First session - Inns and Cathedrals:

[Jambo]

We played the basic game once and then immediately wanted more. So, in came the much lauded I&C expansion.

It didn't take long for us to form the impression that this is how the basic game should play!  Roads now had a much bigger part to play in scoring with inns making them a much more attractive option. Typically, roads seem fairly easy to complete and the risk of not scoring points from roads with inns didn't seem cause too much concern, unless of course there had been only 1 or 2 tiles remaining.  The cathedral piece was a much bigger gambit and raised the fun level considerably. My wife drew both cathedral pieces and used them for her own cities rather than offensively against mine.  In the end it paid off, as it was the 33 points she scored from a cathedral city that turned the game irrevocably in her favour. The two large farms that were present at the end were evenly shared between our meeples and therefore had no impact on the end game scoring.  All in all, very entertaining and a superb step up from the basic game!

Next up - Traders and Builders - which arrived in the post today!

Best,

[Gantry]

Indeed, those two expansions are in the top two

[Novelty]

Hmm... did you not get to the T&B expansion then?  There's no record of that session here.  And I agree with Gantry, those 2 are the top 2.

[koolkat]

I think that those are the top expansions because their rules are easy and make game flow and get more interesting and challenging. I always start with those expansions when it comes to expand the basic set and explain expansions to other guys.

[SpedInFargo]

I don't even consider Inns and Cathedrals an expansion - it IS the basic game as far as I'm concerned.

After I play a game with a newcomer and they want to purchase a copy of the game, I tell them to make sure to buy the I&C IMMEDIATELY ...

[Joff]

I don't even consider Inns and Cathedrals an expansion - it IS the basic game as far as I'm concerned.

After I play a game with a newcomer and they want to purchase a copy of the game, I tell them to make sure to buy the I&C IMMEDIATELY ...

I am exactly the same. When I introduce anyone to Carcassonne, I recommend they purchase I&C with their basic set.

[Gantry]

Definitely, it is one of the "core" expansions imho