Scrabble Help

Scrabble Word Help

By Chris Perrin

Scrabble is a game that is simple to learn and takes a lifetime, some reading, and a few dictionaries to master. It also takes strategy because the game is not just about who can lay down the most impressive, longest, most difficult-to-pronounce word, but who can lay down the word that scores the most points. More often than not, these two words aren’t the same which is where this Scrabble help comes in.

Building a vocabulary is a matter of spending time with some Scrabble word help games like Literati or TextTwist and looking over a few dictionaries. Learning the strategy of what to play when is a matter for Scrabble help. That’s where the following guidelines come into play. In Scrabble there are no absolutes, but there are some rules of thumb about what to play and what not to play you can incorporate into your Scrabble arsenal. Keep them in mind next time you play.

Tip 1: Slow and Steady Wins the Game

There is always a tendency in Scrabble to want to play the longest, most obscure word filled with X’s, Z’s and Qu’s to score a million points all at once and drive your opponents to tears. If you have all the tiles in your hand at the same time to create a really impressive word (like say Quixotic, which is good for a whole mess of points) then go for it. Play it and get ready to light a victory cigar.

However, if you are holding a Qu and an X in your hand, don’t wait for a big word to come along because it may not. If you have a Z, go ahead and play it. Letters like X and Z are worth more points than say E and S because they appear in fewer legitimate words, and therefore, your chances to play them are smaller. When a letter is sitting in your hand, it hasn’t done something very important (scored you points) and it is doing something detrimental (taking a spot which you could fill with other letters.)

If you can get one rare tile out of your hand and on the board, it means that you earned the points for that tile and you drew another letter. Earning those points is contributing to your final tally and makes you that much closer to victory as opposed to you holding on to those tiles, never playing them and never getting points for them.

Tip 2: The Good Squares Go First

Everyone wants the rush of landing on the triple letter and triple word score squares. Even if they had to put an E (1 big point!) on that square, players go crazy to get their tile on there before their opponents. There is really nothing anyone can do to stop this simple fact of Scrabble competition. All you can do is recognize it’s going to happen and play your tiles accordingly. If you lay down a word that is two or three squares away from a bonus square, it’s a safe bet that everyone is going to be considering what word they can play to reach it.

Tip 3: When In Doubt, Play Something Short

If you have two or more words you could play and are trying to decide which to one to go with, play the shortest word. This may sound counterintuitive because it will probably score you fewer points, but that’s okay. The thing is, if you play a shorter word, you give your opponents fewer squares upon which they can build off of and you can in the later stages of the game force your opponent to pass because they don’t have a play. You have to be careful when doing this because sometimes you can short yourself as well, but hopefully if you did have two plays on your turn by the time its your turn again, you will still have one of those other options available.

Tip 4: You Don’t Need to Play Something Huge the First Time

If you are the first person to play, do not play a huge word for the same reasons listed in tips 2 and 3. If you play a huge word, you give your opponents several different tiles with which they can make words. Also, the longer your word, the more bonus squares you grant them access to (which you know they are going to go after). Why help your opponents by giving them a huge word. The better bet is to gum up the works and play a short word. Force someone else to give you the advantage.

Tip 5: Blank Squares Aren’t That Good

There is a certain mystique to the blank square. It can be anything. (Oooh, aahh) On the other hand, it’s worth exactly zero points. The E is worth one hundred percent more than it is. While you may be able to use it to make some really great words, they are not going to score you as many points as if you actually had that letter. If you can, play the blank immediately after you draw it and make room for a tile that will earn you some points.

Tip 6: Don’t Worry About One Thousand Words that Start with Z and Qu

This bit of Scrabble help goes along with tip 1 above. A lot of people are tempted to make sure they know all of the words they can that use rare tiles. However, more often that not, this knowledge isn’t going to do you much good. Those tiles are by definition more rare than less valuable tiles which means you will not have as many chances to use those rare tiles. Have a good, well-rounded vocabulary (see the next tip) and you will have the best chance of Scrabble dominance.

Tip 7: Spend Some Time with Scrabble Word Help Tools

It may sound contradictory given that the rest of this Scrabble Help focuses on strategy to come back to building your vocabulary. However, the ability to execute on any of these tips relies on the fact that you actually have a word to play. Therefore, spend some time on Scrabble word help sites like Cheat O Matic or WordGamesCentral.com’s Scrabble Helper. The more words you know, the more you get exposure from a Scrabble word help tool, the better you will be able to have the right word for the right strategy. Once that happens, victory is within your grasp.

Good luck!

And if you need a new Scrabble set, Amazon is offer the deluxe Diamond Anniversary edition at a great price.

Help With Scrabble

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