Description

One of the most successful games of all time, Settlers of Catan is a trading and building game set in the mythical world of Catan.

The Settlers of Catan from Mayfair Games is an award-winning strategy game where players collect resources and use them to build roads, settlements and cities on their way to victory. The board itself is variable, making each game a little different from the next. Each round of The Settlers of Catan is intended to keep three or four players ages 10 and above engaged for up to 90 minutes. .caption { font-family: Verdana, Helvetica neue, Arial, serif; font-size: 10px; font-weight: bold; font-style: italic; } ul.indent { list-style: inside disc; text-indent: -15px; } table.callout { font-family: verdana; font-size: 11px; line-height: 1. 3em; } td.think { height: 125px; background: #9DC4D8 url(http://images.amazon.com/images/G/01/electronics/detail-page/callout-bg.png) repeat-x; border-left: 1px solid #999999; border-right: 1px solid #999999; border-bottom: 1px dotted #000000; padding-left: 20px; padding-right: 20px; padding-bottom: 10px; width: 250px; } td.glance { height: 100%; background: #9DC4D8; border-left: 1px solid #999999; border-right: 1px solid #999999; padding-top: 10px; padding-left: 20px; padding-right: 20px; padding-bottom: 10px; width: 250px; } The game map changes every time for an endless variety of play. View larger. Settlers of Catan engages both children and adults, garnering best-seller status in both Germany and the US. View larger. What We Think Fun Factor: Durability: (what this means) The Good: Engaging strategy game that's different each time you play The Bad: Requires three or four players In a Nutshell: The Settlers of Catan is fun, easy to learn, and keeps advanced players on their toes At a Glance Ages: 10 and up Requires: Three or four players On the Road to Settlement The game rules and almanac booklet sets out four pages of guidelines for getting started. Don't worry, the rules are straightforward and the four pages include plenty of illustrations. There's a starting map that shows a well-balanced set-up for beginners to follow and directions that allow more advanced players to lay out the map of the island at random. You'll have to pop the die-cut components of the game out of their cardboard holders before you play your first game. The almanac portion of the booklet is laid out alphabetically, so while playing you can find answers to specific questions quickly. Useful entries remind you exactly what role pieces like the robber play, how actions like maritime trade work, and how to set up the board or finish the game. Exploring and Developing Catan The board consists of 19 terrain hexes surrounded by the ocean. Each type of terrain produces a different type of resource: brick, wool, ore, grain or lumber. There's also a desert hex that produces no resources. As the game progresses, players use resources to build roads along the edges of these hexes and settlements or cities on the intersections where three hexes meet. Each player begins the game with two settlements and two roads. Each player's roll of the dice causes certain hexes to produce resources, which you collect if you have a settlement on one of them. On your turn, you'll use various combinations of the resources you've acquired to build new roads and settlements, upgrade settlements to cities, or purchase development cards. The ability to trade resources with other players adds a new level of strategy and ensures that the game includes lots of interaction between players. You can also trade without worrying about other players using an unfavorable maritime trade rate. Elements including a robber piece that lets you steal from other players and a variety of development cards add intrigue to the game. The objective of The Settlers of Catan is to be the first one who collects 10 victory points. Each settlement is worth one victory point and each city is worth two victory points. You can also earn victory points by holding the "Longest Road" card, the "Largest Army" card, or special victory point development cards. Best-Selling Game of the Year It's easy to see why The Settlers of Catan has been recognized as a best-selling Game of the Year in both Germany and the U. S. We found this game to be fun and engaging for both children and adults, and the variable nature of the playing field really made us want to play again and again. When we started pausing to contemplate our opponents' strategy and factoring the probability of different dice rolls into our moves, the game sometimes took longer than expected, but we were so engrossed we didn't even notice until it was all over. Due to the widespread popularity of the original game, several expansion sets (sold separately) are available that allow you to explore new aspects of the game or add more players. The only downside to this game is that you need to have either three or four players to play, so it's great that expansion sets are available that will allow you to add players. What's in the Box Six sea frame pieces, 19 terrain hexes, nine harbor pieces, 18 circular number tokens, 126 game cards, 16 cities, 20 settlements, 60 roads, two dice, a robber and a rules and almanac booklet.

