The Settlers of Catan
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I hang out with a lot of board game snobs and Catan is looked down upon. I like it just fine, but a lot of people don't like the randomness of rolling for resources. If you really do like it, though, then I would suggest using it as a jumping off point for trying more games with better mechanics and strategy.
Picked up Seafarers last week and, honestly, I don't think I could go back to vanilla. It just adds so much to the core game without ruining any aspects. I will say this though, I don't like the scenarios where there are many little islands; I much prefer games where there is one big island that everyone has to start on and can then expand outward to the smaller islands.clayschuldt said:
Wow, god forbid there's any risk to a game. I wouldn't call your friends snobs in terms of "elite board gamers". It seems to me they just can't think critically and blame the game for it.Launcelot111 said:
The random factor of what resources you get is what makes each game of Settlers you play to be unique and not focused on a single set of strategies. Say, if I can't get the resources I need to build roads and settlements, I focus on other areas of the game such as upgrading to cities or buying development cards. The game offers many different avenues of what you can do if you're blocked from doing something else, and the expansions add to those possibilities. Adapting to the game in front of you is what makes you a good player.
And, yeah, sometimes the dice are just not in your favor, even for an entire game. But it's something everyone is potentially subjected to and there isn't anything "unfair" about it. Hell, I've still won games even when I had jackshit the entire time since I could adapt to my current conditions. And even then, Settlers still gives you other options if you don't like the randomness of the dice! There's the Catan Event Cards that are used in place of the dice that guarentee each number is drawn at least once but in higher and lower frequency based on the probability of each number. There's a solution for your friends!
After all, if it wasn't for the many random elements of Settlers, it would take away the unique nature of each game you play since everyone would just result in using whatever is considered the "best" strategy.
Oh my god, yes! The frequency of the phrase "Anybody got some wood?" will never get old...Carbonyl said:
Settlers is great fun! And this thread has reminded me of my idea to gather a few friends and get drunk whilst playing settlers, because wood jokes are actually funny again when you're drunk...
It is a highly enjoyable game with the most boring box art imaginable. For the longest time I judged the "book" (game) by its cover. It showed farmers tilling a field *yawn*. I ended up really enjoying it as there is strategy involved and not as much of a time investment as Risk or a pain to clean like Monopoly. Though I don't really have many in person friends to play board games with. I know that makes me sound pathetic -_-. I'd love to spend a day playing some of my old board games like Omega Virus, Stratego, or trying dnd again.
Don't get to play it as often as I want, but I do have the original version with the 5-6 player expansion. It's a really cool game, although I think I need more friends who approach resource trades both from their own and their opponents' perspectives. (Is it possible that your beneficial trade will help your opponent more than what is acceptable?)
I'm thinking about either getting another expansion this summer, or going for Small World instead.
I'm thinking about either getting another expansion this summer, or going for Small World instead.
I really don't like Catan. Not because of the randomness, because it really isn't that random at all, but because the ending is so anticlimatic and often a player can be left in an essentially unwinnable position from the early game but be "forced" to continue playing for the sake of the other players.
7 Wonders is really good though, Carcassone too.
7 Wonders is really good though, Carcassone too.
Oh man, that reminds me, I need to play it again some time.
Used to play it quite often as a child (it´s pretty much state-mandated here in Germany), but not in last 10 years of so.
I´m sure the box must be SOMEWHERE at my parents´....
Sometimes, you simply desperatly need some wood.
I, for example, often find myself not having enough wood in my hand.
And if one of my fellow players happens to have wood, maybe even massive amounts of wood, he could help me out.
With his wood.
Used to play it quite often as a child (it´s pretty much state-mandated here in Germany), but not in last 10 years of so.
I´m sure the box must be SOMEWHERE at my parents´....
You know, I really don´t see what is supposed to be funny about this.TheDrunkNinja said:
Sometimes, you simply desperatly need some wood.
I, for example, often find myself not having enough wood in my hand.
And if one of my fellow players happens to have wood, maybe even massive amounts of wood, he could help me out.
With his wood.
You're right... I'm... sigh... I'm sorry. I was acting childish. I should have been more considerate of others that might not have as much wood as I do or as much wood as they used to. Sometimes it's hard to get some wood.TheAmazingHobo said:
But that's not to say I'm not generous with the wood I have in my hand. If there's a player who needs some wood in their hands, I'm always glad to lend them mine. It's a good way to build friendships.
I like the harbormaster variant, but as a whole Catan isn't one of my favorites. I'm more into Ameritrash (Cosmic Encounter, Battlestar Galactica, etc)
I've been playing this game for 15 years now and it never gets old. Although there are lots of games that are similar in some ways now and equally awesome. Like Dominion or Keltis.
By the way, has anyone of you ever played "The Starfarers of Catan"? THAT was really awesome!
By the way, has anyone of you ever played "The Starfarers of Catan"? THAT was really awesome!
