Settlers of Catan

It’s been a while since we played for the last time. Around seven in the evening we spontaneously decided we’d spend the evening playing. We played Settlers of Catan with a large board meant to be build with two basic games where one would need 18 points to win. Because I only have one basic game and one extension we’ve modified the board (skipping some small islands) and went for 14 points (although I still think it should have been 16).

I am not so good at placing my first two villages. I end up missing one or two resources and cannot build villages or cities, which leads to missing even more resources. I get my points by buying a lot of development cards and earning the two achievement cards. I place the robber on a field of someone who has the most cards to pick from. Yesterday I was able to build some villages, but missed the development points. I ended up making up a very short term strategy each time I had a turn. 10 points.

Jeroen is very good at placing the first villages. He takes the game very seriously and never misses a chance to spoil the plans of anyone else in the game. That becomes real fun if there is someone willing to fight back. They are fighting each other and I win. Jeroen never (or hardly ever) buys development cards. He is an aggressive trader and builder. However, yesterday he had no luck at all. Even though he had gold. No one was fighting back, spoiling plans didn’t work somehow, and lack of development cards didn’t help either. I am not sure, but I think he ended up with 8 points. When Jeroen looses so heavily he usually wants to play another round.

Kim chooses a strategy depending on the board in front of her. She buys development cards if there is a chance to do so. She places the robber on the field of someone whose plans she wants to spoil or someone she wants to pick a card from. And she always explains why she put the robber on that field which always sounds somewhat apologetically. She takes the game seriously, takes her time to think over her next move, thinks three steps ahead and constantly counts the points of everyone in the game. She is the one to argue with Jeroen about the rules. She has won yesterday (14 points that is).

Bas takes it all very easy, has fun, doesn’t play hard and even if he spoils someone’s plans it always looks like it’s no big deal. He buys development cards occasionally. But don’t underestimate his winning ability! Yesterday he started with no luck with resources. Just like me he went for the short term strategies each turn and somewhere in the middle of the game he managed to get gold and solve his liquidity problems. I lost my longest street card to him (2 points!) and he ended up second with 13 points.

I’ve just found this website where you can play Settlers of Catan online. Didn’t try it yet.

We (everyone, except Jeroen) were too tired for another round of Settlers and decided to play Around the World in 80 Days. No one knew the rules anymore so we tried to figure them out along the way. Which resulted in me loosing significantly, Kim getting angry, Jeroen getting a little upset because Kim wanted to stop and I didn’t care and Bas winning (probably out of pure luck, because he seemed to care less than anyone else).

I still have some Polish beer in my fridge. I don’t drink beer, so I am looking for beer drinking visitors willing to have a bbq in my garden or play board games (dinner included). Apply in the comments!

Timeline: January 1989 – the last Soviet census. I remember a woman coming to our home one evening and asking all kinds of questions about how many people live in our family and stuff like that. Apparently only 6% of households where one-person households in Soviet Union in 1989. That’s quite different from the predicted 50% in the Netherlands by 2050. Don’t you think?