Agricola is one of the best board games ever designed, and it’s also one of the best examples of worker recruitment mechanics. The concept is simple: each player uses his farmer and his wife (both called “workers”) to complete various actions as the seasons progress, such as gathering wood or vegetables, upgrading the farm house, building pens, buying animals, having children, and much more. Over time, players have children (more workers to use) and expand their farm. But the problem through all of this is scarcity: Agricola is a tough game. Even without your opponent preventing you from taking certain actions, you often feel like you’re living a simple life – getting enough food to feed your family for the winter. Players often end up getting very few points (or negative points) in their first game, but when you start learning, it feels incredibly satisfying.