Here are some basic tips that will help you become acclimated to the world of Catan Online.

Starting Out
The key to success in Catan Online is the balanced acquisition of resources. If you pursue only wood and brick, for example, you can build all the roads you want, but without grain and wool, there will be no new settlements at the end of those roads. Therefore, when you place your first two settlements, try to have at least one adjoining hex containing each type of resource. You can work on specializing in, or even monopolizing, a specific type of resource later, once your infrastructure is in place.

In some cases you can’t access all five resource types from your initial settlements. This is a particular hazard for the first player to place a settlement, since they will be the last one to place a second settlement. If you find yourself in this situation, try to place your second settlement near a port that specializes in whichever resource your hexes primarily produce. This way, you’ll be able to trade for other necessities (without putting too many of your own resources into the hands of your opponents).

Don’t worry if you can’t place your initial settlements right next to each other! It’s more important to have the best possible mix of resource types than it is to have a tidy layout. In fact, building in two separate locations can work to your advantage: it is much harder for your opponents to completely enclose your territory and prevent further expansion.

Expansion or improvement? There’s no “right way” to play Catan Online. Some players prefer spending their resources on new roads and settlements, while others concentrate on upgrading their existing territory with cities and development cards; these are both valid strategies. However, there are two important things to consider: First, there are only a certain number of hexes on the board; and second, once a spot is claimed for a settlement, it’s gone for good. So if you plan to expand, it’s best to do so early.

Early Expansion
In the beginning, it’s difficult to go wrong with building roads. You’ll need at least two contiguous road segments before you can place a new settlement, so this is a smart focus for the start of the game. If you manage to reach a spot that you’d like to colonize, but you don’t have all the necessary resources to place the settlement, don’t just sit on your extra bricks and lumber; start building roads towards the next spot you’d like to colonize.

Since each settlement must be placed at least two road segments away from the previous one, the maximum number of settlements alongside one specific hex is three. However, if you want to minimize the number of potential opponent settlements on that hex, you can build after three road segments instead of two, thus ensuring that only two settlements can be built next to, and thereby benefit from, that hex. Remember, though, that this will also keep you from building the maximum number of settlements around that hex; playing the “spoiler” can effectively limit your opponents’ expansion, but take care that it doesn’t hamper your own plans as well.

Trading
Trading is the essence of this game. No matter how careful you are in placing your settlements and managing your resources, there will inevitably come a time when you’ll need a resource that you don’t have. This is where trading comes in, and careful trading can mean the difference between winning and losing.

There are two ways to trade resources. First, you can offer a swap to the other players, and see if anyone bites. This is certainly the easiest way to get what you need, since one-to-one trades are possible, or even one-to-two trades, if you have a hot commodity. In the beginning of the game brick and lumber is particularly desirable, so a spare brick might go a long way towards helping you stockpile ore. Keep an eye on the “wants” of your opponents, and if you have an item that everyone needs, don’t be shy about requesting multiple resources in return.

The only drawback of trading with your fellow players is that you are fulfilling their needs at the same time as your own, which means you’re helping them along the road to victory. If you’re offered the same trade by two different opponents, it’s best to deal with whoever has fewer Victory Points. Of course, you can bypass this problem by making Port Trades. If you have access to several hexes of the same type, you should try to build towards a port which handles that resource, thus giving you an easy and cheap supply of all other resources.

Sometimes, it’s best to base your strategy on the resources you have available at any given point. Saving up ore to upgrade to a city is a noble goal, but is easily foiled if your opponent plays a Soldier or Monopoly card, moves the Robber when you have over seven cards, or, worse yet, places the Robber on one of your hexes. So if, for example, you have two ore and two grain handy, but nobody will trade you the third ore you need for a city upgrade, you might want to swap one of your ore for a wool, and buy a Development Card instead. It’s usually better to do something with what you have than to do nothing and count on keeping your current cards.

Victory Points
Probably the easiest way to get extra victory points is to purchase Development Cards. These cards have two advantages: First, they’re cheaper than building a new settlement or upgrading to a city; and second, the points they add are hidden from your opponents. Of course, this is a double-edged sword, since un-played Development Cards are always a source of suspicion, even if what you have is actually a handful of Soldiers and other non-Victory Point cards, the other players are likely to assume the worst and treat you as if you were winning.

Of course, it’s tempting to go for the Longest Road title and the two extra Victory Points that go along with it. However, a bit of planning is in order if you intend to pursue this route. First off, building a road segment on either side of a valid settlement point is not enough to keep somebody from building there. If an opponent can build up to that same point from a different direction and place a settlement, you’ll have two short roads instead of a single long one, and a speedy loss of your bonus. So either make sure to settle at least every three spaces along your road, or build only in areas your opponents can’t reach.

If at all possible, the best way to gain Victory Points is to upgrade your settlements to cities. Unfortunately, upgrading requires a large investment of two specific resources, one of which is the least-available in the game: ore. So if you plan to win with this strategy, you’ll want to place an extra settlement alongside an ore-producing hex as soon as possible, and follow that up with one alongside a grain-producing hex. Of course, once you start upgrading, the settlements next to these two hex types should be the first to become cities.