Some of Catan Online's best players share their tips, tricks, and sneaky traps!
We've known all along that our players are people of exceptional skill, quick wit, and -- let's be honest -- extreme cunning. There's hardly a single person here at MSN Games who hasn't been "owned" in a game of Catan Online by some player with a marvelous bag of strategic tricks.
Since you folks are beating the experts, we figured it was time for you to start educating your fellow players as well! Here are a few of the best suggestions from our first round of submissions.
Starting Out
In Catan, the make-or-break play occurs during your initial placement. The ideal setup for this is placing a settlement on a 5, 6, 8, or 9 marked resource with other resources either adjacent to or within connectivity. If you're able to get a 2:1 port with a settlement on a pair of like-resourced tiles, by all means, go for it.
- Dragonlancer123
Initial setup can make or break you. Getting high production settlements is nice, but make sure you also vary the numbers your settlements are located by. Putting all of your eggs in one or two baskets can become disastrous if those numbers aren't rolled every turn. Starting in the center of Catan might also prove disastrous if everyone else builds around you, blocking any chance you might have of creating more settlements.
- pshaffer
The strategy that has helped me the most is the initial analysis of the board. Realizing which resource will be the least available during the game and ensuring that you have at least some access to it is key. Even if the number on it isn't the best, choose a resource that will be difficult to get.
- newruby71
The key is the resource numbers you get. Try to get six different numbers, so that you have more of a chance to produce resources on each turn. I prefer 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, as these come up often. Always try to get good numbers for ore and grain, since upgrading to cities early can give you an edge.
- dtowndlite
The 2 and 12 rarely are rolled more than once or twice in a typical game. Odds of the 2 or 12 coming up are only 1 time in 20 rolls. Make sure when placing a settlement on these numbers you are aware of this fact. Do not expect to see them rolled, and be excited when they do.
- Phuntomx
Know the map well. Place your first settlements with access to brick and wood, with all resources if possible. Try to monopolize locations at the intersection of wheat and ore hexes; these are useful for building cities, which double production and speed up the game significantly.
- human_flame
Expansion
If you want to get the Longest Road point bonus, you need to have your road and settlement resources available immediately at the onset of the game, or very soon after. The desert hex and board edges are ideal areas to increase the length of your road. Just remember to place settlements to protect your road as quickly as possible, and upgrade your settlements to cities both on your road resource hexes and the road itself (in that order).
- Dragonlancer123
Invest early on in cities; it will be just that many more resources towards your win!
- Kadiakellie
Pay attention to what's being produced and what's being spent. Should you need a specific resource, knowing who has one will make using a robber, a Soldier card, or the Monopoly card more effective and likely for success.
- pshaffer
Build your road down the center of the map to block others. This way, they can't match up their roads, while you have one straight line and a better chance at getting the Longest Road.
- dtowndlite
Remember that it is extremely difficult to win a game of Settlers without having either the Longest Road or Largest Army. Decide in the first few turns which one you will go for, and build your strategy around it.
When playing for the Longest Road, don't settle for simply having a tie in length, or even one extra segment. If the game is on the line, make sure to add two or even three extra segments to your road, to prevent an opponent from playing a road-building card and stealing your two-point advantage in one move. Also, it’s rare, but be aware of the 13-segment limit; if you are in a race with an opponent, make sure you get to 13 first so he or she doesn’t steal it from you.
- Phuntomx
Development Cards
Buy Development cards if you can't do anything else during your turn, or if you're not planning anything. They're mostly soldiers, and the Largest Army point bonus is definitely a huge help in acquiring victory points. In addition, unless you're always buying the cards, most players don't realize what you're doing until it's too late.
- Dragonlancer123
When you have a Monopoly card, wait until you have a resource which is in demand. Trade it for everything you can get (since it's in demand, you should be able to get heaps!), then pull out the Monopoly card and get everything back. It works great, but boy do you make enemies fast doing it...
- _PYREX_
[Editor's note: for a devestating 1-2 punch, combine that trick with the following one.]
Click the STATS button to see how many of each resource type are left. The lower the number, the more of that resource is in the players' hands. Subtract the number of resources that you are holding, and you'll have an idea of who has what and how much of it.
Offer to trade the desired resource to your opponents, and make them a good offer. For example, if you are looking for Wheat, trade away your wheat for something that you know for sure your opponents have a lot of. Trading 1 for 2 is fine. Use the news area in the upper right window to show you what resources your opponents have recently acquired.
Play the Monopoly card, and choose the resource that you just traded away! You get it right back, plus more – and you get to keep the resource you just traded for!
- Phuntomx
Development cards are a good investment. You cannot receive anything negative, so anything received is a step towards acquiring more victory points.
- human_flame
Trading
You need to be ready to trade at a loss to yourself. 1:1 trades are nearly impossible to get, unless both you and your trade partner desperately need the other resource. And, likewise, someone else probably has the same resource that the trader wants -- so play things to your advantage.
The port areas (3:1 trade any, or 2:1 trade specific) are of extreme importance. The 2:1 specific ports are possibly the most helpful places in the game, especially if you're able to generate the resource with a steady flow. The best trade partner is the one that you have a constant deal with, and that's what those ports are.
- Dragonlancer123
Use your trade screen to send messages to your opponents: click “refuse” on and off once or twice to let them know that their currently offered trade is not acceptable. Leaving it off suggests that they try another type of offer, or that their current offer needs to be sweetened. Leaving it on tells your opponent to quit attempting to trade, hurry up and pass the dice.
- Phuntomx
Banditry
When you have the opportunity to place the thief, unless you really want to get revenge or handicap someone, place him in an area where he will be relatively harmless. What goes around in this game comes around, and if you play the thief in even a mildly important area to your opponent(s), rest assured, they will do the same, and likely, much worse to you.
- Dragonlancer123
When placing your settlements, if all things are equal, try to place them on hexes that are shared by an opponent. It would be very unlikely for your opponent to place the thief on a hex that he or she shares with you. Sharing a resource location with at least one other player significantly reduces the odds by which you will have the thief placed on you, and greatly increases the odds that when he is, you will be able to remove him.
Also, be wary of the 6 and 8 locations, as these often attract the thief; they are rolled 14% of the time. 5 and 9 come up 11% of the time, still quite frequently, and are somewhat less likely to draw your opponent's thief.
- Phuntomx
So, now it's your turn!
Ready to school your fellow players in the intricacies of Catan? Then send your strategy to Zsuggest@microsoft.com, with the subject line: CATAN STRATEGY. We'll assemble the best submissions and post them in our next strategy article!