Here is the final part of our series, “demystifying board game mechanisms," at least for now. Beginning to explore all those mechanisms can be like stepping into a labyrinth. The last part of this guide is here to help you navigate through seven key mechanisms, offering clear explanations and examples to deepen your understanding.

Set collection is a mechanism where players gather sets of specific items or cards to achieve objectives and score points. This mechanism requires players to recognize valuable combinations and plan around getting the most valuable ones. Set collections can be done with cards, tokens, or any other game component. Sometimes sets will be of identical items, but they can also be of sequences or groups of items that match certain criteria. During the game, players will have the opportunity to draw, buy, or trade items to complete the set. The most classic game based on that mechanism is “Ticket to Ride” (2004). A ticket to ride is such an easy game to learn, which is why, in my opinion, it is loved so much. In a ticket to ride, your goal is to claim the most railway route, thus earning the most points. You will have to collect cards from trains to be able to build those routes. If this mechanism seems like something you would like, you should also try “Point City” (2023). In Point City, your goal is to build the best city. You will collect cards of buildings, creating sets of similar buildings, thus creating the better city and collecting the most points. Point City is such a simple game to understand and teach; it is one of our favorites. In short, set collection games are all about making a set of cards or items to collect the most points. Set collection can sometimes be the whole goal of the game, or it can be a means to get to your goal. 

Tableau building involves constructing a personal display, cards, or tiles. Most of the time, your tableau will have ongoing benefits every time you add new components to it. This mechanism is the epitome of long-term planning and synergy between different components. Your goal will be to create combinations of components that give you multipliers, for example. A popular example of a tableau builder would be “Earth” (2023). On earth, your goal is to create the best ecosystem. In this nature game, you will draft cards with the goal of creating a tableau of your ecosystem. You will grow plants and be able to sprout all over your tableau, making it even more powerful. Another example of a tableau-builder game would be “Everdell” (2018). In Everdell, your goal is to create the best civilization of critters. You will build a tableau by collecting cards with your more than adorable workers. In short, tableau-building games are all about planning how to maximize your choices of cards or tiles. Your ultimate goal is to make it the most combo-y possible, or even to generate the most points possible. 

A take that is all about negatively impacting your opponent. Take that game is all about player interaction and strategy planning. Take that has a really confrontational type of gameplay. Each turn, you will have the opportunity to perform an action that will “attack” other players. It could be stealing resources, blocking moves, or even causing setbacks. A popular game using that mechanism would be “Exploding Kittens” (2015). In exploding kittens, you will draw cards until a player draws an exploding kitten and thus loses the game. During the game, you will gain cards that will give you the ability to peek at the cards coming or even force your opponent to draw multiple cards. Another take on that game would be “Villainous” (2018). In this Disney classic board game, you play as a villain from a Disney movie with the goal of destroying Disney characters. Each turn, you will activate different locations on your personal player board. One of these actions will be to “fate” an opponent of your choice. The “fate” action will slow down your opponent's ability to achieve their end-game criteria and thus give you more time to achieve yours. In short, games are all about “destroying” your opponent. You either want to slow them down or even make them lose the game. Confrontation is the center of these games, and there is a lot of player interaction.  

Tile placement games involve, as the name states, placing some tiles. This mechanism will make you plan ahead of time and use your ability to make spatial assessments. Depending on the type of game, you may have to draw a tile and then immediately place it. You may also have to acquire the tiles by buying them with resources. You may be limited in your tile placement options; buy a board or rules of 4x4, for example. And what about polyominos? Well, we all know the classic video game Tetris. Polyominos games are tile placement games with tiles in the shape of Tetris. A classic tile placement game would be “Carcassonne” (2000). In Carcassonne, you are building the landscape of southern France. On your turn, you will draw a tile and then place it. You will then have to decide if you take control of the tile or not. Another good game involving tile placement is “Calico” (2020). In Calico, you have the objective of creating the coziest quilt to attract cats. It's super simple to understand draw a tile and place it. Yet so hard to master and so many conditions to fulfill. In short, tile placement games are simple to understand; take a tile and place it, yet they are so fun. Sometimes simplicity is the best. 

