Plays made by the player that were challenged by an opponent. This list may not be completely accurate. Check the 'Challenge Heuristics' section of the about page for more information.
Plays made by the player that were challenged by an opponent. This list may not be completely accurate. Check the 'Challenge Heuristics' section of the about page for more information.
I kinda like giving so little back with TORN, but QUIN may just be fine. QUINT plays will give me hooks. There's also NOR which gives even less back, the I and M hooks aren't really dangerous. Looks like a better version of TORN, I can get some INN plays too. I often feel compelled in these games to give back no hooks at all, but that doesn't mean TORN is the most defensive play. QUIN is fine for offence. #tacticssmall
think I just gotta pull the trigger on DUNCH here. I figured he knew BENDYS so wasn't worried about making another S hook, although CHOMPS is harder to block. NQRU also isn't very good here, I really need a couple more vowels to make it a decent leave, so it's really not so much less risky than PQR, just less shitty. given the difficulty of blocking CHOMPS I should just play DUNCH. #tacticssmall
yeah really bad decision here. I usually don't like phonying with stuff where you know what the definition would be, but the doubt is on whether it is included. I feel like people are usually more likely to challenge cause they don't give you as much blind trust as if you plop down some crazy shit. If I didn't have (A)RF available then this decision would be more okay, but I had already talked myself into playing FLARERS and playing it quickly, so when TOO came down I still just went with my decision, but it's so much better to just play ARF. #strategylarge
Missed the sweet (F)O(D)GEL. I am not in a good position, but any board opening play I can make will just get outrun too easily. FODGEL is a better version of this plsy. #visionmedium
I was a bit wary of opening all the nice floaters, but I still gotta just do ZOSTER here. if it was ERST instead of ORST then we might be talking. He only bingoes 5% more after zoster? interesting #tacticsmedium
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 need to play BOURN here, also makes his parallels give back more, another shot at the extremely important S. Sliiiightly fewer bingoes on average though, but still looks worth. #findingsmall
I only remembered ANTEFIXA taking an L, but it is EL. my position if I accept is also not very good, I will probably do OPERA or exchange. #knowledgelarge
looks pretty close, OC(R)EA is also worth considering. I need to bingo pronto and CO(R)IA lets me do that the most of the 24+ point plays. AERIE felt like it put me a bit too far out of one bingo range. In retrospect, I think OC(R)EA might be the best because it truly forks the board, not letting him parallel on columns G or I, whereas after CO(R)IA he can get stuff like B(O)TT or whatever that blocks everything. I don't expect him to make these plays too often but it's not an option I want to allow. #strategysmall
oh no! this is an uncharacteristic error ..
J: my brain stopped working. I have always felt MEWN* resembled a valid word, so since I was like an infant I've learned to remind myself of HEWN and MEWL, but for some damn reason I decide to not think about that and focus so intently on keeping this board open that I play a frickin phony 4 at nationals. even if this is valid it's not a good play. E2 TWIN and K8 WEND were my other main considerations, I didn't want to play TWINED or anything cause that starts exhausting the board. I wanted humerals to stay open but expected a row 8 play next turn that blocks it. E2 TWIN is honestly fine, keepsthe 7 row with the DMR leave, marginal 2 row, and possibly leaves the K column open if Cesar doesn't have a good overlapping rack. I could even do M(E)W for more variance if I want to go that route, it's not bad. #knowledgelarge
I had a hunch that IMRT might hit more on this board than DIRT (D often ends words, so it's harder to hit the L column), but then told myself I was overthinking it and DIRT was a more standard bingo leave. DAB sims best and bingoes a bit more than BAM! I saw DIRAM which scores well and is a bit better for the board, but BT is quite problematic for the bingo %. #tacticssmall
didn't find enough plays here - HUM 13B and P(R)AHU are both good. I saw THUMP and HAO, both of which seem a bit better than this. I underestimated IMNPU, I suppose it's at least balanced and decent for scoring despite the U. I feel like I overthought this position despite not thinking very coherently. #findingmedium
INCUBI is cool! PION was the other word I considered. BUN at b2 scores an extra point, but NUB is slightly more defensive, taking out the left side more. I score more next turn after PION, it looks wholly better. #tacticssmall
huge misplay this turn, totally missed a lot of interesting options. HUMANE opens the door to GE(D) and LE(D)E and LE(D)GE as setups. GAED N2 is also perhaps a better play. S(T)AGED is interesting as well. The key here is whether he has a blank on his rack. I think the answer is usually, since Q(I) for 31 would often come down. But with the board not great for bingoes, or a rack that isn't helped by the blank a lot, he may elecet to play Qi without another blank in hand. I remember thinking it was decently likely he didn't have another blank, but wasn't sure. I now think that he would probably keep the blank very often and play for 31, the options to outrun in an endgame are immense. A sim has GED, LEDGE, STAGED, GAED, EDGE, and GLADE I'm really not sure what's right, but I am pretty sure I would play LE(D)GE had I seen HUMANE. #visionsmall
didn't like what this did to the board, but something like AW only leaves the 3 row open, the other lanes aren't good anyways. looks between this and AW. AW seems to leave more space open and bingoes a bit more immediately #tacticssmall
Q also likes VEIN M9 to set up the S. Likes it by a whole lot, like 7 points, evening lowering his average while raising mine by 10. It's really aggressive and I'm not sure I'd be comfortable with that in this favourable position, but it is valuated way higher. Quite a bit higher standard deviation. I think this is #visionsmall
then I promptly forget about reovirus! I played this to make the position tougher and to keep the S open for me to hit, as I likely have the better rack. this may not actually make his position too hard as he has lucrative hooks with BDFKM. REOVIRUS is a big miss. #visionlarge
now I am finally burned for missing ASCRIBES! ARIARY comes up for the second game in a row, but this time I'm more confident it's best. TIARA has defensive merit as well, but I will want to deal with ASCRIBES at some point, especially because he can use it to fork the board and open the top left. ARIARY given his EFIKN rack looks best. This play error looks medium in size but the mistake of missing the A hook is a huge error. #visionlarge
Although I'm in a great position after HAMATE (his bingoes will empty the bag, leaving me up a tempo in a close endgame, meaning a very likely win), I should still do AHEM N11 - I really loved what that did, but I was only 90% sure that AHEM didn't take an S, and if it takes an S that could be a game-losing mistake. I felt like the chance that AHEM took an S was higher than the chance that HAMATE would lose me the game when AHEM would win me the game. Either way this is just an estimation and a clear word knowledge error. #knowledgemedium
still in a really good position, even though I can't block the 14 lane without giving back a bigger lane. I would have liked to leave 1 in the bag, but didn't realize at the time how crucial that was. The entire plan with U(K)E or 10M (N)EE is for him to bingo on row 14 immediately, giving me back plays on row 15 that should easily outrun. However, leaving 2 in the bag allows him to fish one, possibly N(U) 12C - after UKE I'm up 60, 58 after the fish. It's really hard for me to block bingoes, and I'm stuck either trying to outrun by playing something clunky on row 14 (again hard to not give back good overlaps, gotta hope for like GENUS or something), or outrunning with a UKES play, which will put me up 84 or 87 (depending on if I draw the G). After he gets my rack, I will be up between 76 and 81, and a lot of his row 14 bingoes score more than that (e.g. GIGATON, INNAGES). I'm still in a decent position given that outcome, but he could also fish for a higher score and still not allow me to block - e.g. ZA or ATE. Perhaps I should do RE(D)E 13K to play 3 tiles, forcing him to bingo immediately. It puts me up 60, but all his bingoes will be on the 14 row, and I saw my T for HIST and S for other HI? plays, so I should be outrunning even his 80 point bingoes very often. Although UKE is great for spread, it opens the door to some really great 1 tiles fishes that I can lose to quite often. #strategylarge
