領袖

Didn't expect a game about recruiting allies to get this tense, but every spring round had us second-guessing each other's moves. The four-ally limit keeps things tight instead of dragging on, and we finished in under an hour. Already planning a rematch night.

The recruit-four-allies mechanic is what sold me, since it keeps every turn tense without any combat. Played three games back to back with friends and nobody wanted to stop.

The four-ally recruitment each spring makes every game feel different, since you're never stuck with the same combo twice. Duels are won by outthinking rather than outnumbering, which my group loved. Took one round to learn, then we played four more.