Mayfair The Settlers of Catan Board Game

This is a game which was originally published in Germany as Die Siedler von Catan, where it has sold several million units and has many expansionsand variants available. In fact, I am told that this game is the(worldwide) 3rd best selling game of the last decade. It's really a shameit hasn't quite reached the American mass market.

It's a game aboutbuilding and trade. Each player builds settlements that can produce some ofthe 5 resources Ore, Wheat, Wool, Wood, and Bricks which can then beused to build roads and more settlements to expand your kingdom or upgradeyour settlements to cities to increase their production. The thing thatreally makes the game is that there is always a hot commodities market,with players trading to trade resources they don't need in exchange forthose that are more useful for their game strategy; each resource is usefulin different combinations for building different things.

This is a prettysimple game that even younger kids should be able to handle. Anybody whocan play Monopoly can play this game, and believe me, they'll have a muchbetter time with the Settlers of Catan (you can even buy an expansion tohandle up to 6 players).

A lot of people I know are somewhat daunted bythis game because even though it's very straightforward, it's a bitdifferent from your average American game. I speculate that the reason forthis is that the Germans have a thriving mass game market, with a number ofcompeting companies, while the US mass board game market is essentiallymonopolized by a single company, Hasbro. So while we are busy playingvarious Monopoly knock-offs, the Germans have benefitted from tremendousdevelopment. In terms of family entertainment, the rather small amount ofeffort it will take to embrace the Settlers of Catan will be well spent.And if you like it, it's just the tip of the iceberg. There are literallyhundreds of extrememly high-quality family games coming out of Germany andEurope these days (although admittedly Settlers of Catan is among thebest).

Settlers of Catan is a very unique game. It is very easy to learn but hard to master the subtleties of the game. It has several things that make this game unique. The main thing that makes this game unique is that the board can be different each time you play the game. The five land types that each produce a different resource are shuffled each time you play the game. So the board ends up being different each time the game is played.

Another variable is the numbers that you lay down on the land types. The numbers are also shuffled each time. When you roll the dice, what ever number comes up, the land or lands with that number on it produce their resource regardless of who's turn it is. So you opponents can actually help you on their turn.

A third variable is ports. If you have a settlement on a port you can trade two of one type of resource you have for one you need with the bank. Normally you have to trade four of one resource, to get the one resource you want if none of the other players are willing to make a trade with you.

The fourth variable is the thief. Anytime someone rolls a seven on the dice, they get to move the thief off off the property that he is on, and move it to any other piece of property and to take away one card at random from the hand of any players that have a settlement on that property. The thief automaticly steals what ever is produced on that piece of land for as long as he is there. This denys your opponents precious recources that they need to build roads,settlements, citys, and buy development cards.

Development cards are soldier cards that you can buy to chase off the thief off your property and on to one of your opponents properties. Another type of development card is a victory point card that gives you one point toward the ten point total that you need to win.

Settlers of Catan is designed for 3 to 4 players but you can have up to 8 players with the expansion pack.

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This is an excellent social game--far more superior than Risk for several reasons: it does not last forever (one game may last up to 1 hour); the trading element encourages bantering, which makes the game really fun; it does not have to be antagonistic at all--it is just as fun and enjoyable as a cooperative game.

But it can get competitive, which may lead to one player being targeted in order for others to advance. Thus I have two suggestions to add to all the other reviews: One may want to put restrictions on the placement of the Robber, for example, the Robber cannot return to the previous hex (or he cannot return within 3 moves). And, when a 7 is rolled, the roller must take a card from someone OTHER THAN the player on whose hex he places the Robber. According to the game rule, when a 7 is rolled, the Robber must be moved. The player on whose hex the Robber stands gets no resources from the hex, AND he will also have to yield one card to the player who rolls the 7. If the Robber gets moved exclusively between two tiles (say two players decided it is in their best interest to put the squeeze on the third player), the person owning those tiles will get seriously handicapped. Even though it is only a game and mostly adults play it, when a couple of players gang up on another player, it definately adds a bit of unpleasant taste to this otherwise fun and sociable game. Surely in real life people do get screwed, but why do so in a game, with friends, in an evening meant to be fun?

All in all, though, this is a fun game with lots of depth. One can explore and discover all sorts of strategies game after game.

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Are you tired of unbalanced games such as Monopoly, where one person always runs away with the lead half-way through the game? You struggle to stay alive, knowing it's only a matter of time before you lose. Or how about "The Game of Life"? Spin, move, spin, move, Zzzzz....

Settlers of Catan will show you what a good game really is. It is viewed by many as the gateway into better games. No one will be eliminated, it is simple to learn yet has many strategies which even young kids will pick up. Truly one of the great games of all time.

Don't believe me? Well, don't take my word for it. It is the #3 rated board game of all time ... Put it this way, neither Monopoly or the Game of Life rank even there in the Top 1000 games, yes, not even in the top thousand! It may seem expensive, but trust me on this, it's worth every penny. And remember, kids can play it but it's not ONLY a kids game, adults may have even MORE fun with this than kids. Buy it...

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This is probably the most popular game in the world from a highly respected German designer.It's really fun to play, and turns come around quickly.The rules are hard to learn from scratch, but not so hard to explain once you've played through.It plays differently with three versus four players.With three, the board is wide open, and the game is a little more mellow.With four, it's possible to get walled in, and there is much more tension to the game.I always use this game as an introduction to gaming for people who haven't played many games, and they love it.It's different every time because the board is set up randomly.There are several expansion sets that add different elements to the game.The best is Cities and Knights of Catan, although it makes for a longer, more involved game.You cannot go wrong with this purchase.