tough call here, definitely a weird position that took me a while. AX D12 is aggressive and certainly considerable, but it gives back a lot on an otherwise dead board, and then CIRTU doesn't go so far here. BRUX also gives back more than I'd like, I imagine he has X plays fairly often (though I draw EXACT and such quite often). XI/QI just seemed to not do anything proactive for me, whereas ACQUIT cleans out the rack that isn't good for bingoing or scoring. Q seems to think ACQUIT gives back more to him, and BRUX is better for me than for him. #tacticssmall
interesting position, depending how I view his odd placement of BLITE. it could be something weird like a scoring rack where he wants too make two spots, or a K. most likely is probably an X. not really sure. it's hard to justify blocking the X bomb cause my plays there are pretty bad and leave the G column. I could also counter-setup with ZA/BA, which mmight actually be fine anyways. this play was a sort of counter-setup, keeping 12a possibilities and h1 possibilities. Q thinks it's way too big a sacrifice, that I should just play YA. i'll call this a #strategymedium
CODA is the sorrt of play I usually make, but COS scores way better than GOS here. this is also only slightly more defensive, and the top left is gonna get plays in the next turn so I'm not worried about the lane longterm. for reference, i score over 10 more after DAGO than CODA! I can also score an extra 6 points next turn by playing GOOD 2c, keeping the A for overlaps and a better leave overall. that is probably the play, it gives up fewer bingooes than DAGO as well. #findingsmall
missed VOE lol, 23 and also nice for the X hooks. I don't assume he has an S, I think it's reasonable he made this play without one. OXO is cute but EEISV is kinda shitty. #findingmedium
once again missed a far superior play that I saw after hitting my clock. I feel like a lot of my errors on the last day and a half like this are really focus errors, but still stuff like HARM should pop out quickly in an ideal world. HARM is also a setup for the S next turn, valuation motherfucking 88!!! HARM is probably the best play in history #visionlarge
oh yeah HOGMANE is a word. coulda been a second 101 point play smh #findinglarge even as a nonbingo this play is trash, I got obsessed with the S but MHO is probably just standard and better anyway. maybe it's not awful because there will never be as nice a way of dealing with the S, but at least MHO has good upside and some defense value, and HOMAGING only partially blocks the S, when it will be more worthwhile to do a lower scoring but complete block later. awfulawful
Q likes FEW way more, really? I can see EEFW being not that good on this board, but it's still not awful. it's saying straight up that I average 2.5 more after FEW and also keep a better leave next turn... I feel like the 2 row after FEW is a more dangerous threat than the O and C after OUCH, although the sim has the immediate bingo % as identical (but mose of the 2 row bingoes will also play on row 7, but later on row 7 will get blocked). However, I think row 2 is easier to block than the marginal OC lanes. Not sure exactly how marginal they are tho, this may not even be a big enough threat to give any weight to. Seems like #tacticssmall but it still doesn't make sense to me that CEOU does so much better
don't remember why I didn't just do TWIG here, obv don't bingo as much but outrun a lot better. I did FILE over WILE also to not make an extra S hook, hopefully can block POOVES and FLECKS together at some point #strategysmall
like this over HEY to not give back easy parallels. sims a few points worse, the HJ combo doesn't seem too good. B7 HEY looks correct here though, didn't consider keeping the Y for a better play next turn. #strategysmall
JEFE increases his avg score b quite a bit, but also does for mine. With no range implied, JEFE seems fine, but given his bingo heavy range, it seems like B7 FEY is better to not give back higher scoring bingoes and a nice lane. #strategysmall
maybe I should do COUNTERS here, I think that is fine. I don't want the top left to get opened, and right now it's gonna be pretty hard to open it. I didn't 'know HOROLOGER, and I think with my huge lead I'm taking I should take COUNTERS and be more defensive. #tacticssmall
think I blew the game here. Didn't see O(G)EE which is awesome. I also thought ABE(L)E was phony. both of those plays are way better than COBIA. I'm still in a good position after COBIA but it lets me draw into shit and be outrun, or be unable to deal with his openings. Terrible. #visionmedium
although SHOVE opens the board for a comeback, it increases his average by a ton since the board is otherwise dead. VE(N)OSE is nice for that, but I also like keeping the I column open for better opening plays later. GO(N)E is interesting to open the board and keep the S. I probably don't need to panic here and should play VENOSE. #findingsmall
considered CODE and ZAX as well, but I liked keeping more bingo chances and opening a new lane. D(E)X bingoes more than CODEX by a couple percent! I do like opening a lane with CODEX though so he can't kill everything with agene. #tacticssmall
I played this fairly quickly but didn't consider WA(N)ION which looks way better. I think this is a strategic error because I didn't really think about how OW keeps duplicated tiles in AN and blocks the E, so I didn't look for a play that played more tiles. I bingo a bit more after OW still, but not by a ton and I score more. It's a bit better for the board longterm as well, I expect a play on row 15 which will help keep things open for another couple turns, rather than a blocking play after OW. I also lower his average score by a point with WANION! surprising. #strategymedium
out of the EO/EE + FS/WS comboes, I liked EEFS best, at least right now. the W could be useful at other times, and maybe FOE is a bit better than WOE here. I didn't like the FO combo, so WOE over WEE, plus the hooks. I can also do EEEW here. I didn't like EEOS after FEW, inviting overlaps that I won't be able to hit well, and making no S hook. Q likes FOE best by a bit, I bingo a smidge less than after WOE but score a bit better w the W for overlaps. #tacticssmall
eep I saw my best bingo, NEGATORY, but thought it was collins! this seems close-to as good, negatory gives back way more and this bingoes a ton. #knowledgesmall
with not many bingo options available, seems okay to go with 15a CODE to outscore, especially with more vowels than consonants left in the bag. I liked this because I keep CL for MYC/AAL, but realistically I barely hit that ever, and I should go all in on outscoring here. I do hit 11% after COP and only 1% after CODE, but the real kicker seems to be that CODE blocks a ton of big scores. looks kinda close but I think CODE is reasonable here #strategysmall
oh maybe just FYK(E) here, a bit less defensive. didn't see it. I was close ot playing DYKE, hoping he might not know the D hook, but I think he would. Q has it similar to FYKE, and that seems a bt better than FYKES. #findingsmall
yeah this is bad, I need to be more proactive. obviously REHA(B) is the play here, but I started doubting myself on HEAPER , which I think is justifiable to open the board. I should have tond that. this is overly optimistic, it doesn't work out well usually. #findinglarge
A really interesting first rack! PAYED is standard and I think I still should have played it. I didn't realize the S hook it set up when I considered it, which would have pushed it over the edge for me. Also, as I took a little while on it, there is some challenge upside. I could also do PAY or PYA to set up S hooks, they do well in the sim. I was worried about the overlaps after PAYED, and some of them do give back good plays to me, but he can probably find one that doesn't. I think PAYED is definitely better though, I average 6 more after PAYED! #tacticssmall it is a bit odd that I forwent the standard payed due to overlaps then I went with the PEATY that gives easier overlaps, but I felt that Y on the star was too bingo defensive for my leave. not a great play
I missed 7M WOE and 12D OWE here, I was v fixated on TWO/WOE before he played BEEN so I think I tunnelled on the spot. #tacticssmall OWE looks a bit better for my bingo % even though the S is a better lane for me, he doesn't block the N as much as the S next turn.
lucky pull from AEEIT. I misevaluated this position, I thought he would bingo a lot more after TEATIMES than MEATIEST, but it's only a tiny bit more, and he scores over 2.5 more on average after MEATIES, presumably cause of C and E column overlaps, which are also bingo lanes that balance out the TEA 8s lanes, making MEATIEST only barely more bingo defensive. I am more focused on bingo defense here, but it's such a tiny difference in bingo% I should just play TEATIMES. #tacticssmall
Q prefers DUH by a bit, hmm. I feel like I want a better leave to deal with openings he may make, and HUV is more likely a non-exchange rack than RRUV. Q seems to think my average leave after DUH is better next turn, interesting. Maybe more exchanges? I'll say #tacticssmall but I'm not sure.
