Catan details
- Designer: Klaus Teuber
- Artists: Andreas Klober, Andreas Resch, Franz Vohwinkel, Harald Lieske, Jason Hawkins, Marion Pott, Matt Schwabel, Michael Menzel, Michaela Kienle, Pete Fenlon, Stephen Graham Walsh, Tanja Donner, Volkan Baga
- Publishers: 999 Games, Albi, Asmodee, Astrel Games, Bergsala Enigma, Bergsala Enigma (Enigma), Brädspel.se, Brain Games, Broadway Toys LTD, Capcom Co., Ltd., Catan Studio, Competo / Marektoy, danspil, Descartes Editeur, Devir, Dexy Co, Enigma (Bergsala Enigma), Eurogames, Filosofia Éditions, Galakta, Giochi Uniti, GP Games, Grow Jogos e Brinquedos, HaKubia, Hanayama, Hobby World, Ideal Board Games, Igroljub, IntelliGames.BG, Ísöld ehf., Kaissa Chess & Games, Korea Boardgames, Korea Boardgames co., Ltd., KOSMOS, L&M Games, Laser plus, Lautapelit.fi, Logojogos, Mayfair Games, MIPL, Ninive Games, Paper Iyagi, Piatnik, Smart Ltd, Spilbraet.dk, Stupor Mundi, SuperHeated Neurons, Swan Panasia Co., Ltd., Tilsit, Top Toys, TRY SOFT, Vennerød Forlag AS
- Release Date: 1995
- Player count : 3 - 4
- Age range : 10+
- Time range : 60 - 120 minutes
- Mechanism(s): Chaining, Dice Rolling, Hexagon Grid, Income, Modular Board, Negotiation, Network and Route Building, Race, Random Production, Trading, Variable Set-up, Variable Setup
- BGG Geek Rating: - converted to Meeple Mountain scale: .
- More articles about Catan.
In CATAN (formerly The Settlers of Catan), players try to be the dominant force on the island of Catan by building settlements, cities, and roads. On each turn dice are rolled to determine what resources the island produces. Players build by spending resources (sheep, wheat, wood, brick and ore) that are depicted by these resource cards; each land type, with the exception of the unproductive desert, produces a specific resource: hills produce brick, forests produce wood, mountains produce ore, fields produce wheat, and pastures produce sheep.
Set-up includes randomly placing large hexagonal tiles (each showing a resource or the desert) in a honeycomb shape and surrounding them with water tiles, some of which contain ports of exchange. Number disks, which will correspond to die rolls (two 6-sided dice are used), are placed on each resource tile. Each player is given two settlements (think: houses) and roads (sticks) which are, in turn, placed on intersections and borders of the resource tiles. Players collect a hand of resource cards based on which hex tiles their last-placed house is adjacent to. A robber pawn is placed on the desert tile.
A turn consists of possibly playing a development card, rolling the dice, everyone (perhaps) collecting resource cards based on the roll and position of houses (or upgraded cities—think: hotels) unless a 7 is rolled, turning in resource cards (if possible and desired) for improvements, trading cards at a port, and trading resource cards with other players. If a 7 is rolled, the active player moves the robber to a new hex tile and steals resource cards from other players who have built structures adjacent to that tile.
Points are accumulated by building settlements and cities, having the longest road and the largest army (from some of the development cards), and gathering certain development cards that simply award victory points. When a player has gathered 10 points (some of which may be held in secret), he announces his total and claims the win.
CATAN has won multiple awards and is one of the most popular games in recent history due to its amazing ability to appeal to experienced gamers as well as those new to the hobby.
Die Siedler von Catan was originally published by KOSMOS and has gone through multiple editions. It was licensed by Mayfair and has undergone four editions as The Settlers of Catan. In 2015, it was formally renamed CATAN to better represent itself as the core and base game of the CATAN series. It has been re-published in two travel editions, portable edition and compact edition, as a special gallery edition (replaced in 2009 with a family edition), as an anniversary wooden edition, as a deluxe 3D collector's edition, in the basic Simply Catan, as a beginner version, and with an entirely new theme in Japan and Asia as Settlers of Catan: Rockman Edition. Numerous spin-offs and expansions have also been made for the game.
The classic word association game Dixit turned 15 years old last year…and the game has remained popular for a reason. Join Justin for a discussion about why...
Join the Meeple Mountain team as we look back on our first experiences with modern board games, and talk about our feelings on the idea of “gateway games”.
Join Meeple Mountain as we celebrate everything Carcassonne, including the 20th anniversary of Carcassonne winning the Spiel des Jahres prize.
Our third collection of board game haiku explores some stone cold classics as well as some recent smash hits, all in seventeen syllables!
Join us as we explore how board games can be used for science communication and what the game Evolution: Climate can teach us about its subject matter.
3D printers are an affordable, fun way of creating all sorts of useful things. See how I’ve used 3D printing to improve some of my favorite games in this Top 6...
For the past few months, the sales of Tabletop Simulator on Steam have been increased by over 300% due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the culture climate of self...
This is everything you ever wanted to know about the Spiel des Jahres board game awards, including a complete list of every winner, nominee, and recommendee...
How did Catan become a game that has sold over 22 million copies and played all over the world? It's all about sheep, ore, wheat, and wood. Read on to find out...
Looking to improve your Settlers of Catan game? Here are the Top Six ways I've learned to help me stop my losing streak and become a more competitive Catan...
Everybody has a story about the game that got them into this lovely hobby of ours. For me that game was Ticket to Ride, but it wasn’t quite love at first sight...
What sorts of data would you get if you could survey board gamers worldwide? Paul did just that and is sharing his results with you! Find out who's coming to...
CATAN Board Game - Embark on a Journey of Discovery and Trade! Civilization Building Strategy Game, Family Game for Kids & Adults, Ages 10+, 3-4 Players, 60-90...
In today's step ladder, we celebrate Catan and explore the way it has influenced many of the games that have followed in its wake.
We’ve talked before about the powerful impact that board games can have on someone’s life. In this piece, one of our authors speaks about how they helped her...
Finding a gaming group can be tricky; here's one omni-gamer's experience and suggestions to build your own regular group
We all want to share our favorite hobbies, one of mine is playing good board games. Here's how I turned my Monopoly playing friends into a regular gaming group.
Agree or disagree, these 6 games changed the face of hobby board gaming forever. What games are they? You might be surprised.
It’s the fall of 2014 and a man in his late 30s is glued to his controller at 3am, traversing a beautiful landscape rendered before his eyes as he hunts...
Here at Meeple Mountain we know that gaming tastes are decidedly subjective. Let's combine that with just about the only thing that is more subjective--music...
