Settlers of Catan
This morning, I put up a Twitter poll asking which game we should play this evening. Benjamin and Isaiah are going back to school tomorrow morning from Winter break, and I wanted to make sure we got some solid game time in before they have to hit the books. The options I gave were Settlers of Catan, Grimm Forest, and Dice Throne. We don't have very many followers on Twitter yet (follow us!), so there weren't very many votes, but Settlers was chosen by democratic process. Many thanks to those who voted; we'll be playing the other two games tomorrow night.
Settlers of Catan really doesn't need an introduction. It is probably one of the best known games among tabletop hobbyists. The general population are aware of Monopoly, Life, and Sorry, but we gamers look to Catan as one of the foundational games of our pastime. BoardGameGeek.com lists more than 80 thousand reviews at an average of 7.2/10 stars per review. Hardcore tabletop gamers might think that they evolved beyond the world of Catan, but many of us still keep it as part of our regular gaming rotation.
There is a steep learning curve for initiates and it often takes a few full games to fully grasp the mechanics when you've got cutthroat veterans teaching you the ropes. When I first encountered Settlers in my early twenties, the other players told me that they didn't have time to teach me how to play, and that I'd have to watch for several playthroughs before I'd even get a seat at the table. These days we'd call that gatekeeping.
Playing Settlers with children presents several problems, but none are insurmountable.
First, there are lots of rules. Luckily, there are several tools that can help teach the game to newbies. The newer Catan boxes even have a QR code that links to a "how to play Catan video" online, and there are dozens of watch it played sites available from third parties. Another option is to ease children into the Settlers world with Catan Junior. We've played the Junior version for over a year, so the boys were already miles ahead of where I was when I started playing.
Second, there is competition. Of course, the aim of the game is to win. As a parent, I am more interested in the experience of playing games with my children, teaching them to think critically, showing them good sports-person-ship, and having lots of fun. They are naturally competitive, as are many gamers. Later I'll mention some ways to make the game more forgiving for younger folk and beginners.
The last obstacle I'll mention is time. Catan can take an hour or two to complete, although I've had some games last quite a bit longer. Children of this generation (and most people, in general) aren't very patient. I try to limit distraction as much as possible, e.g. no television, quiet music, during little sister's naptime, etc.
I set up the game board with some assistance from all three children. Genevieve was interested in playing when I took the box off of the shelf, but quickly went back to watching Despicable Me 3 once the game got underway. I took the time to explain what each of the components were, and how to setup the tiles properly. When portions of the game were comparable to Catan Junior, I'd mention it so that Benji and Isaiah could have a basis for understanding.
***optional rule change for younger children or those who are learning Catan***
I chose to use the robber much like the ghost pirate from Catan Junior. When a 7 is rolled, the player can move the robber to a new location, but DOES NOT steal a card from one of the occupying players. Instead, the player receives a resource matching the tile that they placed the robber on. Players with over seven cards still must discard half of their cards. The robber still blocks production of resources while it remains on the tile.
This change makes the robber slightly less of a threat and prevents some of the "picking" on individual players that often occurs in my "grownup" Catan games.
Before we began gameplay in earnest, I showed the boys how to pick their initial settlement locations, and explained why it was so important to choose wisely at the beginning of the game. Catan Junior, like the "beginner setup" of Settlers of Catan, starts play with a preconstructed game board and preset locations for settlements. We, however, were playing with a random game board and were picking settlement locations. The boys and I discussed different strategies, but ultimately they decided what to do.
From the beginning, Isaiah and Benjamin were rolling hot and raking in the resources. Me? Not so much. I was able to secure the longest road for a few turns, but Isaiah stole it from me and then blocked me into a corner. Benjamin managed a strong monopoly on ore, added with really excellent robber placement. From time to time, I'd help them choose where to place tokens, but mostly through providing options and helping them see the merit in various strategies.
The entire game took about 90 minutes and ended with a score of 10 vs 9 vs 6. Isaiah had secured both the longest road and largest army, plus two victory points from development cards (10 points, and the victorious settler). Benjamin was right behind him and would have likely won on the next turn. He had focused on upgrading his settlements into cities and was close to stealing the longest road (9 points, and a very impressive second place). I was stuck in a corner with lots of brick.
Isaiah, after some vigorous fist-pumping, said that Catan was a lot of fun and that he'd like to play it again. Of course he would...he was the winner. He also mentioned that it was "pretty challenging, because you have to get a lot of cards so you can build things." I'm awestruck by the way he loves to win, but never makes anyone feel bad about losing.
Benjamin was really happy to have beaten me. I'm not even sure that he cared about not being first overall. I made sure to give him lots of praise for the really excellent decisions he made throughout the game, and pointed out some alternate strategies he might have used. Telling a child that they are doing something wrong isn't very helpful. Instead, try asking them what they are trying to do, and ask them questions to guide them toward achieving that goal. We aren't lawyers (maybe some of you are), and asking leading questions can assist a child in developing logical steps (mostly) on their own.
Completing Settlers of Catan with my 6- and 7- year old is a major victory. Tomorrow, I'm going to tell them again how proud I am that they learned a really difficult game...and remind them how badly they beat me.