I missed 2e YOU, which I think is the play here. I liked this more than coyau just for defense, but I think YOU is probably more defensive cause he can start with any vowel or S. He has an R more often than usual given he played one and also is keeping bingo tiles, but the H1 YOUR spot isn't massive. #findinglarge
eep I saw FUMULI and FAMULI but just wasn't sure at all the difference is smaller on this board than usual but it's still clearly better to play fumuli (I average more next turn after cumuli) #knowledgesmall
I was sad to see touche come down! not only does it make a sneaky K1 lane, it also blocked my devastating V(OUCH) setup I was gonna make, setting up JAW or JAG. but ah fuck I missed a great opportunity with (Y)AWL here, setting up JEW above for hella plays, JIG, JAG next turn which happens a lot. I got really tunneled on VEG vs. JEW and misssed that opportunity, which REALLY helps me outrun. #visionmedium
yeah big oversight here, I didn't realize I made AG for ZAG for her, so I regretted not playing OAVES, even though she has F7 ZA plays. AVA isn't much behind cause I do average a lot more after AVA (12 more0, but I can cut her average by 7 with OAVES. #tacticssmall
I actually average more next turn after OWIES than OWIE! since I am opening the board it seems. She averages 5 more after OWIES but that doesn't cover the difference in score. That's kinda surprising but I guess it makes sense...? the S isn't amazing here. A bit confusing cause often you don't want to open the board cause they get a lot more benefit than you, but I guess here I'm making a scoring spot after OWIE. #tacticssmall
same deal here as last turn. OBIAS raises both of our averages, this time mine more than hers even! EIOS isnot good here, the S isn't especially powerful, I should just go in with OBIAS. I guess the key in the last two plays is that the better leave with the low scoring play isn't actually that much better, which is why my average score is more affected by opening the board than by keeping the better leave, so it's better in both cases to take the points and raise both of our averages. here the difference in leave is starker. #tacticsmedium
maybe be aggressive and do C11 WAIR? I figure at this point she might easily have an S as she's been grooming her rack. Q prefers M2 WIS with few As out, I bingo more apparently, and average more. I guess I keep VISA open for next turn as well. #tacticssmall
so this was a huge mistake on many levels! Firstly I somehow got it in my mind he had DEHIMOS on his rack. LOVAGES/MICROS would give him DEMOLISH, whereas he would get HOMIE after G8 LOVAGES. That's why I played it here, but not only was I wrong and he has ADEHMOS, I average so much after DEMOLISH that it's actually worth it to play 9B lovages even if he has dehimos! that being said the post-HOMIE board is better for me so I think it's closer than the sim says, but the sim still prefers 9B by like 11 points. #strategylarge for being dumb
I didn't see TUR(BI)D, which looks like a better X setup. It's not as clearly an X setup and doesn't open an S hook for him. With ADES I wasn't so concerned but I'm still giving him a couple awesome lanes, and he's taking the spot very often anyways. Even XU/LOT is probably fine here. #findingmedium
damn didn't see PROMPT! that looks better here. #findingmedium also not much inspiration on this exchange, I guess it's fine? not much scoring power with PR so I wasn't a huge fan, same w the X
maybe GWINE? sets up X? plays underneath for later. also might be decent to just leave the L column cause the bingoes don't hit super hard, GLOW sets up the A hook whichmight be hard to block later, and the W is a high scoring lane. I think GWINE is a bit better #findingsmall
wow this is awful! I def overestimated EEESX and underestimated EIQ. Us are out, I have QI as backup, and QUIN? plays at the bottom right can hit hard. M1 EXES looks like the play here. I also didn't realize K6 QI is better than this cause I set up EXES next turn for 51!! well worth the 2 point sacrifice, but EXES still kills that in a sim #tacticslarge
I felt like my S was going to be very powerful here with LANTERNS and other scoring plays, so decided against EXPOSE for 8 more, even though the blank is good to draw. Q prefers EX/BINE by a bit, I score as well with EEPPS next turn. #tacticssmall also prefers EXPOSE, that ends up simming best. I suppose reaching for blanks mainly, hmm.
I always underestimate how much more bingo-prone the I is than the A. I felt that AD had enough synergy over DI that ADES was the better leave, but the difference in scoring isn't that great and DEIS bingoes a few percent more than ADES. ex AE also bingoes more than both, which I find kinda surprising cause I felt ADEIS was one of the worse 3v2c leaves, since the D is less flexible than stuff like the LNRT tiles. Ofc that's with no inference in the sim, Joey will restrict my bingo% more after an x2. I'm willing to say this is a #tacticssmall since I doubted DEIS too much. IDEA or AIDE are okay optimally, but it's pretty close, and my plan against joey is definitely not to play either of those plays, giving back a lot more in score and bingoes. even optimally I tend towards exchanging.
ouch big miss of FELLA here. VAT is definitely the play. I considered VACANT, which seems more thematic with the lead, but I felt like it was too big a sacrifice, and the top-left defense it does is only minor cause the C is aready fairly defensive in the position it's in, and VACANT gives up a few more bingoes immediately than VAT. def a #visionmedium for the hook - in the sim this play is only 4 points back, but that's assuming I find FELLA next turn, which I don't
big error, and I didn't properly find my options here. My thought process was very much focused on JET, and I really remember kinda pretending to myself that I was looking for other options when I was really just excited to play JET cause it felt so good. I want to not make these sort of excitement errors in the future, and truly look for other options. I think I was temporarily unaware of the SEGO threat or something, because once I notice that longterm threat I should be less satisfied with JET. JIB(E)R is absolutely the play here. Not only cause PLT is better than BILPR on this board (more flexibility, not as many problem consonant racks), JIBER takes out the SEGO spot which will be a bitch to block, and the recursive threat will let joey wait for a big play there. #strategylarge even though I didn't find the play, it was based on being unaware of the threat, and JIBER isn't hard to come up with once the threat is noticed
at this point I should be playing RYA 11b. that blocks the SEGO spot, which is now a threat for me. the R is also not so dangerous with 3 in the pool, and especially since Joey has a knack for keeping scoring tiles so his DEV range is less bingoey than one might expect. this sets up AY above, but that may not be enough to consistently outrun SEGO plays #strategymedium
big oversight here. I should plaly FA/AI, which I rejected because of the easy parallels it gives back. however, if I took a closer look I would realize that all of Joey's responses will give back an even bigger parallel to me. TIE wil give TIER, TIL TILE, TIN TINE, TIP TIPI, TIT TITI. same with FAN FAR FAT giving E hooks. #tacticslarge
tough call here. I liked TWO(S)OME some but the S hook is more risk than I'd like to take here. LOW, MOW, and LOWE are all interesting. She averages a bit more after LOW cause of the E hook, but it's close. I average most after LOW, ELOT isn't very good generally or here. LOWE might be the best medium between them, I score more on average next turn than after MOW and only sacrifice one point. Her average is about the same after each play. #tacticssmall
I got very fixated on the N column lane now, but I think I can do better by just outrunning. I missed the 7I Z spot, AZ(I)NE is good there. I also have ZEIN(S)/MOWN, which is probably best to take out that marginal high scoring lane as well. UNAI has a bit of defensive merit and can still outrun if I find the BIZ spot, but I think ZEINS is wholly better cause I can outrun next turn. #findinglarge
julia is so funny, she was saying how I was already destroying here! I'm only up by like 20 haha. I missed PYU(R)IA here which looks better #findingsmall
yeah missed a lot of good options here, just kinda autopiloted. OI/OWE C13 is really nice to set up the L, and B2 PIOLET is a nice defensive option. this board has some marginal S hooks which is kinda annoying, so PIOLET is just to start outrunning bingoes. OI looks like the play #visionmedium
once again OI is a pretty nice play to set up a lane, now especially it's pretty justified. Also missed A(B)OIL here. I focused on the B too much and was too intent on keeping the scoring pressure on - don't always need to lower variance!!! hard to expect how much she'll open, so ABOIL seems fine as well. #strategysmall
yeahhh wasn't really sure of SICE, that's bad. ERODE is pretty good if I will play SICE next turn, but she also has an S a lot of the time and may take the spot. #knowledgesmall
looks like I13 FON is the play here, I missed SICKO. BNNT is quite a bit worse but not ridiculously so, the 7 points seems worth it. I liked making overlaps a bit harder though, but a sim says that's only a minor difference. #visionsmall
this makes the X really powerful, AXES is like a game winning play. She already really likely has an S on her rack, probably not the X but it's possible she kept it with ZA (with AX I12 I'd assume she didn't have it). NIB only allows AXES, whereas BIN allows both axis and axes. am I in a bad enough position to need to win by getting axis? if that's the case I should play BIN. If I think I can win another way I should make it less likely she gets the play, and should play NIB. I didn't consider BI(T) 6F which is pretty cool - I save HADJI for next turn and don't allow the big X possibility. Can I win if she draws the X and I don't draw the blank? I feel like after BIT the game becomes more about the blank, whereas after BIN it's more about the X and AX?S, but the blank could still allow me to bingo if she got the play. Turnover is important here cause of the value of the blank and X, so maybe I should play QUERYING - still saves BIT and HADJI plays, doesn't give anything back.
