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Worker Placement, Different Worker Types
OpenGames using
10
Median complexity
2.29
0–5
Median rating
6.18
bayes
Tabletop fit
0.570
weight-controlled
Definition
From BoardGameGeek
Workers can differ in abilities, or can be upgraded and downgraded, or are valid for placement in different areas and buildings.
Curator notes
Worker Placement
- Definition: place limited workers on action spaces; spaces are first-come-first-served
- Canonical: Agricola, Lords of Waterdeep, Stone Age
- MDA aesthetic: Challenge (constrained optimization) + Submission (rules-driven planning)
- Mobile descendant: None credible. The constraint of "other players block you" is what makes it interesting and exactly what disappears in single-player.
- Translation difficulty: Hard — needs a new constraint to replace inter-player blocking. AI opponents on a clock? Decaying spaces? Worth investigating.
Top games using this mechanism
By BGG bayes rating, top 50.
| Game | Year | Rating | Wt | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 8.17 | 3.8 | 240m | |
%2Fpic6228507.jpg&w=3840&q=75){kind=small} Orléans#36 | 2014 | 7.86 | 3.0 | 90m |
| 2023 | 7.82 | 4.3 | 180m | |
| 2015 | 7.81 | 2.9 | 90m | |
%2Fpic3499707.jpg&w=3840&q=75){kind=small} Anachrony#61 | 2017 | 7.73 | 4.0 | 120m |
| 2019 | 7.66 | 3.7 | 120m | |
| 2015 | 7.65 | 4.2 | 150m | |
| 2023 | 7.63 | 3.9 | 120m | |
| 2015 | 7.54 | 4.3 | 180m | |
%2Fpic7556818.jpg&w=3840&q=75){kind=small} Galactic Cruise#125 | 2025 | 7.53 | 4.0 | 150m |
| 2020 | 7.52 | 3.2 | 150m | |
%2Fpic5710736.jpg&w=3840&q=75){kind=small} Carnegie#127 | 2022 | 7.52 | 3.8 | 120m |
%2Fpic2278942.jpg&w=3840&q=75){kind=small} Keyflower#133 | 2012 | 7.50 | 3.3 | 120m |
| 2015 | 7.50 | 2.6 | 80m | |
%2Fpic750583.jpg&w=3840&q=75){kind=small} Troyes#140 | 2010 | 7.49 | 3.4 | 90m |
%2Fpic7745916.png&w=3840&q=75){kind=small} Yokohama#155 | 2016 | 7.44 | 3.3 | 90m |
%2Fpic7334483.jpg&w=3840&q=75){kind=small} Andromeda's Edge#179 | 2024 | 7.39 | 3.7 | 160m |
%2Fpic5894745.jpg&w=3840&q=75){kind=small} Meadow#214 | 2021 | 7.34 | 2.3 | 90m |
%2Fpic5089618.jpg&w=3840&q=75){kind=small} Ora et Labora#244 | 2011 | 7.29 | 3.9 | 180m |
%2Fpic2760568.jpg&w=3840&q=75){kind=small} Village#246 | 2011 | 7.28 | 3.1 | 90m |
| 2024 | 7.25 | 3.0 | 80m | |
| 2020 | 7.20 | 3.1 | 120m | |
| 2022 | 7.15 | 3.8 | 90m | |
| 2016 | 7.12 | 3.0 | 120m | |
| 2022 | 7.11 | 4.4 | 150m | |
%2Fpic7320023.jpg&w=3840&q=75){kind=small} Expeditions#382 | 2023 | 7.11 | 3.1 | 90m |
| 2007 | 7.10 | 3.1 | 120m | |
| 2020 | 7.09 | 2.8 | 80m | |
| 2017 | 7.05 | 2.6 | 90m | |
| 2024 | 7.04 | 3.9 | 120m | |
| 2006 | 7.03 | 2.8 | 120m | |
| 2019 | 7.00 | 1.9 | 45m | |
%2Fpic5016682.jpg&w=3840&q=75){kind=small} The Great Wall#519 | 2021 | 6.98 | 3.9 | 180m |
| 2012 | 6.94 | 3.0 | 120m | |
%2Fpic4679004.jpg&w=3840&q=75){kind=small} Lancaster#571 | 2011 | 6.94 | 3.0 | 60m |
%2Fpic2840020.jpg&w=3840&q=75){kind=small} Quadropolis#582 | 2016 | 6.93 | 2.2 | 60m |
%2Fpic8145392.png&w=3840&q=75){kind=small} Luthier#623 | 2025 | 6.89 | 3.8 | 150m |
| 2015 | 6.88 | 3.8 | 150m | |
| 2019 | 6.85 | 2.5 | 120m | |
%2Fpic6121929.png&w=3840&q=75){kind=small} My Father's Work#692 | 2022 | 6.85 | 3.1 | 180m |
%2Fpic6362475.jpg&w=3840&q=75){kind=small} Federation#714 | 2022 | 6.83 | 3.7 | 120m |
%2Fpic4853982.jpg&w=3840&q=75){kind=small} Cooper Island#725 | 2019 | 6.82 | 4.2 | 120m |
%2Fpic1368514.jpg&w=3840&q=75){kind=small} Belfort#851 | 2011 | 6.73 | 3.0 | 120m |
%2Fpic7594267.jpg&w=3840&q=75){kind=small} Critter Kitchen#934 | 2025 | 6.69 | 2.4 | 60m |
| 2019 | 6.67 | 3.2 | 180m | |
| 2015 | 6.66 | 3.3 | 150m | |
%2Fpic3021719.jpg&w=3840&q=75){kind=small} Outlive#1025 | 2017 | 6.64 | 3.0 | 110m |
%2Fpic5926553.jpg&w=3840&q=75){kind=small} Scarface 1920#1049 | 2023 | 6.62 | 3.8 | 150m |
%2Fpic7657810.jpg&w=3840&q=75){kind=small} Evenfall#1060 | 2023 | 6.62 | 3.1 | 120m |
I Inferno#1123 | 2024 | 6.59 | 3.6 | 120m |
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Frequently combined with
Other mechanisms that show up in the same games. Click to drill in.
Related deep dives
Long-form design analysis on games using this mechanism.