Settlers of Catan Info
This is the part where I hope you know how to play the game. I'll start off at the beginning with the setup strategy.
Setup and Resource Strategy
If you've read the rules, you know how the setup works. You put all the land face down, all the water face down, all the ports face down, and mix each group. Then you make the island out of the land and put water and ports alternating around it. As a final touch you flip it all right side up and put the numbers on the land hexes. Lets look at the what we got and the potential strategy:
1. Land types: You got 4 hexes each that produce sheep, wood and grain, and there are 3 each that produce ore and brick. There's also a desert, but we don't care about that.
2. Port hexes: You got one for each resource allowing you to trade it in for whatever resource you want at a 2:1 ratio. You also got several generic ports that let you trade any resource you happen to have at a 3:1 ratio for a different resource.
3. Roll numbers: Each time you roll the dice, the number of the dice causes all hexes with that number to produce resources. There is one "2" and one "12" and two of everything in between except for "7" which we all know is special because bad things happen when that gets rolled. Since "7" is special, this means that the best rolls on the board are "6" and "8".
You only get to place two settlements to start with, so you had better put them in good places. Here are some guidelines/strategies that may help, but no guarantee.
1. Observe the board and see how many players you are playing with. If you go first and you are playing with three players you have to wait for four more settlements to be placed. They will probably end up in spots that you want so you have to look at what you will probably end up with. Make sure that if you are first you get the best "good" spot. I will define "good" later.
2. If you are going 3rd and there are 3 players, this means you get to place two in a row. Use this to your advantage. Place the one with the most resources or resources that you will most need in the beginning second so that you get them to start your hand with. If there aren't 2 "good" spots for you to take, or you don't really like one, then observe what the other players are going to need when they place their second settelment, and mess them up.
3. Try not to place on ports or water. This means that you only get two numbers off that settlement, or worse yet...one. If you do it, do it because of the resources you need and the roll probablity. But do keep ports in mind. If you have an option of being in close proximity to a 2:1 port that you know you that you will be able to use based on you roll probablities or somewhere else, if all else is equal, build closer to the port so you can get it some day.
Final tips:
"Good" spots include the following: Spots that have a "6" or "8", "9" or "5", and "4" or "10" are the best, except in the rare occasion of a "6" or "8" with a "5" AND a "9". It's nice, but not necessary if they have three different resources. "3" and "11" are worse than "4" and "10", but take them if that's all there is. If you go first, take your favorite, but check out where the 2:1 ports are positioned and think about which of them you might get.
"Next to good" spots will have a "9" and "5" and proabably a "4" or "10".
You basically want to get as many of the five resources types as possible, so if you can get them all between your two settlements rather than most (3) at one that is okay. If you get to place two in a row, you can assess this further.
Some thoughts:
If you are going 3rd and there are three players, and there are 4 "good" spots on the board, you can get two of these if you want. Try to a "6" and an "8", rather than two "6"s or two "8"s.
Opening Strategy
In the beginning of the game, you will find that usually you are hard pressed to get what you need, and this is not always under your control. It is important to know your opponents strategy so that you can exploit your knowledge. For instance:
1. A common practice of people that have been playing a while is to be nice if they roll a "7" and not put the robber on anyone and they expect the same from everyone else. If everyone plays like this the game is boring (the poor robber lives in the desert) and you can't gain off of the strategy involved that you are about to learn. When you roll a "7" stop and think about what you need first and based on what you rolled and what your opponents have for sure or you think they have take from he/she who has what you want. If you don't particularly need anything then look around and see if anyone is off to a VERY alarming early start (as in they have 5, you have 2) and if not take from the person with the most cards and of course place the robber on their best spot.
If, unfortunately you play with people who are nice, be nice and put it in the desert, unless you are REALLY good at blackmailing some poor soul into giving you something.
2. Try to get a settelment as fast as possible. Don't waste resources on excess roads and the like. If you are in a situation where someone else probably wants the same spot as you, hold off on building a road to it until you can build it with the settlement. This way they won't know you are coming and make some quick trades to get their.
3. Don't promote trading. Although it is perfectly legal, don't trade with anyone unless you absolutely have to. Remember if your opponents start trading, everyone benefits except you. You don't want or need a trading alliance to win, unless you are stupid. Plus no one is going to want to trade with you if you follow my strategies for the mid-game.
Mid-Game Strategy
The mid-game is very important, because this is where stuff happens. You get more resources and you have more options when it comes to buying stuff. As a result there are many different strategies. Here are some ideas that you should think about:
1. The most important thing is to react to your opponents. Find some way to gain an edge on them somewhere. If one of them buys two cards, you should hurry up and buy three. Always assume that their cards are knights. If you have three knights ready to play, start playing them. And don't be nice about it. It is helpful to have a 2:1 port. Then maximize on that resource. Try to get as much of it as possible. Throw all your eggs in the same basket if you're losing. That way, if your stuff gets rolled, you have a chance, wheras if you're spread thin and your opponents are too and they are getting more stuff than you on every roll you would be in a losing situation.
2. Be resourceful. Consider this situation. You are wanting to buy a city. You have one grain and two ore. You have to many cards and you have four sheep that you can cash in. You have a city on an "8" ore and a city on a "6" grain. Which resource do you cash in for? Grain of course! Now if we roll an "8", you get your city. If you cash in for the ore and we roll "6", you're still an ore short, and now you have loads of grain that you don't need.
3. Buy when convenient. This especially applies to development cards but also to everything else. Basically, buy stuff when you can as soon as you can...except roads. Don't buy tons of roads if you don't need to (especially if you have a brick port or wood port).
End-game/Winning Strategy
As the game progresses, it goes faster. For every settlement or city you build, the easier it is to build another, because you start to get more resources and/or more rolls when you build. The strategy is to not let your opponents know that you are winning. Otherwise they will try to stop you. Here are some things I do to help accomplish this:
1. If I am one or two roads away from the longest road, and I have 7 or less points (this means I won't win yet if I get it now), then I don't build those roads yet. If I did, I would have 9 points and that might alarm my opponents. I would build a settlement over the roads anyday. A settlement is a solid point that no one can ever take away. They can take the longest road away. You're better off building it when you have 9 or 10 points.
2. Development cards are good. If you follow that mid-game strategy you will probably have some cards by now. In the same theory as the roads, try to be one knight away from the largest army, but you of course have the winning knight in your hand. Keep your regular schedule going until you are at 8 points.
3. Victory point developement cards are really nice, because they are invisible. Your opponents can't know how many points you really have. It's always nice to have one or two of those in your hand. Of course don't play them until you can win.
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