Settlers of Catan
Dec. 29th, 2006 10:57 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
eveglassI've played a lot of Settlers of Catan. I mean, I've played a lot of Settlers. When I'm playing with Ian, we can complete a two-player game in less than a half-hour. We sometimes even place our original settlements before we put down the numbers, just to add an extra element of difficulty to the game.
This past Wednesday, I was at Rob's Yule party playing Settlers. I managed to emerge from an underdog position (3 points while everyone else was at 5-6, and poorly placed to expand) to win the six-person game with a margin of about two points above my nearest opponent. It was a come-from-behind win, but nevertheless I came, I saw, and I conquered.
I thought some of my readers might be interested in my Settlers of Catan strategy. And others might think this entire post is a useless waste of bandwidth. So, if you're interested in reading How I Do It, click on the lj-cut. And if you're not, then feel free to skip lightly over.
Julie's Super-Secret Settlers Strategy
Before we start, one brief note: I'm assuming that if you intend to use this strategy, you've already played the game a few times and understand how things work. You know what "settlements," "cities," "development cards," and "trading ports" are. You understand that you need 10 points to win, and how you can get them. If you don't know these things, I recommend playing one or two more games until you're more familiar with the system.
So. The first, and arguably the most important part of any Settlers game is placement of initial settlements and roads. If you choose well here, victory is nearly assured. If you choose poorly, victory will be a hell of a lot harder. So what do you look for in the placement of these settlements? In roughly descending order of importance:
1. "Sweet spots." Any intersections with 6/8, 9, and 5 is a sweet spot. If you can snag one of these, life will go well for you.
2. Variety of numbers. It is far better to have a 6 and an 8 than to have two 6s or two 8s. Ideally, with your first two settlements, you will be placed on 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, and 10. If you can't manage this, drop the 10 or the 4 and double up on some of the central numbers. Or, alternately, place your settlement on a trading port if it will help. (More on that in a minute.)
3. Variety of resources. If there's a sweet spot, but all three resources are sheep, then you might be better off placing on slightly worse numbers but better resources. (Although my brother makes single-resource sweet spots work with amazing regularity.) If you can, try to be built on one of every resource. If you can't, the most important resources at the beginning of the game are grain, clay, and wood. Dump ore (not needed initially) or sheep (not generally needed at all) if need be.
An advanced variation on the "variety of resources" factor: Whenever you start a new game, do a quick survey of which resources have good numbers, and which have bad numbers. If wood, clay, or grain have generally poor numbers, snag the best number they're on first. For example, if you see that the numbers on wood are 11, 2, 3, 12, and 9, then grab that 9! Even if it means slightly worse numbers overall, you're going to be very happy you did, because you won't need to constantly trade for wood.
4. Trading ports. Try either to be directly on a trading port or within easy building distance of one (ie: with one road and one settlement, you're there). I find that 3:1 trading ports work best unless you know you're getting a lot of a single resource (eg: you're on a 5, 8, and 9, all wood). Trading ports let you build faster. Building faster is good.
5. Room for expansion. Especially when dealing with the Settlers expansion board (ie: the one designed for 5-6 people), you'll find that one half the board has much better numbers than the other. This is intentional on the part of the game designers. If you're on a sweet spot, it's likely that there are other good numbers near your initial settlement. Make sure no one's blocking your ability to move to them. Everything I mentioned before applies to things you should look for in the general area around your settlements.
Okay. You've got your two initial settlements. Now what? Here are some thoughts to keep in mind one the game gets started:
1. The goal of the game is to have 10 points, but not all points are created equal. Points that come from settlements and cities are far more valuable to you than points from victory point cards, longest road, or largest army. This is because settlements and cities give you resources, which allow you to expand faster and consequently win faster.
2. Have an expansion strategy. When you start, know where you want to expand. You may be thwarted, but at least know what you want to do. When you expand, you're looking for the following things, in generally the following order:
You'll note that I've said "numbers you're not yet built on." Your eventual goal is to be built at least once on every number on the board. The game may end before this happens, but try for it anyway. You want to be in the situation that when the dice are rolled, no matter what they land on (other than 7, obviously), you'll be getting resources. It would be best to get more resources on better numbers (5, 6, 8, 9), but don't shy away from 2 and 12 just because they're "bad" numbers.
3. Don't bother with development cards. Really, they're not worth it. Remember: two development cards is practically a city. It is a city if you're on a 2:1 trading port for sheep. It's also a city if you get one more sheep and you're on a 3:1 trading port. Trust me on this: go for the cities.
