The Worldwatch Institute has teamed up with Catan GmbH and Mayfair Games to present a new scenario for the popular board game The Settlers of Catan that explores the impact of climate change and resource exploitation.

 

In Catan Scenarios: Oil Springs, a new resource is added to the familiar mix: Oil.  Special “oil spring” tiles are added to the board, producing oil tokens for players who build on those hexes.  The new resource can be used to build new “metropolis” pieces, or they can be exchanged for two resources.

 

But, each use of oil in the game causes permanent ecological damage to the island, possibly damaging productive hexes or destroying coastal settlements.  If too much damage is done, cataclysmic flooding destroys the island.

 

Created as part of the Transforming Cultures Project of the Worldwatch Institute, Catan Scenarios: Oil Springs is envisioned as a tool to raise awareness about the impact that oil use and exploitation has on the world economy and ecology.  The creation of the scenario is a non-profit initiative supported by Catan GmbH and Mayfair Games.  The scenario will be available as a free pdf download, or as a hard copy print version with cardboard tiles and pieces.  The hard copy version will have a suggested retail price of $5.00.  All profits from the sale of the hard copy version will go to Worldwatch’s Transforming Cultures Project.