Die Siedler von Catan: Kartenspiel – Kämpfer & Kaufleute Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Game Rules
  • Introductory Summary
• Expanded Game Rules
  • Game Components
  • Setting Up the Game
• New Rules for the Expanded Game
• The End of the Game
• Tournament Game Rules
  • Setting Up the Game
  • Building the Event Card Deck
  • Arranging Your Own "Deck"
• New Rules for the Tournament Game
  • End of the Game
• Almanac
  • New Card Types
  • Card Category
  • Knights and Merchants
    • Action Cards
    • Event Cards
    • Regional Expansion Cards
    • City Expansion Cards
• Changes to the Catan Card Game
  • General Changes
  • Changes to the Cards

Game Rules

Introductory Summary

Settle Catan! The people of your small principality are eager to expand! Now you are provided with a stunning assortment of options! Here you will find six different expansion decks, each with its own distinct flavor and style. We call them "Theme Decks." Now you can concentrate on trade, embrace science, recruit powerful Wizards, or lead an army of Knights against the barbarian threat! All of this and more await you in the Catan Card Game Expansion Set! With these cards, you can deepen and expand all kinds of possibilities when you play the Catan Card Game.

There are two ways that you can add the Expansion Set to your game. The first style is called the Expanded Game. This style of play is very much the same as the basic Catan Card Game. New cards are added, as are new rules and options, but the basic play of the game remains the same.

The second style is called the Tournament Game. When playing this style, each player will create his or her own unique assortment of cards. Instead of sharing a common deck, each player will play from his or her own deck during the game! So, at the beginning of the game, you will not know which cards your opponent is using!

In order to play the Tournament Game, each player will need his own copy of the Basic Game, and at least one Expansion Set Theme Deck.

We recommend that you begin with the Expanded Game first. This will give you a chance to learn all the new cards and see how they are played. Then, after playing a few games with the new cards, you will have no trouble mastering the Tournament Game. Then you will be able to combine cards from any of the six Theme Decks. Of course, you can also design an effective winning deck using just the cards in your Basic Game and one Theme Deck too!

Expanded Game Rules

To play the Expanded Game, you will need the Basic Game and an Expansion Set Theme Deck. All rules from the basic Catan Card Game are used, except where changed below.

Game Components

• 205 cards
• 5 blank cards (for inventing your own!)
• Game Rules
• Card Almanac (at the end of these rules)

Setting Up the Game

1. First, decide which Theme Deck you want to use. There are six Themes:

• Knights and Merchants: This Theme features clever merchants and valiant Knights. You can take your struggle for dominance to the battlefield or outwit your opponent at the negotiating table.
• Science and Progress: This Theme features scientific progress and learned invention. The University serves as a center of learning for your people, and that knowledge can propel you to greatness.
• Wizards and Dragons: This Theme features powerful Wizards and mighty Dragons, magic spells to bedevil your foes, and mystical advantages to enhance your principality.
• Barbarians and Traders: This theme features dangerous barbarians and brilliant traders and explorers to help expand and defend your principality's resources and holdings.
• Politics and Intrigue: This Theme features the shady side of running a principality: Secret Societies, bribed Knights, and clever diplomats. Or you can align yourself with the Church in this Theme.
• Trade and Change: This Theme features new avenues for trade and commerce, new uses for trade fleets, and new opportunities that can change fundamental strategies.

Sort out all the cards from the Theme you have chosen to play. You can identify the Theme by the small hexagonal icon on each card. Place the five Themes you are not using aside.

2. Each player sets up his starting principalities as described on page 3 of the Basic Game rules. You may want to consider the rules changes when you set up your principality.

3. Separate the Event Cards for this Theme Deck from the rest of the Theme. Shuffle them together with the Event Cards from the Basic Set. This expanded event deck is placed in the middle of the table as usual.

4. Depending on the Theme Deck you have chosen, you will need to pull out some cards before you shuffle the deck. Except for the Inquisition cards from Knights and Merchants, these "set aside" cards are placed in a stack face-up next to the Event Cards:

• Knights and Merchants: Remove the two Inquisition cards—they are not used when playing the Expanded Game.
• Science and Progress: Remove and set aside both University cards from the Theme Deck.
• Wizards and Dragons: Remove and set aside all five Citadel cards from the Expansion Set—place them with the "Wizard Absent" side face-up.
• Barbarians and Traders: Remove and set aside 2 Harbor cards and 2 Triumphal Arch cards from the Basic Game and Expansion Set. Also remove the 2 Wizards League cards—they are not normally used in the Expanded Game. They are included for players to use in Tournament play with the Wizards and Dragons Theme to offer new strategic options. If you wish, you can include them with the Wizards and Dragons set when playing the Expanded Game.
• Politics and Intrigue: Remove and set aside both Town Hall cards and both Church cards from the Basic Set. You do not need to remove any cards from the Expansion Set.
• Trade and Change: Remove and set aside the Counting House cards. One Counting House is in the Catan Card Game; the other is in the Expansion Set.

