Capture / Elimination

Mechanism · VII – Confrontation & Control immediate · irreversible / conditional · open · competitive / asymmetric

Capture/Elimination removes Entities from the game, from possession or from a zone: loss becomes a game element – with the design question of where the line to frustration lies.

Design question – How are Entities removed in your game – and how do you design loss without frustration?

Reference example – Chess: captured pieces leave the board for good. Ludo: a piece that is knocked out must go back to the start. Fortnite: whoever is eliminated is out of the match. Go (Enclosure Capture) · Dominion (Deck Thinning) · Munchkin (Take That)

Structural pattern

Input -> transformation -> output: an existing Entity (token, card, agent) becomes a removed Entity (out of the game) via a removal condition (capture, destruction).

Regulated in permitting mode (protect oneself; return where respawn is provided), constraining mode (protected entities may not be removed) and conditioning mode (an entity is removed when a fight is lost, it is enclosed or a condition is met; where it goes; what follows: points, resources, shift of power).

Design parameters

• Permanence – permanent ↔ transformative (becomes something else)
• Target – opponents’ Entities ↔ own Entities (trashing)
• Trigger – combat result ↔ agent choice
• Compensation – none ↔ victory points
• Range – single Entity ↔ mass removal
• Agent elimination – none ↔ complete (agent is knocked out)

Related Mechanisms

• Conflict Resolution (MEC-22) – Frequently combined: combat as trigger.
• Enclosure (MEC-11) – Frequently combined: enclosure as condition.
• Scoring (MEC-09) – Frequently combined: capture yields points.
• Construction (MEC-05) – Frequently combined: the removed element as a building block (deck thinning).

Ludic Organisational Structures

Combat System (core) · Territory · Ecosystem · Hierarchy (dynamic)