Catan: Traders & Barbarians (2015 Refresh)

Catan: Traders & Barbarians is an expansion for Catan, the classic board game by Klaus Teuber. You’ll need the base game of Catan to play. A lot of modules and variants come in this expansion. It’s an stepping stone if you want to add more to the island of Catan! You can combine Traders & Barbarians with other Catan expansions too, for further fun.

The core mechanisms remain from the base game. The variety of scenarios in Traders & Barbarians change the angle of play. You can mix and match these to suits your tastes. Will you play with one, some, or all of them?

The Fishermen of Catan provides a lake hex. Any settlements built next to this earn fish, a new resource! There’s also chevron-shaped fishing tiles that hug the outer edge of the island. These too provide fish if the corresponding number gets rolled. A Harbourmaster Card also provides VPs for having the most settlements on the coast. Like the Longest Road, this can change hands. This, plus the Fishermen Scenario, both drive incentives to build on the edge of the map. (It’s a strategy sometimes neglected in base-Catan!)

The Rivers of Catan is a multi-hex river tile that sits in the middle of the board. You can build bridges over it, earning coins! Dominate the river, like Longest Road, and earn points. If you ignore the river, you can lose points! The Great Caravan is a trade-route scenario, while the Barbarian Invasion adds tension.

There’s also a Traders & Barbarians scenario that uses ‘castle’ hexes. These allow players to build roads into the hex tile itself (not around it, like normal). You’re aiming to rebuild Catan after a barbarian invasion (and fighting back some ongoing attacks, too!). There’s tasks in the castle, and you get points for completing them. This scenario propels Catan to deeper depths of strategy.

Also included is an option for a two-player count. For players that dislike the random two-dice roll, there’s an Event deck. Each card has 2-12 on it, stating the number for that turn, along with an Event. There’s even a separate ‘Friendly Robber’ variant! In Catan: Traders & Barbarians, there’s something inside to please everyone!

Player Count: 2-4 Players
Time: 60 minutes
Age: 10+