Matthew Bailey“Carcassonne: Over Hill and Dale” was one of the first games I reviewed on Little Board Gamers way back in 2021. But, as with many of my early reviews, it was nothing more than a couple of lines and a quick recommendation. So, I thought it was time to give it the proper treatment it deserves.
Played here with Jack(9), Toby(6) and Henry(3).
Long story short, “Carcassonne: Over Hill and Dale” is generally the game I recommend as a first “Carcassonne”, and I genuinely think it is a better “My First Carcassonne” than “My First Carcassonne” itself! In fact, if we decide to play “Carcassonne”, this is normally the version we pick, even though we own quite a few.
If you don’t know how to play regular “Carcassonne”, I’ll explain that briefly first, then go over the differences in “Over Hill and Dale”. If you’re already familiar with “Carcassonne”, feel free to jump to that section below.
In Carcassonne, you draw a tile and then play it by putting it on the board in a place that matches sides with another tile. You can then lay a meeple on an unclaimed road, city or Monastery. You then gain points for completing them. There is also a rule where you can lay farmers in fields and then at the end gain points for every completed city in that field, but we do not normally play that rule with younger kids.
What’s Different in “Carcassonne: Over Hill and Dale”?
“Carcassonne: Over Hill and Dale” makes a few key changes to the original, making it easier for children while adding a nice little extra element for adults.
Firstly, farms are gone— and, in reality, farmers are the main thing that kids really struggle with in “Carcassonne”. We always say that if you’re going to play “Carcassonne” with kids, at least the first time, play without farmers anyway!
Crop fields work exactly like towns do in the base game, but they often also give you a crop token. You gain points for every crop token you own and extra points for every set of crops you collect, with scarecrows acting as wild cards. This adds a nice bit of set collection to the game, and it’s something that kids generally find easy to understand— it works really well.
Roads are a lot more powerful in “Over Hill and Dale”, largely because, as well as getting points for roads, you can also “walk” along them. When you place a new road tile, if you have a meeple already on that road, you can walk it forward, gaining points for the number of tiles you’ve moved through. This can be extremely lucrative if you plan your positioning right and get a road extending in both directions.
In place of cathedrals, you have stables, which can be placed on any tile as you lay it. Many tiles have animals on them, and at the end of the game, you score points for your stable based on the number of animals on the surrounding tiles. This is another great little mechanic— it’s easy to understand, kids love spotting the animals, and it’s fun trying to collect as many as possible.
As before, at the end of the game, the player with the most points wins.
Components & Production Quality
The components are the usual “Carcassonne” fare— the ridiculously oversized box that could easily be a third of its size with barely anything in it, but otherwise, high-quality tiles and lovely artwork that fits the theme well.
Final Thoughts
I really like “Carcassonne: Over Hill and Dale”. The mechanics are super easy to understand, making it a great option for kids. The most complicated rule from the original (farmers!) is removed, and the game is much more approachable because of it. “My First Carcassonne” has always felt a little lacking, and, in reality, “Over Hill and Dale” is the better “My First Carcassonne” experience. It’s the version I always recommend to people trying to get their kids into the series.