I'm inclined to not exchange here, even though it seems like a decent option optimally. I think I can outrun here, and I'd like to be able to outrun even if I don't draw the blank. I feel like QUERYING is good even though the sim hates it - I don't allow AX?S plays, I save HADJI and BIT for future turns, at which point she may have played the I or X. I think I should at least play NIB over BIN, my chance of drawing AXIS is pretty low so I should at least make it harder for her to get it. Other than that I have no idea what to do here. #strategysmall
I'm so bad at tactical defense, honestly. I always overestimate 7s lanes and think I'm fancy by playingsomething "defensive" like HERL when really I'm allowing way more bingoes. L(A)THER is fine as a standard play, even with his range it is still a good play, I'm not giving back so many extra bingoes that wouldn't play otherwise. If I really want to be defensive I should do L(A)TH or something, or even HERL D6. #tacticslarge
UP/PHI over this mostly because of my next turn's leave, which Q thinks is really good after UP but bad after CHIRP. This is a bit too much disparity, cause it's probably keeping CERT type leaves that are really not good on this board. Still, I'm at a deficit, so keeping better bingo options is good. I could also do P(RE)CURE, which opens the board more nicely. I think UP or PRECURE should come down. #tacticssmall
must have missed M(U)GG, obv better. I didn't like that this also closes the option of opening the top left later on, GRIM opens this marginal G line but prevents me from doing a good setup there later. #findingmedium
missed some flat out better options. although finite is nice to keep the board open, and sets up a hook he may be unsure of, it still gives up Q/X bombs and easy overlaps. 9E FIE or 9F IF are good here, the former to complicate the situation a bit more, the latter perhaps a bit more optimal. #findingsmall
I overestimated how big this spot I was setting up was, his average goes waaaay up. making this lane probahbly helps me a bit, I end up bingoing as much after PUB as u fishes like PIU, but yeah PUB just gives him a much bigger spot on a subpar scoring board. PIU or PRAUS seem okay here. I would probably do PIU. #tacticsmedium
got kinda... idk aggressive loving or something, w the R out and the lead I liked having this leave, and to outscore with OLIVES hooks. however I should play OGIVE, which is a better version of this! I think I temporarily forgot that OGIVE took an S #knowledgesmall. I could see playing VOGIE as well, that is the type of play I usually make!
damn OE is just way better. I totally didn't see the TOEA hook and instantly regretted it! even just the straight up 8 point sacrifice for the T is good. #tacticsmedium
I think I was a bit too worried about his range here. after OXY his options are limited, so pretty often NIL won't be keeping the best leave possible. with AINT specified, GARDA sims second best to GHAT, which kills the sim. I guess with that type of rack it hits the G quite well. I was too worried about the ANIL lane I guess. I was happy to not play AARGH, but that is probably okay. What he had in reality was def the lower end of his range, but it seems that with a lot of reasonable racks GHAT is the play. I am surprised that ANIL is this small of a worry, but I guess it does partially restrict the lane. #strategysmall
I was kinda nervous on this turn, I saw big downsides with every option, and that probably prompted me to play more paranoid with this play. That being said, I was kinda happy that it looks like a huge mistake but I think it's not the worst (at least not the 37 points down Q has it as :D). spread does kinda matter though, so I should really play JO(E) and go for a bingo. JERID can get in trouble if he hits an S play then a bingo, all the other J plays can get triple tripled on. JOTA can of course go south with 2 bingoes, or even a 14J play, but at least I'm very likely to hit a bingo, and it's unlikely he would hit a 14J play and a bingo and I don't hit a bingo. I still outrun 1 bingo very consistently, after JOTA for 11 or other J plays, but I guess after other J plays I can start beating 2 bingoes. f2 JOTA or 2f JOE are probably the plays here, even though it sucks to give up the occasional triple triple. those only really lose to 2 bingoes or a triple triple, and even then the 2 bingoes are very unlikely (I'd have to not bingo). so a triple triple is probably less likely than a big 14 play + bingo after JOTA, but I don't think this is a massive error. #strategymedium or something? idk
gotta do W(A)IF here for sure, gives back way less and keeps a very prone leave, especially now that OUTA looks like it's mine. INteresting that WIFTY sims better than WIFEY, it gives back less and averages the same (even more bingo % after WIFTY!), likely cause of the open T that is duplicated in the ART leave but helps the AER leave. #tacticssmall
huge error here. I thought BING took an S and felt weird about setting up an S hook when he has one on his rack. BUNG is the same type of deal, good aggression but obviously that's not the goal here. I surely would have played BING had I been sure it didn't take an S, but I think BUNG is still far better than my play. BEGUN has two major issues, defensively. It allows plays from 15a which will let the left side be opened, and it doesn't really block the 15 row, the M will now be really really tough to block and will just sit there until one of us hits it. This is why BUNG is better than BEGUN, at least an S play will do great things to the board next turn. as long as I can avoid an immediate bingo I will be in a great position. BING is still the play, also blocking the D, and working out so well so often. #knowledgelarge
I was down to 5:46 at this point and was stressing about time, so I played OX very quickly, as it blocks the B and scores decently. (RE)X is well worth considering to take out the RE- lane and keep a vowel. GNRST can go south far too often, all it takes is a two consonant draw. N5 STRONG looks like the play, not really cause it sets up the X but more cause it starts exhausting the bottom right - I could even make a play next turn that blocks the M and kills the entire right side (save maybe the K column). #visionmedium
I think VOCAB needs to come down here. Although it doesn't do as good a job at outrunning as GUACO, it lowers his bingo% from 22 to 13. I may have to go all in on defense here, it will be tough to outrun (if he bingoes he's still drawing into a great pool). If he bingoes after GUACO I could possibly win, I'll be down at least 25 (for 11 row bingoes), an out in two will probably not win with GV in hand. RE- bingoes will win the game instantly for him. I think VOCAB is the play, outrunning with GUACO isn't viable enough. #visionmedium
I think GN(U) has to come down here. Again can't reasonably outrun, so have to go all in on defense. TONG is also reasonable, emptying the bag here is good to prevent him fishing (he could hit the B and E column, I will not be able to block both too often). GNU has the issue of allowing better fishing options for him, but it's really hard for him to open a new lane after GNU, so he's stuck having to hit the blockable B column. I looked for blocks but didn't consider GNU. #findinglarge
I didn't consider I5 TUG, which looks really solid. Although I am favoured on a board with more options cause of my powerful leave, TUG I5 totallly obliterates the board, to the point where I just get too much out of it immediately to forgo. #findingsmall
quite a few plays with with blank draws, but it's highly unlikely I'll draw the blank after he played bemix. I didn't see any legit wins over the board so I went with AQUAS which put enough scoring pressure on to make his endgame fuckupable. I missed a win with the S though - QUANT wins with the S cause he can't play TiME cause I get STIME/BATS for the win! #endgamelarge
he was low on time in the endgame, and I spent a lot of time on AQUAS so I was low on time. I have a win here - 2K B(I)N(I)T. fucking awful #endgamelarge I thought this might be good, wasn't sure
probably a #tacticssmall for 11B PA(R)EO which only raises his avg. by 2 points over this. AEPR is nice though and I'm opening the 11 and 13 lane, so it's a small difference.
