Manual for The Settlers of Catan Computer Game Board Game Designer Klaus Teuber Program Designer Jens Willibald Program Translator John Hoffman Manual Writer David S. Raley Manual Version 1.1 INTRODUCTION Settlers of Catan is a board game developed by Klaus Teuber. The board game is published by Kosmos in Germany and Mayfair Games in the United States. This computer version is a freeware program written by Jens Willibald and translated into English by John Hoffman. Distribution of this game is with permission of Kosmos and Klaus Teuber. This computer game incorporates the rules for Settlers of Catan and Seafarers of Catan. It does not support any of the later expansions, such as Cities and Knights and the Historical Scenarios. The Settlers computer program is designed to run under MS-DOS, but it runs fine on Windows 95 and Windows 98 systems (I have not tested it under NT). Just run CATAN.EXE in the usual manner in which you'd run a DOS program. If you want to set up a shortcut for the game, there is an icon (SIEDLER.ICO) available in the game directory. This package also includes a scenario editor (EDITOR.EXE). The editor is in German, but the program is small enough to make this only a minor problem. Read EDITOR.TXT for instructions on how to use the editor. OBJECT The object of the game is to be the first player to gain the specified number of victory points during your turn. If you somehow manage to gain the appropriate number of points during an opponent's turn, you must wait until the end of your next turn before you can win the game (assuming no one else manages to win before then). The number of victory points required to win depends on the scenario being played. the game constantly displays the number of victory points you currently have, as well as the number that you need to win. You gain victory points in five ways: building settlements, upgrading settlements to cities, deploying the largest army, building the longest trade route, and gaining victory point cards. Settlements built in a region where you did not begin with a settlement gain an extra victory point. VARIATIONS FROM THE RULES As with many computer versions of games, there are some variations between the board verion of the game and the computer version. Trading and Building - In the board game, all trades must be completed before you may start building. In the computer game, trades and building are conducted simultaneously, so you may trade, build something, trade some more, and then build some more. Note that some translations of the board game rules (such as the first Mayfair edition) also allowed this. Build Limits - The board game allows each player five settlements, four cities, fifteen roads, and fifteen ships. The computer game does enforce the five settlement limit, but does not enforce the city or ship limit. I have yet to see a game where a player built more than fifteen roads, but I suspect that it is not enforced. Five or More Players - In the board game, if you are playing with more than four players, there is a special building phase after the current player's building phase. In the computer game, there is no such phase, but the safe limit for holding resource cards is increased to twice the number of players in the game (rather than the standard seven cards). I have heard some players that they prefer the increased limit to the extra build phase. Start of Turn - In the board game, your turn starts when you are passed the dice. As such, you are allowed to play a card before you roll the dice (most likely a Knight). In the computer game, your turn starts when you roll the dice, so you cannot play a card until after the die roll. Number Chip Placement - The chip placement procedure used in the basic board game is never used in the computer game, even when playing a scenario where such a method is practical. Instead, the chips are either placed in fixed positions defined by the scenario or are randomly shuffled. The program apparently has some system to prevent shuffled red chips (6 and 8) from appearing next to each other, but this system doesn't seem to work for all scenarios (I have never seen two reds next to each other in SIEDLER, but have been a 6 and 8 next to each other in BIGLAND). Harbors - In the board game, each harbor only covers two of the intersections adjacent to the tile containing the harbor. I have yet to determine just how the computer game handles this, as it doesn't indicate which intersections are acting as harbors. I can only assume that all intesections are acting in that fashion, but have yet to have an opportunity to prove it. Victory Points - In Seafarers, different scenarios use different rules for bonus victory points. For example, some scenarios give you two bonus victory points for the second and third islands where you build your first settlement. In the computer game, you get one victory point for the first settlement you build in each new region (in most scenarios, each island is defined as a separate region). Unexplored Territory - In Seafarers, an unexplored hex can become either a land or an ocean hex. In the computer game, they can only become standard land hexes (farmland, pasture, mountain, hill, or forest). Also, in Seafarers, you gain a bonus resource for finding a land territory, while in the computer game there is no bonus (which makes sense, considering that you always find a land hex). STARTING THE GAME Start CATAN.EXE in the same way you would start any other DOS program. If you have problems with the display, then you need to specify a screen type. 1 VESA compatible (the default and the most likely choice) 2 ET4000 3 Cirrus-Logic 4 Mach 64 5 ATI 28800 You specify the video type through the number. So, if you type "CATAN 2" when you start the program, you will start the game in ET4000 format. If you prefer, you can start the game through the START.BAT file, which will prompt you for the format type. The file is in German, but should be understandable. Once you start the program, you will be presented with the startup screen. If you click on the picture, you will automatically run the default scenario, which is SEIDLER.ISL (the basic four-player Settlers game). If you click on "Szenario Laden" (Load