[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":392},["ShallowReactive",2],{"game-en-rivals-for-catan":3},{"id":4,"title":5,"accent":6,"age":7,"backdrop":8,"bggUrl":9,"body":10,"categories":27,"components":8,"cover":8,"description":16,"duration":31,"extension":34,"faq":35,"firstGame":61,"industryLegend":8,"lastReviewed":160,"locale":161,"manualUrl":162,"mechanics":163,"meta":168,"navigation":169,"path":170,"players":171,"publisher":173,"quickStart":174,"resourceLegend":8,"rulesVersion":351,"seo":352,"sourceFiles":353,"sourceNotes":355,"stem":356,"strategies":357,"summary":388,"videoLanguage":8,"videoUrl":8,"weight":389,"year":390,"__hash__":391},"games\u002Fen\u002Frivals-for-catan.md","Rivals for Catan","#B91C1C","10",null,"https:\u002F\u002Fboardgamegeek.com\u002Fboardgame\u002F66056\u002Frivals-for-catan",{"type":11,"value":12,"toc":23},"minimark",[13,17,20],[14,15,16],"p",{},"Rivals for Catan turns the island into an engine duel: six regions that rotate, a\ndie that hands out resources and a rival growing at the same pace. The tension is\nin the rhythm, not in surprise.",[14,18,19],{},"Points come three ways: building (settlements and cities), holding the strength and\ntrade advantages, and not falling behind on either. The introductory game teaches\nthe skeleton; the theme sets add cards that reward specialising.",[14,21,22],{},"Because almost everything is paid with stored resources, the most common mistake is\nover-stacking: a saturated region is production thrown away.",{"title":24,"searchDepth":25,"depth":25,"links":26},"",2,[],[28,29,30],"Strategy","Card game","Civilisation",{"min":32,"max":33},30,60,"md",[36,40,43,47,50,54,57],{"category":37,"question":38,"answer":39},"setup","Can I start with the expansions?","You can, but the manual recommends the introductory game first and then the theme sets, since each adds cards with requirements.",{"category":37,"question":41,"answer":42},"What are the theme sets?","Three card sets (Gold, Turmoil and Progress) that replace part of the basic deck and change the feel of the game. The Duel of the Princes mixes all three.",{"category":44,"question":45,"answer":46},"turn","Can I trade several times in a turn?","Yes, trading costs no actions: you can make as many 3:1 exchanges (or 2:1 with a trade ship) as your resources allow.",{"category":44,"question":48,"answer":49},"When do I draw or exchange a card?","At the end of the turn, after the action phase: refill up to your hand limit and optionally swap one card for another from a draw stack.",{"category":51,"question":52,"answer":53},"special","What does the event die do?","It triggers an event card that resolves immediately. Some events hit both players, such as the brigand attack or the celebration.",{"category":51,"question":55,"answer":56},"What are progress points for?","Each progress point on your buildings raises your hand limit by one. Hero skill points are used by the celebration event.",{"category":58,"question":59,"answer":60},"end","What if both players reach the target at once?","That cannot happen: the game ends on the turn of whoever reaches the target, without waiting for the other player.",{"title":62,"intro":63,"phases":64},"Your first game","The rulebook includes an introductory game with marked cards. Play it before the theme sets: it teaches production, building and advantages without special cards.",[65,116],{"id":66,"label":67,"steps":68},"mesa","Build the principalities",[69,84,102],{"title":70,"text":71,"images":72,"check":77},"Regions and settlements","Build the principality exactly as the manual shows: two settlements, one road and six regions aligned to one resource each (gold at zero).",[73],{"src":74,"alt":75,"label":76},"\u002Fimages\u002Fgames\u002Frivals-catan\u002Fprincipality.webp","Region and settlement cards forming the starting principality.","Starting principality",{"question":78,"options":79,"answer":82,"explanation":83},"How many resources does the gold field start with?",[80,81],"None","One",0,"Every region starts with one resource except the gold field, which starts at zero.",{"title":85,"text":86,"images":87,"check":96},"Stacks and event deck","Place roads, settlements and cities between the two players, the region deck face down and the event deck prepared with the Yule card.",[88,92],{"src":89,"alt":90,"label":91},"\u002Fimages\u002Fgames\u002Frivals-catan\u002Fstacks.webp","Road, settlement and city stacks with the region and draw stacks.","Central stacks",{"src":93,"alt":94,"label":95},"\u002Fimages\u002Fgames\u002Frivals-catan\u002Fevent-deck.webp","Assembling the event deck with the Yule card.","Event deck",{"question":97,"options":98,"answer":82,"explanation":101},"Where do the building stacks go?",[99,100],"Between the two principalities","At the edge of the table","The central stacks sit within reach of both