5 best katana extensions
5 best katana extensions
Looking for the best Catana extensions?
You don't have to leave the world exploring brand new ... or more! Expand your island, fight barbarian invasions and crush your friends.
? Our best selections for the best Catana extensions
Are you in a hurry? Check out our favorite extensions below.
The best starting point
Best for Catan veterans
The best Catan extension (generally the best)
The island settlement of Catan Island is my home away from home. This is a place where my friends and I spent a lot of time. I first received Catana as a Christmas present and then played straight for the next three days. On the third day (after spending 8 hours at the table without a break), I realized I wanted more.
Fortunately for us, there are many Catan Island extensions. Each of them drastically changes the game and unlike other board game extensions, they are not necessarily compatible with each other. There are homebrew rules You can find ways to mix and match online, but my recommendation is to enjoy each one individually and appreciate it as it is. That being said, if you’ve become an expert on this classic Catan and have no idea where to start, then we’ve covered you.
We have gathered the best Catan Island extensions and where to start exploring your Catan Island. In this post, we will cover the part of the huge world that is Catan Island . We ordered this list after the logical progression of the extensions, but you can skip it!
1. Catan: 5-6 player extensions
The simplest and usually the first expansion players get a 5-6 expansion player . No matter how amazing the settlers in Catan are, it’s no fun to stand by and wish these were the ones caught up in the brick sheep shop.
Larger playgroups? No problem.
The expansion for 5-6 players is exactly as it sounds. It is available with extended sideboards, extra cards and two extra wooden pieces. It includes everything you will need to expand the board, as well as all the parts that are sure to prevent you from running out of cards.
The mechanics of changing games
Not much has changed here. The game is basically Katan that you know and love. There is only one major rule change:
All players can build during turns during the special construction phase.
This allows for longer times between turns and is a bit fairer. It’s no fun if a robber hits you multiple times before you even get a chance to use anything.
The final thoughts
This is usually the first extension that people buy. The game doesn’t change drastically, but it does provide enough resources and space for two more players at your table. If you lack friends and you never have a gaming party with more than 4 players , then keep reading! However, if you want to play the original game with a larger group, this is your choice.
- THIS IS AN EXTENSION TO THE GAME OF KATAN STRATEGY: You ...
- NOW 3 to 6 players can enjoy this strategy game: trade, build and ...
- FUN GAME WITH FRAGILE ATTACHMENTS REPEAT: Absolutely ...
- Easy to turn on
- cheap
- It adds playfulness to larger groups, but not much else
2. Catan: Sailors
Raise your sails, safe for the sea and get ready to start the ride.
Sail away with the Seafarers! There is gold on this island, I just know ...
Sailors drastically change your board, but the core of the game remains the same. The goal of the game is still to score 10 points in front of other players and build your towns and villages to gain more funds.
The difference is in what is added to the board game. You now have the opportunity to expand your settlements to islands and create trade routes along the waterways, which definitely helps if you’ve ever made a bad decision and had nowhere to expand. The first player to come to the islands usually has the first untouched territory that includes the new gold hex, which I’m talking about in the mechanics of the game.
The mechanics of changing games
- The basic Catan game is required to play
- Best as a game of 3-4 players
- Game duration: 90-120 min.
9 scenarios
The Seafarers extension has 9 different scenarios to get you started. They start out very similar to the original Catan settlers, then branch out and introduce new elements and strategies as they progress through the scenarios.
I think it’s a great mechanic and an easy entry into the extension that allows you to slowly turn on until you get sea legs.
Boat launch or boot road?
Extending Seafarers represents a new way to extend your control of the board. If you want to cross the ocean and get to resource-rich islands, you will need to build ships that will make your trade routes on waterways. On the other hand, if you decide to start on the coastal hex, then you can start by putting a boat instead of a road. Don’t worry too much about your initial placements, as ships also have limited ability to move!
The longest trade route replaces the longest road
Since your maritime trade routes are now part of your influence, the rules for changing the ships you may have built have turned the longest road into the longest trade route. Follow the rule of uninterrupted voyage still and ships must connect to the settlement for counting.
Golden hexes
There is gold on these hills!
