All Catan scenarios ranked from best to worst

As you play more of Catan, you will soon start to venture into the world of extra scenarios, which all add extra content and change the game. Whether you want a dramatically different experience or just a slight change of pace, the many extra scenario packs you can buy will provide you with what you need.

Note that we have done our best to gather all the currently available Catan scenarios that you can buy, either from the publishers themselves or by other means. This may not be a comprehensive list, but if a scenario is not commercially available anywhere, it won’t be fair to rank it.

1. Treasures, Dragons, and Adventurers

This colossal scenario expansion for Catan requires both the Seafarers and Cities and Knights expansions to be played. Despite the huge financial investment that this scenario extension requires, Treasures, Dragons, and Adventurers is the greatest one going, and not just for the dragons.

Seafarers and Cities and Knights are good expansions in their own right, although the latter has some pain points that players aren’t too keen on. However, the six scenarios in this extension not only bridge the gap perfectly between the two expansions but highlight their greatest qualities.

Some expansions allow players to explore mystical and enchanting islands in search of treasure, whereas others will have you fleeing from and then fighting mighty dragons. With so much on offer here, and with so many great mechanics that make Catan feel like a much larger adventure, Treasures, Dragons, and Adventurers provides an awesome Catan experience.

If you have both expansions already and are in the market for a scenario extension, look no further.

2. Legend of the Conquerors

Catan Legend of the Conquerors adds three new scenarios for the Cities and Knights expansion that are to be played one after another to form a campaign that tells the story of Catan’s struggle against the invaders.

With new catapults and cavalry to reinforce your knights, you will be waging war against the invaders like never before through the three scenarios. Although each can be played independently, you and your friends can embark on an interesting story. Each scenario will contribute to a player’s success whether they win or lose, and after each game is finished, an ultimate winner will be established.

Although Cities and Knights gets a bad rep for straying too far from Catan, this scenario extension leans into the war game adaption of Catan to create fantastic scenarios of militarisation alongside the settling. The barbarians have been transformed from a nuisance to a fully-fledged invasion force that is both interesting to play with and intimidating to play against.

If you enjoyed Cities and Knights, then this scenario extension is for you.

3. Crop Trust

Crop Trust is a brilliant expansion that adds a new layer of complexity to Catan whilst keeping it fundamentally the same experience. The only wrinkle that Crop Trust adds is the consequence of your merciless colonialism.

Fields are now in play, and each has a variety of crops in them. As settlements get built and throughout the game, these crops will be harvested or destroyed. It’s up to all the players to make sure that the seeds of these crops are preserved to keep the plants in play as they get removed.

With many ecological disasters coming into play with Crop Trust, you’ll have to be extra careful of your actions throughout the game. If your thoughtlessness leads to ecological collapse, all the players will lose.

4. Legend of the Sea Robbers

Catan Legend of the Sea Robbers adds another four scenarios to the Seafarers expansion, making that simple expansion much more interesting. The four scenarios can be played standalone, although they can be strung together to form a campaign where the player with the most combined Legend Points will win.

Although the campaign does offer a story, it’s a relatively weak one that will largely be ignored. It does add some extra flavor but doesn’t make the experience any more exciting. The scenarios play well as a campaign and there are some legacy-esque ideas that allow players to keep benefits persisting through scenarios.

The scenarios of Legend of the Sea Robbers are pretty solid, although they aren’t the most exciting scenarios out there. If you really enjoy sailing in Catan and don’t wish to play any Explorers and Pirates scenarios, then Legend of the Sea Robbers will be for you.

5. Soccer Fever

Soccer Fever may not be very on-brand for Catan, but it provides a light addition that allows you and your opponents to play soccer to advance the league and earn extra points and rewards.

Two tiles now become soccer fields, and upon any settlement being built, it’s match day. Players will be placing “shot tokens” on the fields throughout the game, which dictates how many opportunities they will have to score. Using a clever soccer ball-shaped “dice,” you can roll away to score goals and win points in the league.

At the end of the game, any remaining matches must be played, allowing for last-minute changes in the points. Interestingly, Catan invites you to create your own rules for how goals are scored with the soccer ball, allowing you to add a dexterity component to the game. It’s light and adds something new, but it’s not very on-theme and hardly makes the game itself more interesting.

6. The Helpers

Catan The Helpers adds a slew of characters which will allow players to perform extra actions. Each game will be different as the helpers are randomly assigned, and some are out of play, meaning this tableau of actions will allow for different strategies and opportunities with every game.

Upon using your helper for an action at the specified time, you will either exchange the helper for another from the shared shelf of spare helpers or you will turn it over, allowing you to use it one more time before an exchange.

For those only looking to modify their Catan games a little, then The Helpers is a perfect choice. It’s incredibly unobtrusive and only allows you to do things that the base game already supports. For the least impactful and least interesting scenario, you can’t go wrong with The Helpers.

And that’s all of the currently available Catan scenarios. Over the years, however, there have been other scenarios that have since been discontinued.

All other Catan scenarios

For any completionists out there, I thought to include a list of all other Catan scenarios that have since been discontinued. You can only purchase these scenarios from second-hand sellers, unfortunately, or they can be borrowed or played with by others if they have them.

Here is a list of the other discontinued five Catan scenarios:

• Santa Claus
• Oil Springs
• Hawai’i
• Frenemies
• Big Game, Big Honor

It is unclear why these scenarios have been discontinued, but it’s likely we won’t see them again.

With all of these great Catan scenarios and scenario extensions, you can hunt down the next best addition to your Catan collection.

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