Settlers of Catan was first published Germany in 1995, and since that time this board game has received a large following around the world. The game is fit for anyone above ten years of age, and it has become a real family favorite as well as claiming many devoted serious gamers. Settlers of Catan is a revolutionary board game that will get you playing and playing. It is an interesting game of strategy, wit, cunning and dominance. Designed by Klaus Teuber and Kosmos in 1995 with the name Die Seidler von Catan, Settlers of Catan is believed to have a vital influence on online strategy games that proliferated the market right now and played by millions of people all over the world the young and old alike. This game is so popular that from its original language of German, it was translated into more than 30 languages; strong evidence that the originality and excitement of this board game reach across the cultural divide.
The rules are simple enough to pick up, but the gameplay is engaging enough to keep people entertained every time they play. This is an award winning game that has managed to become the German and US game of the year. It had grown way beyond the board, and you can now play it in different formats such as video game, card game, as well as online.
The idea behind the gameplay is quite straightforward. Up to four players can participate, and the aim is to colonize the island of Catan. To do this, you will need to rely on strategy as well as a bit of luck. The players don’t directly compete against one another, and nobody gets knocked out of the game; this makes it especially fun for families and other groups of people. Your goal is to manage scarce resources in such a way that you gain victory points; when you have collected ten victory points, you have won the game. Along the way, you will build settlements, cities, roads, and create an army.
The fabulous thing about Settlers of Catan is that every time you play the game, you will be facing a different board; this means that players can play the game for a long time without boredom becoming an issue.
The simplicity of the mechanics of this board game and the complexity of its dynamics is what makes this game so attractive. It can be played by a large group of same friends, game board club members and it is even ideal for a family game since unlike most of the board games out there, in Settlers of Catan, a player can never be eliminated out of the game. That allows the entire group to continue to play to the completion of the game. Even more, if a new player comes into play, that player can well advance and compete with the other long-time players quite easily. So new players can become quite competitive early on in their Settlers of Catan addiction.
The objective of the game is very simple. You, as a player, represent one of the establishing colonies that inhabit an island called Catan, hence the name of the game. To start your colony, you must build settlements and turn them into cities with interconnecting roads between them. The game board is composed of hexes which represent the island with different types of land which are randomly laid out at the start of the game.
The quality and the rate of your expansion and development depend on some resources you acquire. There are five different resources in the game and they are, grain, lumber, brick, wool, and ore. Resource cards will represent each type of resources that can be found throughout the island and each Hex on the board game produces the different resource. Using two dice, you will then roll to determine which one of your hexes will provide resources. To win the game, you will need to have ten (10) victory points which will be based according to the number of settlements you build and the number of upgraded settlements you have. There are also other game achievements such as building the longest road which will enable you to have additional game points.
