Game Objective

In Catan: The Game - Seafarers, players take on the role of settlers exploring unknown islands and seas. The goal is to build maritime routes, establish villages and cities, and accumulate victory points through territorial expansion, trade, and achieving scenario-specific objectives. The game ends when a player reaches the required number of victory points specified in the scenario during their own turn.

Setup

The setup varies depending on the chosen scenario but generally includes:

• Assembling the board with hexagonal terrain and sea tiles, following the layout illustrated in the manual.
• Placing numbered tokens on terrain hexes to determine resource production.
• Distributing harbors randomly or as indicated in the scenario.
• Each player receives starting villages, roads, and ships in their color, placed according to the scenario rules.
• Positioning the pirate and/or the robber on marked "X" spots or as specified.

Consult the manual for specific setup details for each scenario.

Game Flow

The game follows a turn cycle where each player performs the following actions:

1. Dice roll: Determines which terrains produce resources.
2. Trade phase: Players can trade resources with each other or through harbors.
3. Building phase: Using resources, players can build roads, ships, villages, cities, or buy development cards.

Some scenarios include additional events, such as moving the pirate or exploring unknown terrains.

Actions and How to Play

Building Ships

• To build a ship, you need 1 cloth (sail) and 1 wood (hull).
• Ships can only be placed between open sea hexes or between sea and coastline.
• They cannot be placed on the same path as a road.

Relocating Ships

• Ships on open routes (not connected to villages/cities) can be relocated once per turn.
• Ships on closed routes (connected to villages/cities) cannot be moved.

Pirate and Robber

• The pirate blocks ship construction/relocation on the hex where it is placed and steals resources from players with adjacent ships.
• The robber (in scenarios with both) follows the base game rules, stealing resources from villages/cities on terrain hexes.

Gold

Gold vein hexes grant the player their choice of any resource when their number is rolled.

End of Game and Scoring

The game ends when a player reaches the specified number of victory points in the scenario (usually between 12 and 14). Points are earned by:

• Villages (1 point) and cities (2 points).
• Victory point cards or Catan tokens (in some scenarios).
• Longest trade route (including ships) or largest army (2 points each).
• Specific objectives, such as conquering pirate strongholds or building wonders.

Tips to Win

• Prioritize maritime routes: Build ships early to explore islands and gain "first village" points.
• Control the pirate: Use it to block opponents and steal strategic resources.
• Diversify resources: Gold and harbors facilitate trades to build wonders or expand quickly.