Wells

[meepleater]

New expansion idea. Now carcassonne has wells!

Introduction:
Carcassonne has had some water shortages in the past, but the inhabitants of Carcassonne have laboured to build wells along much-frequented roads in order for more water to be available, resulting in extra traffic along those roads, which proves very profitable with the theives...

Contains:
12 tiles with wells along a road (see below)

Rules:
Shuffle the 12 well tiles in with the rest of the tiles to be played with all of the other tiles. When these well tiles are drawn, all sides must match up as usual. The wells do not affect tile placement.

When a road is completed it scores 1 point per tile as usual. For each well the owning thieve/s gain an additional point per well along the road. If the road has an inn along it, the owner gains two points per tile and well along the road. Wells function similarly on roads as pennants do in cities.

Tiles:
1. Three-way road with well in centre (like A&M)
2. Four-way road with 2 wells
3. and 4. FRFR straight road with well
5. and 6. FFRR curved road with well
7. FRFR straight road with 2 wells
8. FFRR curved road with 2 wells
9. RFFF road ending in roundabout thing with well in centre (I guess the roundabout isn't important but it would look better IMHO)
10. CFFR a road ending at a roundabout thing (once again, unessential but would look cool) with a well, in front of a city ending piece, the field would go around the roundabout so there is one big field.
11. CRRF a city ending with one road going from the bottom to the top entering the city and the other going over a bridge ending at a house (so a mirror image of the one in T&B) but instead of ending at the house it could end in a roundabout with a well.
12. CRRR a city ending with two roads, one going from left to right over a bridge, the other going from the bottom to the city under the bridge. This time the road going under the bridge could have a well on it.



That's the idea so far, sorry for the sketchy tile descriptions. Maybe the tiles will have a watermark of a well.
Thanks goes to Novelty for all of his help so far. Comments welcome.

[meepleater]

I wonder if there could be a piece functioning like a mayor but for roads, and instead of pennants it gains strength from wells...

[Novelty]

I wonder if there could be a piece functioning like a mayor but for roads, and instead of pennants it gains strength from wells...

Maybe make that a variant that the mayor could be placed on roads?

[Novelty]

I've done the first 10 tiles already.  They were easy.  I don't have the image for a single road ending in a roundabout (which would look funny anyways) so I just have them ending in a hut (see below).  Andy, if you do insist that these should be a roundabout, it'll take me more time to do it... but do let me know what you'll like.

Tiles 11 and 12 are sorta new for me, I don't have the "stock image" easily available, so I'll have to create those from scratch, which will take time...

[Maulei]

It looks like a good and simple fan-made expansion.  No difficult / complex rules.  Good! 

Looking forward to the final release.

It will be added to my 'basic gameplay' expansion. 

[Novelty]

OK, all 12 tiles done.  Here's a preview:



Next up, the rules!

Edit: The rules are done, but I just noticed I created the last tile wrongly   I'll have to update the tile and then update the rules with that tile image since I think it needs some clarification where exactly the well is on that road.  We are almost there!

Edit 2: Andy, what happens to wells along uncompleted roads at the end of the game?  Do they score 1 or nothing?

[meepleater]

They still score 1 when the road is incomplete (providing there are no inns, in which case they are worth nothing).

Oh, Tile 4 (1st Column Second down) You have CFRF, but I wanted CRFF. Thanks!

[Novelty]

Sorry about that tile.  I have corrected it in the "real" sheet.  You can download that and the draft rules here.

[Lakoda]

Section 3, second sentence; there is some redundant wording, I have emboldened the relevant portions.

However, for each well along the complete road the player(s) with the most thieves on the road gain an additional point for each well along the road.

......

I'm not sure I agree with the 0 points at the end of the game.  This is different then the shield rule the well mechanic emulates.  However, since roads do not get halved as cities does, it makes a sort of sense.  Hrmm...

[bufferm44]

In the tiles 4 and 5 is very much green on the way

[Novelty]

In the tiles 4 and 5 is very much green on the way

I'm sorry I don't understand.  Is there something wrong with the tiles?

[meepleater]

Wow, thanks, just a few opinions:
*The wells don't seem to fit in the 4-way roundabout (maybe change it to somenthing like the one in the winter 2008 expansion, one of the branches is bent, maybe that's where the second well could go?
*For tiles 3 and 9 (your sheet) yes I would prefer the roundabout at the end (I can email an example for clarification) Tile 10 is okay the way it is.

In the tiles 4 and 5 is very much green on the way

I'm sorry I don't understand.  Is there something wrong with the tiles?

*I think he means the road is to short/ doesn't take up much of the tile, and I agree... maybe the same shape as the poppy field tile from Oz, with a well/wells in the curve...

sorry to be so fussy... haven't read the rules yet.

[meepleater]

Read the rules, very good, except the wells scoring no points along an incomplete road. Here, i think you misinterpreted me; as incomplete roads still score 1 point per tile (same as complete roads) I think wells should be worth one whether incomplete or complete (like oases in AotC). The well is worth nothing on an incomplete road with an inn...

[Novelty]

So Tiles 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 9?

All the changes seems like cosmetic changes.  If you really want them, you'll have to wait until your turn in the queue again.  That wouldn't be for months because I've already queued up the following:

Log Cabins (for Lakota) - currently working on this
Catacombs (for Whaleyland) - ideas and graphics in development (sorta)
Mountains (for Scott) - huge (large numbers of tiles) expansion similar to the forest base set
Tributaries (my own expansion) - A fishermen add-on

I could offer the following as a compromise (which would take less time to do):

Instead of a roundabout that goes nowhere, can I just change the cottage with the well (no roundabout) on tiles 4 and 9 (similar to tile 11)?  Then I can say in the rules that all roads end at wells in the rules if the well is not by the side of the road and leave it at that.  It's going to look very funny with a road around a cottage or a well with just one branch leading from it.  Besides, it's better to be consistant, IMO.

I think it is fine for the bends to take too little space (tiles 3, 5 and 6).  Some of the tiles in the original sets are like that (and are even more empty since there are no wells).  I can change those to the big bend fast so that shouldn't be a problem.

As for the big roundabout (tile 2), I'm not happy with it as well, but it works.  Placing the 2 tiles at different locations would only mean that they may be miscounted at the end of the game.  I'd prefer to keep them together.

If you're not satisfied with what I've offered above, then I'm afraid you'll have to wait until after I finish all the other expansions before I get back to this because some of the things you are asking for would take a fair bit of time which I don't have at the moment.  I don't think it's fair to everyone else that they have to wait for their expansions while I tweak the tiles cosmetically here when there's nothing wrong with them (except aesthetics).

As for the rules, I'll update them when more people has had a chance to read through them.

[meepleater]

All right... the changes all sound fine... if they're that big I don't mind waiting a long time.. yes I can see what you mean.