Tower defense games involve defending a position, area, or tower, as the name states. During the course of the game, you and maybe your teammate will have to build defenses and prevent the enemies from reaching their goal. The challenge of these games is to strategically manage resources and the placement of tokens. Often, the enemies will attack in waves after a certain number of turns. A good example of a tower defense game would be the fan favorite “Spirit Island” (2017). In Spirit Island, you will work with the other players to protect your island from invaders. This game is a crunchy one, where you will have to plan with your teammate for almost all of your turns. Another tower defense game you should try if this mechanism is talking to you is “Dwar7s Winter” (2018). In Dwar7's Winter, your goal is to defend your kingdom from monsters. You will have to manage your resources while placing workers to defend your home. In short, tower defense games are all about defending a territory, an island, or even a kingdom.  

Worker placement games involve assigning workers (i.e., meeples) to specific areas on a personal or communal board. Assigning those workers will help you gain resources and complete tasks with the goal of achieving objectives. You will want to plan where to put your workers and in what order to make sure you make the most advantageous choice. You should not only plan ahead each round according to your number of availaible workers but also plan that the next round you often won’t have the same number. A favorite of ours is “Parks” (2019). In Parks, you play as a hiker trying to visit the most US national parks. Each turn, you will move one of your hikers, collecting resources that will later help you buy access to the parks you want to visit. Another worker placement game you should try is “Honey Buzz” (2020). In Honey Buzz, you play as a colony of bees who decide to make a profit with their production of honey and nectar. Each turn, you will place a bee-meeple and acquire a tile to grow your hive. The bigger the hive, the bigger your fortune will be. In short, worker placement games can be so polyvalent. The mechanism is simple: you place a worker to acquire resources with the goal of building an empire, visit someplace, or even sell a product.  

Roll and write involves rolling dice, while flip and write involves flipping cards, but they are essentially the same mechanism. You will flip a card or roll some dice, and you will have to decide what to do on your personal sheet, hence the “write” part. A good’ol pen and paper game, as they say. Often, in these games, one choice will start a cascade of many combos, thus making those games extra satisfying. A classic example of a flip-and-write game would be “Cartographers” (2019). In Cartographers, the queen asked you to map the territory of the northern lands. Each turn, a card will flip, on which you will discover a piece of land to draw on your personal map. So simple, yet so fun. Another good roll and write would be “Three Sisters” (2022). In Three Sisters, your goal is to create the most profitable backyard farming. Each turn, with the roll of the dice, you will be able to plan different crops, either pumpkins, corn, or beans. You will also have the possibility of acquiring new tools to improve your gardening skills. In short, in either "X" and write, every player will be presented with the same option (dice or cards), but we will all take different routes leading to different results. The goal is then to make the best decision to get the best result. 

BGG. (n.d.) Calico. Board Games Geek. Retrieved July 2024, from:  https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/283155/calico

BGG. (n.d.) Carcassonne. Board Games Geek. Retrieved July 2024, from:  https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/822/carcassonne

BGG. (n.d.) Cartographers. Board Games Geek. Retrieved July 2024, from:  https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/263918/cartographers

BGG. (n.d.) Dwar7s Winter. Board Games Geek. Retrieved July 2024, from:  https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/241334/dwar7s-winter

BGG. (n.d.) Earth. Board Games Geek. Retrieved July 2024, from: https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/350184/earth

BGG. (n.d.) Everdell. Board Games Geek. Retrieved July 2024, from: https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/199792/everdell

BGG. (n.d.) Exploding Kittens. Board Games Geek. Retrieved July 2024, from:  https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/172225/exploding-kittens

BGG. (n.d.) Honey Buzz. Board Games Geek. Retrieved July 2024, from:  https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/284742/honey-buzz

BGG. (n.d.) Point City. Board Games Geek. Retrieved July 2024, from: https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/368017/point-city

BGG. (n.d.) Ticket to Ride. Board Games Geek. Retrieved June 2024, from: https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/9209/ticket-to-ride

BGG. (n.d.) Disney Villainous: The Worst Takes it All. Board Games Geek. Retrieved July 2024, from: https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/256382/disney-villainous-the-worst-takes-it-all

BGG. (n.d.) Parks. Board Games Geek. Retrieved July 2024, from: https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/266524/parks

BGG. (n.d.) Spirit Island. Board Games Geek. Retrieved July 2024, from: https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/162886/spirit-island

BGG. (n.d.) Three Sisters. Board Games Geek. Retrieved July 2024, from: https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/291845/three-sisters