My gaming group has been meeting every other Saturday for four years. What has made it work: a consistent start time (3pm), a host rotation so the burden does not fall on one person, a game selection process that considers player count and experience levels, and an explicit agreement that anyone can suggest a game but the group decides together.

The hardest part was the early period when skill gaps were large. New players felt left behind in complex games. Experienced players felt constrained by gateway games. The solution was table splitting for sessions with more than four players: experienced players run a heavier game at one table while newer players run something more accessible at another.

Four years in, the skill gap has closed considerably. Everyone has played enough complex games to enjoy them. The group dynamic has built the kind of shared reference points and inside jokes that make board gaming more than just playing games.