The Settlers of Catan: The Fishermen of Catan

About this expansion

The Settlers of Catan: The Fishermen of Catan is an expansion scenario for Catan for 3–4 players, with an approximately 60-minute play time.

In this fishing-themed scenario, some sea tiles from the base game become Fishing Grounds. These spaces produce fish in a way similar to regular resource-producing tiles, giving players a new source of useful trade-offs during the game.

Instead of resource cards, Fishing Grounds provide Fish Tiles worth one, two, or three fish. During a turn, players can spend their accumulated fish to gain special benefits:

• Spend 2 fish to move the robber back to the desert, without stealing from a player who has a settlement or town there.
• Spend 3 fish to steal a raw material card from another player.
• Spend 4 fish to take any one raw material from the bank.
• Spend 5 fish to build a street immediately.
• Spend 7 fish to receive a development card for free.

Fishing also carries a risk: a player may catch an old shoe. While holding it, that player needs one additional point to win than usual. The shoe can be passed to another player with the same number of points or more points than its current owner.

First published in 2005, The Settlers of Catan: The Fishermen of Catan appeared in several magazine and promotional editions before being included in Catan: Traders & Barbarians in 2007, with slightly expanded rules. It belongs to the Catan series and expands Catan with a compact fishing system and new ways to spend your gains.