Conquest of Resources is a Settlers of Catan-style game. Board placement is everything — a strong starting position with high-probability numbers and diverse resources sets you up for the whole game.
Tips
Setup and resources
The board is a hexagonal grid of 19 terrain tiles producing five resources: brick, lumber, wool, grain, and ore. Each tile has a number 2–12 (excluding 7). On each player's turn, two dice are rolled; tiles matching the sum produce one resource for each adjacent settlement (or two for cities). Players spend resources to build roads, settlements, cities, and development cards. First to 10 victory points wins.
History
Conquest of Resources is in the lineage of Settlers of Catan, designed by Klaus Teuber and published in Germany in 1995. Catan launched the modern Eurogame movement and became the first major hobby board game to sell millions of copies in the United States. Its core tension — dice-driven resource production combined with negotiated trade — reshaped competitive board game design. Cogg's online implementation keeps the original mechanics intact while supporting solo play against AI opponents and live multiplayer games.
Initial placement decides 60% of the game. Pick spots that touch three different resources on numbers with 4 or 5 production dots (6, 8, 5, 9). Avoid 2 and 12 unless they fill out an otherwise strong position. Your second settlement should complete missing resources and grant access to a port if possible — 2:1 ports massively boost trade efficiency.
Mid-game splits into longest road, largest army, and development card strategies. Longest road favors lumber-and-brick economies; largest army needs ore-and-wool for development cards; pure VP-card stockpiling needs ore-wool-grain. Pick a strategy by turn 4 and commit — switching mid-game wastes resources.
Trading is the hidden lever. Active traders gain a fractional advantage every turn that compounds across the game. Always offer trades you'd accept — over-asking trains opponents to ignore you. Refuse trades that complete an opponent's city or development card purchase, even if the trade benefits you on paper.
How does the robber work?
When a 7 is rolled, all players with 8+ cards discard half. The roller places the robber on any tile (blocking its production) and steals one random card from a player adjacent to that tile.
Can I trade with myself or with the bank?
Bank trade is 4 same-resource cards for 1 different. Generic ports give 3:1; specific ports give 2:1 for the marked resource. You cannot trade with yourself.
What are development cards?
Cards bought for ore + wool + grain. Most are Knights (move the robber, count toward Largest Army); the rest are Victory Points, Roads (build 2 free), Year of Plenty (take 2 resources), and Monopoly (take all of one resource from all players).
How do I win?
Reach 10 victory points on your turn. Each settlement is 1 VP, each city is 2, Largest Army (3+ knights) is 2, Longest Road (5+ segments) is 2, and VP cards are 1 each.
Can I build during another player's turn?
No. You can only build, trade with the bank, or play development cards on your own turn. You can accept trade offers from the active player at any time.
What's the difference between a settlement and a city?
A settlement produces 1 resource per matching roll and is worth 1 VP. Upgrading to a city (2 ore + 3 grain) doubles production to 2 per matching roll and increases the VP to 2.
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