Perhaps this has been posted and I've missed it, but...
Mayfair Games is sponsoring a Settlers of Catan scenario design contest. They ask that you use only the basic set, which is thoughtful, because that's the only set I own. The winner gets a fancy version of the game and there are many small runner-up prizes. Deadline is October 31, 2006.
http://www.mayfairgames.com/news/news-arc/newscatanscenario.htm
Yogurt
OoooOoOOOoooh!
I should take a stab at this one... with my current contest-win streak, I'm a shoo-in to snag the prize!
*cracks knuckles, leans back in chair, falls over, quickly gets up and pretends nothing happened*
~Josh
Reading the Volcano variant that they are using as an example - it looks like they added some new rules. I printed out the tile along time ago and the whole thing about using numbered tokens and the Volcano potentially exploding were not part of the original rules.
I think I will take a stab at this as well. I just recently purchased a replacement set of cards even though I haven't played the game in ages. Maybe it's a sign that I am supposed to be testing scenarios?
Some of the earlier issues of Games Quarterly had some scenarios listed in the back - I will have to go back and see which ones.
Here are the previous scenarios from Games Quarterly:
#2 - The Pirate Isle
Must have Seafarers of Catan in addition to Settlers of Catan to play. This scenario uses gold islands and a pirate fleet that attacks players.
#3 - The Cursed Country
Must have Seafarers of Catan in addition to Settlers of Catan to play. Can also be used with Cities & Knights.
Retrieve treasures from the Pirate King with Knights.
#4 - Trade War
Must have Seafarers of Catan in addition to Settlers of Catan to play. This scenario is a variation of the "Great Crossing" scenario in the Seafarers rulebook. However, here players earn victory point tokens by building settlements and cities. These victory point tokens can be stolen from the other players in a great "Trade War"!
#6 - The Grand Canal
Must have Seafarers of Catan in addition to Settlers of Catan to play. Can also be used with Cities & Knights.
Players help build a canal by sending knights to oversee the work and to combat a grain drought.
These both give an idea of what they might be looking for and also as a caution not to use the same exact idea. Interestingly, none of these scenarios work only with the base Catan game - so I think that might be the reason for the contest. I have never tried any of these scenarios because I don't own Seafarers.[/i]
A few years ago, Kosmos published a set of Catan variants in a big hardbound book called (unsurprisingly) Catan: Das Buch. Many of the variants were entries to a similar contest Kosmos held.
In addition to research and inspiration, there's the remote possibility that Mayfair may consider releasing a similar product if their entries are good enough...
A few years ago, Kosmos published a set of Catan variants in a big hardbound book called (unsurprisingly) Catan: Das Buch. Many of the variants were entries to a similar contest Kosmos held.
In addition to research and inspiration, there's the remote possibility that Mayfair may consider releasing a similar product if their entries are good enough...
I guess you could ask them yourself in July if you like. We have three of them signed up to attend Protospiel. BTW if you have not noticed the schedule has been posted which includes long hours for testing so get some sleep before you get there.
999 Games (a dutch publisher) published six scenarios about 10 months ago. (The links go to a dutch web-page...)
If you bought each one, you could send in a coupon (or ticket or whatever) of the six games and receive a seventh scenario for free...
I don't know if these were the result of a contest or not...
Cheese.
Maybe the island of Catan is in the middle of a big lake?
Does anyone know more about this scenario (from Gogolski's link)?
The large canal of Catan
A large land area dryness is threatened. The only rescue is digging an enormous canal of the sea to this area. All knights of Catan are called to manage this klus. Lured by enormous financial rewards they go to the work. Mostly in association with other knights the construction of the waterweg progresses bit at beetje. And then it is up to that point, the land area is irrigated and Catan have graan!
--
I can understand the fractured babelfish translation (sea-water irrigation, uh oh). What I was wondering is how the financial rewards and association with other knights worked.
If I enter this contest, I may like to dabble with cooperative elements and don't want to repeat what's been done.
Thanks,
Yogurt[/b]
Sounds like it is the same one printed in Games Quarterly # 6 - The Grand Canal.
This is harder than it looks. So far, most of the ideas I've had have already been covered (either in Das Buch or other publications), I guess because there is only so far you can take the more obvious stuff.
