Stepper motors, such as discrete state devices, are extremely valuable when a precise position or speed is required. Being discrete state devices, these motors are particularly suitable for the control of the digital system. Although microcontrollers are suitable for this application, programmable logic devices (PLDs) have several advantages. Being a much more energy-efficient and flexible system, a PLD also provides easy in-chip integration of communication standards, parallel performance and high pin count for multiple motor control. Here, we cover some basic considerations for programming a PLD with a high-speed integrated circuit (VHDL) hardware description language to function as a step-by-step motor controller.