
- BGG rank
- BGG #3,216
- BGG rating
- 7.7
The Great Battles of Alexander: Deluxe Edition
- 1–4 players
- 240 min
- Complexity 3.6/5
- 1995

Rules assistance for Pyrrhic Victory: King Pyrrhus in Italy 280-279 B.C. – SPQR Battle Module IV
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.

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Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Pyrrhic Victory: King Pyrrhus in Italy 280-279 B.C. – SPQR Battle Module IV is an expansion for SPQR released in 1993 for 2 players and 240 minutes per game. It was designed by Richard H. Berg and Mark Herman and its main mechanics are Dice Rolling, Hexagon Grid, and Movement Points.
"Pyrrhic Victory recreates the first two battles that the Epirote mercenary (and would-be Alexander of the West) Pyrrhus, King of Epirus, fought against the slowly but inexorably expanding Republic of Rome. It was the first time the Roman legions faced the Macedonian tactical system, although the phalanx as a military formation was quite familiar to them. It was also the first time the Romans encountered elephants. Although Pyrrhus appears to have won both encounters (there is some disagreement about the end results at Ausculum), the Epirote casualty rate was so high that it led to the formation of the term 'Pyrrhic victory.'" Battles: Heraclea - 280 BC Ausculum - 279 BC Expansion module for the Great Battles of History (GBoH) series game SPQR.
Pyrrhic Victory: King Pyrrhus in Italy 280-279 B.C. – SPQR Battle Module IV supports 2 players according to the catalogue. This is the publisher’s listed player count, so the game is designed for exactly that number of participants. Variants for other group sizes, if any, are described in the rulebook of your edition, so check it before setting up a different configuration.
The listed playing time for Pyrrhic Victory: King Pyrrhus in Italy 280-279 B.C. – SPQR Battle Module IV is 240 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.
Pyrrhic Victory: King Pyrrhus in Italy 280-279 B.C. – SPQR Battle Module IV has a complexity rating of 3.1 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.
Pyrrhic Victory: King Pyrrhus in Italy 280-279 B.C. – SPQR Battle Module IV belongs to these categories: Wargame, Ancient, and Expansion for Base-game. Its main mechanics are Dice Rolling, Hexagon Grid, and Movement Points. 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 Pyrrhic Victory: King Pyrrhus in Italy 280-279 B.C. – SPQR Battle Module IV are: Richard H. Berg and Mark Herman. 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 Pyrrhic Victory: King Pyrrhus in Italy 280-279 B.C. – SPQR Battle Module IV as an expansion for SPQR. Expansions add new content, rules or scenarios to the base game and usually cannot be played on their own, so you need SPQR to use it. Check that your edition of SPQR is compatible, as some expansions were revised between editions.