Carcassonne turned 25 in 2025 and still teaches in five minutes. Players draw a tile each turn, place it adjacent to existing tiles, and optionally claim it with a meeple — a road, city, monastery, or field.
The field meeple is what separates beginners from experts. Played correctly, fields can deliver a 20-point endgame swing nobody saw coming. Played reflexively, they sit dead all game.
Buy the 20th Anniversary edition. The Inns & Cathedrals expansion is the single most-recommended addition for repeat play.
