The last time I had an S, the only way I can get out of the bad rack was to score decently with it. I would have only scored so many more with it now that I didn't feel that it was worth it. 2J GLUMS I suppose would have been OK, I think I allowed emotions to influence this move too much. #strategymedium
Thought WAGGAS would give up the extra points it scores on defense, but apparently it's only two points worse than GEWGAWS. Maybe GEWGAWS slightly likelier to get +5 from challenge too, but still #tacticssmall 17:58
Quackle ranks the 2x2's: 1) 5E sOREDIAL#, 2) K4 mODIOLAR#, 3) 5E fORELAID#, 4) K5 tOROIDAL. I decided to play through the O to prevent any 2x2's in response, but 2x2's on row 11 probably should be less of a concern than the scoring spots that my bingo creates. mODIOLAR or tOROIDAL sets up the J and Z at J10 or J6 respectively, while sOREDIAL or fORELAID sets up the X at 6F (fORELAID also sets up the X at 6J). Because the spot under sOREDIAL is hardest to hit---requiring the X and either I or O---it makes sense for sOREDIAL to be best. Though I still don't understand why mODIOLAR should be better than tOROIDAL. #tacticssmall
this is wayyyyy too steamful, and i thought i was focused. D10 YEN or YER or even better, 15E AIRY are fine! i'm pretty sure i saw AIRY or at least i should. what am i doing exchanging? bad mistake. -16.5 #strategylarge
I did not know 4B S(C)ABLAND. Maybe B5 AB if I had to do this one over again as that's 10 more and now there's only so much I can do to block after VOCAL. #findingmedium
:O blocked IRONIES and DERISION and didn't have a blank! I think I have to go for turnover here with IRO(N)IES despite being more likely to hit a bingo after RONIN #strategysmall
a rare purposeful phony from yours truly, but I was so tilted here.
I should think about the position here and play 2M DIG. This is still not the best play. #strategysmall
YOLO moment. LATRIUMS* still in play, but I didn't think this would matter much. Kyle won't play it, I probably won't, he could definitely challenge. 6J F(U)SE is best, missed it. #findingmedium
I'm down, so I guess I need to be aggressive by playing L2 ETCHInG. I didn't want to do it because there was still an F, two Ls, and an R unseen. IDK, maybe I distract my opponent with this while I hope to bingo elsewhere. big oof. #strategysmall
i think this was a massive mistake. i didn't want to play 3C TAX for 29 because it keeps two Us, and i was worried that i was just going to have a very clunky rack the following turn and lose that way. my play at least sets up a lane. but, if he has WAX or TAX himself i'm dead. i really regret not playing TAX. i think i could survive with BLSUU and 29 pts. having the case S is awesome. i can also do E11 HABU, which i also like. -6 #strategymedium
Wow, I completely overestimated how bad CDQTW because 8A RE(SHAVED) is just much better here. I figured I could always just hit it next turn since I didn't think it would get blocked or taken. #tacticssaddest
lots of options here. 2F ILEA, 2H AA, 2G ALA are all nice aggressive plays. They kinda bank on her not having the K, but that's a decent gamble in this position. If I draw the K I get good scores, and she can't score there easily at all. I sorta like ALA best of the three because I also open a lane on the 3 row that I can hit even if she gets a K play, ISATINE and the like. A(J)I is also interesting to go for ELASTAN(E), ELASTAS(E), ALIENAT(E). 26/156 I hit, which is pretty good. I'm inclined to take the other 2 row routes to go for the K, but I'm not sure I win always when I draw the K. I think it realistically is pretty often though, and something like ILEA would be good for that to draw the K the most, but after she blocks the spot I may not draw a good K play at the bottom. Maybe ALA because I can still get YENTA draws at the bottom, bingo draws, K draws and stuff like YIKES. #strategymedium because this play doesn't have a big plan, I don't think I clued into how much trouble I was in. I was more in the mindset that I would necessarily squeak out an endgame, but with big K plays available I can't just make a play like this. same with YEANS, that is findable and could be bad.
