Carcassonne: Hunters and Gatherers

(Image by Psauberer @ BGG)
Carcassonne is right alongside Settlers of Catan as the most well-known designer game on the market. It's colorful graphics, simple rule set and puzzle-like elements make it a very popular gateway into gaming.

The original Carcassonne featured the countryside and walled cities of France and its popularity spawned many expansions. Dragons, towers, cathedrals and even catapults found their way into the game, adding many new options for fans. While the original game continued to expand, new standalone Carcassonne games were released as well. I haven't had an opportunity to play most of these spin-offs but one - Hunters and Gatherers - has become my go-to Carcassonne game. Here's why:

Easy, fast scoring - Scoring fields in the original Carcassonne was the most difficult part to explain and visualize. Hunters and Gatherers still has the fields concept but this time you score points for animals in your field. I find this to be far easier to grasp than the cities in Carcassonne and also adds an extra level of planning as tigers that cancel out points for smaller animals. I also feel like you tend to cash in on many more smaller scoring opportunities which gives the game a fast-paced feel.

(image by Fuzzgirl @ BGG)

Tighter map - It could be my imagination or poor memory of the original Carcassonne but I feel like Hunters and Gatherers tends to result in a tighter, more compact map. For whatever reason I find this much more satisfying and lends itself to the quicker scoring opportunities. I also feel the tile art is more appealing with forests, streams, lakes and herds of animals.

Bonus tiles - If you complete a forest with a gold nugget in it you immediate take and place a bonus tile. These tiles tend to be a little better than the normal tiles and the bonus placement alone makes it worthwhile. You get the bonus tile for completing the forest even if someone else has a worker in there so sometimes you might close off someone's forest to prevent them from expanding and letting you cash in on the bonus tile. It adds another layer on decision making without making the game more complex.

If you are looking to get into Carcassonne, I highly recommend making Hunters and Gatherers your starting (and possibly stopping) point. There are no expansions to distract you and lengthen the game and the rules are easier to learn and grasp while having just a bit deeper strategy and tactics.