5. Arrange the rest of the Development Cards (roads, cities, etc.) and place them between the two players as normal.

(Setup diagram labels: Events, Roads, Cities, Settlements, Regions; Four Expansion Stacks; Special Cards: Two Expansion Stacks from the Theme Set.)

6. Shuffle the remaining Expansion Cards from the Basic Set together. Instead of the usual five expansion stacks you make in the Basic Game, these cards are used to create four piles. These four expansion stacks are placed in a row between the two players.

7. Shuffle the remaining cards from the Theme Deck together and split them into two roughly equal-sized expansion stacks. Place these stacks near the Development Cards. This way you can tell which stacks are cards from the Basic Game, and which are from the Theme Deck.

8. As in the Basic Game, place the two dice and the two wooden tokens between you and your opponent. Then each of you selects one of the six expansion stacks and—without changing the order of the cards—chooses three cards for your starting hand. Then the expansion stacks are returned face-down to their places.

New Rules for the Expanded Game

The rules are the same as the Basic Game, except for the changes described below:

• Before the game, you pulled some cards out of the deck and set them aside to create a new development stack. There are always two copies of each card in this stack. (Exception: Citadels. See "Special Rules for Wizards and Dragons" on page 6.) The cards for each Theme are:

  • Knights and Merchants: None;
  • Science and Progress: 2 University cards;
  • Wizards and Dragons: 5 Citadel cards;
  • Barbarians and Traders: 2 Harbor cards and 2 Triumphal Arch cards;
  • Politics and Intrigue: 2 Town Hall cards and 2 Church cards; and
  • Trade and Change: 2 Counting House cards.

  You can purchase these cards just like other Development Cards. Simply pay the cost shown on the card and place it in a legal building site in your principality.

  Example: You want to build the University. You pay 2 lumber, 2 grain, and 1 brick. Then you take a University card from the stack and place it in an empty building site next to one of your cities.

  But, there is a special restriction: each player may only build one of each type of card in this stack. If one of these cards leaves play for any reason, return it to this special development card stack (this card can be rebuilt by the player who lost it).

• Whenever you draw cards from an expansion stack, you may choose any of the six stacks. You may choose each time you draw whether you want to draw from the four stacks from the Basic Game or the two stacks from the Expansion Set. If you pay the two resources to search a stack, you may choose to search one of the stacks from the Theme Deck if you wish. The two stacks from the Expansion Set are treated in all ways the same as the four stacks from the Basic Game.

The End of the Game

Because there are so many more ways to earn points when playing the Expanded Game, you have to earn a total of 13 or more Victory Points on your turn to win the game!

Hint: Before you play your first Expanded Game, we recommend that you look at all of the new types of cards in the Expansion Set. If you have questions about any card during the game, there is a complete explanation of each card in the "Card Almanac" at the back of this book.

Tournament Game Rules

When you play the Tournament Game, you get to build your own deck of Expansion Cards! During the game you will have your own expansion stacks. You will be able to design your own unique strategy for victory!

To play the Tournament Game, each player will need his own copy of the Catan Card Game. You should also have your own copy of the Expansion Set. You may only use cards from one copy of the Basic Game and one copy of the Expansion Set.

All of the rules from the Basic Game and the Expanded Game are used, except for the following changes:

Setting Up the Game

1. One player supplies all these cards from his copy of the Catan Card Game:

   • The 18 cards from both starting principalities
   • The development cards:
     • 7 roads;
     • 5 settlements;
     • 7 cities; and
     • 11 Region Cards.

2. You set up your starting principality using the 9 starting cards with your chosen icon on the back.

3. Place the Development Cards (roads, settlements, cities, and regions) between the two principalities. Don't forget to shuffle the Region Cards.

4. If either player is using any of the cards from the Wizards and Dragons Theme, you need to place the five Citadel cards next to the other Development Cards.

   Important: Any cards that were pulled out and set aside in the Expanded Game are not removed. They are included with the rest of the Expansion Cards.

5. Now you build the Event Card deck as described below. Shuffle the Event Cards and place them near the development stacks.