A new hex is shown showing the sources of gold, although there are no maps with sources of gold. Hexagonal gold represents the wealth that your newly acquired gold can buy. Whenever you roll it, you can take any source, making it extremely powerful. They are usually only found on the islands, making it much harder to get there early but very profitable.
Pirates and thieves, oh my!
Success breeds jealousy. Especially among friends. In addition to the robber, if you roll "7" you now have the option to move the pirate. Pirates act very much like a robber, only instead they are placed on water tiles. Players who own a neighboring ship are in danger of having their source stolen, just as if a robber had landed on their plate. However, be careful because ships caught by a pirate cannot sail away and new ships cannot be installed in pirate-related tiles.
The final thoughts
Sailors expand your way of playing in every sense of the word. You will expand the size of the board and players will no longer be limited to their one island.
Many players think this is a lost policy ”Enlargement. It is often said that this is how you should play Catan from the beginning. Many players switch and will not play the base game unless Seafarers are involved. It has minimal changes to the rules, but more importantly, it doesn’t change the whole flow of the game. You will still recognize and feel like you are playing a classic Catan game, only bigger and better.
- This is an extension to the KATAN STRATEGY game database: You ...
- FUN GAME WITH FRAGILE ATTACHMENTS REPEAT: Absolutely ...
- BUILD AND / OR JOIN THE COMMUNITY: Whether you play as a family, ...
This is for experienced players who want to expand the game:
- Considered a "Lost Policy Extension"
- Extend gaming to islands and sea routes
- He still feels like Catan
3. Catan: Cities and Knights
As with all great and successful civilizations, the prosperity of your city is closely watched by stolen barbarians waiting to break in and grab their share of your pie. Fortunately, your gallant knights are ready and ready to defend any attack ... hopefully.
Upgrade your cities, build a science and technology hub! Then watch the barbarians destroy it.
Where the Seafarers have expanded outward, Cities & Knights are looking inward. There are several major rule changes and added game mechanics that make Cities and Knights feel like a completely different game.
You will be looking at your cities in this expansion pack. They will no longer be impersonal sheep factories in the past, but they will be upgradable industrial giants ... if you can keep them.
In addition to improving cities, you are also threatened by a barbarian horde. Event dice can always push barbarians closer to attacks on your peaceful civilization, and if you don’t build enough knights to keep them in the bay, your thriving city can be destroyed and reduced to a small settlement.
The mechanics of changing games
- The basic Catan game is required to play
- Best with 3 -4 players
- Game duration: 90-120 min.
Barbarian invasions
Instead of two dice to be discarded each turn, players will roll 2 dice: 3 regular dice and a third dice. Event dice can help you if you potentially get progress cards, or an unfortunate roll (ship) will cause the barbarian track to shift. These rolls will push the barbarians closer ... so be better prepared.
To successfully repel the attackers, you will need to unite and gather the combined forces of knights (all players). And unfortunately, the barbarians are reinforced by the number of cities you control.
Being an advocate of Catana, however, is not without its own rewards. If you successfully drive away the barbarians and contribute the most knights (ties do not count), you will receive 1 winning point.
Barbarians can (and will) destroy your cities.
If you can't repel the barbarians, the player (s) who contributed the least will destroy the city, along with all its upgrades, and reduce it to a settlement.
Development flipchart add-on
Replacing the original construction charts is a complete flipchart option. This is used to show the level of technology and improvements you have built. With more upgrades, there are more options and benefits.
More dice and promotion cards
Development card replacements are 3 new decks called progress cards. After the initial role, you can play any number of these cards. Instead of buying progress, a third dice is rolled at each step that could allow players to draw from one of the new rounds of progress. Upgrading sites increases the chances of drawing progress maps.
Trade and construction or construction and trade
Ordering is no longer important and you can build and trade as many times as you want.
City walls
One of the most irritating and catanic mechanisms of the Catan is the robber, and in the classic Catan there is really no defense for it. Cities & Knights grants a little procrastination in the form of city walls. The robber limit is usually 7 cards before you have to discard half. Each city wall increases the ceiling by two maps.
So if a player has 1 wall, he can have a maximum of 9 cards in his hands before he has to discard half. Note that a player can only have 3 walls at a time, and if the barbarians reduce the city to a settlement, then the wall goes with it.
Knights
They are available in three flavors: basic (3), strong (1) and powerful (2).