Scenario), then you will be presented with a list of scenarios available. Just click on the appropriate scenario and you are ready to begin play. This screen is untranslated in the English version, so don't assume you're running the German version when you see this screen. The game will now present the main screen. The human player is always Player 1 and has the blue pieces. This does not mean that the human player will go first, as the first player to start will be selected randomly. MAIN SCREEN The main screen is divided into five areas, as shown below. To the left is the map area, which shows you the game map, including the location of all roads, ships, settlements, and cities. On the right are four smaller areas: the action area, the player status area, the opponent status area, and the dice area. _________________________________ __________________ | | | | | | | Action Area | | | |__________________| | | __________________ | | | | | Map Area | | Player Status | | | |__________________| | | __________________ | | | | | | | Opponent Status | | | |__________________| | | __________________ | | | | | | | Dice | |_________________________________| |__________________| The action area changes depending on the current action that is being taken. This can include information as to what a player just did, instructions that the player should follow, a question, or a menu. To respond to a question or a menu, click on the appropriate button (or click in the status area outside the button to respond "No"). To continue after receiving instructions, click on the dice. During your turn, the action area will display the main menu. This includes a list of all of the actions you may take during your turn. The first five actions are purchases. The resource costs for each of these purchases are shown in the menu to the right of the button. Build a Road Build a Ship (deactivated if not using ship rules) Build a Settlement Build a City (replaces an existing settlement) Purchase a Development Card Trade with another player or through a port Play a Development Card Move a Ship (allowed once per turn; deactivated if not using ships) End Turn Most of the other prompts are self explanatory. The greatest potential source of confusion is the message when the computer wishes to trade with you. The prompt lists the name of the player that is offering the trade, states what the player wishes to buy, and what they are offering for it. The resource being offered will be listed below the requested item. If you accept the offer, click OK; otherwise click somewhere else in the trade box. If you refuse the offer, the computer will either end trade negotiations or offer something else in return for the product. The player status area includes your current score, the number of cards you have for each commodity, the number of development cards you are currently holding, and the number of knights currently in play. If you hold the longest road card, it will be indicated on the right side of the development card line. If you hold the largest army card, it will be indicated on the right side of the knight line. The opponent status area is an abbreviated version of the player status area. It includes the player number and color, the number of commodity cards (but not their types), the number of development cards (blue backs), and the number of knights in play. The longest road and largest army cards are indicated in the same way as in the player status area. Use the F5 key to scroll through each opponent's status. At the bottom right are the dice, which indicate the latest resource roll. Click on the dice to start each player's turn or to continue when you are not being prompted for a response. FUNCTION KEYS F1 Display the Help Screen (click on the screen to return to the game) F2 View Statistics (only available at the end of the game) F3 View the map, showing any harbors and number chips F4 View the map, omitting the harbors and number chips F5 Cycle through the opponents on the opponent display F6 Show victory point progress throughout the game (only at game end) F7 Show production levels throughout the game (only at game end) ESC Quit the game and end the program (note that the game is not saved) ESC will not work if you are being prompted for some action. Since you have a menu available during your turn, you will not be able to quit while it is your turn. START OF GAME After you select your scenario, the program will present you with the main screen, with the copyright information in the action area. The dice indicate your roll for determining the first player, so the higher the roll, the better your chance of being first. After you click on the dice, each player in turn will be asked to place a settlement and then a road. For the first round of setup, each player in turn builds a settlement and a road, proceeding in numerical order. For the second round, the last player to build a settlement in the first round builds the first settlement in the second round, and building continues in reverse order. When you place your second settlement, you get one resource from each hex that borders the intersection (except for ocean and desert hexes). When it is your turn to place a settlement, simply click the intersection where you would like to place the settlement. An intersection must meet four requirements before you can build a settlement there. First, it must connect to at least one land hex. Second, all three of the adjacent intersections must be empty. Third, the intersection must be within one of the setup regions defined by the scenario. Fourth, the intersection cannot be adjacent to an unexplored hex. After you place the settlement, click on one of the three adjacent lines to place the road or ship. If you are playing with ships and you click a line along the coast, you will be prompted to choose whether you want to build a road or a ship. Once all initial settlements have been built, the player who placed the first settlement begins the game. TURN SEQUENCE 1 Press the Dice to roll for resources. Any territories that contain a number chip that matches the die roll produce one resource for each settlement bordering it and two resources for each city bordering it. A territory holding the robber does not produce anything. 