4. Generally, don't bother with Longest Road if you see other people are going for it as well, or unless you have no other way to make two points to win. If you're in a tug-of-war for Longest Road, you'll be wasting resources that might otherwise be used for settlements or cities. But, if you think you can get it (and keep it) without too much trouble, go for it.
5. Use of the robber depends on your temperament. If it's a big game or you're losing, feel free to be vicious. I try to be nice most of the time, but I'm a generally nice person. Your milage may vary. One thing to note: if the leading player has no cards, but would be damaged by the robber on his land, then put the robber on his land. I mean it. Even if you're not getting any immediate cards out of it, it will hurt him more in the long run. The point of the game is to win, and (as a corollary) make sure other people don't win.
So, how do you actually play the game step-by-step? Though game-play specifics will vary with every game (one of the reasons I love Settlers), here are some general guidelines I try to follow:
Unless you're built on lots of grain and ore, begin the game by building roads and settlements. Use your new settlements to fill in any gaps remaining from your initial placement (eg: any resources you lack, any good numbers you lack, a trading port if you don't have one already, etc.). This is also the time to decide whether you're going for Longest Road. If so, chart out where it's going to go. You may need to change it later, but at least know where you want it to be. By placing settlements first, you also ensure that you're not going to be cut off by other players.
Once you've got some settlements on the board, it's time to start building cities. Start with the settlements that are on your best numbers. If you're on a sweet spot, use that one, unless there's a very good reason not to. Please note: "the robber is on one of the tiles connected to my sweet spot settlement" is not a good reason. The robber will be moved, possibly as soon as the next roll of the dice. It will almost certainly be moved before you're able to build another city. Don't deprive yourself of long-term benefits (extra resources) due to short-term obstacles (the robber).
A brief reminder: there are 5 settlements and 4 cities for every player. In total, this works out to a potential 13 points. Or, put another way, you cannot win with settlements or cities alone, but but a combination of both. At some point, you'll probably run out of settlements and be forced to start building cities. Once you've got a city, you can build another settlement. Just keep plugging away until you reach 10 points or (boo! hiss!) someone else does.
So. That's how I play Settlers, in a nutshell. Consider yourselves informed and enlightened. If there's anything I missed, or any questions left unanswered, let me know. Happy playing.
This past Wednesday, I was at Rob's Yule party playing Settlers. I managed to emerge from an underdog position (3 points while everyone else was at 5-6, and poorly placed to expand) to win the six-person game with a margin of about two points above my nearest opponent. It was a come-from-behind win, but nevertheless I came, I saw, and I conquered.
I thought some of my readers might be interested in my Settlers of Catan strategy. And others might think this entire post is a useless waste of bandwidth. So, if you're interested in reading How I Do It, click on the lj-cut. And if you're not, then feel free to skip lightly over.
Before we start, one brief note: I'm assuming that if you intend to use this strategy, you've already played the game a few times and understand how things work. You know what "settlements," "cities," "development cards," and "trading ports" are. You understand that you need 10 points to win, and how you can get them. If you don't know these things, I recommend playing one or two more games until you're more familiar with the system.
So. The first, and arguably the most important part of any Settlers game is placement of initial settlements and roads. If you choose well here, victory is nearly assured. If you choose poorly, victory will be a hell of a lot harder. So what do you look for in the placement of these settlements? In roughly descending order of importance:
1. "Sweet spots." Any intersections with 6/8, 9, and 5 is a sweet spot. If you can snag one of these, life will go well for you.
2. Variety of numbers. It is far better to have a 6 and an 8 than to have two 6s or two 8s. Ideally, with your first two settlements, you will be placed on 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, and 10. If you can't manage this, drop the 10 or the 4 and double up on some of the central numbers. Or, alternately, place your settlement on a trading port if it will help. (More on that in a minute.)
3. Variety of resources. If there's a sweet spot, but all three resources are sheep, then you might be better off placing on slightly worse numbers but better resources. (Although my brother makes single-resource sweet spots work with amazing regularity.) If you can, try to be built on one of every resource. If you can't, the most important resources at the beginning of the game are grain, clay, and wood. Dump ore (not needed initially) or sheep (not generally needed at all) if need be.
An advanced variation on the "variety of resources" factor: Whenever you start a new game, do a quick survey of which resources have good numbers, and which have bad numbers. If wood, clay, or grain have generally poor numbers, snag the best number they're on first. For example, if you see that the numbers on wood are 11, 2, 3, 12, and 9, then grab that 9! Even if it means slightly worse numbers overall, you're going to be very happy you did, because you won't need to constantly trade for wood.