6. Choose any three Expansion Cards from your deck. These three cards will form your starting hand.

7. Shuffle your 30 remaining cards. Separate your cards into four expansion stacks. Two stacks will have seven cards each, and the other two will have eight cards. Place your expansion stacks near your principality.

8. Determine which player will go first and begin the game!

(Tournament layout diagram labels: Your opponent's principality; Your principality; Your Opponent's Discard Pile; Your Opponent's Expansion Stacks; Roads, Cities, Settlements, Regions, Events; Your Expansion Stacks; Your Discard Pile.)

Building the Event Card Deck

The Event Card deck must contain exactly 13 cards:

• Both players contribute a Civil War and a Plague card from their copy of the Basic Game. One player also adds a Year End card.
• Now you choose any 4 more Event Cards to add to the deck. These events can be taken from the Basic Set or any of the Theme Decks. But, you may not add a second Year End card!
• You should not let your opponent see the events you have chosen before they are added to the deck. That way, he won't know what to expect!
• Once both players have added their four cards, the event deck is complete. Shuffle all 13 cards together and place them face-down next to the development stacks.
• Make a note of which Event Cards you added to the deck. At the end of the game, each player takes his own Event Cards back. You should also note which Theme Deck you selected cards from, since some cards appear in more than one set!

Arranging Your Own "Deck"

You get to design your own deck of cards when you play the Tournament Game! Before you play, you secretly choose 33 cards that you want to use. These cards will form your "deck." There are some restrictions on which cards you can choose:

• You may not choose any cards that have symbols on the back—only Buildings, Units, Wizards, Magic Books, and Action Cards may be used.
• You may use any cards from one copy of the Catan Card Game and one copy of the Expansion Set.
• You may not use more copies of any card than there are in those sets. For example, you may not add a fourth Spy card to your deck because there are only three Spy cards in one complete set.
• You do not have to tell your opponent which cards you are using! However, it might be a good idea to write down a list of your cards so you can get them all back at the end of the game.
• At the beginning of the game, you will choose three of your cards to form your starting hand. Shuffle the other 30 cards together, then use them to create your four expansion stacks at the beginning of the game.
• During the game, you can only draw cards from these four stacks! You may not draw cards from your opponent's stacks. If you draw all of the cards from a stack, you can still discard cards to the empty "stack," creating a new one.

New Rules for the Tournament Game

1. Each player forms his own discard pile for any Action Cards he plays or Buildings that he removes from his principality, or for cards that are "removed from play" (by cards like Lady Imelda).

2. When a card or rule states that a card is discarded under a stack, it is always the players' own (personal) stacks. Unless an Action Card says otherwise, you may never search through your opponent's stacks, and you may not draw cards from there.

3. Units with names, such as Knights, Dragons, and Wizards, are all unique! There may never be two Units or Wizards with the same name in play at the same time. If a "unique Unit" is removed from a principality because of an Action Card or event, then both players again have the chance to play that Unit.

   Example: If your opponent has played Siegfried in his principality, you may not play Siegfried in your principality. If you play a "Black Knight" and Siegfried is removed, then you can play your own copy of the card.

   Note: Cannons are not unique! Both players can have Cannons in their principalities.

4. When you play a Spy and steal one of your opponent's cards, you should make a note of which card was stolen so you can return it to its rightful owner at the end of the game.

End of the Game

The first player to collect 13 or more Victory Points on his turn is the winner!

Suggestion: Before you play your first Tournament Game, we recommend playing a few Expanded Games so you are familiar with all the new cards!

Almanac

This Card Almanac contains detailed descriptions of all the cards in all six Theme Sets. These are not the Game Rules! You should briefly familiarize yourself with the cards before your first game. It will make the game play more smoothly and a lot more enjoyable!

New Card Types

The cards in the Catan Card Game came in three different varieties: "City Expansion Cards" (red text box), "Action Cards" (yellow text box), or "Regional Expansion Cards" (green text box). This Expansion Set introduces some new types of cards:

Region Improvements — Region Improvements have a brown text box. If you meet their conditions you can place them above or below a Region Card. Many of these are Buildings, and can be targeted with the Arsonist. Since they are not actually built in a city, they cannot be protected by the Fire Brigade card from the Science and Progress Theme Deck. There can only be one Region Improvement attached to any given Region Card.

Wizards — Wizards are a special type of region improvement that can only be played on a Region Card that is next to a Citadel. Complete rules for Wizards can be found in "Special Rules for Wizards and Dragons" on page 6.

Citadel Expansions — These cards have purple text boxes, and can only be played in one of the four building sites next to a Citadel. Complete rules for these enchanted cards can be found in "Special Rules for Wizards and Dragons" on page 6.

