This study reports the influence of growth conditions on the characteristics of (TiVCrZrY)N coatings prepared by reactive magnetron sputtering at various N-2-to-total (N-2 + Ar) flow ratio, which is RN. The crystal structures, microstructure, and mechanical properties for different RN were characterized by electron spectroscopy for chemical analysis, X-ray diffraction, atomic force microscopy, field-emission-scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and nanoindentation. The results indicate that the TiVCrZrY alloy and nitride coatings have hexagonal close-packed (hcp)-type and sodium chloride (NaCl)-type solid-solution structures, respectively. The voids in the coatings are eliminated and the growth of the columnar crystal structures is inhibited along with an increasing RN. As a consequence, highly packed equiaxed amorphous structures with smooth surfaces are formed. The coatings accordingly achieved a pronounce hardness of 17.5 GPa when R-N = 100%. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.