spent way too long looking for better bingoes and eventually gave up. i couldn't find MONgOES and didn't like MOONErS for whatever reason. #findingmedium
When do I learn that I should never keep two or more I's? And I'm not ahead by enough that I should be paranoid about row 15. K8 MOIRAI is best. #strategymedium
saw a ridiculous amount of ghosts this endgame, most notable after D2 BEE, thinking that after (TE)MPT 5C, my outs were blocked and that my best was LI(T)U G3 which loses by 1 to uN(FAZED), until a recount would have tied the game up given my earlier misscore of TWeRKED. The worst part in all this isn't that I had misscored TWERKED, but that I missed that TEMPT gives me (M)ULIE E5 as an out. This endgame should have been clear as day to me and instead I just flushed 6 minutes down the drain and basically hoped (informedly) that this would be enough. -10 #endgamesaddest
I didn't want to do BIO and offer a new bingo lane for Mike that gives back nothing that I can use. If Mike bingos, I want him to do so at B1, opening up lanes I can use for a comeback bingo. BIO sims best by a mile, but I'm skeptical. #strategylarge?
nooooothing is worse than ur opponent opening with a bingo and having a shitty response. Q likes UNBIND a lot more, I really considered it to put pressure on and maybe to induce a mistake. I should have done that, I got fixated on making this JIN spot and keeping the G open and stuff like that, but I don't hit enough with this. #strategymedium JUT is also better, or JUG. I do hit 1/5 about, but this doesn't seem good enough. also doesn't really keep things open if I play horizontally with DJINN
I didn't consider for long enough the option of exchanging OQ. I also eschewed the defensive aspect of LOX. It would appear exchanging down to ELR is best here #tacticssmall
Here I am again shitting my pants trying to block as many bings as possible when I should just be playing equity. Compared to the top equity play of O12 OURN, this brings her % down by a chonking 2 percentage points. #STRATEGYSADDEST
i did see 2F JEE, but didn't like that i don't have one of the A's to front-hook it. i don't like it that much, idk. i think i would still do JIG any day unless someone convinces me otherwise. -4 #tacticssmall (if anything)
WOW Quackle hates this, despite that VAW has the highest score and best equity. 14A QI is best by far. The next best Q spot scores 11 points, and QI saves N8 NAW for next turn. #tacticsmedium
I8 SPOOL looks a little better. NORSS doesn't even bingo more than NRS and is much higher variance, plus SPOOL creates another S hook I can use. #strategysmall
Horrible play. I chickened out of STROUDs and failed to spot H7 (IN)DUcTORS. Doesn't matter who I'm playing, I cannot let a game slip away at this level. #visionlarge
really tough to sacrifice 7 points, but with both blanks out and no great scoring spots, it's potentially worth doing. Quackle thinks this is a significant mistake. It definitely makes things a lot easier as well. #strategysmall
I did see O10 ARGUER, but what prompted me to keep EGR was the open I in TRIGO and the 4 unseen Ns. I didn't think this would sim too far back, but Quackle doesn't seem to like my move, and I understand that knowing ARGUER is 11 more. #strategylarge
Absolutely insane. To make matters worse, despite slowing down for a half a minute to look for row 9 overlaps, I somehow fail to spot PLATIEs for 3 more. This time, creating the X and Z bomb spot at 10F is somewhat contemptible, seeing as Quackle cannot quickly decide if it likes sacrificing the 3 points or not. PARTIbLE has some decent control. I can see attempting to close things off within 3 moves or so after PARTIbLE. After PLATIEs, not as much, since the R and S of MATADORS and the E and R of ROILIER aren't very intuitive to deal with without opening new threats, despite their closeness. Furthermore, the P on B9 can always be used to make desparate forking plays. Still, I rate this as yet another mistake. #findingsmall
Definitely questionable. I didn't like 5I MOTLIEr or MOTILEs, but I did not see 11G T(O)ILsOME, which is definitely safer knowing there's 3 Ss left, and Robin didn't seem to hesitate burning an S with DUNTS. #findinglarge
wrote a big X here on my scoresheet, which seems to designate that I saw that I had missed NAKFA from the N in DESIGNEE. #findingmedium
AUK L1 is only a 4-point sacrifice too, seems worth making for the leave.