In my household, there is one board game that stands above others. Our family likes Catan so much that we have played one-hundred and fifty games this year – I even managed to win some of them!
The Catan National League is around the corner, and in commemoration of this league, I am sharing my game-winning tips.
There are different ways to reach ten points, the number of points required to beat your opponents and taste sweet victory. Whether you earn points via the Longest Road, the Largest Army, building settlements, cities, or through victory points, you must find the right combination to reach your end goal.
The following article is suited for players already familiar with the basics of Catan. I offer seven tips from my own strategy which I employ regularly in my gameplaying.
The fundamentals of my strategy is in Catan, you are always trying to do one of two main things: collecting resources for yourself or denying your opponents resources.
Analyse the Board
At the start of the game, have a look at the board and see which hexes are most tempting to the other players. If these hotspots are clustered, expect a lot of traffic. Anticipate your opponents’ plans and plan your expansions accordingly.
In an ideal setup, you’d have access to all five resources on high-odds numbers, but this is unlikely. If a particular resource is scarce but features good odds, you should try and build there. You can monopolise the resource or drive hard bargains with the other players.
Make sure that you place settlements that will allow you to access wheat or ore. Wheat is integral in building settlements, buying development cards and upgrading settlements to cities. Without ore, city-building is more difficult. Wood and brick are especially important in the early game to fuel your initial expansion to secure additional building spots that can be upgraded to cities later. Your requirements for resources will change as the game progresses and you should have a strategy for the start, middle and end of the game.
Play the Numbers
As mentioned above, resources are key. The best plans can fall flat if you do not have the right tools and choosing the best numbers won’t secure you a victory, but it will improve your chances. Go for the numbers with the best odds – remember the dots show the odds of the dice roll. This is why red is best. Apart from the seven (the statistical average for two six-sided dice), the sixes and eights are the other likely hot numbers. If you can combine a hex with a red number with its corresponding resource port, then you can make very favourable trades with the bank.
Use the Ports
Ports can be an important asset because they can function like a private bank. Ports allow you to trade more favourably, and allow you to circumvent trading with players. If you don’t have access to all the resources from your initial settlements, or if your expansion is limited, then a port can effectively give you access to your missing resources.
In a game where the centre of the board is congested, coastal expansion can be important for you to find new building sites or to expand your longest road. To reiterate tip number two, play the numbers.
Exploit the Robber
There is no grace period for the robber, steal every chance you get. Target the player that presents the greatest threat – this may not always be the most obvious player. Make decisions by assuming the robber may not be moved for a few turns – which hex is best to block for the longest time? – that should be your choice. This is especially important in games where players are not buying a lot of Development cards and thus must rely on sevens being rolled to remove the robber. To avoid becoming the target of the robber, you should think carefully about building cities on a hex that already has other cities of your own, or cities of other players; these tiles become a prime target for blocking. You should also use verbal misdirection to steer a player away from blocking you – point out why an opponent’s spot may be better suited, or even threaten them with retaliation (a face-down Development Card gives credence to your threat).
Be Social
Catan is a social game, and you should do a lot of talking. Whether you are trying to earn favours, make promises for future trades, to get better trades, or play the sympathy card to avoid being blocked by the robber, use your social skills to your advantage. Point out as much information as you can about other players to deflect from your own strategy. Keep emotions out of your decisions and play with a cool head. Remember – the robber does not have a memory.
Keep Track of Information
Information, like resources, is an asset. Keeping track of trade requests, the types of resources people ask for, and even how generous other players are could be used to your advantage. Knowing what resources other players have allows you to plot who you will rob or redirect the attention of a robber to someone else with a certain card.
Paying attention to when players acquire Development Cards provides insight into what they have picked up. A quick glance may indicate that the card is a knight, whereas a slightly longer look may indicate an action card. If they look at their card before rolling, they may have a knight card that they are considering playing. This may also be a good bluff to make other players think that you have knights rather than Victory Points.
A trick with the Monopoly card is to either generously trade away cards and then steal them back with Monopoly or to feign interest in a trade to see who responds and then play the Monopoly card to receive the resources you want.
Be Flexible
As the game progresses, a particular strategy may no longer be viable, and you should be flexible. If it becomes apparent that you may lose the race to reach a certain building spot, then don’t needlessly waste resources in the hopes of getting there first. If a particular building spot is getting closed off, focus on expanding into areas that are still open. The same is true if you are not going to win the race for Longest Road or Largest Army; rather focus on opportunities that are still available to you.
Always Make a Play
Connected to the previous point, you should always optimise your gameplay to your current position. You may experience slow games where your numbers don’t come up and it takes you a long time to expand. In these instances, you should do your best to make some sort of play. For example, make a trade, buy a card, or build a road. Passing your turn without making a play should be a last resort, or a carefully considered decision. Even gathering information is a play, so, ask for trades, get people thinking about other players – anything that makes your opponents focus on each other rather than you.