Nate Baker
United States
Coon Rapids
MN
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Initial Response – 9/10
I’ll put it plain and simple. I wanted a couple smaller expansions, and I wanted the two blank tiles for Die Schule. However, when I found out it was coming in a mini-box like a few of the different mini-expansions for Carcassonne, I was psyched. Why? It comes with its own Tuck-Box for easy and separate storage within the Base Game. Plus there are 2 mini-expansions? It was just a win.
Wifey’s Initial Response – 6/10
“Blank Tiles are stupid. What are we going to do with them? The Siege rules are stupid. Let’s try out Cult.”
Now that she has tried Siege, she loves it. Why? She is a cutthroat queen. She still thinks the blank tiles are too much work and a waste of time, which to many gamers, that may be the case.
Unboxing and Components – 7/10
While it is labeled Cult Siege and Creativity, it doesn’t offer separate tuck-boxes for each one. This is fine for me as I simply keep the Blank Tiles elsewhere and use the mini instruction sheet as a divider between the two expansions. Either way, there are only 4 Siege tiles, and 6 Cult tiles, and it isn’t too difficult to figure out which goes with which.
Gameplay – 7.5/10 (5.5/10 for Seige, 10/10 for Cult)
I’ll break it up, as to further engorge on the details of why one rocks my socks and the other simply does not.
Siege, otherwise known as Die Katharers (or Cathars), consists of 4 tiles that get mixed in with all the others. Here they are below:
As you can see, Siege is a set of 4 city tiles that have literal Siege Towers and soldier encampments on them. This expansion has some actual history to it. For a short yet interesting history lesson, check out this link:
http://www.modernjive.com/carcassonne/carcassonnecathars.pdf
Now that the history lesson is over, let’s continue onward. First off, when playing these tiles, there are a couple different options you have besides the obvious. A city with a Siege tile is considered “under siege”. If a city is under siege, it makes the tiles point value as well as the pennant go down by one. I.E. you complete a city made of 4 tiles with 1 pennant. The normal total would be 10 pts. However, if a Siege tile is one of the 4 present, the score would become 5.
You can still place a follower on the grass and it counts as part of your farm. Also, if you are supplying a besieged city, that city scores twice for your farm (6 pts instead of 3). The siege tile doesn’t even have to be touching your farm, as long as the completed besieged city is touching it.
Do not lose hope besieged player! There is an option for escape which will grant you safe passage. If a Cloister is adjacent (sides and even corners) to the Siege tile, then you may leave the besieged city and move the follower back to your supply. The cloister doesn’t need to be completed, and it doesn’t even have to be occupied. It’s as simple as that.
Regarding other expansions:
-(Inns and Cathedrals) If you complete a city with a Cathedral, and a Siege tile is present, the city is scored 2 pts a tile instead of 3.
-(Traders and Builders) If a pig is on a farm supplying a besieged city, that city still scores double, bringing it to 8 pts instead of 6.
The Cult expansion, in my opinion, is much easier to deal with, and can be really fun if you get lucky enough to use it to its full potential. See the Cult tiles below:
As you can see, the 6 Cult tiles have a small Cult sacrificial hill and alter. As you can probably guess, they act exactly the same as Monasteries and score just like a Cloister does.
The cool feature the Cult tiles bring to the table is what makes them really fun for me. If you place a Cult tile adjacent to a Monastery that is being occupied by your opponent (or vice versa), and place one of your followers down on it, then you can “challenge” them. This challenge consists of a race in which you are competing to complete your cloisters. Whoever wins the race gets the points, and whoever loses, doesn’t get the points. If the last tile laid down completes both of your cloisters, the person who laid the tile is still the only who gets the points.
Cleanup – 10/10
Just like the mini-expansion The Count of Carcassonne, Cult Siege and Creativity comes with its own tuck-box for an easy storage solution. To keep them more separate, you can print off tuck-boxes here on BGG for both Die Katharer and Cult respectively. However, I like to keep them together as I have no place to put my Blank tiles yet, and it is just the right height that it fits into my base game box perfectly.
Thoughts and Criticisms
Cult: I love this one because it is the only time I ever get cutthroat with my wife…in Carcassonne at least. It also adds some new fun tiles, and adds a feature to the somewhat boring and monotonous Monastery tiles, keeping you coming back for more and more. This, to me, makes it an essential mini-expansion, as I can honestly say, while playing the base game alone; I get sick of drawing Monastery tiles after a while near the end of the game. However, with the Cult tiles added, it gives you more options and doesn’t disappoint when you draw them.
Siege: While it is only 4 tiles added to the hundreds of potential tiles you can end up playing with, I still sigh and dread having to draw them. While yes, I can increase my points for my farm, it still is annoying when none of your opponent’s cities are on your farm, and you are just kind of being a douche. While necessary to the game, I find it more annoying than anything else. As a collector of sorts, I still wanted it, especially in this mini-expansion compilation. I’ll still play it as well, as it does have its moments, but it usually doesn’t.
The Final Countdown – 6/10
I enjoy owning it, and playing with it, just not every time. It, like many certain Carcassonne tiles, depends greatly on what’s available for placement in order to truly use both expansions in a strategic way. While they can be epic when used to their greatest extent, it just does not happen that often.
With that being said, my advice to those looking to purchase this, be prepared to not be blown away. While I love me some Carcassonne, this is actually my least favorite of all the expansions. It is truly up to you fellow geeks. Lucky for you, its cost is quite minimal, and to me, is worth the price, regardless.
Either way, happy playing!
Nate 
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You have just have interested me with this one.
I bought the Carcassone Big Box 2 which does not come with siege but does include cult - need to see if I can play a game with the siege system sometime.
Cheers for the pdf link too 
Strongly recommend The Downfall of Pompeii by the same designer if you can get your hands on a copy.
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Nate Baker
United States
Coon Rapids
MN
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Siege can be hard to come by. Just remember that if you see a Carcassonne expansion called "The Cathars" or "The Katharers", that is the Siege expansion. The artwork for Siege is different depending on which expansion you buy it in as well, so be prepared for that as it may not match up with the pic I posted of it.
Just search BGG and I'm sure you'll find a copy for a good price
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I'm pretty sure I know someone who has it, so I'll just get a lend.
Some hopeful soul has it on BGG marketplace right now for $99 
They will ship internationally for $4... bargain - I'll buy three.
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