Games.

[reynardo]

Cool Tools has profiled "Settlers of Catan"

It's an amazing game. Many of you know this one. And the variations:

Blackmailers of Catan: "What will you give me so that I don't put the robber on you?¹"

Extortionists of Catan (played with Cities and Knights): "My alchemist rolls an 8 - that gives everyone wheat, how nice. Oh look - resource monopoly on wheat."

And the tendency to call the yellow Metropolis pieces "McDonalds".

I was introduced to this game by friends. I then introduced my mother. We're going up to see her this weekend. I'm betting the board has been set up for the last three days. I'm giving her five minutes after we walk in the door before she says "So, have you rolled yet?"

I used to take it to the midnight-dawn shift at work, and four other guys who would normally have gone home at 1am would still be there at 5, as the sky started to light up in the east.

And my husband bought me the beautiful wooden holding box for our sets. We found it this weekend when we were unpacking the boxes from the "Garage Incident of Doom". It now sits happily back on its home, the Games Cupboard.

Alternative names that the game was given: "Pick on Gillian" and "Make Gillian Cry", after a memorable game where lederhosen said to my mother: "If you choose Option A, you get a city. If you choose Option B, you get more road. But if you choose Option C, you destroy Gillian's knight and make her cry²." I leave you to guess which option got used.

We've had friends from overseas that we only just met in person sit at our table and play. (*waves to michiexile*). And we knew he was truly a friend because there were no holds barred. It was vicious. Violent. And a huge amount of fun.

The chewed fingernails. The entreaties to the Barbarian to stay away just one more turn so that I could have a go and have a chance at holding him off. The whimpering when you ended the game with less points than you started. And the gentle enticement of "maybe just one more game?".

There's a couple of small variations in the rules that have come in with the second edition. I'm not sure I like all of them, but I can cope. I don't like the card-based dice rolls, as part of the lovely re-playability for me is that each run will be so different! And the agony of seeing your carefully-placed 8s and 6s never show up, while the person with an 11 rakes in the goodies, thanks to the truly random vagaries of the dice.

So yes, I would call this game a tool. It's a teaching tool. It's a tool for getting the brain to work.

And my god it's been a tool for teaching me the



1. This variation was taught to me by a post of turnberryknkn. All I can say is - never trust the nice ones.

2. I had one knight, all that stood between me and losing a city. It had taken massive bargaining to get it, as the metal resource was extremely scarce and I had none. And, having none, if I lost my city I would have little chance to rebuild it.

Comments

[sly-girl.livejournal.com]

Nazis of Catan: 4 city tokens can be arranged to make a swastika. Try doing this at the beginning of the game when you're playing white and yelling "I win!"

[mr-figgy.livejournal.com]

Largest. Army.

[deor.livejournal.com]

Turnberry introduced me and Malada to Blackmailers of Catan as well. :-)

[reynardo.livejournal.com]

He's an evil man :-)

[turnberryknkn.livejournal.com]

Hee! :-)

I was taught BlackmailersSettlers of Catan at the gaming table of elaine_alina and charles_midair, at a SCA Barony of Cynnabar Halloween party long ago. The fast and furious Blackmailers variant was how I *learned* Catan -- I didn't even know that it is, technically, against the official rules until years and years later. :-)

[reynardo.livejournal.com]

It's against the rules? Shhhh - don't tell my mother.

And I rest my case.

(So when are you coming to an Australian conference, and coming here to play as well?)

[quatranoctal.livejournal.com]

I'm betting the board has been set up for the last three days.

I wouldn't be surprised if it were still set up from the beginning of the year.