Tower Watermarks?

[Chromium_Man]

I'm new to Carcassonne.  I just bought it two weeks ago on the advice of a trusted friend and I've been blown away by both the game and the community.  I ended up picking up Big Box 2 and now I'm considering picking up The Tower and Cult, Siege, and Creativity to round out my sets (I'll probably skip Catapult).

Anyway, my question is:  to the newer printings of Tower and CS&C have watermarks on them?  If so, is there a way to tell from the box if it's a newer or older printing.  Thanks in advance.

[CKorfmann]

I can only answer part of your question.  The Tower set I just bought does have a water mark on it.  Unfortunately, I can't tell you how to identify it from the box.  The CS&C set I got did not have a water mark, but it wasn't really necessary.  The four siege tiles are unique and the shrine tiles from the big box have a water mark, so you can differentiate them from the ones in the mini-expansion that don't.  That's how I tell them apart. 

The Catapult is worthwhile if only for a few unique tiles.  I don't mind playing with it at all, it can be fun.  There is a fan-made expansion here that uses the tiles without the catapult itself.  It's called The Jester and the Minstrel and it is available in the public downloads HERE (along with a bunch of other great expansions).  It adds only two neutral meeples and looks like fun. 

I hope that helps a little bit.