4. Trading ports. Try either to be directly on a trading port or within easy building distance of one (ie: with one road and one settlement, you're there). I find that 3:1 trading ports work best unless you know you're getting a lot of a single resource (eg: you're on a 5, 8, and 9, all wood). Trading ports let you build faster. Building faster is good.
5. Room for expansion. Especially when dealing with the Settlers expansion board (ie: the one designed for 5-6 people), you'll find that one half the board has much better numbers than the other. This is intentional on the part of the game designers. If you're on a sweet spot, it's likely that there are other good numbers near your initial settlement. Make sure no one's blocking your ability to move to them. Everything I mentioned before applies to things you should look for in the general area around your settlements.
Okay. You've got your two initial settlements. Now what? Here are some thoughts to keep in mind one the game gets started:
1. The goal of the game is to have 10 points, but not all points are created equal. Points that come from settlements and cities are far more valuable to you than points from victory point cards, longest road, or largest army. This is because settlements and cities give you resources, which allow you to expand faster and consequently win faster.
2. Have an expansion strategy. When you start, know where you want to expand. You may be thwarted, but at least know what you want to do. When you expand, you're looking for the following things, in generally the following order:
a. good numbers (5, 6, 8, 9) you're not yet built on
b. resources you're not yet built on; at least one trading port
c. weaker numbers you're not yet built on; good numbers you are already built on
You'll note that I've said "numbers you're not yet built on." Your eventual goal is to be built at least once on every number on the board. The game may end before this happens, but try for it anyway. You want to be in the situation that when the dice are rolled, no matter what they land on (other than 7, obviously), you'll be getting resources. It would be best to get more resources on better numbers (5, 6, 8, 9), but don't shy away from 2 and 12 just because they're "bad" numbers.
3. Don't bother with development cards. Really, they're not worth it. Remember: two development cards is practically a city. It is a city if you're on a 2:1 trading port for sheep. It's also a city if you get one more sheep and you're on a 3:1 trading port. Trust me on this: go for the cities.
4. Generally, don't bother with Longest Road if you see other people are going for it as well, or unless you have no other way to make two points to win. If you're in a tug-of-war for Longest Road, you'll be wasting resources that might otherwise be used for settlements or cities. But, if you think you can get it (and keep it) without too much trouble, go for it.
5. Use of the robber depends on your temperament. If it's a big game or you're losing, feel free to be vicious. I try to be nice most of the time, but I'm a generally nice person. Your milage may vary. One thing to note: if the leading player has no cards, but would be damaged by the robber on his land, then put the robber on his land. I mean it. Even if you're not getting any immediate cards out of it, it will hurt him more in the long run. The point of the game is to win, and (as a corollary) make sure other people don't win.
So, how do you actually play the game step-by-step? Though game-play specifics will vary with every game (one of the reasons I love Settlers), here are some general guidelines I try to follow:
Unless you're built on lots of grain and ore, begin the game by building roads and settlements. Use your new settlements to fill in any gaps remaining from your initial placement (eg: any resources you lack, any good numbers you lack, a trading port if you don't have one already, etc.). This is also the time to decide whether you're going for Longest Road. If so, chart out where it's going to go. You may need to change it later, but at least know where you want it to be. By placing settlements first, you also ensure that you're not going to be cut off by other players.
Once you've got some settlements on the board, it's time to start building cities. Start with the settlements that are on your best numbers. If you're on a sweet spot, use that one, unless there's a very good reason not to. Please note: "the robber is on one of the tiles connected to my sweet spot settlement" is not a good reason. The robber will be moved, possibly as soon as the next roll of the dice. It will almost certainly be moved before you're able to build another city. Don't deprive yourself of long-term benefits (extra resources) due to short-term obstacles (the robber).
A brief reminder: there are 5 settlements and 4 cities for every player. In total, this works out to a potential 13 points. Or, put another way, you cannot win with settlements or cities alone, but but a combination of both. At some point, you'll probably run out of settlements and be forced to start building cities. Once you've got a city, you can build another settlement. Just keep plugging away until you reach 10 points or (boo! hiss!) someone else does.
So. That's how I play Settlers, in a nutshell. Consider yourselves informed and enlightened. If there's anything I missed, or any questions left unanswered, let me know. Happy playing.