wow this is actually horrible! I only really win with the A and L draws. with the other draws he has a lot of 1 and 2 point wins, often stuff like R(I)VAL or V(I)TAL saving TU(R)F and TUF(A), and some other stuff. I realized that the O setup here was kinda weak, but still just assumed I was in a great position. That's totally not true. I missed F2 JIAO, which is far better. #endgamelarge JIAO only loses with a V draw to 14G TURF setting up LAT. Although JO will win a lot in reality cause most of the endgames are somewhat difficult, it's still horrible and a massive oversight
7I OUR is also cool, the U isn't super parallelable so it's kind of a board fork. GURU doesn't give much back, and I chose this one for 1 less point because it doens't allow h11 plays. h11 plays aren't so bad for me cause they give more lanes, but they still score better than most other plays on the board. I also like leaving a bit more distance from the E column in case a LEGGY play comes down, partially inhibiting my lanes. although EORS > ERSU, the better board position makes OUR bingo almost as much as GURU. #tacticssmall
wow didn't consider L1 JAWL(I)NE! it's nice to not open the O column. I think I prefer it by a bit, setting up the scoring spot is okay as well with my lead. #visionsmall
shiiiiiit I missed FREMD. #findinglarge I was also close to exchanging here, and I think it is fine, especially cause DEFT doesn't take an S so overlaps may not leave me with much. ERST sims best, followed by EMRST then DERST then DEFT quite a bit below #tacticssmall as well for the DOUBLE FAIL!!1
shiiiiiit I missed FREMD. #findinglarge I was also close to exchanging here, and I think it is fine, especially cause DEFT doesn't take an S so overlaps may not leave me with much. ERST sims best, followed by EMRST then DERST then DEFT quite a bit below #tacticssmall as well for the DOUBLE FAIL!!1
she played ZIT with mucho gusto, and it made me think it was probably a setup. I worried that F(I)G, the best block I saw, was gonna be too big a sacrifice in the case it wasn't. however, I think I should have trusted my read on her since even with just XI implied FIG beats FOE and OF by over 5 points. with QI implied it's an even bigger difference, of course. #strategymedium
hmm not sure why I chose LINGOES over LONGIES. I think I had taken a while on the opening rack and wanted to be a bit quicker on this move. It's an extremely minor difference but it's definitely a bit defensive and favorable to play LONGIES. Calling it a vision mistake because I saw all the words in the rack but did not consider LONGIES in this spot. #visionsmall
both a vision and a tactical error. I missed IXIA at 1G and 14A, both of which seem better than FLUX. IXIA at 14a sets up FU? plays for me with D and N draws (or IT draws, etc.). It is slightly annoying because he could easily have an S for basically game-ending ZEDAS plays, or FIT plays of his own (though it seems like I'm favoured with this spot, my average increases by more than his does). I may have played 1G IXIA had I seen it just to be a bit less risky. FLUX vs. ILEX looks close as well - the pool is somewhat consonant heavy, making AEII less bad than usual. #visionsmall
after an entire game of overestimating my position, here is a turn where I seem to have grossly underestimated it. I played TI(X) because I decided I probably needed to bingo to win the game. I felt like (V)ITA would allow him to block the 15 row, and then I would have basically nowhere to bingo (barring occasional 1 row bingoes). TI(X) leaves the 1 row as well as the A column, so given a blocking play may end up bingoing more than VITA. however, if I play VITA, he cannot easily block, since I will be in a position to outscore. all the vita blocks are pretty low scoring, so I think I can easily afford to play it. In a sim, VITA bingoes way more than TIX, which indicates the A at 15a is a good lane for me, and it may stay open quite often. The bingo draws on row 1 after TIX are: HR, HS, ES, AS, ID, GS, HS, IR, and RS. given random draws these happen 24/240, so 10% of the time. My position after VITA is surely better than that given the difficulty of blocking the lane while outrunning (just in a 2 ply sim Q has me bingoing 22%). This feels like a strategic error because I did not properly consider the future options after VITA, assuming that a block was inevitable. #strategylarge
LUAU seems a bit better, from the L in UNTITLED, it blocks some bingoes and lowers his avg. that being said I scor a lot more with ET than AEIT and it's a less risky leave. #tacticssmall
this is a poor effort. was banking on the D being in that bag, making it very hard for him to block. however, he can just play TI or NU and block pretty thoroughly. I think NEE I11 is an interesting idea. any NEED blocks will either make a lane going left or going right. might be marginal if he plays GRIDE, but still something. Q likes EH/WOOSH, but I'm worried about plays around there because the G can block so well. #strategylarge cause this isn't very good.
should just do HOURI, forks the board some and I probably need the lanes. His range isn't super strong after OXIC cause the board is dead, in fact he had ILRRY. I was happy with JORUM but HOURI seems like the best thing to do for the board. #visionsmall
looks like WAND or exchange here (CNS or CST are both fine, going for the COBIA hook). CDNST is really lane cause I don't even bingo often, and when I don't I'm not in a great position. WAX also encourages COBIA to be blocked. I think I should exchange. #tacticssmall
or ZA. I only hit 11/46 on the O column but another 6/46 on the 6 row, 4 more on column E, and also OVERTASK on row 15. Looks like a small improvement over AT #tacticssmall
I'm not sure... I think a12 plays come down a lot, in which case I want to keep as much bingo space open. based on a sim, it seems like the top left marginal lanes are realllly marginal, keeping them open barely improves my bingo chances. I think I should do WAND or D(A)N L7 over CANID, if an a12 play is happening I want to go harder on the bingo%, it will be difficult to outrun. WAND could possibly outrun. #strategysmall
I probably need to do N5 OU(R) here, I need two bingoes to get back in here. that also does the mose for the board longterm, makes it hard to close everything. AUDIO sims well but I need to go harder on bingoes. #findingsmall
nice defense with CHORD. this is a very tilty play, I had memorizes the J?TTY variations and had I thought at all I would have remembered that the blank needs to be an E. #knowledgelarge
I missed the MOHO hook this turn. I would have probably played YUM there, keeping the board full of S hooks. MY is also okay, but YUM bingoes far more. #visionsmall
ahhh CONVENTED! #visionlarge I also kinda regretted playing FUN, it lets him overlap sometimes when he has MNX tiles. The sim is kinda weird cause it has him opening a lot after FUN, but realistically I think I should play (E)NUF to be more defensive. CO(N)N is super defensive but also blows up my rack. #tacticssmall for ENUF.
ahhh CONVENTED! #visionlarge I also kinda regretted playing FUN, it lets him overlap sometimes when he has MNX tiles. The sim is kinda weird cause it has him opening a lot after FUN, but realistically I think I should play (E)NUF to be more defensive. CO(N)N is super defensive but also blows up my rack. #tacticssmall for ENUF.
just fishing the F with EFF hits 32/75 of the pool! and is very defensive. I put the T on for extra defense, he averages over 5 less than after VEX. I didn't mind the scoring spot VEXT opens cause if he hits it he's likely giving one back to me. Still, 7E EF or (EF)F look better #findingsmall EF vs (EF)F is interesting, the latter is more standard but the former also invites 8a openings which open the board for me, and I average a lot next turn.
