How to Play CATAN
CATAN, otherwise known as Settlers of CATAN, is a popular board game that combines strategy, negotiation, and a dash of luck. More than 40 million copies of the game have been sold since 1995, yet it still remains as popular as ever. If you’re new to playing CATAN, or need a refresher of the rules, read on as we’ve created a blog focused on how to play.
The island of CATAN lies before you - grab a friend, or three, and compete to expand your territory the furthest.
The Game Setup
Within the Box
Within your CATAN game, you’ll find:
- 19 terrain tiles.
- 6 coastal pieces.
- 9 harbour pieces.
- 18 number tokens.
- 95 resource cards.
- 25 development cards.
- 4 building costs cards.
- 2 special cards (longest road and longest army).
- 16 cities.
- 20 settlements.
- 60 roads.
- 2 dice.
- 1 robber pawn.
- 1 rules booklet.
How to Set Up
Arranging the Board
The first step is to set up the board by clipping together the edges and then arranging land hex tiles in the formation provided in the rulebook or randomly placed. If it’s your first time playing, we recommend you follow the setup pictured in the rulebook.
Next, place the numbered circle tokens either in the setup given within the beginner manual or in number order starting at a corner and working counter-clockwise to get to the centre of the board. The robber pawn should start on the desert tile.
Each player should select a colour, between red, blue, white, and orange, and take their representative pieces of 5 settlements, 4 cities, and 15 roads. If using the beginner setup, you should place two settlements and two roads on the board as illustrated.
Arranging the Cards
Everyone should receive a building cost card to indicate which resources are needed. The special cards for ‘Longest Road’ and ‘Largest Army’, as well as the two dice, should be placed beside the game board.
The resource cards should be separated into their 5 different piles, face up next to the board. Development cards should be shuffled and placed face down by the board too, where they are accessible to players.
Playing the Game
CATAN has three main aspects of gameplay: producing resources, trading resources, and using the resources to build. When a player takes their turn, they will move through each of these three actions.
To determine who goes first, every player rolls the two dice and the person who rolls the highest number can select their colour and take the first turn.
How to Gain Points
The aim of CATAN is to be the first player to gain 10 victory points. You can score victory points using three methods:
- Build settlements and cities - each settlement is worth one victory point, and each city is worth two.
- Having the longest road or largest army - the longest road and army are worth two victory points.
- Development cards - there are five potential victory point cards in the development card deck.
Producing Resources
To begin a turn, start by rolling the two dice. The combined number that you roll will correspond to a circular number token on the island. This number will be placed on a terrain where players have settlements. For each settlement, the player will receive a resource card for that terrain type. If a player has more than one settlement around the same hex, they earn a resource card per settlement.
The terrain tiles produce different types of materials, these being:
- Hills produce bricks.
- Fields produce grain.
- Forests produce lumber.
- Mountains produce ore.
- Pastures produce wool.
It is up to players to keep track of whether they are owed any resource depending on where their settlements are located.
What is the rule for 7 in CATAN?
Out of all the possible outcomes, you are statistically more likely to roll a 7 with two dice due to the many chances it could happen such as 1 and 6, 2 and 5, and 3 and 4. Because of this, there is a separate rule when people roll a 7.
A roll of 7 activates the robber. If any players have more than seven resource cards in their hand at this point, they must return half of their cards - including the person who rolled the 7.
The person who activated the robber should then move the piece to cover one of the numbers on the board. By covering one of the numbers, this means players stop gaining resources if that number is rolled until the robber is moved again. At this point, you will then steal a resource card from any opponent that has a city or settlement adjacent to the hex where the robber is held.
Trading Resources
Within CATAN, you can try and make a deal with other players to gain resources. You may be able to swap your wool for ore, for example. It’s up to you to provide offers for players, and they may come back with counter offers for you.
Even if no player is open to a deal, you are always allowed to trade four cards of one resource for a singular card of another resource.
Building in CATAN
Using your carefully gathered resources, you can build settlements, cities, roads, and development cards. On your building costs card, you’ll find the cost of each item. Roads can help you to build settlements further away so you may be able to gain more resources.
Building Roads
Roads cost one brick and one lumber. You can benefit from building roads since the first player to create a road that is five straight sections long receives the ‘Longest Road’ card which is worth two victory points. If this road length gets exceeded, then the card goes to this player.
Building Settlements
Each settlement is worth one victory point and costs a little more to own - one brick, one lumber, one wool, and one grain. Settlements should be placed on an existing road and must be at least two road spaces away from any other settlement.
The second benefit of owning a settlement is that you’re rewarded with resources when your number is rolled in adjacent hexes.
Cities
Cities can only be upgraded from settlements - paid for with three ore and two grain. These are worth two victory points each and produce two resources per tile.
Development Cards
Development cards cost one wool, one ore, and one grain. These types of cards are kept face down so you won’t know whether you’ll receive a knight, progress, or victory point card. Keep your development card a secret, so that other players do not know which one you have in your hand. You can play this card at any point in the game.
Knight Cards
If you play a knight card, you must move the robber similar to the 7 rule. If someone acquires three knight cards, they receive the ‘Largest Army’ card which is worth two victory points. If anyone has more knight cards, the special card will move to them.
Progress Cards
A progress card can be identified by its green frame and will have instructions on it for you to follow. Once used, the progress card is removed from the game.
Victory Cards
With victory cards, you must keep these hidden until it is your turn or if you have a total of the winning ten victory points.
Ending the Game
The game ends when a player has ten or more victory points during their turn!
FAQs
Is CATAN a game of skill or luck?
It is argued that a small percentage of the game is down to luck due to using dice and that going first means you can place a useful city between 2 and 11. The majority of the game is based on strategy, however.
Can you play CATAN with 2 people?
You can play CATAN with two people if you have the core game. Simply place two sets of game pieces on the board to act as imaginary players. Instead of stealing cards when using the robber, this will provide resources.
Is it better to go first or last in CATAN?
Going first or last could impact the location where you place your first two settlements. If you go first, you can choose an advantageous position for your first settlements, but if you go last you can choose two positions back to back getting ahead of opponents. Overall, there are benefits of both and success depends on your own strategy.