The official website for The Settlers of Catan

Base Game

• Settlements and Cities - May I build a settlement on an intersection of my continuous road?

  Yes. Your own settlement does not interrupt your continuous road.

• Settlements and Cities - May I build a settlement on the coast if no harbor hex is located there? Because in that case it wouldn't be an intersection!

  Yes. According to Catan’s building law, each point where three hexes meet is an intersection.

• Settlements and Cities - May I remove a settlement and build it again at a different location?

  No.

• Settlements and Cities - Over the course of the game, may I build further settlements and roads somewhere on the game board that don’t connect to my already existing settlements and roads?

  No. This is only possible during the set-up phase. Afterwards, each settlement must connect to at least one of your own roads, and each road must connect to one of your own settlements/cities or roads.

• Settlements and Cities - What exactly does the “distance rule” say?

  It says that at any time during the game, each settlement and each city must be surrounded by three intersections that neither are occupied by one’s own nor by another player’s settlement or city.

• Settlements and Cities - When I remove a settlement from the game board after upgrading it to a city, may I later build this settlement again at a different location?

  Yes.

• Seven and Robber - After rolling a “7,” can I still trade with another player or blackmail him before moving the robber?

  • Trading: No.
  • Blackmailing: Yes. On Catan, people are allowed to talk to each other at any time. Therefore, even if it is not their trade and build phase, all players are free to make offers for future bargains, and if they see fit, they may also blackmail and threaten other players. However, all this can only be put into action after the consequences of the dice roll are resolved. You can’t perform trades to reduce the number of your resources to 7 or fewer before resolving the consequences of the “7.”

• Seven and Robber - Do I have to place the robber on a different hex after a “7” was rolled, or may I briefly remove him from the hex he was occupying and then return him to the same hex?

  You must place the robber on a different hex.

• Seven and Robber - If I have discarded half of my cards and afterwards still own more than seven cards, do I have to discard half of them again?

  No.

• Seven and Robber - If I move the robber to the desert, do I draw a card from the owner of an adjacent settlement or city?

  If you move the robber to the desert because you rolled a “7” or played a Knight Card: yes.

  Traders & Barbarians features some other possibilities to move the robber to the desert. In this context, please note the different rules for this game.

• Seven and Robber - May I continue with my normal turn after having rolled a “7”?

  Yes.

• Seven and Robber - May I move the robber to the desert?

  Yes.

• Seven and Robber - May I move the robber twice during my turn – the first time by rolling a “7” and the second time by playing a Knight Card?

  Yes. Playing a Development Card is independent from the dice roll result.

• Seven and Robber - May I show my hand of cards to the player who is moving the robber, to let him know that placing the robber next to me wouldn’t be worth it?

  No.

• Seven and Robber - May I voluntarily give a card to an opponent, instead of letting him draw it?

  No.