Oh, and stay tuned for Grimm Forest and Dice Throne. They beat me at those games quite often.
 |
| Early in the game...when I still had a chance. |
Settlers of Catan really doesn't need an introduction. It is probably one of the best known games among tabletop hobbyists. The general population are aware of Monopoly, Life, and Sorry, but we gamers look to Catan as one of the foundational games of our pastime. BoardGameGeek.com lists more than 80 thousand reviews at an average of 7.2/10 stars per review. Hardcore tabletop gamers might think that they evolved beyond the world of Catan, but many of us still keep it as part of our regular gaming rotation.
There is a steep learning curve for initiates and it often takes a few full games to fully grasp the mechanics when you've got cutthroat veterans teaching you the ropes. When I first encountered Settlers in my early twenties, the other players told me that they didn't have time to teach me how to play, and that I'd have to watch for several playthroughs before I'd even get a seat at the table. These days we'd call that gatekeeping.
Playing Settlers with children presents several problems, but none are insurmountable.
First, there are lots of rules. Luckily, there are several tools that can help teach the game to newbies. The newer Catan boxes even have a QR code that links to a "how to play Catan video" online, and there are dozens of watch it played sites available from third parties. Another option is to ease children into the Settlers world with Catan Junior. We've played the Junior version for over a year, so the boys were already miles ahead of where I was when I started playing.
Second, there is competition. Of course, the aim of the game is to win. As a parent, I am more interested in the experience of playing games with my children, teaching them to think critically, showing them good sports-person-ship, and having lots of fun. They are naturally competitive, as are many gamers. Later I'll mention some ways to make the game more forgiving for younger folk and beginners.
The last obstacle I'll mention is time. Catan can take an hour or two to complete, although I've had some games last quite a bit longer. Children of this generation (and most people, in general) aren't very patient. I try to limit distraction as much as possible, e.g. no television, quiet music, during little sister's naptime, etc.
I set up the game board with some assistance from all three children. Genevieve was interested in playing when I took the box off of the shelf, but quickly went back to watching Despicable Me 3 once the game got underway. I took the time to explain what each of the components were, and how to setup the tiles properly. When portions of the game were comparable to Catan Junior, I'd mention it so that Benji and Isaiah could have a basis for understanding.
***optional rule change for younger children or those who are learning Catan***
I chose to use the robber much like the ghost pirate from Catan Junior. When a 7 is rolled, the player can move the robber to a new location, but DOES NOT steal a card from one of the occupying players. Instead, the player receives a resource matching the tile that they placed the robber on. Players with over seven cards still must discard half of their cards. The robber still blocks production of resources while it remains on the tile.
This change makes the robber slightly less of a threat and prevents some of the "picking" on individual players that often occurs in my "grownup" Catan games.
 |
| Isaiah really enjoyed taking the longest road. He counted his roads repeatedly. :P |
Before we began gameplay in earnest, I showed the boys how to pick their initial settlement locations, and explained why it was so important to choose wisely at the beginning of the game. Catan Junior, like the "beginner setup" of Settlers of Catan, starts play with a preconstructed game board and preset locations for settlements. We, however, were playing with a random game board and were picking settlement locations. The boys and I discussed different strategies, but ultimately they decided what to do.
From the beginning, Isaiah and Benjamin were rolling hot and raking in the resources. Me? Not so much. I was able to secure the longest road for a few turns, but Isaiah stole it from me and then blocked me into a corner. Benjamin managed a strong monopoly on ore, added with really excellent robber placement. From time to time, I'd help them choose where to place tokens, but mostly through providing options and helping them see the merit in various strategies.
 |
| We're all winners, but Isaiah most of all. |
The entire game took about 90 minutes and ended with a score of 10 vs 9 vs 6. Isaiah had secured both the longest road and largest army, plus two victory points from development cards (10 points, and the victorious settler). Benjamin was right behind him and would have likely won on the next turn. He had focused on upgrading his settlements into cities and was close to stealing the longest road (9 points, and a very impressive second place). I was stuck in a corner with lots of brick.
Isaiah, after some vigorous fist-pumping, said that Catan was a lot of fun and that he'd like to play it again. Of course he would...he was the winner. He also mentioned that it was "pretty challenging, because you have to get a lot of cards so you can build things." I'm awestruck by the way he loves to win, but never makes anyone feel bad about losing.
 |
| Benji seemed to always have a wealth of resources |
Benjamin was really happy to have beaten me. I'm not even sure that he cared about not being first overall. I made sure to give him lots of praise for the really excellent decisions he made throughout the game, and pointed out some alternate strategies he might have used. Telling a child that they are doing something wrong isn't very helpful. Instead, try asking them what they are trying to do, and ask them questions to guide them toward achieving that goal. We aren't lawyers (maybe some of you are), and asking leading questions can assist a child in developing logical steps (mostly) on their own.
Completing Settlers of Catan with my 6- and 7- year old is a major victory. Tomorrow, I'm going to tell them again how proud I am that they learned a really difficult game...and remind them how badly they beat me.
Oh, and stay tuned for Grimm Forest and Dice Throne. They beat me at those games quite often.
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