Catan (Base Game)

1 Overview

Catan is a 3–4 player strategy game where you settle the island of Catan by collecting resources, building roads and settlements, and trading with other players. The first player to reach 10 Victory Points wins.

What makes Catan unique is its negotiable trading. You can offer any deal to any player during your turn, resources, favors, future deals. This social layer sits on top of the resource management and creates a fundamentally different experience each game.

2 Setup

Assemble the frame and randomly place terrain hexes inside it. Place number tokens on each hex according to the spiral pattern in the rulebook (or randomly for experienced players). Place ports around the frame. Shuffle and stack resource cards by type.

Starting placements: In reverse turn order, each player places one settlement and one road. Then in reverse again, each player places a second settlement and road. The second settlement placement collects one resource from each adjacent hex immediately.

This means the last player to go first places both their starting settlements consecutively, a small advantage that compensates for going last in the game.

3 Your Turn

Each turn has three phases, in order:

1. Roll the dice, all players with settlements or cities adjacent to hexes showing the rolled number collect resources. Cities collect 2, settlements collect 1. A roll of 7 triggers the Robber.
2. Trade, offer deals to other players and/or trade with the bank at 4:1 (or better with a harbor).
3. Build, spend resources to build roads, settlements, cities, or buy development cards. You may build multiple things in one turn.

Development cards may be played at any point during your turn (before or after rolling), but only one per turn and not on the turn you bought it.

4 Resources

The desert produces nothing and starts with the Robber on it.

5 Trading

Player Trading

During your turn, you may propose any trade to any opponent. They may accept, counter, or decline. You can only trade with one player at a time (though others may offer competing deals). You cannot give resources away for free, trades must be mutual.

Players cannot trade with each other on another player's turn. Trades happen on the active player's turn only.

Maritime Trading (Bank)

• 4:1, give 4 of any one resource, take 1 of any resource. Available to everyone, always.
• 3:1 Harbor, settle on a 3:1 harbor to trade any 3 of one resource for 1 of any resource.
• 2:1 Harbor, settle on a specific resource harbor (e.g., Wood 2:1) to trade 2 of that resource for 1 of any resource.

6 Building Costs

Settlement placement rules: Must be placed at a road intersection. Must connect to your existing road network (except starting placements). Must be at least two road intersections away from any other settlement or city (the Distance Rule).

City upgrade: Replace one of your existing settlements with a city piece. Cities produce 2 resources instead of 1 when their hex number is rolled.

7 The Robber

When a 7 is rolled:

1. Discard: Any player holding more than 7 resource cards must discard half their hand (rounded down) to the bank. This happens before the active player moves the Robber.
2. Move: The active player moves the Robber to any terrain hex (not the desert where it started; it may return to desert). The Robber blocks that hex, no resources are produced from it until the Robber moves again.
3. Steal: The active player steals one resource card at random from any single opponent with a settlement or city adjacent to the Robber's new location. If multiple opponents qualify, the active player chooses which one to steal from.

If the Robber is placed on a hex with no adjacent opponents, no stealing occurs.

8 Development Cards

Draw from the shuffled face-down deck when you buy a dev card. Keep it hidden. You may play one dev card per turn (not on the turn you bought it), at any point during your turn.

9 Longest Road & Largest Army

Longest Road (2 VP)

The first player to build a continuous road of at least 5 segments takes this card. If another player surpasses your road length, they take the card (and your 2 VP go with it). Tied players do not steal the card, the current holder keeps it on a tie.

A "continuous road" is the longest unbroken path through your road network, branching paths count separately; only the longest branch matters. An opponent's settlement in the middle of your road breaks its continuity.

Largest Army (2 VP)

The first player to play their third Knight card takes this card. Playing more Knights keeps you in the lead, if an opponent plays more total Knights, they take the card. Tied players don't steal it.

10 Winning

Reach 10 Victory Points on your turn and announce it, you win immediately. VP sources:

• Settlements: 1 VP each (max 5 = 5 VP)
• Cities: 2 VP each (max 4 = 8 VP)
• Longest Road card: 2 VP
• Largest Army card: 2 VP
• Victory Point development cards: 1 VP each (keep hidden until winning)

You can win mid-turn (e.g., build a city that pushes you to 10). You do not need to reach 10 at the start of your turn, any point during your turn counts.

11 Strategy Guide

Starting Placement Is Everything

Your starting settlements determine your resource access for the entire game. Prioritize:

• Cover at least 3 different resource types (ideally all 5 between both settlements)
• Prioritize high-probability numbers: 6 and 8 (5 ways each), then 5 and 9 (4 ways), then 4 and 10 (3 ways)
• A harbor is only useful if you'll overproduce that resource, don't sacrifice number quality for a harbor

Cities Over Settlements

A city produces twice the resources and costs the same VP as two settlements. Upgrading to cities is usually more efficient than building new settlements, unless you need to expand your road network or block opponents.

Control the Robber Diplomatically

The Robber is the most politically charged element. Consistently robbing one player creates a permanent enemy. Target the leader or use it to broker deals ("I'll move the Robber off your 8 if you give me ore"). Knight cards let you move the Robber on your schedule, not on a 7 roll.

Port Strategy

If you can build near a 2:1 port matching a resource you overproduce, it becomes extremely powerful. A 2:1 Ore port + Mountain settlements can let you buy dev cards or upgrade cities rapidly without depending on trading.

Don't Ignore Longest Road

2 VP from Longest Road is equivalent to two settlements. If you're road-building anyway, pushing to 5+ segments is usually worth the investment, especially if no one else is close to claiming it.

12 Common Rules Disputes

"Can I trade on other players' turns?"

No, player-to-player trades only happen on the active player's turn. You may not trade among yourselves while another player is taking their turn.

"Can I place a road without connecting it to anything?"

No, roads must always connect to an existing road, settlement, or city of yours. The only exception is Road Building development cards, which still follow the same connection rule.

"Does the Robber affect me if I'm the one who rolled 7?"

Yes, if you have 8+ cards when you roll 7, you must discard half before moving the Robber. You can still then steal from an opponent.

"Can I win on someone else's turn?"

No, you can only win on your own turn. Even if you reach 10 VP during someone else's turn (e.g., they trade you a resource that completes your total), you don't win until your next turn.