2 If the roll was a 7, no lands produce anything and the current player moves either the robber or the pirate ship. If you move the robber, you may take one resource from any one player who has a settlement or a city adjacent to the robber's new location. If you move the pirate ship, you may take one resource from any one player who has a ship adjacent to the pirate ship's new location. Note that if a player has more than seven cards in their hand (or more than twice the number of players in a game with five or more players), then that player loses half the resource cards in their hand (rounded down). 3 The active player may now trade, build, buy cards, move a ship, or play a card. These actions may be taken in any order the player chooses (the computer does not enforce the board game's requirement that all trades be conducted before builds). When it is your turn, the action area will display a menu from which you can choose your actions. 4 End the turn TRADING To trade during your turn, just press the Trade button on the main menu. You will then be asked if you want to buy a commodity from another player, sell a commodity to another player, or perform a port trade. If you choose to buy a commodity, you will be asked what commodity you wish to buy. You will then be presented with a list of possible payments you could make for the requested commodity. Any payments with a number next to them indicates an offer made from another player. If you want to accept that offer, then click on the player's number. If you don't like any of the offers or if there are no offers, then click on the menu away from any numbers to terminate the trade. If you choose to sell a commodity, you will be asked what commodity you wish to sell. You will then be presented with a list of possible offers. Any offer with a player's number next to it is an actual offer, which you can accept by clicking the number. If you choose to conduct a port trade, the game will show you a list of possible commodities you can sell to the port. This list is based on the harbors you control and does not take into account what resources you may currently have in hand. If you select a resource for which you have enough to make the trade, you will then be asked what resource you want in return. If it is not your turn, the computer will sometimes prompt you with an offer from the current player. The resource shown on top is the resource that the other player wants. The resource on the list is the first item the computer player offers you. If you accept the offer, click on the OK button. If you click elsewhere in the action area (thus refusing the offer), the computer will either make another offer or terminate the trade. BUILDING To build a road, ship, settlement, or city, just click on the appropriate item on the menu. If you have enough resources to meet the cost, you will be prompted to select a location on the map. A road must be placed on an empty line adjacent to a land hex that connects to one of your roads, cities, or settlements. A ship must be placed on an empty line adjacent to an ocean hex that connects to one of your settlements, cities, or ships. A settlement must be placed at an empty intersection that connects to one of your roads or ships and that is at least two intersections from the nearest settlement or city. You must place a city at a location where you currently have a settlement. Note: As in the board game, you may not have more than five settlements on the board at one time. If you want to build another settlement after you built your fifth, you'll need to upgrade one to a city first. DEVELOPMENT CARDS You may purchase development cards during your turn. You may play only one development card during your turn and you cannot play a card on the turn that you draw it (note that Victory Point cards are never really played - they just immediately add to your victory point total without your opponents knowing about it). There are five possible development cards: KNIGHT - A Knight (known as a Soldier in some American editions of the board game) allows you to move the robber or pirate to a new location. If you have three or more knights in play and have more knights than any other player, you gain the Largest Army card (with two victory points). You keep this until another player exceeds your army size. ROAD CONSTRUCTION - You are allowed to build two roads or ships as if you just paid the resources to build them. MONOPOLY - Select a resource. You gain all cards for that resource that are currently in play. DISCOVERY - You gain any two resources you want (they may be the same or they may be different). VICTORY POINT - You gain one victory point. These take effect immediately, but they are not displayed until the player declares a victory. Most players assume that a development card that is kept face down for a long period of time must be a victory point card. END OF GAME A victory is registered at the end of the winning player's turn. So, if you have gained enough victory points to win the game, just click on the End Turn button and you will be declared the winner. Once a winner is determined, you will be shown the victory point total for each player. The site victory point total includes points for settlements, cities, and bonus points for building settlements in new regions. The remaining columns list points for the largest army, the longest road, and any victory point cards you have. You may use the F6 and F7 buttons to show statistics for victory point totals and production levels. You may use F2 to return to the victory point summary list. If you click the display with the left mouse button, you will be shown the high score table. If you have one of the top 20 scores, your score for the game will be highlighted. Just type in your name (and perhaps the name of the scenario) and press ENTER. You can now click on the left mouse button to exit the game. If that high score table is filled with scores of people you have never heard of, you should delete the REKORDE.DAT file, which includes the high scores, after you leave the program. After your next game, a new REKORDE.DAT file will be created with all empty slots.