You can have the best military force in the game, but it doesn't work for free. To use your knights, you will need to activate them with the help of resources. This brings a whole new level of strategy into the game.
You can become the protector of the land and receive 1 winning point for repelling barbarians. We can block road routes with knights. Other players can't build through your knights. They can chase a robber out of your hex, as well as other knights if yours is stronger than them.
Refined Goods: In addition to the usual resources, you now have three new resources called Refined Goods, with which you can expand your cities and trade.
- Treasure
- Paper
- Coin
Urban Improvements: City enhancements will give you a special ability (or advantage) in the game, such as better trade deals, defense, and construction.
- Trading house
- Plumbing
- Fortress
Metropolis: Turning your city into a metropolis can be a difficult process, but it is worth the effort.
- Metropolis allows you to trade all resources in the bank with a ratio of 2: 1.
- Control of the metropolis brings you 2 winning points.
The final thoughts
The sailors expanded outward with their playing. Cities & Knights are looking for inspiration inside. It drastically changes the mechanics of the game and adds a lot of complexity to the game, making the strategies much deeper than going the longest.
The Knights have added new strategic elements to your arsenal. If you want the trade route you want to build, but someone else can get there, you can always move the knight to block the path, and so buy yourself some time to lift the roads. And remember, there is always the threat of a barbarian invasion that leads to robbery and destroys your well-formed cities.
If you want more depth, strategy and complexity in your Catan game, then Cities & Knights are looking for everything.
- It adds a lot of strategy and complexity to the game.
- It adds to the ever-present threat that barbarians will reduce your cities to settlements.
4. Catan: Researchers and Pirates
Channel your inner Columbus and Magellan, minus the subordination of the locals ... if I think about it, let’s skip that completely. Instead, let us be pirates and command a ship that will pave its own path to unknown lands.
Who needs cities? When you’re calling for adventures, it’s time to sail to foreign shores!
The mechanics of changing games
- The basic Catan game is required to play
- Best with 3-4 players
- Game duration: 90-120 min.
5 scenarios
Scenarios will begin to simply and slowly introduce new game mechanics. When you have completed all five, you will be an expert on new strategies and additional rules.
WITHOUT a robber
Sounds too good to be true! Well, that's because it is.
Instead of a robber, you will have pirates walking on blockaded ships and destroying your trade routes, making players pay a toll for using the waterway.
It’s best to have your pirates. Each player employs their own pirates to wreak havoc on the high seas, and you can control your own.
Without the longest road or the largest army
In this version, the construction of trade routes and roads is less important, so the largest army and the longest road were removed. But there are many other ways to earn winning points, so don’t worry.
Do not upgrade settlements
(However, they can be upgraded to port settlements) No cities! Wanderlust has hit and no one can sit still long enough to build a city.
Instead, settlements have the option of upgrading to ports, allowing players to store more cargo to ship. If the tile is twisted, you still only receive 1 source.
You always get something, even if you don’t get anything.
If you do not receive resources on the scroll, you get gold from the gold fund. This speeds up the game and reduces crying when you do not receive the * cough * Kendra * cough * remedy for a few turns.
Always 3: 1
Everything is a trading port, so all players start the game with a 3: 1 trade with the bank from the start.
2: 1 for gold
If you have a ton of gold in your pocket that burns in your pocket but you don’t have the funds, you can easily buy it now.
- Gold can be used twice per plant.
- Gold can even be traded with other players, who are usually the source.
Ships
These are different ships that have expanded Seafarers and do not operate in the same way.
- Ships carry a variety of resources with cargo space.
- Each player can have up to 4 ships (these can be purchased using wool 1x per turn per ship)
- They all move independently. They don’t need to be connected and can move past other ships until they end up in the same space.
Discovery
There are 2 random islands that players can explore. They start face down so the players really venture into the unknown.
Each time a player sends an expedition ship to explore an island tile, he capsizes it and receives the source of the uncovered tile, or if there is no source, he receives 2 gold.
Settlers and settlement ships
To settle the unexplored parts of the island, you will need to explore this new land with your ship first. Once you know where you are going, you can then build a settler and load him on a ship. When they come to new land, you can use both the ship and the settlement to create a new settlement. When you resist in a coastal area, you can then press inward to arrange an area that has no exit to the sea, just like in the classic settlers from Catan.
