Finding Cozy and Spooky in Mists Over Carcassonne
Build cities and roads in the countryside, complete with persistent ghosts who create challenges in Mists Over Carcassonne.
Originally, I intended to pick up Mists Over Carcassonne to enjoy around Halloween. That… Did not happen. Ha ha! This cooperative and solo-friendly variant introduces a fun twist on the usual formula. Mist banks, ghosts, cemeteries, castles, and friendly dogs all create new decisions and strategies. Luckily, these ghosts are more friendly than scary!
Game Overview
Game Name: Mists Over Carcassonne
Publication Year: 2022
Designer: Klaus-Jürgen Wrede
Artists: Marcel Gröber & Anne Pätzke
Publisher: Hans im Glück
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game
A series of increasingly difficult challenges present a set of scenarios to work through. The familiar tile-laying mechanics are present, only with a twist… Ghosts! Being able to manage their presence and keep the area from getting overrun adds a rather charming element.
First Play
February 3, 2024
Complexity
2
Latest Play
October 31, 2024
Expansions
0
Setup Time
5 Minutes
Lifetime Plays
22
Play Time
20 Minutes
High Score
113
Game Area
32" x 20"
Low Score
0
Various Challenges
Some may think that this is sort of like a campaign, which is partially true. The challenges do get increasingly more difficult and introduce new components.
However, this is more like a game that provides a way to discover the desired difficulty level. Yet it’s also very rewarding to find ways to succeed with a high score!
I started off right at the beginning, which is pretty much a tutorial to introduce some of the main concepts.
My tile-laying skills have been put to the test lately, so I figured this would be a walk in the park. But with ghosts…
Ghostly Destruction
That went poorly. Ha ha! I had to get used to the system a little more than I expected, which was pretty nice. Part of me wondered if this might feel a little too easy. Nope!
Keeping those mist banks in check added another aspect to keep track of. I had to build up my score, but also make sure I didn’t run out of ghosts to place. How fun!
There is nothing overly simple about this. A tile must always be drawn and placed somewhere, no matter what.
I liked how there were choices about the mist banks in terms of trying to close them off or give up on some.
A Tiny, Tiny Flame
After a little research, I figured the meeples were all holding torches to light up the area and ward off the ghosts. It made sense from the box artwork!
But I had a little laugh over one of my pink meeples. This flame was noticeably tinier, missing a part of it. Ha!
I wove this into gameplay a little bit. This is also a good time to mention that I don’t mind these imperfections. That is one unique meeple who will always stand out!
Anytime the ghosts overran an area and I lost by a large margin, I just blamed that tiny, tiny flame. Ha ha!
Connecting Elements
I loved having the different meeple colors available, as this gave me a few ways to possibly connect up roads or cities to score those victory points multiple times.
Maybe I went overboard and tried to take too many risks, but it paid off! This enormous city had all disconnected pieces at first, ultimately yielding 60 victory points. Whoa!
Creating these huge cities can be very fun, but the game also calls for quick scores to clear out some of the ghosts.
It was anything but easy, and I found myself completely caught up in gameplay as I figured out the best choices.
Going Beyond an Original Game’s Formula
The original edition of Carcassonne was one of my first forays into modern board games, and I still have my rather large collection! It’s been interesting to see all of the different versions and variants that have come out over the years, although I’ve always thought that I didn’t need to explore much else. Tile-laying was already perfected for me!
However, this variation was billed as building off of the official solo mode, which wasn’t released that long ago. With a decidedly small number of cozy spooky games to play, I also liked the theme. I didn’t have any Calico Critters visit this time, yet these are the sorts of ghosts I can handle. Ha ha! I really enjoyed the differences to the system, too.
It’s definitely close to the original, yet I didn’t feel like it was a boring, re-skinned version. There are enough changes to make this one stand on its own as a great solo game. Besides, I need some more options to play around Halloween!
A Pleasant City
The ghosts were everywhere, yet I managed to work on completing mist banks multiple times to remove those ghosts from the map. This city got a lot better!