players.",{"title":103,"text":104,"images":105,"check":110},"Starting hands","The highest die roll starts and draws three cards from one stack; the other player draws three from a different stack.",[106],{"src":107,"alt":108,"label":109},"\u002Fimages\u002Fgames\u002Frivals-catan\u002Fhands.webp","Drawing three cards from a draw stack into your hand.","Starting hand",{"question":111,"options":112,"answer":82,"explanation":115},"How many cards does each player start with?",[113,114],"Three","Five","The starting hand is three cards from a single draw stack.",{"id":117,"label":118,"steps":119},"ronda","Play the first turns",[120,134,148],{"title":121,"text":122,"images":123,"check":128},"Produce","Roll the dice and rotate the regions matching the production die. Remember that the event can affect both players.",[124],{"src":125,"alt":126,"label":127},"\u002Fimages\u002Fgames\u002Frivals-catan\u002Fproduction.webp","Example of a 6 on the production die activating a region.","Production example",{"question":129,"options":130,"answer":82,"explanation":133},"Which die activates regions?",[131,132],"The production die","The event die","The production die marks which regions generate resources; the event die triggers events.",{"title":135,"text":136,"images":137,"check":142},"Build a road","Gather two brick and one lumber and place a road next to one of your settlements. It is the first step to expanding.",[138],{"src":139,"alt":140,"label":141},"\u002Fimages\u002Fgames\u002Frivals-catan\u002Fbuilding-sites.webp","Building sites around a settlement, including the site used for a road.","Building a road",{"question":143,"options":144,"answer":82,"explanation":147},"What does a road cost?",[145,146],"Two brick and one lumber","One brick and two lumber","A road costs 2 brick and 1 lumber.",{"title":149,"text":150,"images":151,"check":155},"Expand with a settlement","With a road built, pay one brick, one grain, one wool and one lumber and place a settlement at its open end: you gain a point and two new regions.",[152],{"src":139,"alt":153,"label":154},"Settlement card with its four building sites and the victory point marker.","New settlement",{"question":156,"options":157,"answer":82,"explanation":159},"How many points is a new settlement worth?",[81,158],"Two","Each settlement is worth one victory point.","2026-10-23","en","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.catan.com\u002Frivals-catan",[164,165,166,167],"Resource management","Engine building","Hand management","Dice",{},true,"\u002Fen\u002Frivals-for-catan",{"min":25,"max":25,"best":172},[25],"Kosmos",{"pitch":175,"pitchCheck":176,"setup":180,"turn":248,"mistakes":316,"winning":344,"winningCheck":345},"Rivals for Catan is a two-player duel: each player builds a principality with six regions producing lumber, wool, gold, brick, ore and grain. On your turn you roll the production die — every region showing that number gives you one resource, stored by rotating the card up to a maximum of three — and the event die, which triggers an event card. Then, in the action phase, you play cards and trade to build roads, settlements and cities or to place improvements. The first to reach the victory point target wins: ten in the introductory game and twelve in the theme games. Each settlement is worth one point and each city two, and the strength and trade tokens add one more point to whoever holds them.",{"question":177,"options":178,"answer":82,"explanation":179},"How many resources can one region store?",[113,114],"Each region stores between 0 and 3 resources; anything beyond that is lost.",[181,195,203,215,224,235],{"text":182,"images":183,"check":190},"Each player builds their principality: two settlements joined by a road, with the six regions around them (forest, pasture, gold field, hills, mountains and fields). At the start every region holds one resource except the gold field.",[184,186],{"src":74,"alt":185,"label":76},"Region and settlement cards forming the starting principality in the Rivals for Catan rulebook.",{"src":187,"alt":188,"label":189},"\u002Fimages\u002Fgames\u002Frivals-catan\u002Forientation.webp","Region cards rotated to show 0, 1, 2 and 3 stored resources.","Resources on a region",{"question":191,"options":192,"answer":82,"explanation":194},"How many resources does each region start with?",[193,113],"One, except the gold field","All start with one except gold, which starts at zero.",{"text":196,"images":197,"check":200},"Between the two principalities place the face-up road, settlement and city stacks, the facedown region deck and the separate basic set draw stacks.",[198],{"src":89,"alt":199,"label":91},"Setup diagram with the road, settlement and city stacks, the region deck and the draw stacks between the principalities.",{"question":97,"options":201,"answer":82,"explanation":101},[99,202],"Beside the score