How to Host a Settlers of Catan Game Night
Settlers of Catan is the wildly popular board game from Germany, created by Klaus Teuber in 1995. Players take the role of colonists on a newly discovered island, using their resources to farm the land, build roads and cities and dominate the other players. Its simple mechanics and detailed strategies make it an excellent choice for game night. If you want to host an evening featuring Settlers of Catan, a few easy steps can help make it memorable. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- Streamers in summer colors
- Photocopier
- Dried berries, seeds and nuts
- Corn husks
- Victory point prizes
- Large prize
- CD player
Instructions
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1
Purchase streamers in summer colors from a party store. They should emphasize earth tones: golds, greens and browns. The closer you can match the color of the streamers to the colors on the game board, the better your decorations will be.
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Hang the streamers in the room where you intend to host the game.
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3
Run off color photocopies of the hexagonal game pieces. Blow them up to a large size if you can.
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Hang the copies of the game pieces in the bare areas of the wall around the streamers.
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Buy dried berries, seeds and nuts from a whole foods store or a nursery. Scatter them on surfaces around the playing table, or fill decorative bowls with them.
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Arrange corn husks or corn ears as a centerpiece on the table of a nearby surface.
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Purchase small "victory point" prizes to be given away whenever any player earns a victory point. These can fit the theme of Settlers of Catan (knick-knacks with an exploration theme, such as toy compasses or ships) or can be more generalized, like miniature candy bars. You will probably need about 30 or 40 victory point prizes.
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Pick up a larger "grand prize" for the winner of the game. It needn't be expensive, but it should be enticing enough for people to compete enthusiastically for it.
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Prepare a CD mix featuring music with an exploration or folk theme to play during game night. Aaron Copeland music works extremely well, as do traditional folk pieces and country songs.
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Start the CD when people arrive. Keep the volume muted, so that people can hear the music without having to raise their voices.
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Give out the victory point prizes in your capacity as host whenever someone earns a victory point during the game.
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Hand out the grand prize and proclaim the winner "King/Queen of Catan" at the end of the night.
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Tips & Warnings
The winner's prize should fit with the Settlers of Catan theme in some way. Movies or books about exploration make an excellent fit, as do westerns that involve the taming of the frontier.