Q thinks I should play both FUNGOES and FAX over this. I didn't consider FAX strongly, but the board is REALLY bad for scoring if I play it, so there's a ton of defense value, plus the almost guaranteed bingo next turn. FuNGOES only drops my score by 22 in comparison with FOE, and drops his average by about 4. I think the dearth of scoring spots on the board should have led me away from playing FOE. #strategysmall
yeah lol OUTA/AG is just a lot better, I bingo waaaay more. I saw the play, but then just kinda liked this recurring S setup and how it was a bit more defensive. #tacticsmedium this felt like a bit of a focus error
thought about 4b HAVE for spread cause i Have the case Ss, but there is still a blank out and it just opens the board more. SHAVE is more standard than this, but it also takes NNNRRRR from the pool (mainly just the R is the worry) so he hits the spot more than I do. it's pretty close in a sim, but SHAVE still does better #tacticssmall a lot of that is bingo% though, which isn't very important here
this is probably an overadjustment, I wanted to prevent monster E column bingoes. however, I am taking quite a big hit, about 6 points in the sim. Tough call, cause VERY also makes her plays a bit easier. I think this is a bit too far, since TERM has some risk involved as well with the leave and stuff. #strategysmall but it's up for debate!
Q says she averages about the same after OOF and POOF, I'm surprised by that. I trust her plays are still a bit easier after OOF, but I guess I overestimated the difference. #tacticssmall
maybe BAM M7 to take out the X spot, or even 4H VI(G)I(A) now to a) take out the G column and to keep BAM for next turn. I kinda like that play honestly, this play is annoying with S plays and doesn't really do anything productive. #strategysmall
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.
Q prefers FAULD over this because EIN bingoes a bit more than AEL. Q also prefers TAU but I am not a fan, I don't expect him to open things up for my leave. #tacticssmall I also thought there was a chance he wouldn't know orsee the C hook
I thought about A11 MAILE but not 13I EMAILEd. I think MAILE is actually fine, MEALIES opens up a big scoring spot for him, but also E? isn't great here cause bingoes need to start in vowels or use the blank as an S. that was why I decided against MAILE, but EMAILED looks better, he averages not even a point more than after mealies but my average goes up cause i'm opening the board more generally and not just one spot. #visionsmall
(R)IP might be the play here. I bingo a bit more than after TIPI. (H)ILI is also nice to make a better lane, I bingo quite a bit. this is a bit too closed and doesn't bingo quite enough #findingsmall
I didn't consider fishing the M, nor did I consider M12 (E)LK! ELK looks really strong now, and it's not easy to block either. ILK does pretty well, and does open the right side which is important (and thought he miiiight miss ilka). I considered 13L TSK as well to set up a really hard to block lane, but without S in hand it's not as powerful. this looks like a #findingsmall for ELK
I think 7c ATT might be the play i was looking for. I didn't like that MATT gave back big overlaps, but ATT is better cause his overlaps score less and they will give back a lane on the A column. The pool isn't too dangerous for those overlaps either. I like it to keep ILKA open. I was kinda lost for options here, didn't see anything besides ilka plays that I liked. At this point I was also not so down about playing with ILKA because I figured I could get away with the S hook and challenge it off if he played it. #findingsmall
#endgamesmall O1 QI is better because after DREG he can block with OBE, saving AI for 9. If I start with Qi, he can't block with OBE cause that gives DREG back for more. this endgame worked out better cause there was the chance he missed my out
thought about AA for real, which is prob what I play normally, but I didn't like how risky DEIOT was, especially on this board with not many good options for it if I don't hit. 4L ODEA is also fine as a more open option, but AA is nice and defensive. AA just performs similarly to ALODIA in most ways so the score is worth it. I'll say #tacticssmall cause it's probably an overadjustment
I strongly considered (C)AF here, but idk. I do get bailouts wiht AAAAIIIIIIUUU which is nice, but they don't always stay open. I like what QI/QI does for me next turn w S? in hand, but idk it feels too limiting to keep the Q. Q prefers CAF here, #tacticssmall it seems it blocks some scores crom the C (QAT lets him average a couple more), and just looks about worth it given the Q bailouts.
I think I didn't consider FLABS but I kinda remember considering FLAB and not liking that C- bingoes wouldn't play. I think FLABS is def worth it though, this is badddd #findingmedium
Y setup! I could be more defensive with H11 EMU or something, maybe that's the call! with the 3 row and such I like setting up a scoring spot, but maybe it gets taken organically too often. given the deliciousness of the 3 row for the Y already, I think EMU is fine cause I score a lot, only a few less than after swum. #findingsmall
EBBS is annoying now, there's something to be said for leaving the C open in part to make a lay down to D8 to take out EBBS. however, ebbs isn't a huge threat cause it opens the triple for me, so outrunning is more of the goal here, with VIGILS open a bit as well. TAKA looks good for both of these goals, DFIU is more balanced as well and I block VIGILS. #findingmedium
phony! I saw AWL/JARL, not PALEAE, and I think I considered EEW. this isn't even a great play if it's good! EEW sims best. #tacticssmall #knowledgesmall
phony! I saw AWL/JARL, not PALEAE, and I think I considered EEW. this isn't even a great play if it's good! EEW sims best. #tacticssmall #knowledgesmall
Quackle likes keeping the Q here, EQU ahead of E and EIQU doing best - I score 6 more on avg. than keeping E, which is pretty cool. I remember thinking that the Q was probably not so great on the first turn, but that seems incorrect. #tacticssmall EIQU is the most variant leave of the bunch, though
looks like I chose wrong here. M1 MODI, 6D ROD, 6D ROM all look worth playing here. I liked opening the top left with this play, but I also set up QAT and X plays, which are really annoying. ROD is probably my favourite of the bunch. #strategysmall
surprisingly, she averages 6 more after TIVY than MARBLY, and 8 more than after E10 lays. I didni't think the Y there was such a dangerous spot, but it seems to be. OYEZ sucks but are there a lot of plays like that? Q prefers MARBLY here, I don't see a reason not to trust the sim, besides my slight preference towards the less risky ABEL leave. #tacticssmall
I should probably leave the 3 row open, it's hard for him to close. I hated all my options - DAV(E)N? that puts pressure on at least, it's probably better than VAN. I was kinda hoping he wouldn't have a good TAGS block, but he can always do a mediocre one from the G in KLEAGLES or with ETA, and then I have to bingo on some terrible marginal lane. I think I got too obsessed with staying in bingo range, DAVEN isn't likely to win but at least I will be able to have a place to bingo. I think B4 ADD is good as well, keeping the 3 row and 13 rows open. either one of those seem way better than VAN #strategylarge
was happy to draw the last remaining Ss and to see him play BIKE and block most of the ?AT setups. I might want to play wyn/by here. looks close. EGSS at least takes out the 7 conso rack danger. I should probably do that. I wanted to keep both Ss to hit SCURVY as a scoring play, hence not WYTES. however there is something to be said for playing the S to avoid the 7 consos. I think WYN is the play #strategysmall
I think I just have to bite the bullet and play Q(I)S here, sacrifice my precious S. Q prefers QI, but between blocking bingoes and avoiding 7 conso racks (especially if he makes a board opening play, I want to be able to block). #strategysmall
The listing of all of the player's mistakes. For more information about mistakes, check the 'Mistakes' section of the about page.
this was a really interesting spot. I would have played PALPED had I known it to valid. Barring that, tons of options existed. I doubted how important the hooks on LAPPED were in the grand scheme of things, other than their effect on standard deviation from the norm. A1 plays were kind of likely to block that hook. This board was also full of scoring potential, and I didn't like squandering myself at all here with equity values. DAPPL(E) was an option, I thought of APPLED* and doubted it. TAPP(E)D leaving LN seemed ugly. I didn't see LAPP(E)T or APPL(E)T keeping DN. That looks fine as well. #knowledgesmall for PALPED.
i chickened out on the far better P(A)NFUL. i didn't want to risk it on a word i wasn't totally sure of, but i need to be better at the words. -17 #knowledgelarge. also, N7 VULN > FLAP because HUMERAL takes an S. i completely had forgotten about this.