track",{"text":204,"images":205,"check":209},"Build the event deck: three cards face down, the Yule card on top and the rest above it. Shuffle and keep it beside the other stacks.",[206],{"src":93,"alt":207,"label":208},"Rulebook diagram for assembling the event deck with the Yule card in the middle.","Assembling the event deck",{"question":210,"options":211,"answer":82,"explanation":214},"How is the event deck built?",[212,213],"With the Yule card under the rest","Without the Yule card","The Yule card ends up under the rest of the deck.",{"text":216,"images":217,"check":220},"Roll a die each: the highest starts and draws three cards from one draw stack. The other player draws three from a different stack.",[218],{"src":107,"alt":219,"label":103},"Diagram of drawing the three top cards from a draw stack into your hand.",{"question":221,"options":222,"answer":82,"explanation":223},"How many cards does each player draw at the start?",[113,114],"The starting hand is three cards from one draw stack.",{"text":225,"images":226,"check":230},"Check your region numbers: each one shows a number from 1 to 6 and that roll activates it. Numbers can change during the game.",[227],{"src":187,"alt":228,"label":229},"Region cards showing how their orientation marks 0 to 3 stored resources.","Region numbers and orientation",{"question":231,"options":232,"answer":82,"explanation":234},"What makes a region produce?",[233,132],"The production die number","The production die marks which regions produce.",{"text":236,"images":237,"check":242},"Keep the hero token (axe) and trade token (scales) in view: they are gained with three strength or commerce points and are worth one victory point.",[238],{"src":239,"alt":240,"label":241},"\u002Fimages\u002Fgames\u002Frivals-catan\u002Fadvantages.webp","Strength and trade advantage diagrams with the hero token and the trade token.","Advantage tokens",{"question":243,"options":244,"answer":82,"explanation":247},"What does three strength give you?",[245,246],"The hero token","The trade token","With three strength and more than the rival you take the hero token.",[249,262,275,289,303],{"title":250,"text":251,"images":252,"check":256},"Roll production and event","Roll both dice. Every region of yours matching the production die produces one resource: rotate the card 90° counter-clockwise. The event die tells you which event card resolves.",[253],{"src":125,"alt":254,"label":255},"Example of resource production: a 6 on the production die rotates the matching regions 90 degrees.","Resource production",{"question":257,"options":258,"answer":82,"explanation":261},"How do you show that a region produced a resource?",[259,260],"Rotating the card 90° towards you","Placing a token on it","The orientation of the region shows how many resources it stores, from 0 to 3.",{"title":263,"text":264,"images":265,"check":269},"Play cards","Cards with a green box are settlement or city expansions: pay for them and place them on a free building site. Cards with a yellow box are action cards: resolve immediately and discard.",[266],{"src":139,"alt":267,"label":268},"Rulebook example showing an additional building site next to a settlement.","Building sites",{"question":270,"options":271,"answer":82,"explanation":274},"Where do settlement or city expansions go?",[272,273],"On a free building site next to your settlement or city","Under a region card","Each settlement offers two building sites; cities add more.",{"title":276,"text":277,"images":278,"check":283},"Trade and build","You may always trade 3 resources for 1 of any type; with a trade ship the rate improves to 2 for 1 of the resource it names. Resources buy roads, settlements and cities from the central stacks.",[279],{"src":280,"alt":281,"label":282},"\u002Fimages\u002Fgames\u002Frivals-catan\u002Ftrade.webp","Regular exchange example: pay 3 ore from two regions and take 1 wool.","Trading resources",{"question":284,"options":285,"answer":82,"explanation":288},"What is the basic trade rate?",[286,287],"3 resources for 1","2 resources for 1","Without a trade ship the rate is 3:1; a trade ship improves it to 2:1.",{"title":290,"text":291,"images":292,"check":297},"Refill your hand and exchange a card","At the end of the action phase, draw or discard up to your hand limit and you may exchange one card for another from a draw stack. Exchanged cards cannot be used until your next turn.",[293],{"src":294,"alt":295,"label":296},"\u002Fimages\u002Fgames\u002Frivals-catan\u002Fexchange.webp","Diagram of exchanging a card in hand for the top card of a draw stack.","Exchanging a card",{"question":298,"options":299,"answer":82,"explanation":302},"Can you use the card you just exchanged?",[300,301],"No, wait for your next turn","Yes, in the same action phase","The exchanged card stays in hand but can only be played next turn.",{"title":304,"text":305,"images":306,"check":310},"Check