Lorenzo il Magnifico

I like Luciani’s work, yet Lorenzo il Magnifico somehow passed me by on release. The complete edition, with its conveniences and expansions gathered together, was enough to bring it back onto the table. In its basic form it is clean, tight and properly paced without becoming tiring; it simply was not yet the sort of euro that makes me demand an immediate rematch.

At heart, it is worker placement: each round asks where to commit your workers and how much room to leave everyone else. The pressure comes without fireworks, from opportunities disappearing in front of you, and that tightness works beautifully without turning into labour.

The expansions add more friction and more reasons to watch the other players. Pazzi Conspiracy in particular puts families up for auction, and if you let someone take them without making them pay for it, you will watch their lead grow while wondering when, exactly, you decided to be polite.

With everything included, Lorenzo is now one of those euros I will happily play at any time. At five it moved smoothly even with newcomers at the table, ended closely, and demonstrated that it is unusually capable for such a weighty euro at that number. It is not love at first sight; it is, however, the dependable eight-out-of-ten sort that earns a place among a group’s favourites.

Updated session

The later five-player game with every expansion confirmed that my first, restrained impression had undersold it. The one reservation remains Pazzi: its especially strong families need an informed, alert table, or they can create a comfortable lead before anyone has properly challenged it.