Catan Scenarios: Oil Springs Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Set-Up
• New Components
• Special Rules
  • Resource Production
• Using Oil
• Sequestering Oil
• Environmental Effects from Oil Usage
• The Disaster Phase
  • A "7" is Rolled
  • A "7" is Not Rolled
• Ending the Game
• 5-6 Player Variation
  • Set-Up
  • Special Building Phase
  • End of Game
• Wide Open Game
  • Variable Set-Up (3-4 Players)
  • Variable Set-Up (5-6 Players)
• Additional Notes
• Design Notes

Set-Up

Lay out the board as shown below. Place Oil Spring tiles on the desert hex, the 9 forest hex, and northeast 10 pasture hex. (The Robber starts off-board.)

[Board diagram: the printed sheet shows the standard board layout with the three Oil Spring tiles marked on the desert, the 9 forest and the northeast 10 pasture hexes.]

For a variable setup see page 3. However, a variable setup can lead to a very volatile game.

Place Disaster Track marker on the "0" on the Disaster Track.

New Components

You will need all the components included in The Settlers of Catan™ (SOC) game. Catan: Oil Springs™ contains the following components, but not all of them are used in a 3-4 player game:

• 21 oil tokens (use 15 for 3-4 players) (21 sequestered oil tokens on backs of oil tokens)
• 6 Metropolis tokens (use 4 for 3-4 players)
• 4 Oil Spring tiles (use 3 for 3-4 players)
• 1 Champion of the Environment token
• 7 Victory Point tokens
• 1 Disaster Track (with Disaster Track marker)

[Component illustrations (oil token, Metropolis token, Disaster Track marker, Champion of the Environment token, Oil Spring tiles, VP token) are omitted; they are artwork only.]

Special Rules

Except where noted here, use The Settlers of Catan Rules.

Resource Production

Buildings on oil springs produce oil: one oil for a settlement, two for a city, and three for a metropolis. Unlike resource cards, oil is distributed one at a time starting with the player who rolled, and then proceeds clockwise around the table, until all players receive what they've produced, or the supply is exhausted.

The robber may be placed on an oil spring. Oil is kept in front of players (always visible to all players). When a player is stolen from, the person robbing can choose to take one oil specifically instead of a resource card at random. If a 7 is rolled, count each oil as 1 card. If you have to discard due to a 7, you may choose to discard oil, putting it back into the supply.

Note: At any one time, you may only hold a maximum of 4 oil. When you produce oil after a dice roll, and this oil would increase your oil supply to more than 4 oil, you may not take the excess oil. Similarly, you may not steal oil, trade with other players for oil, or use development cards if it would result in you holding more than 4 oil.

Using Oil

There are 2 ways to use oil:

1. During your turn, you can convert 1 oil into 2 of the same, non-oil resource of your choice. You cannot use maritime trade to obtain oil (i.e., a 4:1 trade or a harbor cannot give you oil). However, Year of Plenty and Monopoly development cards can be used for oil.
2. You can use 1 brick, 1 grain, 1 ore and 2 oil to upgrade one of your cities to a metropolis by placing a Metropolis token underneath. A metropolis produces 3 resources instead of 2, is worth 3 victory points, and is immune to coastal flooding.

[Illustration: a "2x ?" conversion card with an oil token; and a metropolis upgrade diagram showing 1 brick, 1 grain, 1 ore and 2 oil.]

Multiple oil can be used per turn for both of these two options. Oil used to build is returned to the general supply. However, the usage of oil results in pollution. After every 5 oil are used, a disaster is triggered. Keep track of this progression with Disaster Track marker on the Disaster Track—the token moves from 0 to 5.

Sequestering Oil

Alternatively, during your turn, you may choose to forgo the usage of 1 oil, sacrificing some growth for increased environmental security and the prestige of being a sustainability leader. In this case, on your turn flip one of your oil upside down in front of you (1 maximum per turn). This "sequesters" the oil, permanently removing it from the game. For every 3 oil you sequester, you gain 1 Victory Point.

The first player to have sequestered 3 oil gains the "Champion of the Environment" token (worth 1 victory point). If another player sequesters more oil than the current Champion, he immediately takes the "Champion of the Environment" token.

Did You Know? Climate change and other environmental disasters could generate up to 1 billion refugees by 2050.

