In this article, I'd like to introduce a broad classification of gameplay elements which I find useful when describing a lane-pushing game.

As players progress through a match, they have the option of outfitting their hero with various long-term bonuses. I collectively refer to these bonuses as equipment. Each type of equipment has a maximum number of slots, and a variety of things which can be equipped to these slots.

I use a simple notation when describing equipments. An equipment with 5 slots and 100 options will be referred to as a 100c5 equipment (read this as: 100 choose 5). This

This article is about ability resources: a type of mechanic which a moba designer can use to direct when a player should use their hero's abilities.

If an ability is free, a player will use it in every situation where it is beneficial (or at least, more beneficial than attacking, which is also free). It is usually more elegant to make this kind of ability passive or toggled.

Active abilities on the other hand should have some kind of cost. Cooldowns create what's called an opportunity cost: the cost of using an ability now is that it can't be used later. Cooldowns are widespread and with

Players will tell you that they don't like it, but on-the-fly random number generation (rng) is seen in almost every match in the three biggest MOBAs (League, Dota2, and HoN). Why is this?

Firstly, I want to establish that randomness in games isn't a problem on its own. Card games like poker hinge on it, while still being enjoyable and competitive. The problem is that in a card game, players are betting on their ability to read their opponent. In an RTS, players are betting on the rng.

While this might occasionally pay off, any sense of achievement felt by one player is equally felt as