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Back in 1995, when Klaus Teuber created his award-winning game Settlers of Catan, he would never have dreamed that it would be as popular as it is. Now, with 4 major expansions, it is as popular as ever. Cities and Knights is the second of these expansions to be released, and my personal favourite as well. But what’s the big deal?
Commodities.
The Cities and Knights expansion adds scores of new features, and arguably the biggest addition is a new type of resource - commodities. There are three types, Paper, Coin, and Cloth, and they are used to create…
City improvements.
City improvements add a new layer of complexity to the base Catan game. There are three types, which relate to the three commodities, and they can give many benefits, such as the opportunity to acquire one or more Metropolises. These protect a city from the barbarians (see below), and also grant you 2 extra Victory Points. They can also be stolen, which increases the necessary strategic knowledge to do well in the game. They also provide separate abilities, such as the Aqueduct which lets you take a resource of your choice if you receive no resources on a roll that is not a 7.
Progress Cards.
The final main benefit to city improvements is the opportunity to receive progress cards. Each level of city improvement increases your odds of receiving a progress card, which come in three colors that correspond to the three commodities and city improvements. Progress cards replace Development Cards, which don’t exist in Cities and Knights. Progress cards are similar, but they usually have more powerful abilities, such as the Alchemist which allows you to choose the dice roll, or the Inventor which allows you to swap two number tiles.
Extra Die.
In Cities and Knights, you roll an extra die on your turn. This determines whether you receive a progress card, or whether the Barbarians advance (see below).
Knights.
The other key part of Cities and Knights is – you guessed it – knights. These are very different to the Knight development card in base Catan, and they help to protect your cities from the barbarians. They have three levels: Basic; Strong; and Mighty. You can promote a knight with just an Ore and a Wool, raising it to the next level. To get any use out of a knight, you must activate it with a Grain. An active knight contributes a number of knight points respective of its level: Basic provides 1; Strong 2, and Mighty 3. On subsequent turns, you can move it, use it to displace an opponent’s knight, or chase off the robber from an adjacent hex, just by deactivating the knight and taking that action. But the main use of Knights is fending off the…
Barbarians.
The barbarians are the main danger facing the island of Catan in the Cities and Knights expansion. They approach from a distance, taking a minimum of 7 turns to reach Catan. Their journey is represented by the extra die, on which three of the six faces are the barbarians. Each time one of these three faces is rolled, you move the barbarians one step closer towards the island. There are 8 spaces, including the start and end spaces, and once they reach the end they arrive at the island and attack. This can have one of two outcomes:
- Catan wins. This happens if there are more knight points than cities on the board. The player who is contributing the most knight points receives a special ‘Defender of Catan’ victory point, or if there is a tie each player in the tie receives a progress card of a color of their choice.
- Catan loses. This happens if there are fewer knight points than cities. If this occurs, the player(s) who are contributing the least knight points must each remove one of their cities and replace it with a settlement. A city with a metropolis cannot be destroyed by the barbarians.
Victory Conditions
To win, you must have 13 Victory Points on your turn.
All of these elements add many more layers of depth and strategy to the base Catan game. They provide a much more enjoyable experience, and the game is a definite necessity for anyone who enjoys Catan.