Environmental Effects from Oil Usage

For every five oil used (but not those that are sequestered or returned to the bank because of the robber), an environmental disaster results. This "disaster phase" is resolved after the turn has been completed but before the dice are passed to the next player.

Important Note: You can only use oil during a turn until a disaster is triggered. If the Disaster Track marker on the Disaster Track is on the 4, only one oil can be used during that turn (sequestering oil is not "usage" and thus does not count toward this progression). If the marker is on a 1, then four oil could be used during that turn. At the end of that turn if a disaster has been triggered, resolve the disaster, and then reset the marker to zero.

Example: At the beginning of Patricia's turn, the Disaster Track marker on the Disaster Track is on 2. She uses 1 oil to get two grain and 1 oil to get two ore. The token is on 4. During this turn, Patricia can no longer build a metropolis as this goes beyond the limit of 5. However, she could still convert 1 more oil into resources. Since she already used oil, she can't sequester oil during this turn.

The Disaster Phase

Each time the token on the disaster track reaches "5" (i.e., after the 5th, 10th, 15th, etc. oil is used), roll the two six-sided dice to determine where disaster strikes.

Did You Know? Over the past 50 years, more than 10 million barrels of oil have been spilled in the Niger Delta from leaking pipes and accidents. That is twice the amount spilled in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010.

A "7" is Rolled

If a seven is rolled, a natural disaster triggered by climate change floods the coasts. Settlements bordering a sea hex are removed from the board (and returned to the affected player's supply), and cities are reduced to settlements. Roads are not affected. A metropolis (because of its seawalls and other advanced design) is also not affected. Note: Destroyed settlements can later be rebuilt, either at their previous locations or elsewhere. Please note that other players can now also build a settlement there (if possible).

A "7" is Not Rolled

If any number other than 7 is rolled, industrial pollution has struck and a hex with that number will be affected (see text box on the right). If there is only 1 hex with the number rolled, that hex is affected. If more than 1 hex shares the same number, randomly select one to be affected. If the number rolled is no longer on any hex (because of previous disasters), nothing happens.

How to Randomly Choose a Hex: In these rules, we often instruct the players to "randomly choose" a hex. To do this for 2 hexes, assign the values 1-3 to one of the hexes and assign 4-6 to the other. Then roll one of the dice and the die result will "choose" one of the hexes. Similarly, for 3 hexes, assign 1-2, 3-4, and 5-6. For 4 hexes, assign 1, 2, 3, and 4 to the 4 hexes and if a 5 or 6 is rolled, reroll.

• If the affected hex does not contain an oil spring, remove the production number token from the hex—that hex no longer produces resources. Place the removed number token on one of the open circles on the Disaster Track. If all spaces on the track are filled, the game ends.
• If the affected hex contains an Oil Spring tile, remove 3 oil of the general supply from the game. These oil become part of the unrecoverable reserve—and thus are no longer accessible to the players.

Unlike hexes, Oil Spring tiles can continue to be hit by pollution throughout the game.

Note: If the general supply no longer contains oil and the only remaining oil is in players' hands, they discard one oil at a time, beginning with the player who caused the disaster and continuing clockwise around the board.

[Disaster Track diagram omitted: artwork of the track with its numbered spaces 0 to 5 and the marker.]

Ending the Game

There are two ways to end this scenario:

• The first player to reach 12 or more victory points after the end of his/her turn—which includes resolving the Disaster Phase if applicable—wins the game.
• If the fifth number token is removed from one of the hexes, flooding has overwhelmed Catan and all inhabitants are forced to abandon the island, thus ending the game. While no player truly wins, the player who currently holds the Champion of the Environment token achieves a "Pyrrhic Victory." That player is recognized by the international community for his/her efforts to mitigate climate change and is granted the most attractive land on a neighboring island to resettle.

Example: Alan has built a metropolis bringing him to 12 points. The 2 oil used for this build has triggered a disaster. Alan rolls a 7 during the Disaster Phase, resulting in coastal flooding. Alan's coastal settlement is removed from the board, and his coastal city is reduced to a settlement, bringing him down to 10-points. The game therefore continues.

Pyrrhic Victory: A "pyrrhic victory" is a victory that comes with such devastating losses that it is minimally better than losing, and if repeated would result in total defeat. Even with international assistance to resettle to a new land, no Catanian can view the inundation of the island as a true victory.

