Settlers of Catan

Since I was a teenager, my friends and I have made it a point to play strategy board games whenever we get the chance. It all started with the World War II epic, Axis & Allies, which would take all night, but was a lot of fun. Since then, we've spent countless hours playing just about every version of Risk in existence and an awesome Star Wars themed game known as Epic Duels.

A few months ago, I was introduced to Settlers of Catan, which is a strategy board game in which you attempt to build roads, settlements, and cities to earn points. The first player to 10 points wins. In order to build these structures, you must acquire the proper materials including ore, grain, brick, lumber, and wool.

Okay, I know what you're thinking--this sounds really boring--because that's what I was thinking when my buddy first introduced me to the game. As it turns out however, the game is really a lot of fun. Games generally take about 45-90 minutes so you can often play a couple in one sitting. We usually play with 3 people, but you can have up to 4 in the regular edition and I believe there is an expansion pack that lets you play up to 6.

If you start getting tired of the original version, there are a slew of expansion sets that you can buy (for about $30) that provide a completely new gaming experience. We have the Cities and Knights expansion and it introduces so many new elements that it is like playing a completely different game. The only caveat is that it seems to take a little longer.

Despite the fact that I really enjoy this game, I kind of suck at it. I usually play with my brother and a mutual friend. My friend tends to win about 2/3 of the time while my brother and I split the other 1/3. Unfortunately, my brother even tends to win most of those, but I finally got my second ever victory Friday night and I was so pleased that I decided that a blog post was required!

Well, I'm out. Godspeed.