quackle prefers taking the pts with B4 NAV (and also killing that part of the board). RTU? should bingo pretty often, and it's good to score more points here. -5.5 #visionmedium #tacticsmedium
quackle prefers taking the pts with B4 NAV (and also killing that part of the board). RTU? should bingo pretty often, and it's good to score more points here. -5.5 #visionmedium #tacticsmedium
this is a very poor placement for my bingo, reminds me of playing newbs who play a blank bingo hitting nothing for 20 fewer than an actual good play. my main problem is that i just completely forgot HUMERAL took an S. if he had put an S on it i would have been like oh yeah! also, the pretty R(EH)EATING is available, and should be eminently findable by me. even BERATiNG is a ton better. i suppose i was trying to play defense, if one was to assume HUMERAL didn't take an S, my move might be defensible compared to BERATING. in any case, i'm very likely to win this game now no matter what, but i should learn the words better. #knowledgelarge -22
quackle's ridiculous robot brain wants me to do J12 TEAT or TEIN so i can have a great chance at a triple-triple or at least a bingo up top. pretty crazy. the equity loss here is gigantic, but i'll just roll my eyes at it. #tacticsmedium
Yeah ugh this was difficult. On the one hand JOB C1 just looks like the play. Creates a big spot but blocks the likelier lane, and scores better than GOJI. But I got worried about him fishing for JEZAIL or having it. That's not really enough for him to win though, so I shouldn't have worried #tacticssmall
just with BRANG*, I was about ready to snap challenge, and the longer I took, the less I felt I should challenge. This is a huge mistake, but I still figured my best chances were holding on from this position. But I missed AR(M)Y for 39, which is too many to say no to. There is very limited risk of 7 consonants next turn being pivotal enough to lose the game, and also very minimal chance of not drawing a vowel, given the 15/10 vowel/consonant ratio. Something like 10-15%? I just missed AR(M)Y, but worse, I made this play with absolutely no clue about RALLYE, a word I know. I never saw RALLYE. This was Jackson's game to come back and win. Incredibly good pressure by him, picking at my confidence levels more and more every turn. #knowledgesaddest #visionsaddest #strategysaddest #findingsaddest
just with BRANG*, I was about ready to snap challenge, and the longer I took, the less I felt I should challenge. This is a huge mistake, but I still figured my best chances were holding on from this position. But I missed AR(M)Y for 39, which is too many to say no to. There is very limited risk of 7 consonants next turn being pivotal enough to lose the game, and also very minimal chance of not drawing a vowel, given the 15/10 vowel/consonant ratio. Something like 10-15%? I just missed AR(M)Y, but worse, I made this play with absolutely no clue about RALLYE, a word I know. I never saw RALLYE. This was Jackson's game to come back and win. Incredibly good pressure by him, picking at my confidence levels more and more every turn. #knowledgesaddest #visionsaddest #strategysaddest #findingsaddest
just with BRANG*, I was about ready to snap challenge, and the longer I took, the less I felt I should challenge. This is a huge mistake, but I still figured my best chances were holding on from this position. But I missed AR(M)Y for 39, which is too many to say no to. There is very limited risk of 7 consonants next turn being pivotal enough to lose the game, and also very minimal chance of not drawing a vowel, given the 15/10 vowel/consonant ratio. Something like 10-15%? I just missed AR(M)Y, but worse, I made this play with absolutely no clue about RALLYE, a word I know. I never saw RALLYE. This was Jackson's game to come back and win. Incredibly good pressure by him, picking at my confidence levels more and more every turn. #knowledgesaddest #visionsaddest #strategysaddest #findingsaddest
just with BRANG*, I was about ready to snap challenge, and the longer I took, the less I felt I should challenge. This is a huge mistake, but I still figured my best chances were holding on from this position. But I missed AR(M)Y for 39, which is too many to say no to. There is very limited risk of 7 consonants next turn being pivotal enough to lose the game, and also very minimal chance of not drawing a vowel, given the 15/10 vowel/consonant ratio. Something like 10-15%? I just missed AR(M)Y, but worse, I made this play with absolutely no clue about RALLYE, a word I know. I never saw RALLYE. This was Jackson's game to come back and win. Incredibly good pressure by him, picking at my confidence levels more and more every turn. #knowledgesaddest #visionsaddest #strategysaddest #findingsaddest
almost played ANNO(Y), which would have blocked RALLYE unwittingly. I wanted to block REFRAINS stuff, which is obviously far less of a factor given RALLYE. I thought this did a good job outrunning 14E plays. I could play EAU at L11 to also block the dangerous REFRAINS hook as well as scoring plays to the Y, but I was more worried about getting outrun from 53 ahead instead of 62 ahead, and that would allow Jackson time to play something on the N column like OE maybe, since EAU protects that sort of opening. #visionsaddest for RALLYE again.
I took over 8 minutes on this rack. I eventually saw ASSUAGER, the only bingo, around 6 minutes in, after generating AGERATUM, ARGUABLE, GRADUATE and RUNAGATE. At first, I thought ASSUAGER made sense, but because I was fairly certain that ASSWAGER* was invalid, despite ASSWAGE being an alternate form of ASSUAGE, I ended up deciding against playing it. Throughout the rest of the game I was fairly certain ASSUAGER was valid. If I had pulled the trigger on ASSUAGER, the time I spent would have been somewhat reasonable. I never saw D1 AREG for 30, which trumps my play of VAGUE by a few points of equity. In and of itself, ASSUAGER is around 9 points better than VAGUE, which is about what I intuited during the game. This was my first stroke of luck in what would become an absurd work of art, as not even making the best non-bingo play worked out by blocking Jackson's huge double-double. #knowledgemedium
Spent around 1.5 minutes here, knowing I needed to speed up. I should have easily spotted TRiAGED, which doubles G and D. The only issue is the X spot that creates, but I would be slightly closer to drawing it than Jackson, so it might even be beneficial to me. Quackle rates this as a bit more than 2 points worse #findingsmall
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
i thought i had a decent chance of getting away with FRAYERS* here but decided not to chance it. i considered FRY for a little while but liked points more. i keep forgetting about defense. it's a thing, cesar. -7 #strategymedium
i'm pretty sure i passed up eNJOINS here, i remember seeing it and immediately ignoring it without counting it. i may have been wrong. also, J10 JO is better than my JO as it sets up an S-ending lane! -4 #strategymedium
oh god, what an awful mistake. i really thought this was a word. i laid it down for a while trying to think of something better and didn't see nuncios. #knowledgelarge
js: COIN at 7H is kinda sneaky cd: this is it, i finally lose. gg man. i should see 7H COIN, which is clearly much better, but i was starting to have tunnel vision. -11.5 #findinglarge
i wanted to open even a crappy lane so this board doesn't fully shut down on me. -8, 12D WHAT sims better, maybe i'll get lucky. idk, hard to know how bad my move is really. #strategymedium
chickened out on 1K TARG(A) but no reason to try that if i have a win, only if it was my only play. -5 #knowledgemedium
i got so freaking lucky this game despite making a number of bad plays.