It was neat to think about how to manage the mist. At times, I had to recognize that an area would be impossible to complete. Some tiles had to be used for victory points.
I liked the tension with the score, too. It came out more with the later levels, yet it was expertly implemented.
My mind wandered as I chose the best house in this city… Clearly, it was at the top of the blue tower near the center!
Undesirable Real Estate
On the other side of the area, it was pretty apparent where I simply gave up on managing the ghosts. Good luck to the inhabitants of these city tiles. Yikes. Ha ha!
The mist banks integrated seamlessly, too. It was possible to ignore matching edges, but not necessarily helpful.
I also learned how important it could be to maintain an open mist bank as more elements were introduced. Less ghosts meant less risk… There were only 15 of them.
Although I didn’t expect the game to be a top favorite for me, it brought a lot more to the table and was simply fun!
Castles and More
As I moved up to the next levels, castles and cemeteries added more interesting decisions. But I was pretty excited about my brightly colored meeples… Very cheery!
It was hard to appease the ghosts, though. I probably took way too many risks, yet everything panned out at times.
My one minor quip was how the tiles I needed to fill in some spaces just didn’t exist. Or, they did, only rotated or mirrored. A little frustrating, yet not the end of the world.
There was something that kept me coming back to play over and over, which was pretty awesome. I enjoyed it!
Delightful Artwork
Don’t misunderstand… These ghosts certainly aren’t all smiles! But I tend to veer away from overly scary artwork, so their depiction was as charming as possible.
It was also pretty neat to see a variety of them. They got covered up by ghost meeples most of the time, yet I definitely enjoyed the artwork in a noticeable way!
I’ll always miss the original artwork from my first edition of the main game, but that’s fine. Another minor note.
The castle artwork was pretty neat, though… Pretty sure I could just assume I lived in one of those. Ha ha!
Session Overview
Play Number: 1-14
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game
Play Details: Levels 1, 2, 3
Outcome: 3 Wins, 11 Losses
I did it! This next level proved to be very challenging, and I ended up losing in the first few minutes a few times… Poor planning on my part, of course. Such a fun and charming variant! I expect to keep this one stored away for a bit, yet if it doesn’t show up for Halloween this year, I’ll be very surprised with myself. Definitely a variant on the base game formula I loved more than I expected to!
%
20 Plays
Affordability
Price & Value
10
Functionality
Challenges & Mechanics
9
Originality
Design & Theme
7
Quality
Components & Rules
9
Reusability
Achievement & Enjoyment
8
Variability
Distinctness & Randomness
9
+ Pros (Positives)
- Ghosts are presented in a fairly neutral manner, allowing for a spooky sort of theme that isn’t too cute or scary.
- Mist banks offer interesting challenges around closing off areas or ensuring new ghosts don’t expand quickly.
- Various levels introduce new elements and allow the difficulty to be customized during setup with little effort.
- Play time moves along quickly with a single tile placed each turn and a relatively straightforward sequence.
- Managing multiple meeple colors introduces interesting strategies to reach the minimum victory threshold.
- The original game concepts are certainly present, but this feels like enough of a twist to be its own unique game.
– Cons (Negatives)
- There is a reasonable amount of luck involved with the tile draw order, which can result in a very quick loss.
- Many times, the meeples are just large enough to partially obscure some elements from easily being seen.
- A lot of goals around the new ghostly elements lead to fairly static building strategies across multiple plays.
- Plenty of tiles are included, yet some missing configurations mean empty spaces aren’t that uncommon.
Victory Conditions
Reach the Victory Threshold
- Overall Goal Progress 75%
Goals and Milestones
Win at least 1 game at Level 1.
Win at least 1 game at Level 2.
Win at least 1 game at Level 3.
Win at least 1 game at Level 4.
Continue the Conversation
What do you think of Mists Over Carcassonne? Have you succeeded at every level, or did you find the right challenge for you? Sometimes, these sorts of spin-offs can feel a little gimmicky and rushed, yet I found an excellent solo experience! New strategies will keep me coming back, as will my unique meeple who can always be blamed for a loss. Ha ha!
0 Comments