One of the best games to bus🍌t out with friends to get that competitive spirit going, Settlers of Catan is one of those classic board games that appeals to gamers of all skill levels. Perfect for introducing new players and those more experienced alike, Settlers of Catan is a fantastic board game that gives you and your friends new ways to play every game.

If you’re looking to spice up your Settlers of Catan games a bit, you can always pick up an expansion. Each of these expansions brings new mechanics, tiles, and even allows for more players to join in♛ the game. If you’re looking to expand your empire in Catan, you can’t go wrong with these addons to your game.

Updated May 31, 2024 by Vaspaan Dastoor: While Catan has a number of major expansions, it also includes a few Scenarios. These are smaller additions to the game that change things around only a bit. They don't expand the game per se, but add a few new mechanics to prevent the classic gameplay from getting monotonous. We've added a few of them to this list.

The most straightforward expansion for Settlers of Catan, the 5-6 Player Extension does just that, turns the four player game into a five or s🐈ix player experience. By adding brown and green pieces, as well as more terrain tile and harbors, you can invite more players to your games.

All the basics of the game remain the same, though it does add an additional build phase to each player's turn. Since you have more players, the island gets bigger with the additional tiles, preventing players from running out of terrain too quickly and making sure to give enough room for all players to grow.

A mini-expansion for Settlers of Catan, Catan Scenarios: Helpers of Catan works with a few specific expansions, Catan: Seafarers, Catan: Seafarers 5-6 Player Extension, and then the base Catan: 5-6 Player Extension. The Helpers comes with twelཧve cards, each one featuring a different character along with a special ability players can use.

The big appeal of using The Helpers expansion is that it makes the game a little less punishing for bad rolls and makes trading a little easier. Since you and all other players start with a Helper at the beginning of the game, you have plenty of opportunit𝓀ies to use them to help grow your cities.

The fourth expansion for Settlers of Catan, Explorers and Pirates brings brand new ways to play the classic board game. Explorers and Pirates lets players vie for resources across three islands, starting on one and eventualﷺly branching out to the other two by building ships to cross the sea. The new islands are randomly d☂etermined so you never know exactly how the new island is going to look.

The Explorers and Pirates expansion also lets you build ports. These port settlements function like cities, providing victory points and giving resources though they require different resources to build. The final major change to the game is the introduction of gold, which can be earned if you don’t get any resources when you roll for production, letting you exchange two pie𝓀ces of gold to the bank in exchange for resources.

​​The third major expansion for The Settlers of Catan, Traders and🐠 Barbarians introduces new m🤪echanics and scenarios for players to change up the game with. Traders and Barbarians is a collection of smaller expansions, brought together into one big one with some extra material to tie everything together.

The most interesting change in rules provided in this expansion is that Traders and Barbarians lets players play the game with just two players through the addition of a new mechanic called 𝔉Commercial Chips t🍃o force trades with the other player. This expansion also brings some other new mechanics like fishing, caravans, and even barbarian attacks on your settlements to spice the game up a bit.

If the island of Catan isn’t꧒ enough for you to explore, you can always adventure out to sea with the Seafarers expansion. This add-on to the main game lets players build shipping lanes, which fun♏ction similarly to roads but are decidedly more wet.

Seafarers adds plenty of water tiles and islands ꦍto explore, each one randomly chosen, providing a fun and unique game experience every time you play. There are also new scenarios to play through, adding even more twists to your game. The other neat thing about this expansion is that it introduces the Pirate, a piece that acts similarly to the Thief, bu💃t works on the ocean instead of on land.

The most popular expansion by far for Settlers of Catan is the Cities and Knights add-on. This expansio♎n brings several new mechanics and twists to the game, drastically changing the core gameplay in interesting ways. Two of the biggest changes that come with the expansion is the introduction of knights, which can be used to protect your lands from invading barbarians, and the ability to improve upon your cities, granting additional boons to your cities.

There are also new mechanics called commodities that let you reinforce cities while also utilizing a new set of development cards to improve your game with a wider range of ef🍨fects. This expansion brings tons of new ways to play that are drastically different from the base game, making it the best way to change up your games.

Even if you are a veteran of the Catan universe and expansions, the Treasures, Dragons & Adventureಞrs expansion adds enough variety that will keep you interested. Plus, never before have we seen mythical creatures in Catan! The only unfortunate aspect to ✨this expansion is that it requires both Seafarers and Cities & Knights expansions for the base game to enjoy.

The scenario pack comes with a bunch of new game components t🦋hat allow you to modify other existing scenarios, or create your own. The Treasures, Dragons & Adventurers expansion will allow old and newer players to embark on their very own adventure to explore hidden islands for ri🌳ches and slay mighty dragons.

Are you a seasoned veteran of the Catan lands and want a more strꦅuctured story to experience in🀅 the beloved world? That is what the scenario expansion Legend of the Conquerors sets out to do. It requires the base game and Cities & Knights to work, but offers interesting gameplay choices and narrative not seen in other Catan expansions.

The expansion features an interwoven n💙arrative through chapter-based scenarios. This encourages a group of players to take on a longer journey with an evolving strategy and scenarios. Seasoned players will find new and interesting twists to the gameplay, and it will make Catan feel fresh to those with a lot of hours.

𒅌A collective goal in a competitive game always makes things more interesting. The Crop Trust scenario will make you decide whwther to harvest for your own goals or store seeds to achieve a collective goal. This balance adds a new twist to the gameplay, while also spreading awareness.

FAQ

What is the best Catan expansion to buy first?

Generally, the best expansion to pick up f🥃irst is the 🌺Seafarers one. It builds on the original mechanics of the game without diverging too much from the core rules.

Is Catan 5-6 Player Extension worth it?

If your playgroup is expanding a 💫bit or if you want to introduce new players to th✨e game, the 5-6 Player Extension lets you share the game with more players than before.

Do all Catan expansions work together?

Not all expansions woဣrk together, but many of them do. The Seafarers and the Cities and Knight expansions can be combined to further expand your game.