Features

• Tons of replay value
• Great family fun
• Easy to learn
• New Packaging & Tiles!!
• Full Color Rules Book

Description

Single Player, Xbox LIVE Multiplayer 2-4, 5.1 Surround Sound, HD (High Definition). Catan, based on the best-selling board game "The Settlers of Catan," puts you in the role of a colonist on a newly discovered imaginary island. Vie for control over the island's territory and resources against computer gameplay that will challenge all skill levels - even the experts! Catan is addictive fun for all ages, taking just minutes to learn and a lifetime to master! There are no refunds for this item. For more information, see www.xbox.com/live/accounts.

Description

Interview: Author Rebecca Gable & Settlers of Catan Creator Klaus Teuber Klaus Teuber: When we saw each other at the Frankfurt Book Fair recently, I recalled how we met there 10 years ago. Do you remember? Rebecca Gable: Of course! You asked if I could imagine writing a novel based on your famous board game. KT: I had read one of your books and was so excited about it, I wanted you to bring the story of the settlement of Catan to life. What was your first thought when I asked you? RG: I thought, "This must be the most unusual and fascinating project ever proposed to me." What gave you the idea for a novelization in the first place? KT: In the game, seafarers land on Catan. They harvest, trade, build, and settle the island. But where did those seafarers come from? Who are they? Why did they undertake this dangerous journey? The game doesn't answer any of those questions. I had some ideas but no story yet. Then you entered the picture. RG: We met in Cologne to discuss some basic plot ideas, and it turned out we both had the word "Vikings" in our heads. What is so "Viking" about the game? KT: Catan is set in the Early Middle Ages, and at that time the Vikings were the only seafaring people to venture into the open ocean, and therefore the only ones capable of reaching a fictitious island in the middle of the Atlantic. That was probably at the back of our minds. How do you move from a draft outline like ours to developing your characters? Do you use people you know as models? RG: Never. I'm fond of my friends and want to keep them, so I make sure the characters in my books don't resemble them. Speaking of characters: If you had to choose, would you rather sit down in a beer garden with Candamir or Osmund? KT: Well, I'd prefer a little flirt with Siglind. But if I may only choose one of the men, I'd like Candamir to explain to me how to build a nice wooden chest. I still need a Christmas present for my wife. How did you come up with the idea to season the novel with Austin, a likeable character who so insistently (and unsuccessfully) tries to evangelize his master, Candamir? RG: The game inspired the creation of Austin. You've got to be clever and sometimes mean to win at Settlers of Catan, but whenever I play, it strikes me that what you need most is the ability to cooperate and compromise. Austin stands for that ability, I think--though he can be clever and mean, too. KT: In your telling of the legend of Catan, the god Odin falls in love with Tanuri, the king of the Albs' daughter. Normally Odin can have any woman, but Tanuri makes a fool of him when he creates an idyllic island for her. Grief stricken, he moves the island to a place where nobody can find it. Of course, the island is Catan. Where did you get this wonderful idea? Did it come from an archetype in Norse mythology? RG: It's not based on any particular Norse saga, but I tried to capture the atmosphere and narrative patterns of the form. I also wanted to emphasize how very special Catan is--not just in the book, but for millions of fans all over the world who love the game. Catan is a mythical and wonderful place.

The year is 850. In the seas of northern Europe, the small coastal village of Elasund falls prey to marauding neighbors. Their food stores pillaged, women and children stolen, livestock destroyed, the villagers are left to barely survive the harsh winter — and contemplate a drastic solution to their recurring hardships: leaving the only village they have ever known. Foster brothers Candamir and Osmund lead their people on an epic quest to a mythic island home, but without knowledge of exactly where the island is, they must trust the gods to deliver them safely. Lost at sea and set adrift, an extraordinarily violent storm washes them ashore the island famed in pagan lore: Catan. They quickly set about building a new society but old grudges, animosities, and social orders lead to fraternal strife. As the ideals of Candamir’s Christian slave spread throughout the village and conflict with pagan law, the two belief systems clash. When both Osmund and Candamir fall in love with Siglind, the mysterious queen of the Cold Islands, things come to a head. Based on the wildly popular board game of the same name designed by Klaus Teuber, Rebecca Gable’s The Settlers of Catan is a must-read adventure rich in detail and rippling with intensity.