How Do You Use The Craftsman Role In Puerto Rico?
Craftsman is probably the most pivotal role in the whole game of Puerto Rico. Without the production of barrels, the whole game would come to a halt, since it’s the entire purpose for all the plantations, production buildings, and some of the purple buildings. It’s also the only way to get money aside from Prospecting, and the only way to get victory points aside from building. In spite of this, Craftsman is often a bad role to choose. Ask yourself if you really need to choose Craftsman. Nine times out of ten, choosing Craftsman will be a mistake. Unless you have a very strong reason to choose Craftsman (discussed in Steps 4 and 5), you should strongly consider picking another role instead. The extra barrel benefit rarely makes up for the opportunity cost of another role. Figure out if you are likely to be put in a bad position if the player after you chooses Captain or Trader. By choosing Craftsman, you give lots of barrels to all your opponents, thus empowering them to choose Captain
