1. Remove the die-cut components from the cardboard holders and carefully punch out and separate the pieces, pushing tiles through from the front 'cut' side [1]. 2. Assemble the frame [1][2]. 3. Lay out the game board/map as specified in Illustration A (or on the back of the booklet) [1], or exactly as shown in Illustration R [2]. 4. Create Catan by placing the 19 terrain hexes on the table [1] or exactly as shown in Illustration R [2]. 5. Place the circular number tokens on top of the designated terrain hexes [1]. 6. Everyone chooses a color [3][4]. 7. Take your 5 settlements, 4 cities, and 15 roads (no more and no less!) [3][4]. 8. Place your 2 roads and your 2 settlements on the game board [3][2]. If playing with 3 players, nobody plays the red position indicated on the starting map [3] or remove the red pieces [2]. 9. Place your remaining settlements, roads, and cities in front of you [3]. 10. Take your color's building costs card [3]. 11. Place the special cards 'Longest Road' and 'Largest Army' beside the game board along with the 2 dice [3]. 12. Sort the resource cards into 5 stacks and put them face up next to the game board [3]. 13. Shuffle the development cards and place them face down by the board [3]. 14. You receive resources for each terrain hex around your starting settlement marked with a white star H; take the appropriate resource cards from their stacks [3][2].

1. Assemble the frame as shown, using the sea frame 1-2 from Cities & Knights that shows the barbarian track [1][2]. 2. Place the hexes and number discs in the frame (for a balanced set of starting positions, it is recommended to place them as shown) [1][2]. 3. Sort resource cards and commodity cards by type and place them in eight faceup stacks in the card trays [1][2]. 4. Sort progress cards by type, shuffle each stack, and place the three stacks face down in the remaining card tray [1][2]. 5. Place VP tokens in a pile within easy reach [1][2]. 6. Place the 3 metropolises, the merchant piece, the 3 dice, and the Longest Route tile next to the game board [1][2]. 7. Place the barbarian ship on the starting space of the barbarian track [1][2]. 8. Place the robber next to the final space of the barbarian track (or place the pirate on the final space of the barbarian track if combining with Seafarers) [1][3][2]. 9. Each player rolls the dice; the player with the highest roll is the first player [4][5]. 10. Each player selects a color and takes the roads, buildings, city walls, and knights in that color along with a player aid [4][5]. 11. Each player takes 1 city improvement board and 3 cubes, placing a cube in the bottom space of each track [4][5]. 12. In Round 1, starting with the first player, each player places 1 settlement on an empty intersection of their choice and 1 road on an empty edge next to that settlement, proceeding clockwise until all players have 1 settlement and 1 road [4][5]. 13. In Round 2, starting with the last player and going in reverse order, each player places 1 city on an empty intersection of their choice and a second road on an empty adjacent edge, ensuring they follow the Distance Rule by staying two edges away from all other buildings [4][5]. 14. Each player takes 1 matching resource card from the supply for each hex adjacent to their city (taking only 1 card per hex during setup) [4][5].

Because the sources provide different setup instructions for various game modes (Variable Setup, Fixed Setup, etc.), the setup depends on the specific version being played: **For Variable Setup:** 1. Set up the frame for a 3- or 4-player game [1]. 2. Place sea hexes as shown on the map [1]. 3. Gather the land hexes and number discs and place them randomly in the four island areas, ensuring forests and pastures do not get low value number discs (2, 3, 11, and 12) [1]. 4. You may also randomize the ports [1]. 5. Shuffle the port tokens and place them on the port locations shown on the map [1]. 6. Place the robber on the hex with the number 12 disc and the pirate on the indicated location [1]. **For Fixed Setup (The Fog Islands):** 1. Set up the game as shown by the appropriate map [2]. 2. Leave white spaces empty [2]. 3. Randomize the facedown hexes from the component list and place them in a facedown stack next to the board [2]. 4. Randomize the facedown number discs from the component list and place them in a facedown stack next to the board [2]. 5. Place the robber and the pirate on the indicated locations [2]. 6. Place starting settlements with roads/ships on one island or two different islands [2]. **For Fixed Setup (The Four Islands):** 1. Set up the game as shown by the appropriate map [3]. 2. Place the robber and the pirate on the indicated locations [3]. 3. Place starting settlements with roads/ships on home islands; remaining islands are unexplored [3]. **For Fixed Setup (Through the Desert):** 1. Set up the game as shown by the appropriate map [4]. 2. Place the robber and the pirate on the indicated locations [4]. 3. Place starting settlements with roads/ships on the main island [4]. **For Fixed Setup (Heading for New Shores):** 1. Set up the game as shown by the appropriate map [5]. 2. Place the robber and the pirate on the indicated locations [5]. 3. Place starting settlements with roads/ships on the main island [5]. **For Variable Setup (Cloth Trade version):** 1. Set up the frame, the four small islands, and sea hexes as shown [6]. 2. Set up the villages by placing the number discs and cloth tokens as shown [6]. 3. Gather the land hexes and number discs for the large islands and place them randomly in the empty hex areas [6]. 4. Randomly place ports on the locations shown [6]. 5. Players choose which hex with a number 12 disc should start the game with the robber [6]. 6. Place the pirate on the indicated location [6]. **For Variable Setup (Main Island/Unexplored Regions):** 1. Set up the frame for a 3- or 4-player game [7]. 2. Place the 3 desert hexes as shown on the map [7]. 3. Gather the main island land hexes, number discs, and ports, then place them randomly in the area shown on the map [7]. 4. Place the sea hexes within the frame [7]. 5. Gather the unexplored regions' hexes and number discs and place them randomly in the remaining spaces within the frame [7]. 6. Place the robber and the pirate as shown [7]. **For General Setup (Additional Options):** 1. Gather the hexes listed and randomly place them face up within the frame [8]. 2. Players may agree to shift the setup of the hexes to change the number or size of islands [8]. 3. Gather the number discs listed and randomly place them on the land hexes [8]. 4. If 2 red number discs end up on adjacent hexes, swap one with an adjacent black number hex so all red number discs are separated [8]. 5. Players take turns placing a random port face up on the board, placing tokens on edges between a land and sea hex or between a land hex and a frame piece [8]. 6. Place the robber and pirate on the indicated locations [8].