1. scenario /Arena
1.1. Map
1.1.1. addition
1.1.2. reduction
1.1.3. deformation
1.2. Boards
1.2.1. area
1.2.1.1. movement
1.2.1.1.1. The game board is divided into repeating or non-repeating regular or irregularly spaced areas to determine adjacency and movement.
1.2.2. tiles/grid
1.2.2.1. hexagonal
1.2.2.2. squared
1.2.3. Deck construction
1.2.3.1. As the first step, or prior to playing the game, players create the deck they will use.
1.2.4. Rondel
1.2.4.1. The available Actions are represented as pie wedges in a circle. Each player has one or more tokens on Rondel’s wedges. On their turn, they may move their token around the Rondel and perform the Action indicated by the wedge where they stop. It is typically more costly to move further around the Rondel.
2. Bias
2.1. pieces move in a certain direction that can be changed with a certain mechanic
3. Time
4. Inventory
5. Chains
5.1. Pieces are stationary but are built out in chains. This can give a dynamic sense of motion to the game, even though the pieces do not move.
6. materials
6.1. puzzles
6.2. Crayon Rail system
6.2.1. The Crayon Rail System is a subcategory of Route/Network Building. Types of these games use crayon or other non-permanent methods of making connecting lines on a board, often eraseable. The most popular Crayon Rail games are part of the Empire Builder system.
6.3. Cards
6.4. paper and pencil
6.4.1. The game is developed using paper and pen to mark and save responses or attributes that, at the end of the game, are used to score points and determine the winner.
6.5. Tokens
6.5.1. Action tokens
6.5.1.1. One player has a token that permits them to do a special Action, or modify an Action. Once used, the token passes to another player. First used in Storm over Arnhem, this mechanism has been used to great impact in many games since, notably as The China Card in Twilight Struggle.
6.5.2. Lives
6.5.3. currency
6.5.4. powers
6.5.5. goods/information
6.6. Dices
6.6.1. Dice may be rerolled, or may be locked, preventing rerolling.
6.6.2. numbers
6.6.3. symbols