this also seemed very wrong. It performs OK in a sim, but the sim does not comprehend Jackson's defensive responses that don't allow re-overlaps on the C column. I really have to throw out rack balance for a turn here and make a weird-looking play like B(A)TE G6o r just OB(E) 6F. #tacticssmall
missed the nice B(EWE)PT. Very equity-focused mindset. PET was also a leave I wanted, but I felt like Jackson would more often than not dampen the P by playing on the D column. Thought better to go for an S or R or blank. #findingsmall
tough endgame. I have to block MELODIA (and EARLDOM which I missed). Didn't see any way to do this and save two outs, but NOM(O)I does it. MORI(O)N is very gutsy and also leaves outs. -10 #endgamelarge
Better to fish here, but the Q is in the bag 1/3. 2/3 times I draw a bingo 4/8 times, so there's around a 1/3 shot at CALIBRE, BRAILLE or whatever with the blank. I guess it's worth it considering the likelihood I get Q-stuck after this play. #strategylarge
and how stupid to see CONIINES and know it has an anagram, see this, and not take a bit of time to make sure this was it... I've messed this up before too. I knew the anagram didn't take an S, but this ain't it. Wow. #knowledgeSADDEST
and now I consider BOXINGS and don't even think about what it could mean, just that I must be confusing it with FOXINGS. Idiotic. CENSING or INCENSE play with BOXINGS. This is horrible in comparison #knowledgeSADDEST
I figured that with the blank in hand, I would rather bingo next turn than cash the X. But this was my golden opportunity to just play EAU. I even laid it down before adding the X. What is he going to do about it? It's perfectly unblockable. Really pissed at myself for misanalyzing this. #tacticsmedium
KEELHALL, KEELHALE, KEELHAUL, KNEEHOLE, KEELHOLE*. I knew that this was very likely to be one of those one-two punches of letting a phony go because it gave me a phony. But I couldn't think of ANAGOGE, and I couldn't think of all of the KEEL words that this wasn't. Only KEELHALL. I knew there were more. I also wasn't sure of PEEKHOLE*, but then eventually remembered PEEPHOLE. I didn't know KNEEHOLE. I hated ANAGOGUE* at the start, I needed to act on that gut instinct. #knowledgesaddest
#knowledgesaddest for not challenging ANAGOGUE* earlier. This is also a tilt play. UH is fine, even though he's likely to have a D. I eat those chances up with the benefits of the UH play, and it's not like HUH doesn't give him so much back. #strategylarge
#knowledgesaddest for not challenging ANAGOGUE* earlier. This is also a tilt play. UH is fine, even though he's likely to have a D. I eat those chances up with the benefits of the UH play, and it's not like HUH doesn't give him so much back. #strategylarge
totally missing AGREEING #findingsaddest
At least it's cool that this game has some really fun point sacrifices for both players, EAU vs. EAUX for me and SNOT vs ENTRESOLS for Jackson. I should also probably just play IN(H)ERE 1G in this spot, speaking of sacrifices. I just don't have a good shot leaving him to choose what scoring spot to use first and what letters to leave himself with for the specific board we have. HERNIAE would be better but it doesn't open anything. I should open something. #questionable
DAI(R)Y scores the same you idiot. I realized after I hit the clock. Again. Reason DAIRY is better is because it allows bingos ending in E on both sides of 9C, creating a more viable comeback threat. I figured he probably had the S already given his confidence. #strategysaddest #countingsaddest
CLIMB was not noticed in time, CNNS has some bingo synergy but CNNS is still 3.1 worse statically than NNS
Josh: yeah I was quite annoyed when I hit my clock. Being a native English speaker definitely didn't help me here, as LIMB did not very easily turn into CLIMB in my head. I have made this same mistake before. I played too fast and there is an inferior stratategem my brain uses when looking at similar positions to these. #findingmedium
I did not see the best rack-cleanup options here, C8 (R)UBIED or 13B BEDUI(N). Again a lack of ability to generate certain patterns that I must attempt to eliminate. (R)UBIED looks pretty good. #findingsmall
and then I just make this inexplicably stupid play, going for ZI(G)S and ZA(G)S, but creating a new big threat and not having a response to a lot of plays that just block what I'm going for, or if I just miss completely. #strategySADDEST
js: this is not a word cd: yeah, i wanted to just play POUCH but i didn't like keeping ALL. i didn't think of HAUL I7, pretty straightforward. i spent a lot of time iterating subwords through P and R etc, gotta always get better at anagramming. -6.5 #findingmedium
i think this is mostly OK, but i don't like opening an S lane. quackle just likes XU or even burning the blank with REaNNEX! -3 - i have a lot of draws for tinkerer, or a bunch of 7s hooking AJAR. nice possibilities. #strategysmall
best is nickel-and-diming with any sequence of C6 (C)U(T), 13A JA(R), A13 (J)o and (Jo)T, which gets 54 points total, whereas this one gets 45. I saw JA(R) as an option over the board and dismissed it too quickly. -9 #endgamelarge
completely missing a few plays here, such a tough spot! 5J MES(N)E is pretty clearly best here, sets up a lane that's really hard to block completely. This is all I came up with. I can get something once in a while but mostly, I'm preparing to use the C next turn on row 6 to fork the board. Otherwise, if I want to wait, I can play C(H)EL(A) 11J. This doesn't score enough to threaten much #findinglarge
Saw AMBEERS and remembered it had an anagram but couldn't see BESMEAR. Jackson didn't see AMBEERS and so he let this go. Weird word knowledge mutuality. #knowledgelarge
Jackson overdrew and I overturned EIN putting back the N
B1 WOOdR(U)SH iis therefore the play because he can't have a game-winning (W)HITENER to go out
Here I'm hoping he doesn't block the N and I get DISHONOR 3x3
#knowledgelarge
should definitely find a block of AEFRSTW here. This gives way too much back. TEAWARES and SOFTWARE. I think I probably missed both. His leave after JUN basically never contains an F or W, so there are so many reasons why this is a bad play. #findinglarge
This actually isn't paranoid nor confident enough and there are some really unlucky things that can happen here. The play here is HEM 14m, as there's no 3x3s, you have a pretty much guaranteed score, if Jackson blocks it's game over, and if he plays/bingos elsewhere you can get 50. Yes, losing here requires some horrible draws, but this just doesn't prepare well enough. #strategymedium
This is lazy AF. What does this accomplish, really? Anything at all? Probably FAUCET. But like, this doesn't even do anything other than win the game without tracking, which you shouldn't be doing at this level. #endgamemedium
D12 HA might be better here. I am worried about JET D12, especially since I have 10 fewer points. NAH K3 seems to hit more bingos than this and accomplishes the same thing, also sets up QI for 33. Seems better. I liked blocking all of the bingos. Hard to infer anything from MY. #tacticssmall
I probably missed the spot for QUIRTED here. Actually I think I chickened out? Though UUUU? is out, still probably worth it? It's hard for him to fish for a big QU play, especially if I could just draw a U. #findinglarge
this really didn't seem like the sort of play I would normally make in a position like this. Keeping things a bit more tight and keeping better with G3 HIN was the fiirst thing I considered, for a decent amount of time too. Quackle agrees that this is substandard. HIN hits a bingo 10% more and scores better than HAEMIN. #strategysmall
wow, my fallback play if this was somehow not valid... is not valiid! BULBING* BULBED!
My confidence in the words in this position, from most confident to least confidence, was
1) BULBING*
2) RUBBLING
3) BLURBING
4) BURBLING
#questionable #knowledgesmall
oh shit C3 ENVIR(O)N is an option here. Dig for the blank again, perhaps give myself better tempo, but it doesn't seem like it's the right play. Hm.. This whole game was hm. O7 LEVIN is better at least. #findingsmall
Going for an -ED bingo on column I. I felt plays there like RED or ICED are too easily blockable since they take lots of hooks, but column I gets blocked a lot too so perhaps it's still better than LEE. I also considered NEREID, but that seemed bad as well after he parallels. Everything is quite bleak in any case, so this is a #strategysmall at most.
Considered BIPOD in the same spot, but didn't want to allow high-scoring 7s ending in S with all four Ss out. Also PRO is a much better leave than NR especially with no Ns played yet. At this point I'm pretty much conceded to an open board so wasn't that worried about the BINDI hook, so chose BIND over BOND to avoid a possible onslaught of Is from the pool. The best play is probably 2J IODIN, which I didn't see. #visionsmall
Another interesting call between HEXED, INDEXED, and XI, all of which score essentially the same. Whichever I play, Jackson pretty much has to bingo immediately, since otherwise I can play down through the D in BIND and block everything at once. XI is pretty clearly worse since it blocks nothing and also allows plays like JOINT/BINDI to not empty the bag, which makes it possible that they might outrun me without a bingo (virtually impossible if they empty the bag, as they would after INDEXED or HEXED). As for HEXED vs. INDEXED, it looks like I misevaluated the danger or row 14 after INDEXED. There's really not that many bingos he can have there with that pool, but HEXED gives back stuff like DIVINING, DONATING, DONATION. These bngoes also score more than row 14 bingos do after INDEXED, making me less likely to be able to outrun them. So INDEXED looks like a small improvement. #strategysmall #preendgamesmall
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