Polycrystalline AlN layers were deposited by pulsed-DC reactive magnetron sputtering from a variable deposition angle α = 0-84° in 5 mTorr pure N2 at room temperature. X-ray diffraction pole figure analyses show that layers deposited from a normal angle (α = 0°) exhibit fiber texture, with a random in-plane grain orientation and the c-axis tilted by 42±2° off the substrate normal, yielding wurtzite AlN grains with the {10-12} plane approximately parallel (±2°) to the substrate surface. However, as α is increased to 45°, two preferred in-plane grain orientations emerge, with populations I and II having the c-axis tilted towards and away from the deposition flux, by 53±2° and 47±1° off the substrate normal, respectively. Increasing α further to 65 and 84°, results in the development of a single population II with a 43±1° tilt. This developing bi-axial texture is attributed to a competitive growth mode under conditions where the adatom mobility is sufficient to cause inter-grain mass transport but insufficient for the thermodynamically favored low energy {0001} planes to align parallel to the layer surface. Consequently, AlN nuclei are initially randomly oriented and form a kinetically determined crystal habit exposing {0001} and {11-20} facets. The expected direction of its highest growth rate is 49±5° tilted relative to the c-axis, in good agreement with the 42-53° measured tilt. The in-plane preferred orientation for α > 0° is well explained by the orientation dependence in the cross-section of the asymmetric pyramidal nuclei to capture off-normal directional diffusion flux. The observed tilt is ideal for shear mode electromechanical coupling, which is maximized at 48°.