Word Skill — Game Play & Rules
Word Skill is a round-based word game played on a 15×15 board, similar to Scrabble®. Every round, all players receive the same 7 letters simultaneously and compete to form the highest-scoring word. The winning play is placed permanently on the board, building a shared crossword over time.Each Round
- The host taps Start Game once there are at least two accepted players.
- Each round, everyone sees the same Start Round n button. Tap it when you're ready — your 7-letter tray appears and your personal timer starts immediately.
- Play your word (or pass) before your timer ends. Other players may still be on their own clocks.
- When the last player finishes (or the whole-round deadline passes), scores are compared for that tray and the winning word is placed on the board.
- If two or more players tie on score, the one who submitted fastest wins. If submission times are identical, the earlier-submitted move wins. In the unlikely event of an exact simultaneous tie, the winner is chosen at random — but a word always gets placed.
- The next tray is dealt right away; everyone gets Start Round n+1 again. Push notifications when a round is ready are planned.
The Board
The first play of the game must cross the center ★ square. After that, every word must connect to at least one tile already on the board.
Words are validated against the NSWL 2023 Scrabble® dictionary — the same list used in competitive Scrabble® tournaments.
Bonus Squares
- 3W Triple Word — multiply the entire word's score by 3.
- 2W Double Word — multiply the entire word's score by 2.
- 3L Triple Letter — multiply that letter's value by 3.
- 2L Double Letter — multiply that letter's value by 2.
- ★ Center — doubles the word's score for the first play of the game.
Bonus squares only apply to newly placed tiles — tiles already on the board score at face value.
Scoring
- Look up the value of each letter in the word.
- Apply any letter multipliers (2L or 3L) to the relevant tiles.
- Sum all the letter values to get the word's base score.
- Apply any word multipliers (2W, 3W, or ★). Multiple word multipliers stack multiplicatively.
- If you used all 7 tiles, add a 50-point Bingo bonus.
Example: QUIZ on a Double Word square with Q on a Triple Letter square — Q(10×3) + U(3) + I(1) + Z(10) = 44, then ×2 = 88 points.
Blank Tiles
A blank tile (shown as ★ in your tray) can stand in for any letter but scores 0 points. When you place a blank on the board you'll be asked which letter it represents. There are 4 blank tiles in the game.
Playing vs. Gramma Ana
Gramma Ana plays immediately after you submit your move. Her vocabulary difficulty is tied to your rating, so games stay competitive at every skill level:
- New players start at rating 1,200 — Gramma Ana plays words with difficulty ≤ 50 (common words).
- Beating Gramma Ana raises your rating; losing lowers it.
- Ratings range from 800 (easiest) to 2,000 (hardest).
Ratings use the Elo system. Word difficulty (1–100) is based on how rare the word is in everyday text — higher = rarer.
| Gramma Ana Rating | Word Difficulty |
|---|---|
| 800 (min) | ≤ 25 |
| 900 | ≤ 31 |
| 1000 | ≤ 37 |
| 1100 | ≤ 43 |
| 1200 (default) | ≤ 50 |
| 1300 | ≤ 56 |
| 1400 | ≤ 62 |
| 1500 | ≤ 68 |
| 1600 | ≤ 75 |
| 1700 | ≤ 81 |
| 1800 | ≤ 87 |
| 1900 | ≤ 93 |
| 2000 (max) | ≤ 100 |
Ending the Game
The game ends when the letter supply runs low (fewer than 7 letters remain in the pool) or the board is full. The player with the highest total score wins.
Letter Values
There are 100 tiles in total.
| Tile | Value | Per game |
|---|---|---|
| A 1 | 1 pt | × 12 |
| B 3 | 3 pts | × 4 |
| C 5 | 5 pts | × 3 |
| D 2 | 2 pts | × 6 |
| E 1 | 1 pt | × 15 |
| F 4 | 4 pts | × 3 |
| G 2 | 2 pts | × 4 |
| H 4 | 4 pts | × 4 |
| I 1 | 1 pt | × 11 |
| J 10 | 10 pts | × 2 |
| K 5 | 5 pts | × 2 |
| L 2 | 2 pts | × 5 |
| M 3 | 3 pts | × 3 |
| N 1 | 1 pt | × 8 |
| O 1 | 1 pt | × 10 |
| P 3 | 3 pts | × 3 |
| Q 10 | 10 pts | × 2 |
| R 1 | 1 pt | × 8 |
| S 1 | 1 pt | × 7 |
| T 1 | 1 pt | × 9 |
| U 3 | 3 pts | × 5 |
| V 5 | 5 pts | × 3 |
| W 4 | 4 pts | × 3 |
| X 10 | 10 pts | × 2 |
| Y 4 | 4 pts | × 3 |
| Z 10 | 10 pts | × 1 |
| ★ 0 | 0 pts | × 4 |
Tips
- Look for high-value letters (J, Q, X, Z = 10 pts) on Triple Letter squares.
- Extend words already on the board to land on bonus squares.
- Using all 7 letters earns 50 extra points — always worth checking for.
- You can shuffle your tray letters to see them in a fresh order.
The Elo Rating System
Word Skill uses the Elo rating system to measure skill. Ratings update after every vs-bot game.
Starting Rating
All players begin at 1,200. Ratings are clamped between 800 (floor) and 2,000 (ceiling).
Playing the Bot
Because Gramma Ana's vocabulary is calibrated to your rating, she's treated as an equally-rated opponent for rating-change purposes — exactly the same as if you played a human with your rating. Each vs-bot game changes your rating by:
- Win: +16 points
- Loss: −16 points
- Tie: no change
As your rating rises, the bot plays rarer, harder words. As your rating falls, it plays more common words — keeping games competitive at every skill level.
Bot vocabulary difficulty
Words have a difficulty score from 1 (very common) to 100 (very rare). Gramma Ana only plays moves where every word formed (the primary word and any cross-words) has difficulty at or below your cap. See the table in Playing vs. Gramma Ana above for the rating-to-cap mapping.
About
Word Skill was originally designed by David Dunn and Nat Dunn. Read the Hamilton College feature.