Settlers of Catan & Three Buck Chuck
January 26, 2008
One of the best Christmas gifts Sarah and I received for Christmas was the board game Settlers of Catan. Sarah played this in college and always told me we should get it, but it was expensive, hard to find, and looked like kind of an odd game to me. Oh how wrong I was. Since starting to play last week, I’ve played 8 games of Settlers and still loving it. I can tell you that I think how much fun you have playing Settlers is directly proportional to how much alcohol you drink while you play. Okay, well, that’s not entirely true because Sarah and I played a two-player version last night without drinking, and we had fun. However, for our first two games with Nate and Elaine, we played for 3-4 hours and shared 4 bottles of wine between the 4 of us (now, we’re not rolling in $$ over here, we just drink Three Buck Chuck). That made for some hilarious and memorable Settlers.
It’s amazing - probably one of the best board games I’ve ever played. And it’s funny, because once you get it, you start to realize how many people have the game. I can think of at least four or five couples around us who are avid Settlers fans. At any rate, if you haven’t heard of this game, go and buy it now.
Tags: Board-Games, Settlers of Catan
Posted in 
Adam Walker Cleaveland: I am a 28 yr old 
January 26th, 2008 at 10:40 am
My wife and I have played the SoC card game a bunch. I’ve heard the board game is a blast, but that it isn’t really made for two players. Is it worth getting if we are mainly going to play two player games?
January 26th, 2008 at 11:05 am
@Shawn - yah, the game is definitely better with more than 2 people. Sarah and I were having fun playing the 2-player version, until I read some online strategies, and then creamed(!) her. Now it’s not as much fun. ;) But - once you get it - you’ll start playing it with all sorts of people!
January 26th, 2008 at 11:53 am
Cleave, If you like Settlers of Catan you HAVE to try Cities and Knights. The first time we played it took 4 hours — it’s pretty awesome! (There’s also Seafairers of Catan, which is also enjoyable.) And obviously the three-buck chuck makes it better (though I liked it better when it was two!).
January 26th, 2008 at 12:55 pm
i second what Dave said… if you like Settlers, Cities and Knights will rock your world! it takes a while to learn but the first time you win a game, you’re so hooked you’ll never ever go back.
January 26th, 2008 at 1:43 pm
I’m a huge Settlers fan. Great game.
January 26th, 2008 at 2:14 pm
One great thing about living in California: it’s *Two* Buck Chuck here!
January 26th, 2008 at 4:19 pm
Adam,
I support what others above me have said… You need to get the Cities and Knights expansion pack. If you think you’re having fun now, you won’t even believe how incredible Cities and Knights is.
My friends and I got REALLY into Catan last year (”Hey, you wanna Settle tonight?”), so much so that my mom bought me the 3D collector’s edition for graduation. (http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/17419).
Anyway, keep enjoying yourself… it doesn’t get old.
January 26th, 2008 at 7:52 pm
We love Settlers around here. And for the past few years almost all date nights involve playing Settlers and three buck chuck. The expansion packs are great and the card game is good because it can be played with just two people. Carcassone is another game by the same company that it just as fun. Let’s just say we’ve indoctrinated our whole church into these games. and I’m looking forward to the upcoming Superbowl because that means an all out Settlers tournament with breaks to watch the commercials…
January 27th, 2008 at 12:36 am
If you need a two-player fix, there’s a Settlers two-player card game that my husband and I have started to play obsessively. It’s at once a similar venture to the board game and an entirely new set of strategies. We love it.
January 27th, 2008 at 3:00 pm
3 buck chuck. 4am runs. coincidence?
January 27th, 2008 at 5:54 pm
cleave,
amy and i have cities and knights. if only you would call and suggest a game sometime.
January 27th, 2008 at 9:50 pm
One of the 9th graders at Colesville was telling me about how he, his younger brother and dad play Catan. He was explaining some of it to me, sounds like a great game
January 28th, 2008 at 8:20 am
we played it over Christmas a lot. Love the game.
January 29th, 2008 at 9:21 am
there’s that three buck chuck again… i keep hearing about it, but there’s no such thing as trader joe’s in south carolina! dang it!
January 30th, 2008 at 3:59 pm
Hi Adam,
there’s the bible, theology and community, but the thing I miss most about being at PTS was that there were always people available to play Settlers! Kristin and I haven’t resorted to the two player yet. Say hi to Nate and Elaine and drink a bottle for the Hallgren’s.
January 31st, 2008 at 10:25 am
I found your blog through my friend Mike Stavlund who linked to your Phyllis Tickle guest post (which was great by the way). The title of this post caught my eye, however, because we were introduced to SofC by our good friends Nate and Elaine. How many couples named Nate and Elaine play SofC at PTS? Say hi to them for the Swansons. (And we don’t have Trader Joes in NH either!)
January 31st, 2008 at 6:11 pm
If you like Settlers, you should try Carcasonne. Similar game, plays a little faster, and works a lot better with two players. Those Germans just make good games. It’s the mathematical fine-tuning that does it, I think. I’ve really enjoyed your blog Adam, thanks for doing it.
February 5th, 2008 at 11:56 am
So amazed that you’re only catching on to Settlers now. And absolutely concurring with Steve, Carcassone is great. “Germans love David Hasslehoff, and great games!”
February 11th, 2008 at 11:21 am
Jeez- thanks for turning me on to Catan… my free time is now consumed with the xbox version of it. Too bad none of our friends will play with my wife and I, thus all of my playing is done online.