Azul

You draft beautiful resin tiles to decorate the walls of a royal palace. Taking tiles from the center forces others into difficult decisions. You lose points if you take more materials than you can actually fit on your board. The setup takes a few minutes, but it is worth the effort once you get going. Players stay engaged even when it is not their turn because the board state changes constantly. It scales well whether you have a full table or just a couple of people. I like how it forces you to adapt your plans on the fly. You might get frustrated if your initial strategy falls apart, but that is part of the charm. It sits on my shelf as a consistent backup plan for rainy afternoons.