Maybe I'll rework the Dogs in the Park game and submit that? :-)
As I'm probably not going to enter, here are some ideas for the taking... Of the three ideas i had, I was able to (solo-)test two:
1] Highways of catan:
This one has messed-up building-rules, because vilages and cities are buid as part of a road. (never mind the two-roads-distance-rule!) Two players may build a road on the same space.
blahblah...
Test comment:
Didn't work as expected and victory-conditions touble me too.
2] Totems of catan:
In stead of the robber there are five totems that can boost or (partially) block production.
The knight-cards are replaced by 5 different totem-cards. A totem-card can move any totem except the one depicted on the card.
If you have most totem-cards of a kind, you can speak your veto if a player is wanting to move your totem. Other players can cooperate and give a counterbid.
Untested.
3] Carnival of catan:
Players have carnival wagons that travel the board to perform in vilages/cities of other players and get resources and VPs.
They pay to use other players roads.
The carnival can move the robber.
The robber can stop/delay a carnival to enter a vilage/city.
Test comment:
Works great! Must fine-tune some costs. The movement is fantastic.
Cheese!
Maybe I'll rework the Dogs in the Park game and submit that? :-)
It seems that 'carnival of catan' is getting somewhere. I did a second solo-test and a first four player test with friends. Most of the stuff is falling into it's place already.
So I will enter the contest after all, I guess...
Cheese!
I'd like to propose a round-robin playtest for this.
Since the scenarios should only need a few extra components, we should all be able to give each other's games a run. It'll help in ironing out issues with rulesets amongst other things, and the more blind-tests even scenarios get, the better.
Anyone interested, drop me a PM.
 | Build your own [insert game genre here] (9) by larienna |
| Power Creep, a Dungeon Pages adventure (0) by jasongreeno |
| Board Game Blueprint - New Episode Every Wednesday (21) by The Game Crafter |
| Premium Bullet & Premium Toxic Waste Board Game Pieces at The Game Crafter (0) by The Game Crafter |
 | PoA — Major shift back closer to FCE (2) by questccg |
| What “Should” Be in an RPG Design Book (11) by lewpuls |
| Blank Poker Card Sale - 3 Cents Each! (0) by The Game Crafter |
| Blank Playing Cards - Bridge 57mm x 89mm UK (1) by questccg |
| Finally returned after all these years (1) by DyminoMonsters2004 |
| State of the let-off Union - November 2024 (0) by let-off studios |
| Shoppe: The Simulation of Guilds (1) by questccg |
| The fine line between a game and a simulation (22) by X3M |
| Only 24 hours left to bid on games for the Extra Life Charity Auction (0) by The Game Crafter |
| Songs of Conquest is now 60% off plus an additional discount for... (5) by questccg |
| Returned the reMarkable 2 and purchased the BOOX Go 10.3 (3) by questccg |
| Happy Halloween 2024 (0) by questccg |
| Epic Metal Monster Coins - Now on Kickstarter - Created by The Game Crafter (0) by The Game Crafter |
| DuelBotz: Sample New Card (12) by questccg |
| 2 levels for an unit (wargames) (6) by X3M |
| Dragon Spark Playthrough (0) by The Game Crafter |
| New Board Game Pieces - Premium Water Droplet & Premium Blood Droplet (0) by The Game Crafter |
| Designer with an 'almost' ready product (18) by questccg |
| Protospiel Madison - Only 17 Days Away! (0) by The Game Crafter |
| New Board Game Pieces - Premium Milk Bottle & Premium Beer Mug (0) by The Game Crafter |
| Testing chat GPT for mechanics searching (6) by larienna |
Does anyone know more about this scenario (from Gogolski's link)?
The large canal of Catan
A large land area dryness is threatened. The only rescue is digging an enormous canal of the sea to this area. All knights of Catan are called to manage this klus. Lured by enormous financial rewards they go to the work. Mostly in association with other knights the construction of the waterweg progresses bit at beetje. And then it is up to that point, the land area is irrigated and Catan have graan!
--
I can understand the fractured babelfish translation (sea-water irrigation, uh oh). What I was wondering is how the financial rewards and association with other knights worked.
If I enter this contest, I may like to dabble with cooperative elements and don't want to repeat what's been done.
Thanks,
Yogurt[/b]