Plan a Board Game Night for People Who Have Never Played Modern Games

Modern board games are a genuinely different hobby from what most people played growing up. A first game night goes wrong when someone picks a game that is too complex for a cold introduction, or explains the rules so thoroughly that everyone loses interest before the first turn. This plans the night: three games in complexity order, introductions that keep it moving, and the one mistake that reliably kills the evening.

I want to host a board game night for [describe the group: number of people, age range, gaming experience]. Most of them have only played Monopoly or similar family games. Help me plan it: recommend three games in order of complexity that bridge the gap from classic games to modern ones, explain how to introduce each game so no one feels lost before it has started, suggest an order for the evening that builds confidence before introducing something more involved, and give me the one mistake that ruins first-time modern board game nights.