Bart's Settlers of Catan Strategy

Tips and Tricks on Catan Strategy from Bart, lifted from an email March, 2006 -

Initial placement pointers

1. Review board for scarce resources think about grab them, especially if they are wheat or ore. (if you are the only one with wheat you can name your price)

2. If possible don't start without wheat, everything but roads needs wheat. You need at least a little bit of this or if you can't get that then build to a good port to trade for it.

3. Don't place on edges or deserts unless there is no place else, even if there is a port on it. Getting resources on 3 numbers at the beginning of game is way better then being able to
trade 3 for 1. But if you have to play on an edge try to get a port.

4. Try to balance out the numbers you will get resources on. If you build both settlements on 8s you will be in a feast or famine situation. either the dice will kill you or you will get a ton of resource and then get burned by a 7. Try to get it so you get something on a 8,6,5,9 and you will be sitting good.

5. Try to have 4 out of the 5 resource types on initial placement even if some of the numbers are bad.

6. Don't try to place one settlement in the sheep field (3 sheep resource) and then grab the sheep port (same goes for other resources, sheep just an example) I used to love doing this, but it doesn't work. You end up scaring everyone so you get the robber and you end up having to pay double resources for everything (instead of one wood and one clay you pay 4 sheep)

7. If you are placing last, make sure to keep in mind that first one is a settlement, second is a city, think about which resources you want on the city. Also remember that your second placement get the three resources around it. Getting something like a wood, clay, and sheep is big because you almost have your next settlement or you can build a road. This can give you a quick jump in the game.

8. Look at the 6s and 8s first for placement but also look at the 9s and 5s. Sometimes they are better placements then the 8s and 6s plus they don't get burned by the robber as much.

Strategies

There are basically two strategies that I follow. Which one you follow depends on your init placement. I also don't play with seafares much so adding ships to the mix probably changes this.

If map is weak on ore or wheat, or your init placement makes you weak on this then you are stuck going for a lot of settlements and lr strategy. Try to make your last settlement placement on wood and clay that gives you an extra road on turn 1 or 1/2 your next settlement. Don't race for longest road just make sure you are only 1 or 2 roads from taking it. Make sure you are building settlement along the way, 2 roads then settlement, 2 roads then settlement. This strategy is hard to win with, only good if you are the only one with clay or wood, or it the map has no Wheat or Ore. When you are placing roads try to box in other people if possible and make sure you are not getting boxed in.

If you are strong in wheat and ore with some sheep then you can go for a city/vic point/largest Army win. You are shooting for 4 cities and either largest army or 2 victory points. After placing your settlements concentrate on first getting them turned into cities. Then build two more settlements and then focus on buying cards and getting them turned into cities. Must have strong placement in wheat and rock with decent sheep for this. If you do then you don't even need wood or clay. (This is the strategy you should have gone for last time we played on line, You are totally rocking in ore and wheat and sheep. I thought you had the best placement on the board when we started, but you did a sort of longest road and settlement, my mind is on drugs strategy and used your ore port to trade in all your ore when you should have been building cities and building cards)

Trading

WATCH WHAT OTHER PEOPLE ARE DOING!!!!! Don't just trade quickly, put thought into it. If you are going for longest road strategy, don't trade wood and clay to some who is playing the same strategy. Don't trade anything to someone you are trying to beat to a settlement placement. Always ask 'what is he going to do with that?' before you trade with him.

Don't trade with anyone on their turn during the first 2 rounds unless it enables you to build a settlement or city on your next turn. Most trades in the first 2 turns are people trying to get there 3rd settlement. If you let someone else get the jump on you with an extra settlement or city upgrade in the first 3 turns it can kill you.

Never, never ,never trade with the leader who has over 6 points. Think very hard about trading to anyone else once they have over 6 points. It is really easy for them to build something then nab lr or play 2 vic points to win the game.

Really good players only trade when they get something really good and don't give someone else to much. Newbies trade all the time without much thought.


Misc

Next game I will help you, give me a chance to tell you to back a move out, or go ahead and ask me if that is a good or bad move.

Always review the skill of the players and burn or screw over the most skilled players during the start of the game.

When figuring out who has the most points in the game, count every unused dev card as a point or a possible largest army.

Robber placement. Always look at the leader as the victim first, but also keep in mind the resources you need and what the victim might have. If you are dying for clay and someone has a city on clay, you might get one. Also if you did not manage to balance the numbers burn the numbers you don't have, (if you are on 8s, put it on a 6). Also keep in mind the resource you are closing. At the beginning of the game clay and wood are good to close off to others because roads and settlements need that. Later in the game, wheat and ore are good to stop cities and dev cards.

Always keep an eye on what the other people are doing. With the on-line game it is to easy to forget about everyone else and only look at your cities, settlements and cards. Watch the other people play there turn, watch were they build, figure out the strategy they are using, if at the start of your turn you can't say what everyone else did since there last turn review the log (I always have to do this for Pete cause he plays so damn fast)