The final thoughts
Explorers & Pirates is a great extension that adds even more ship fun and is great at randomizing islands, ensuring that each game will be played differently. However, it seems almost like a different game that has elements of Catan. It reminds me of the Catan Histories series, which significantly changes the rules into something like Catan ... but not quite.
If you’re looking for a completely different Catana experience or have thought of other versions of Catana, this will give you an insight into how they play. I loved the game, but I personally find it a newer game with some of the classic Catan elements that I know and love.
- This is an extension of the Catan strategy board game database: you ...
- A fun game with countless possibilities of repetition: Completely ...
- Build and / or join a community: whether you play as a family, ...
- A complete overhaul of the strategy.
- Lots of new items, including hidden tiles and the movement of ships.
- Personally, it seemed more like a game with Catan elements than a Catan game.
- A good introduction if you want to play Catan Histories games.
5. Catan: Merchants and Barbarians
We did everything. It can't be anymore ... can it?
Merchants and barbarians should be your last stop in finding the best Catana extensions. It adds some new rules and game version scenarios to help you customize your games. This basically changes your already random game with a high replay factor and raises it to 11.
I don’t suggest you start here unless you’re really interested in the 2-player version of the rules that came with the board. The only extra things needed to play the official 2-player rule are something to use for chips. So if you only wanted rules for two players, you can download them for free on the official Catan website.
- The basic Catan game is required to play
- Best as a game of 2-4 players
- Game duration: 90-120 min.
The mechanics of changing games
It’s hard to talk about how Traders & Barbarians are changing the basic game. If I were to go through every change, I would basically be telling the whole rule, so to help you understand this big extension, I’m going to share just a few of the major changes you might see in your game.
- 4 rules game version
- Official rules for two players
- Friendly robber
- Tickets for Catan events
- Port Commander
- 5 new scenarios
- Catanian fisherman
- Catan River
- Caravans
- A barbaric attack
- Merchants and barbarians
Event tickets
In addition to these rules, there are also event cards that can snatch victory and completely change the dynamics of the game boards.
Robbery Attacks - Immediately present the robber and anyone with more than 7 cards is in trouble.
Shake! - Natural disasters can destroy your infrastructure and force you to repair or lose some roads.
Robber flees - The dream of every settler. The robber is returned and no one gets anything stolen. What could be better?
A Year of Abundance - According to Oprah: “You get the source! You will get the resource! Everyone gets a resource! "
It adds a variety of ways to earn points
This add-on will completely change the way players get closer to the traditional Catan game by offering many new ways to earn extra points or eliminate them altogether.
Modify or add rules for the entire playing field
The Friendly Robber Variant allows you to ignore a robber if you have a smaller number of winning points. Very Robin Hood-esque.
Some scenarios add additional resources, such as fish, which can be very profitable for a smart settler.
Creates more even conditions
The poor settlement variant helps the poorest catch up a bit faster.
The final thoughts
Merchants and barbarians are the culmination of many years and millions of Catan games. The combination of scenarios and alternative rules keeps the game fresh. It was created with Klaus Teuber’s original vision and years of feedback and fan design.
If you’ve played through all of these extensions and just can’t get enough, this will give you enough scenarios and versions of the rules to keep you happy for years to come.
- This is an extension of the Catan strategy board game database: you ...
- A fun game with countless possibilities of repetition: Completely ...
- Build and / or join a community: whether you play as a family, ...
I wouldn’t recommend this as a first extension, but it should definitely be on your radar when you take the rest.
- He drastically contributes to the re-enactment of Catana.
- Randomizer rules and multiple scenarios can change every game you play.
TL; DR
Crazy Catana
If you know the game, you probably know that there are dozens of versions, extensions, extensions and themed spinoffs. If you love Catan as much as we do, you will never be bored with all the options that change the game around the world.
If you are a fan of Game of Thrones , be sure to check out our review of Game of Thrones Catan: Brotherhood of the Guardians!
Each of these extensions has its own unique personality that will undoubtedly complicate some and drive others away. What do you think are the best Catana extensions? In what order did you decide to play them? We look forward to your experience with the comment below!
Happy playing!
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