Hey All,

I have had Carc now for almost 2 months and logged over 100 games of it - I am really enjoying it. I have logged another 23 games with the River and I also really enjoy this little expansion. I bought the set that the river expansion is included in, and I am very happy for that. Mainly since I have the expansion already, but also since I don't know how likely I would be to buy an expansion that was only 12 tiles and living down here in the jungles of Costa Rica I am pretty unlikely to play a game with someone else's expansion to find out how fun it is. I have read a few of the reviews on it and see that some people don't really like it, I can understand that but for me it does add something to the game that I feel is worth having.

Components:12 tiles that are of the same quality as the original set. The same thickness, the same design on the back - although they have the light C like the starting tile so you can tell them apart from the regular set . I have read that some of the expansions have different backs and add a bag for the tiles to be drawn from so you can tell them apart. I have not played any expansions except the I & C but this I have only played online so far ( but I will be buying this one as I really enjoy it ). But I think it is kinda weird that they make an expansion and can not make the backs of them the same, but hey that is just me.
You have a spring tile where the river starts and a pool tile where the river ends. The other 10 tiles are either just river or they have city's, roads, or an abby.

Rules: Very simple here. You change the starting tile for the spring tile and set aside the lake ( pond ) tile as the last tile to be placed before using the regular tiles. So who ever goes first choses between the 10 river tiles ( placed upside down just like the regular tiles ) and the only real rule is no u-turns for the river. This is so you do not form something that will cause you not to be able to place the next river tile. After all 10 tiles are chosen then the next guy places the lake tile and then you start picking from the regular tiles. You can place meeples along the way, but you can not place them on the river itself.

How it changes the game: It adds 11 more tiles to the game so it makes it a little bit longer, but not enough in my opinion to make it to long if you still want a fun fast game. It breaks the board up and from my experience it cuts up the farms a lot and this is nice since the farmers usually end up winning or losing the game for everyone involved. New players usually end up losing in the end to the other guys farmers getting way to many points. I think it adds to the look of the game as I like the look of a river in the center of the board.
The beginning is a little less, how to I put this, fun/exciting/interesting - in the sense that you are more limited on what you can do or the randomness of the regular game where anything can happen depending on the tiles that are drawn. I don't think this is a bad thing per say, as it adds more to the rest of the game. My nephew always wants to draw the river abby , but is yet to get it . But what happens is you have to follow the river down stream with the tiles, so it is kinda controlled on where you place the tiles, which is very different then the regular game.

Fun Factor: This is a tough call in that I think it is a personal preference. Some of my friends and family always want to add it to the regular game, some of them once in a while, and some can do with out but will play it if I ask nicely. For me personally I enjoy it and am glad I have it. I don't want to play it all the time, but I am really glad my version of Carc came with it. Like I mentioned I think it is a little less exciting in the begining from the lack of randomness in where you can place the tiles but I think for the rest of the game it makes it a better game in dividing the board up more - but of course this is not always the case and just another reason why it is such a good expansion - it is always different ( adding to the replayability of the game ).


Pros: It came with the game so it is free
Makes a good game a little longer
Adds to the look of the board
Usually divides the board up into more farms
Simple rules, so easy to understand and teach


Cons: Takes away some of the randomness of the starting 10 tile placement options
If you own an older version and have to buy an expansion that only has 12 tiles



Game On'