Road Improvements — Road Improvements have no text box, and include an illustration of a road running across them. Play these cards on top of a road card in your principality. Road Improvements that are Buildings can be targeted with the Arsonist card. Since they are technically not in a city, they cannot be protected with the Fire Brigade card from the Science and Progress Theme Deck.

Foreign Cards — Foreign Cards are cards you play into your opponent's principality. Even though they are in your opponent's principality, they are still considered to be under your control. Your opponent may not discard a Foreign Card you have played in his principality, but he may treat it like a normal opposing card. For example, a Foreign Card may be the target of the Arsonist card.

Special Cards — There are a couple of special cards that don't fit into any of these categories. You can find complete rules for each special card in that card's description.

Card Category

The entries below are arranged alphabetically by Theme Deck and by card category:

• Black — Special Cards;
• Yellow — Action Cards;
• Blue — Event Cards;
• Green — Regional Expansion Cards;
• Red — City Expansion Cards; and
• Purple — Magic Cards

Each card has an icon, which identifies which Theme set that card is from.

Knights and Merchants

Action Cards

Border Dispute (Action–Attack; 2 in deck)

You may only play this card if you have the Knight Token. You may exchange one of your Region Cards with a Region Card belonging to your opponent. You choose the cards exchanged. The region you choose must be duplicated within the principality.

Example: Your opponent only has one mountains region. You could not choose that Region Card when playing the Border Dispute. He does have 2 fields. You could choose either fields card.

The resources on both regions are not changed when they change ownership. You may not choose to exchange a region that has any Region Improvement cards.

It is possible to exchange a region next to a production doubling Building (e.g., Sawmill), making that Building ineffective.

Brigands (Action–Attack; 1 in deck)

See the Catan Card Game Almanac for an explanation of this card.

Caravan (Action–Neutral; 1 in deck)

See the Catan Card Game Almanac for an explanation of this card.

Inquisition (Action–Attack; 2 in deck)

When you play this card, your opponent must discard his entire hand into one of his expansion stacks. He must then shuffle all the cards in all of his expansion stacks together, and create 4 new expansion stacks of equal size. Your opponent then draws a new hand of cards (up to his hand limit). You must have an Abbey or a Church in your principality to play this card. This card has no effect if you are not playing the Tournament Game.

Any stack underneath an Excommunication card is not reshuffled with the other cards when Inquisition is played.

Lady Imelda (Action–Attack; 2 in deck)

What Knight is immune to the charms of a lovely lady? None! When you play this card, your opponent must choose one of the Knights in his principality and place it in the discard pile. The Cannon is immune to this lady's charms, as are the Dragons.

Spice Caravan (Action–Attack; 2 in deck)

You may only play this card if you have the Windmill Token. You may take any 2 resources of your choice from your opponent. You must have room to store the resources you choose.

Event Cards

Productive Year (Event; 1 in deck)

See the Catan Card Game Almanac for an explanation of this card.

Raid (Event; 2 in deck)

The player who controls the Knight Token may raid his opponent's principality. Choose any three Buildings in your opponent's principality which are not foreign cards. If there are less than three Buildings, you must choose all of them. You can also choose Buildings that have a Witch, Dogma, or Pawnbroker card on them. Your opponent then chooses one of the Buildings you selected, and returns it to his hand. If he chooses a card that has an Action Card on it, the Action Card goes to the discard pile.

Regional Expansion Cards

Castle (Building; 2 in deck)

When you have a castle in your principality, it costs you one less resource to build a Knight (your choice). If you have two castles in your principality, the cost is reduced by two resources. It is possible to reduce the cost of a Knight to 0, but never lower.

Knights (Units; 1 each in deck – 4 total)

There are four new Knights in this Theme set. Two of those Knights have special rules:

Peasants

The strength of the Peasants is equal to the total number of Grain resources in the two regions adjacent to the Peasants. Peasants have no tournament value, and cannot gain one from a Tournament Field. Unlike other Knights, Peasants are not unique and each player may have one in play.

Walter the Minstrel

Walter is immune to the Black Knight. He has no strength points. However, if you have a Smithy in your principality, it increases Walter's strength to 1.

Pirate Fleet (Unit; 2 in deck)

When you build a Pirate Fleet, you may immediately destroy any one Fleet in your opponent's principality. It may be a trade Fleet, or another Pirate Fleet. If your opponent has no fleets when you play the pirate, you do not get to destroy a Fleet. The destroyed Fleet is placed in the discard pile. When the Year of Plenty is rolled on the Event Die, you may take an extra gold for each Pirate Fleet in your principality. This is in addition to the other benefits of the Year of Plenty. You must have room in your gold fields to store the extra gold or it is lost. Pirate Fleets have no Commerce Points, and cannot gain them from a Harbor.

