No real expansion, more a private game

This fourth expansion seems somehow superfluous at first glance, there are ready with the first extension with a seafaring theme. Here is but played similarly to the third extension only with scenarios for the base game. A combination with the other extensions is possible according to publisher description, but actually not provided in the scenarios. The game looks a discrete but evolutionary sequence of scenarios: In the first scenario, new principles are introduced, such as the movement phase to the construction phase, the discovery of new islands and new port development. In the second scenario, the players go on a collision course with pirates. In the following two scenarios, players to fishermen and spice dealers are. In the final fifth scenario, players have access to all three new elements.

Aim of the game: to win As many VPs through settlements or on the scenarios tableaux (Piratenschreck, spice merchants and fishermen).

Material: In addition to new frame parts for a very large playing field, new landscape fields besides number chips, as well as the new fields for the respective scenarios are included. Also new characters come into play: ships, port settlements, pirate ship and units in the four player colors white, blue, orange and red, and gray pawns spice sacks and fish. There are also gold coins with the values ​​1 and 3. The game are zip bags, in which the material can be sorted by scenarios, gold, game pieces and base maps.

How to play: After the start-up phase (a settlement with road and a harbor settlement by boat) that the basis of the game is very similar, the raw materials are rolls. If you get nothing when commodity Roll for, you get a gold coin that you need as a tribute to the pirate ship or can be used as a medium of exchange. Then how to build in the base game and traded with the other players. Now comes the phase of movement of the ship: The ship can move far four field edges to discover eg new land to found new settlements to catch fish, to trade spices or fight against pirates. Have all ships and all other moves made to the scenarios associated steps of the turn is over and the next player's turn.

Features with 2 players: only for the first scenario, "Land in sight" is a special rule for two players formulated: there is in this scenario, a fixed grid and this is also built for two. The non-player characters remain as an obstacle on the field. Only the vessels be removed.
A game is for two - I think - in the other scenarios are possible, because the interaction between players (snatch Ruins trade with each other) and four barely has a value. We have tried the option for two players, however, do not.

My opinion: I was a little disappointed by the extension explorers and pirates. Although the scenarios are in themselves quite easily in the combination of all the game gets a certain depth, but what makes The Settlers of Catan, nähmlich trade with the players that are hungry for commodities to finally new roads, settlements and to build cities, actually, completely flat. The reason the island is really just to start and as a small supplier of raw materials, the majority of the game action findent held at the new part. So it no longer gives the extra points card "The longest path". The main reason is that gold can be used as a medium of exchange. So it happened quite rare that you once could build anything, because you can now buy more up to two missing commodities. This also makes it not so painful that there are no towns here that brings so two commodities per cubed eyes number. The lack eden interaction make the game sometimes quite boring because it can easily happen that you have to wait up to 15 minutes until his next train.
Although each new rules are in themselves quite easily. In the mass but you can easily lose track of what opportunities you have now and what rules must be observed. Therefore, the rule also provides, to combine not all scenarios at a time with each other. We meet regularly to games evenings though, but I did not really feel like four times to play the same game - we simply have too many other games as I would like to focus on one. So we played in the third game already with all three new elements and were almost overwhelmed by the mass of many possibilities. Since I prefer but the struktuierteren flow with more interaction with the basic game with the extensions sailors and Cities & Knights before.
The storage of the material in the Ziptüten is a horror! Although in each bag a sort of overview platelets is present, enabling you to recognize when cleaning up, what with whom together in that bag should, but I think it's awful, like the rule of the game with the frame cards and the many bags crisscross slide around in the box , This beautiful interiors would have been helpful to separate the material. I personally hate it when in the ollen Ziptüten air is trapped and they take three times as much space as they should ... Fortunately, the box is still on - but this mess!
In addition, during the game we had numerous control issues that could not be clarified. So we do not know to this day whether we must build roads on potential shipping routes ("on the beach"), or. Even little things should be clarified in the rules so as not to diminish the gameplay!

Conclusion: We did not enlargement really liked it. Thus settlers looks more like a completely different game than like the one you know and love. This extension is similar to well-being deaf as the last (Traders & Barbarians) more generally, as we will play it often. There are too many better and more exciting games.