Machinations: Progression Systems for Game Economy Designers

Explore a generic RPG progression system where every five minutes, defeating enemies yields experience, leading to level ups that grant skill points to raise attributes.

Model the core loop with xp and level pools. Defeat enemies yields xp, converted to levels automatically every five minutes, starting at level one up to 1000 xp.

Explain using state connections as formula modifiers to dynamically scale level-up costs based on another component’s value, calculating experience requirements with 100 per level increments.

Model how level-up events award skill points by using state connections and triggers to drive a skill points pool, with passive sources and formula-based triggers.

Add vitality, endurance, and strength pools and route each level-up skill point through a random gate with 35%, 25%, and 40% chances to upgrade vitality, endurance, or strength.

Learn how registers calculate player stats, such as max HP from vitality, by applying formulas that read values from pools and update attributes as skill points are allocated.

Read vitality into a maximum HP register via state connections, use exact variable names, set initial resources, and ensure accurate readings for game economy calculations.

Model defense and damage reduction using mathjs functions, linking endurance to damage reduction via natural logarithm and strength to damage via log base ten, and apply rounding with floor.

Design a progression where players advance through areas with increasing enemy stats and rewards, using a countdown time pool and drains, starting with a 30-minute area and 40-100 minute areas.

Create custom variables, such as a math expression for time per step, to centralize parameters and ensure changes propagate across all diagram parts.

Use two custom variables—time to finish area (updated each step) and randomness—to generate a new 40–100 minute value per area with a uniform distribution, fed into the resource connection.

Learn to use state connections to control progression between areas in Machinations, enabling sources and calculating minutes when area completion reaches zero, with formulas, triggers, and variables.

In this progression system, areas raise xp per enemy and adjust enemy hp and damage. Model xp with a log curve and use conditional expressions and three-tier hp rules.

Compute xp earned per step with registers and state connections, multiplying enemies defeated by xp per enemy, using random int for total player damage, referencing enemy hp, and rounding down.

Use arrays to store level-up costs as a table; read each level's cost by index, starting at one, via registers or custom variables, enabling progression without a fixed formula.