Card Merchant is incredibly excited to be working with CATAN Studio and Asmodee to bring official CATAN Organized Play to New Zealand.

As part of the 2026 Organized Play program, Card Merchant stores across the country will be hosting 10 CATAN Cities Events. These events represent the next step up in competitive play and serve as regional qualifiers for the New Zealand CATAN National Championship.

Each represented city will host a single Cities Event, with 10 events taking place nationwide. The winner of each Cities Event will earn a seeded place in the Top 16 of the New Zealand Catan National Championship, to be held in Wellington later this year.

Whether you're an experienced Catan player or looking to test your skills in a larger tournament environment, Cities Events provide the opportunity to compete against players from your region and take the next step on the road to Nationals.

Event Details

Store: Card Merchant Whangarei

Date: 29th August

Time: 11:00am

Entry Fee: $20

Event Structure

Players will compete across multiple rounds of base game CATAN to determine overall standings.

Preliminary Round

• Each participant will play three separate games of base set CATAN.

• Opponents will rotate between games.

• At the conclusion of the preliminary rounds, players will be ranked based on their overall performance.

Final Rounds

• Depending on attendance numbers, top-performing players may advance to final tables to determine overall placings.

• If attendance numbers are lower, the event may instead consist solely of multiple Swiss-style rounds, with final standings determined by total points or wins.

This structure is designed to provide a competitive tournament experience while remaining approachable and enjoyable for players of all experience levels.

Prizes

In addition to qualification opportunities, a range of official Catan Organized Play prizes will be awarded on the day.

Prizing includes:

8x Summer Hex Sets

2x Gamegenic Catan Sleeves

2x Exit: Adventures on Catan

2x Catan Starfarers Duel

2x Struggle for Catan

1x Tiger’s Eye Dice and Robber promo

1x Aquamarine Dice and Robber promo

1x Hematite Dice and Robber promo

1x Opalite Dice and Robber promo

1x Catan Inclusion Dice set

1x Catan: Dawn of Humankind + Promo

1x Catan: New Energies

Join us for your chance to earn a direct route for Nationals top 16, meet other CATAN players from your region, and take part in New Zealand's official 2026 CATAN Organized Play program.