. Its main mechanics are Variable Player Powers, Hand Management, and Take That. Categories describe the theme and setting of a game, while mechanics describe what players actually do on their turns. Each mechanic links to a catalogue hub with similar games, which helps when you want something comparable.
The credited designers of Pax Porfiriana are: Phil Eklund, Matt Eklund, and Jim Gutt. These credits come from the published game data and name the people responsible for the game’s design, not its illustrators or publishers. Designer pages on MeepleRules collect other titles by the same designers, which helps when you enjoy a game and want to find similar ones.
The catalogue lists Pax Porfiriana as a base game. It can be played on its own with the components in the box and does not require any other title. Expansions, if any exist, add new content or rules on top of it and are listed separately in the catalogue with a link back to this base game.