CATAN Explorers & Pirates Board Game Expansion (6th Edition) Embark on New Adventures, Strategy Game for Kids & Adults, Ages 12+, 3-4 Players, 90 Minute Playtime, Made by Catan Studio

Catan at Its Best – A Must-Have ExpWe absolutely love this expansion! If you already enjoy Catan, Explorers & Pirates takes everything to the next level. Instead of building on one island, you're sending ships across the sea to discover new lands, collect spices, catch fish, and defeat pirates — it’s like five adventures packed into one game. We played with 3–4 people, and every session was totally different. The added missions give you more ways to win, so everyone can choose their own strategy. It’s still competitive, but with even more depth. I especially like that the robber is gone — no more stolen cards — and the new gold system helps balance out the luck of the dice. Yes, it’s a little more to set up and learn, but once you get the hang of it, it’s amazing. The pieces are great quality, the rulebook is clear, and the variety keeps it from ever feeling repetitive. This expansion completely refreshed the game for us. Highly recommend for anyone who wants a richer, more adventurous Catan experience!ansion for Fans!

Our love for CATAN led us to explore the Explorers and Pirates Board Game Expansion, and it has proven to be an exceptional addition to our gaming collection. This expansion seamlessly integrates with the classic CATAN experience, introducing a new layer of depth and excitement. The adventure theme adds a refreshing twist, and the game mechanics are thoughtfully crafted to keep players engaged throughout. With an age recommendation of 12+, this expansion is perfect for both adults and families with older kids. The suggested playtime of 90 minutes allows for a more immersive gaming experience without becoming too time-consuming. The quality of the components is top-notch, a trademark of Catan Studio. The game pieces, board, and cards are well-crafted, ensuring durability for countless gaming sessions. What we appreciate most is the strategic element that Explorers and Pirates brings to the table. It introduces new challenges and opportunities, making each playthrough a unique adventure. If you're a CATAN enthusiast, this expansion is a must-have. It injects new life into the game, keeping it fresh and exciting. Highly recommended for anyone looking to expand their CATAN experience!

Important to note that you can not play this game without the original Catan game. It uses pieces from it to build the board, and for game play. We jumped head first into Catan during quarantine and loved it! I mean we played every night! Quickly, we decided to expand our Catan world and after trying to read about the different scenarios on all the other expansion packs, we chose this version as our first expansion. And boy am I glad we did! It’s enough like original Catan so you’re familiar with the rules - but adds enough new elements to make it fun and exciting each time. With 4 different scenarios, and so many ways you can randomize the board, it really is something new every time! The pieces are very well made and the box has a place for everything. You do need to be careful when removing the game pieces initially, as the paper liner will tear if you’re not careful.

Regular Catan is probably my favorite board game ever. This extension is also really fun. It is definitely a learning curve as a lot of the game changes. But the core of the game, trading and trying to win, is still there.

Great expansion game and much more complex. We're still working through the 3rd iteration

Ok so we love Catan! When I saw this was a 2 player expansion I wanted to try it for my husband and I as we are recent empty nesters. When I got the box at home it said 3-4 just like all other Catan games. I decided to keep it since I got it for a Black Friday price. So I will say it is a good thing my son was home from college to help us figure it out and set it up. We could have figured it out but . . . Anyway it suggested you play it at first in increments. It suggest 5 we decided about 3 would have worked. Once you figure out how to add one of the extra things ( fish pirates spices) adding the others is pretty easy. My husband and I do play it with just 2 players and there are so many things going on it does work well. It is a lot to set up so we like to leave it up for a few days . We also vary the ruleS to suit us a little for instance we don’t really use the pirate ship. Anyway my biggest complaint is with so much to set up and having to take pieces from our regular Catan it is pesty. I wish I had a second Catan original game to just keep with this one and if I see Catan on sale again like I did in Black Friday i will buy another one just To keep with this expansion. We have the 5 -6 player expansion and seafarers and it is not an issue mixing pieces but this one has so much to it is a little more cumbersome. It is very different from the original Catan but is is fun especially once you get the hang of it.

Our favorite expansion

This is a fun expansion pack to play alongside original Catan. The coolest thing is that there are endless possibilities of play with the expansion pack. It has five scenarios of play which are each uniquely different. So you essentially are never playing the same game twice. It does take a while to play through and has a lot of rules but the possibilities are endless. A good buy for the Catan lover.