Toll Station (Building; 2 in deck)

When the Year of Plenty is rolled, you may take 2 gold in addition to the other benefits of the Year of Plenty. You may only take this gold if you can store them in a region immediately. If you cannot store all of the gold, any excess is lost.

Tournament Field (Building; 1 in deck)

Every Knight in your principality gains one Tournament Point if you have a Tournament Field in your principality. Although a Cannon counts as a Knight, it does not gain any Tournament Points from a Tournament Field; neither do Dragons nor Peasants. Any other Knight who has no Tournament Points (such as Johanna the Warrior-Maiden) gains one Tournament Point.

Watch Tower (Building; 1 in deck)

Any time your opponent plays a Spy, you may try to catch him if you have a Watch Tower in your principality. Roll the Production Die. If the result is a 1 or a 2, you have caught the Spy. The Spy is discarded, and your opponent does not get to look at, or steal, any of the cards in your hand.

If you also have a Great Wall in your principality, you must roll for the Great Wall and Watch Tower defenses separately.

City Expansion Cards

Bank Vault (Building; 1 in deck)

It is worth one Victory Point.

If you control the Windmill Token, and the Trade Advantage is rolled on the Event Die, you may take two resources of your choice from your opponent instead of one. There must be room in your principality for each resource you take, or you cannot take that resource. This could mean that you are only able to take one (or no) resource from your opponent.

Great Trade Fleet (Unit–Trade Fleet; 2 in deck)

It is worth two Commerce Points.

You can trade resources from the two regions adjacent to this Fleet to the bank at the 2:1 exchange rate. If you have a Harbor in your principality, it increases the Commerce Points of the Great Trade Fleet to three.

If you place the Great Trade Fleet in one of the special Metropolis spaces, you can only use this ability to trade resources from the single adjacent region. If the Great Trade Fleet is under the protection of a Lighthouse, you can trade resources from the adjacent regions at the 1:1 rate. You may also trade these resources 1:1 if you play Christopher the Great Explorer.

Large Harbor (Building; 1 in deck)

This Building doubles all Commerce Points from Marketplaces, Merchant Guilds, and Counting Houses in your principality.

Palace (Building; 1 in deck)

When the Year of Plenty is rolled on the Event Die, you have the option of selecting any one card from your discard pile and adding it to your hand instead of collecting a resource of your choice. You may choose any card in the discard pile. If you exceed your hand limit, you must discard to the bottom of an expansion stack of your choice. If you also have a Treasure Fleet in your principality, you may either take three resources, or you may instead take two resources and a card from the discard pile.

Changes to the Catan Card Game

Over the years since The Settlers of Catan Card Game was first released, our many fans around the world have enjoyed many adventures among the settlers. But they have also identified a few areas where the game could be improved to make it play more smoothly, more quickly, and more competitively. The fruit of all this feedback has been included in this new edition. Here is a brief summary of the most important changes:

General Changes

To eliminate certain misunderstandings and ambiguities of some rules, each card has been assigned a clear type. For example, a Knight card is classified as "Unit–Knight" while the Cannon and the Peasants are only marked "Unit." So, without requiring a lengthy rule, the cards Lady Imelda (Knights and Merchants Set) and Bribery (Politics and Intrigue Set) cannot be used against a Cannon, and having a Castle (Knights and Merchants) will not reduce the cost to play a Peasant.

• Region Improvement Cards are now easy to recognize as they have a brown text box. These cards are not placed in a settlement or city. Instead they are played on a suitable Region Card, if their conditions are met.
• Wizards may still only be placed above or below a Region Card that is next to a Citadel. Since Wizards are played like Region Expansion cards, they are also given a brown text box.
• Road Improvements are not treated like Regional Expansions, so the green text box was removed.
• Action cards are now marked "attack," "neutral," or "defense."
• Action cards marked "attack" or "neutral" may only be played when the combined score of both players is at least 7. "Defense" Action Cards may always be played—from the start of the game.
• Buildings, Wizards, and spellbooks cannot be stolen with the Spy! You may only steal Action Cards and Units from your opponent when you play this card.
• If you exchange a card at the end of your turn (because you played no cards that turn), then you must discard the card to the bottom of the same stack you draw the replacement card from.

Changes to the Cards

Basic Set:

• The Civil War event only affects Knights, Trade Fleets, and Cannons. The Church and the Cathedral (from Science & Progress) protect all Knights, Trade Fleets, and Cannons from this event.