5-6 Player Variation

To play with 5-6 players, you will need a copy of The SOC 5-6 Player Extension and all components of this scenario.

Except where noted here, use The Settlers of Catan rules, all of the SOC 5-6 rules, and this scenario's 3-4 player rules (pages 1-3).

• The maximum oil you may hold is 6 instead of 4 (see page 1).

Set-Up

Except where noted here, use the terrain set-up from the SOC 5-6 rules, and as shown in the diagram on the right. Please note:

• The second desert also becomes an Oil Spring tile.
• Swap whatever tile is on the left "10" space with a forest hex. Similarly, swap the right "4" hex with a pasture hex.

For a variable setup see page 4. However, a variable setup can lead to a very volatile game.

[Board diagram for the 5-6 player set-up omitted.]

Special Building Phase

The Special Building Phase follows immediately after a player finishes his turn or after a Disaster Phase if it took place. The Special Building Phase is resolved as described in the SOC 5-6 player extension. Note: The player whose turn has just ended cannot build in the Special Building phase. Furthermore, the following applies:

• Oil cannot be converted into other resources.
• Oil cannot be sequestered.
• During the Special Building Phase, oil can be used, but only to build metropolises, and only if this action does not cause the Disaster Track marker on the Disaster Track to move beyond 5.

If a disaster is triggered during the Special Building Phase, this is resolved immediately after the phase is completed.

End of Game

The game ends when someone either gets 12 points or when 8 number tokens are destroyed (not 5 as with the 3-4 player version).

Wide Open Game

To make this scenario more challenging and confrontational, consider changing these rules in future games:

• Use a variable set-up.
• Allow players to both use oil and sequester (1 maximum) oil each turn.
• Remove the limit of oil tokens in a player's supply.

These rules make the scenario more true to life, but they also make it less balanced, which can be less fun.

Variable Set-Up (3-4 Players)

• Lay out the board using the variable set-up as described in The Settlers of Catan™. (The robber starts off-board.)
• Place a numbered Oil Spring tile on the desert. If possible, choose a number that is not adjacent to the desert.
• Place an unnumbered Oil Spring tile (depicting pasture) on the 2nd highest probability pasture hex (keep the hex's production number token). If you have a choice of 2 or more hexes whose production numbers have the same probability of being rolled, place the tile on one of the hexes that is not adjacent to another oil spring. If necessary, swap production number tokens so that oil springs are not adjacent.
• Similarly, place an unnumbered Oil Spring tile (depicting forest) on the 2nd lowest probability forest hex.

Note: From lowest to highest probabilities are: 2&12 (1:36), 3&11 (2:36), 4&10 (3:36), 5&9 (4:36), 6&8 (5:36).

[Variable set-up diagram omitted: a sample variable board layout with arrows marking the number-token order.]

Variable Set-Up (5-6 Players)

• Lay out the board using the variable set-up as described in the SOC 5-6 Player Extension.
• Follow the steps outlined in the variable set-up for 3-4 players. The only exception: the second desert also receives an Oil Spring tile.

Additional Notes

This section provides some additional guidelines for handling some situations that can arise during play.

• Year of Plenty can be used to take oil from the bank.
• If you use a Monopoly card to monopolize oil, you still cannot pass the limit for oil in your supply. To determine whose oil you take (when not all oil can be taken), collect one from each player, starting with the next player to play and going clockwise around the board until your limit is reached.
• You may not place the robber on a destroyed hex.

Design Notes

This scenario is an effort to draw attention to important challenges humanity faces, in relation to the resources that modern society depends on. While taking on issues of pollution and climate change, we strongly wish to emphasize that we do not see this as a polarizing political effort, but simply as a way to draw attention to the tradeoffs inherently embedded in the usage of natural resources such as oil. The use of oil has brought with it great benefits, and it is not our intention to condemn its use in a general sense. However, science has shown that its overuse is now having a destabilizing effect on our climate, and responsible use has become more important than ever before. Our intention with this scenario is to draw attention to these challenges in a way that is both informative and entertaining.

Did You Know? Sea levels are projected to rise 1 to 2 meters by 2100, greatly threatening island and coastal nations. Some islands, such as Tuvalu and Vanatu, risk being submerged altogether. For others, like the Maldives and the Marshall Islands, salt water could contaminate the countries' fresh water supplies or soil, or extreme weather events could have devastating effects on human settlements.