Mixing Elements: Which one should definitly (not) be together?

[SRBO]

A while ago Whaley posted a list of all the elements in-game.
If you could choose between the elements (so not expansions)
Which set of elements would fit perfectly together?

Expansion Elements:
– The River (I & II)
– The Inns
– The Cathedrals
– The Big Followers
– The Trading Tiles
– The Builders
– The Pigs
– The Dragon (Including The Fairy)
– The Princess
– The Magic Portals
– The Towers
– The Abbeys
– The Mayors
– The Wagons
– The Barns
– The Count
– The King
– The Robber Baron
– The Cult
– The Catapult
– The Bridges
– The Castles
– The Bazaars
– The Hills
– The Shepherds (Including The Sheep)
– The Vineyards
– The Corn Circles (I & II)
– The Festival
– The School
– The Flying Machines
– The Messengers
– The Ferries
– The Goldmines
– Mage & Witch
– The Robber
– The Windroses
– The Besiegers
– The Cathars (or The Siege)
– The Tunnel
– The Plague
– The Monasteries (German or Dutch)
– The Phantom
– The Little Buildings
– The Halflings (I & II)
- Wheel of Fortune
– Darmstadt

As I usually never play with a whole expansion but just some of the elements I prefer some things together and like to experiment with them:
Which are fun? When is it balanced? and when is it not?

Lets go trough some of these, and please comment your best combinations so we can add more to this list.

#1: Monasteries

The Monasteries are very valuable and give many points. When you play with them its a good tip to always use some elements that will boost other features to be more valuable. For example:

- The Barn or The pigs
- The Kathedrals
- The Vineyards
- The Inns

#2: Elements that remove followers

Many Elements are being used to either kill or remove followers:

- The Plague
- The Dragon
- The Towers
- The Princess
- The Corn Circles

In this case you should definitly use some elements that give more followers or help to complete features faster:

- The builders
- The flying machines
- The magical portals
- The Halflings
- The Phantom

#3: Elements that keep followers

Many Elements keep your followers till the end of the game or a long time.
Examples are:

- Farmers
- The Wheel of Fortune
- The Count
- The Towers
- The monasteries
- The Cult
- Darmstadt

Too much of these will use up many followers and you then have to decide if you start a feature or not.

#4: (not really) Gap filling tiles

The abbey and the Halflings are tiles most of the time used to fill gaps. The abbey is the most special because it always fits. but when you play with many players the chance to be ever using your abbey becomes smaller

.

So lets make a set-up of elements and tiles which i think would deliver a pretty fine balanced game:
Lets go trough some of these, and please comment your best set-ups so we can add more to this list.

#set-up 1: (SRBO) Infiltrators and Stealers

This set-up is based on Stealing some ones elses features or getting others peoples points without too much effort. The count is useless in many ways. but when you add enough elements to get more followers inside carcassonne it gets more exciting.
There are also trader tiles. so people will help you finish. but also cathars and witches to decline this.


- Base game
- The Halflings
- Darmstadt
- Mage and Witch
- Big followers
- The Count
- Flying Machines
- Hills
- Trader tiles
- The School
- The Mayor
- The Besiegers (or cathars)
- The Phantom
- The Robbers



So what do you think? Which set-up you make (without fan-expansions.) or what tips to you have?

Linkback: https://www.carcassonnecentral.com/community/index.php?topic=1265.0

[SRBO]

Im wondering.if there is a balanced setup without the base game! In the near future i will try one

[coyote]

Interesting..

In my family (both my wife and I, and then my folks and brother) would rather play with ALL tiles, and edit the rules to make them work together.

[SRBO]

Does nobody have intressting ideas?

I normally have a hard time picking which elements to play.

Once i have some examples of set-ups i want to try to make some play cards of it!

[Safari]

We normally have an extanded basic version:

– Base game
– meeples
   – The Big Followers
   – The Builders
   – The Pigs
   – The Mayors
   – The Wagons
   – The Barns
   – The Phantom
   – The Shepherds (Including The Sheep)
– The Messengers
– The King
– The Robber Baron
– The Inns
– The Cathedrals
– The Abbeys
– The Cult
– The Monasteries (German or Dutch)
– Darmstadt
– The Vineyards


These expansions are not too complex, so my family is ok with playing them. Furthermore they add some (imo) fundamental functions (abbeys, messages, king & scout) or small, nice features (mainly for the monasteries: Wineyards, Cult, Darmstadt, German Monasteries)

We might try that set with Half and Half I+II and the Windroses the next time.

[jungleboy]

A few ideas:

Things that add value/length/interest to roads go well together. So that would be:

- Inns
- Ferries
- Bridges
- Wagon

Things that can add and/or take away points go well together: So that would be:

- Inns and Cathedrals
- Besiegers/Cathars/Siege
- Mage and Witch

Things that can get you back into features go well with destructive expansions that remove followers from features (that's why magic portals are included with Princes and Dragon in the first place):

- Princess
- Dragon
- Tower
- Magic Portals
- Flier

Things that involve rows of tiles go well together:

- Tower
- German etc monasteries

Things that involve closing features controlled by other players go well together:

- Traders
- Count

[danisthirty]

Things that involve closing features controlled by other players go well together:

- Traders
- Count

- King & Robber Baron

Things that go well with everything:

- The Phantom 

[SRBO]

I will look into and extent the first post! thanks jungleboy and safari

[Safari]

Things that involve closing features controlled by other players go well together:

- Traders
- Count

- King & Robber Baron

Things that go well with everything:

- The Phantom 

Your hilarious! 
BTW: I made some modifications to my post, in order to make it a bit more professional.

[Safari]

Here some more ideas:

Things that can get you back into features go well with destructive expansions that remove followers from features (that's why magic portals are included with Princes and Dragon in the first place):

- Princess
- Dragon
- Tower
- Magic Portals
- Flier

– The Count
– The Corn Circles (I & II)
– The Festival
– The Tunnel

not necessarily:
– The Messengers
– The Barns
– The Cult

What about these? Can they add/remove meeples:
– The Catapult
– The Bazaars
– The Plague
– Wheel of Fortune

add elements not directly dependent on placement of tiles and meeples
– The Abbeys
– The King
– The Robber Baron
– The Messengers
[– The Halflings (I & II)]

Elements that changes monastery gameplay
– The Besiegers
– The Cathars (or The Siege)
– The Cult
– The Vineyards
– The Monasteries (German or Dutch)
– Darmstadt

[jungleboy]

Things that involve closing features controlled by other players go well together:

- Traders
- Count

Here is another idea, since I spent a while thinking about the Count today

In addition to Dan's suggestion of King and Robber Baron, another possibility is Crop Circles. If you have control of a large city or farm and you're worried about your opponents getting in on it through the City of Carcassonne, and you draw a Crop Circle tile that pertains to that feature, you could use the 'may deploy' option to get another follower into your feature.

Today I might have convinced myself that I could like the Count after all. So I think I'll try to play this exact combination next time since I think it gives the Count the best chance to thrive