Settlers Of Catan        

Category: Strategy / Civilization Ages: 10+ Players: 3-4 Play Time: 0.5 – 1.0 Hours Published By: Mayfair Games Awards Received: Spiel des Jahres (Game of the Year), Deutscher Spiele Preis (1st Place), Origins Award (Best Fantasy or Science Fiction Board Game)

Description Of The Settlers Of Catan
The Settlers of Catan is a popular strategy game that creatively combines player interaction with dice play. The players play the part of settlers whose goal is to establish a colony on the rich but uninhabited island of Catan. The board is made up of several hexagonal pieces that can be fitted differently each time, promising a new game each time The Settlers of Catan is played. The hexes represent core resources like ore, grain, wool, brick and lumber. The players try to establish their empire by clever trading aided by luck. Players can trade with each other, buying what they need and selling their surplus. Cards are used to represent different resources and strategic trading is encouraged. Development cards are issued on the successful completion of building of roads, bridges and the like

The intervention of a robber adds an element of interest. Players use the robber to steal from each other. Victory points are awarded on the completion of certain specific achievements and the first player to accumulate ten victory points is declared the winner. One game of The Settlers of Catan takes about an hour to complete, making it an ideal family game.

The huge success of The Settlers of Catan has resulted in a series of variations of the game. After the original four-player game in 1995 there was an expanded version that accommodated two more players in 1999. To add variety there was the advent of The Seafarers of Catan in 1997 which encompassed several small islands. The next in the series was The Cities and Knights of Catan which included action in the form of defense from invasions. The game’s popularity saw a 3D collector’s edition and a book on the game, hit the market. The next version arrived in 2005 with an additional resource – fish, added to the game. This version was named the Fishers of Catan. In the year 2006 a river was added to the island.

The theme of The Settlers of Catan became very popular and the same theme was used to bring out a cards version of the game. The card mix dealt out to players determines their area of sovereignty to begin with, and the subsequent card play and dice play is used to acquire resources that are traded to gain victory points which are the ultimate aim of the game.

Originally made with instructions and play aids in German, The Settlers of Catan is now available in 24 languages.

Review Of The Settlers of Catan

The Settlers of Catan games owe their immense popularity to the various strategies involved in the game. The use of concepts like making the best use of resources, making decisions at the right moment and pushing for development whenever possible, keeps the game fresh and fun. Parents find this aspect of The Settlers of Catan very appealing. The game mechanics may sound complicated but even children as young as seven and eight learn it easily after seeing the game being played. Players typically won’t spoil each other’s chances as there are many ways of collecting victory points. As each play session is different due to the board being set in different ways, players seldom get bored of playing The Settlers of Catan.