the advantages","With three or more strength points and more than your rival, take the hero token; with three or more commerce points and more than your rival, take the trade token. Each token is worth one victory point and is lost if you stop meeting the condition.",[307],{"src":239,"alt":308,"label":309},"Hero token and trade token diagrams, each worth one victory point.","Hero and trade tokens",{"question":311,"options":312,"answer":82,"explanation":315},"How much is each advantage token worth?",[313,314],"One victory point","Two victory points","The hero token and the trade token are worth one point each.",[317,326,335],{"title":318,"text":319,"check":320},"Stacking more than three resources","A region cannot hold more than three resources. Producing into a full region wastes the resource, so spend before it saturates.",{"question":321,"options":322,"answer":82,"explanation":325},"What happens if you produce in a region already holding three?",[323,324],"The resource is lost","It goes to a separate reserve","The cap is three per region; the excess is not stored.",{"title":327,"text":328,"check":329},"Building without a road","A new settlement can only go at the open end of a road. Build the road first, and there is always exactly one road between two settlements.",{"question":330,"options":331,"answer":82,"explanation":334},"What do you need before building a new settlement?",[332,333],"A road to place it against","A city next to it","The settlement sits at the open end of a road.",{"title":336,"text":337,"check":338},"Forgetting advantages can be lost","The strength and trade tokens are not permanent: if your rival overtakes you or you drop below three points, the token changes hands or goes back to the table. Recheck after every build.",{"question":339,"options":340,"answer":82,"explanation":343},"Are advantage tokens permanent?",[341,342],"No, they move when strength or commerce changes","Yes, once gained they are kept","You lose the token as soon as you no longer have three points and more than your rival.","You win by reaching the victory point target during your turn: ten in the introductory game and twelve in the theme games, with the Duel of the Princes at thirteen. Each settlement is one point, each city two, and the hero and trade tokens one each. If you reach the target before rolling the dice, the game ends right then.",{"question":346,"options":347,"answer":82,"explanation":350},"When does the game end?",[348,349],"When a player reaches the point target on their turn","When the building cards run out","The game ends as soon as someone reaches the target during their turn.","EN rulebook (Kosmos, 2010), basic game and theme sets",{"title":5,"description":16},[354],"reglamentos-pdf\u002Frivals_for_catan_rules_200309.pdf","The PDF includes the introductory game, the three theme sets (Gold, Turmoil, Progress) and the Duel of the Princes. This page focuses on the common rules.","en\u002Frivals-for-catan",[358,362,365,368,372,375,378,382,385],{"level":359,"title":360,"text":361},"beginner","Spend before you overflow","A region at three resources wastes the next production. Turn those resources into roads or improvements.",{"level":359,"title":363,"text":364},"Road before settlement","A settlement without a road cannot be placed. Plan the pair of builds one turn ahead.",{"level":359,"title":366,"text":367},"Watch your hand limit","At the end of your turn you cannot exceed your hand limit: play cards or discard. Progress points raise that limit.",{"level":369,"title":370,"text":371},"intermediate","Chase the trade advantage","Three commerce points give a victory point and better exchange rates. It is the easiest advantage to hold early.",{"level":369,"title":373,"text":374},"Do not hand over strength","If your rival piles up axes, match or pass their number: every token you leave them is a point you will not easily recover.",{"level":369,"title":376,"text":377},"City before expansion","A city is worth two points and adds building sites. It often beats founding another settlement far away.",{"level":379,"title":380,"text":381},"advanced","Read the event deck","Knowing which events remain tells you whether to hoard resources or spend them before a celebration or a brigand attack.",{"level":379,"title":383,"text":384},"Manage your region numbers","Cards that change region numbers alter your production. Place them thinking about the rolls that come up most at your table.",{"level":379,"title":386,"text":387},"Close with a double build","If you can build twice in one turn, the second build can be the point that wins the game. Save resources for that final push.","A duel of two principalities: produce resources, build settlements and cities, and reach the victory point target first.",2.3,"2010","7-hXWtBVTJqeOZwandYolEjlCH-9MpIhi9MeYHGP-l8",1792754232740]