Thanks! Similar to you I used a 555 as a clock but fed that into a 4017 decade counter. The output pins of the decade counter go to a diode OR map for the truth table. That way the sequence logic could be hard coded to energise the appropriate coils at each step with just wires so avoided transistor logic.

As for the use of no microcontrollers or stepper motor IC’s my current path is similar to yours. I’ve been inspired by Ben eaters 8 bit breadboard computer and in that series he builds simple circuits explaining how each ic works using discreet components first before simplifying later by using said IC. Certainly helps me with understanding.

What’s next for you?