When you first step into the gritty, 1920s Sicilian countryside of the hit mafia RPG, you’ll quickly learn no faction commands more fear and loyalty than the Padrino Pack Mafia the Old Country. I’ve spent 120+ hours playing through every faction quest line, and I can say without a doubt that aligning with the Padrino Pack is the most rewarding path for players who love deep story beats and high-stakes group gameplay. Most new players make the mistake of rushing their first meeting with the Padrino, missing out on hidden side quests and exclusive gear that only unlocks if you make the right choices early on. In this guide, I’ll break down everything you need to know to get the most out of your time with the pack, from core lore to avoidable missteps.
Core Origins of the Padrino Pack Mafia the Old Country
The Padrino Pack didn’t start as the ruthless crime syndicate you see in the game’s main timeline. Its founder, Vittorio “The Old Bull” Rizzo, built the group in 1912 to protect local farming families from corrupt landowners and rival gang incursions from Palermo. I was shocked when I found the hidden letter collectible in Rizzo’s childhood cottage that explains he never wanted to enter the criminal trade, but had no choice after police took bribes to look the other way when his brother was killed by a landowner’s enforcers. That backstory is why most of the pack’s early quests focus on protecting local villagers, not shaking them down for cash, which is a big departure from other factions in the game. You’ll only unlock this origin side quest if you refuse to take the 500 lira bribe from the Palermo gang during your first village mission, so keep that in mind when you reach that point. This strict value system is what makes the Padrino Pack Mafia the Old Country feel far more realistic than other fictional mafia factions in similar games.
Key Ranks and Roles Within the Padrino Pack
Unlike other factions that let you climb ranks purely by completing kill missions, the Padrino Pack prioritizes loyalty and community contribution above all else. I’ve seen players grind 20+ kill quests thinking they’ll get a promotion, only to be passed over for someone who spent that same time helping villagers repair their homes after a storm. Each rank comes with unique perks, but you have to meet specific unspoken requirements to unlock them:
- Soldato (Entry Rank): You get access to the pack’s safe houses and discounted weapons from their smuggling network, but you can’t take on independent jobs without approval from a captain. To unlock this, you have to complete 3 village protection quests and pass the loyalty test where you refuse to snitch on the pack to the local sheriff.
- Capo (Mid Rank): You get to lead your own small crew of 3 NPCs, and you keep 70% of the profits from any jobs you run, instead of the 30% you get as a soldato. You’ll only get promoted to this rank if you don’t kill any innocent civilians during your first 10 pack missions, even if the game gives you the option to.
- Consigliere (Top Rank, Excluding Padrino): You get a seat at the pack’s decision table, and you can influence major story choices, including whether the pack goes to war with the Palermo syndicate or signs a truce. This is the only rank that unlocks the alternate good ending for the entire game, so it’s worth putting in the extra work to get there.
Don’t make the mistake I did on my first playthrough, where I took a random side job robbing a village bakery for extra cash, and lost my shot at becoming consigliere for 15 more hours of gameplay. The pack tracks every choice you make, even the small ones that seem irrelevant at the time. These small, consistent choices are what set members of the Padrino Pack apart from members of more chaotic factions like the Palermo street gang.
Common Mistakes to Avoid With the Padrino Pack
After talking to 20+ other regular players in the game’s official Discord, I’ve compiled the most common mistakes that new players make when interacting with the Padrino Pack, most of which can set your progress back hours if you don’t catch them early. First, never lie to the Padrino when he asks you for a progress report on a mission. I tried to cover up the fact that I lost a shipment of olive oil to a rival gang once, and he cut my pay by 50% for three missions, even though I recovered the shipment the next day. Honesty is always the best policy with the pack, even if it means admitting you messed up, because they value trust over perfect mission results. Second, don’t kill any members of the Rizzo family, even if a side quest from another faction offers you a huge reward for it. The only exception is if you’re following the secret villain playthrough, but even that locks you out of all Padrino Pack content permanently. Third, don’t skip the weekly pack meetings that pop up on your map every Sunday in-game. They only take 5 minutes to complete, and you get exclusive intel on upcoming jobs and rare gear drops that you can’t get anywhere else. I skipped three meetings once because I was focused on grinding side quests, and I missed out on a free rare shotgun that was only given out to players who attended that specific meeting.
How to Unlock the Exclusive Padrino Pack Ending
The Padrino Pack has one of the most satisfying alternate endings in the entire game, but less than 12% of players have unlocked it, according to the latest in-game achievement data. To get it, you have to hit consigliere rank, refuse all bribes from the Palermo syndicate throughout the entire playthrough, and convince the Padrino to retire and pass control of the pack to you instead of his hot-headed son, Luca. Luca wants to start a bloody war with the Palermo syndicate that will kill half the village population, so if you convince the Padrino to pick you instead, you can negotiate a truce that protects the village and lets the pack run their smuggling operations without any violence. The key to convincing the Padrino to pick you is to complete all 8 hidden village side quests before you reach the final mission, because that proves you care more about the community than power or profit. I missed two of those side quests on my first playthrough, so I had to restart from the halfway point to unlock the ending, which was a huge pain. The ending gives you a permanent 20% discount on all in-game purchases, plus a unique character skin that lets other players know you completed the hardest faction path in the game. Even if you don’t care about the cosmetics, the truce ending opens up 10+ extra post-game side quests that let you help expand the pack’s legitimate business operations across the island.
Whether you’re playing for the story, the exclusive gear, or the high-stakes group gameplay, aligning with the Padrino Pack Mafia the Old Country is easily the most immersive path in the game. You don’t have to be a perfect player to get the most out of the faction, but taking the time to learn their values and avoid common missteps will save you hours of frustration and help you unlock content most players never get to see. Next time you load up the game, take a few extra minutes to talk to the villagers near the pack’s headquarters, you never know what hidden quest or useful tip you’ll find.
