Word Battle Arena

How to Play

The idea

Teams take turns adding letters to the board, then race to build words out of the letters already on it.
Longer words are worth much more: 3 letters → 3 points · 4 → 5 · 5 → 8 · 6 → 12, then +3 for every extra letter.
The shortest allowed word is set in setup. Two-letter words are allowed by default and score 1 point — enough to be worth spotting, not enough to farm.
Every word can only be claimed once per game, by anyone.
If the teacher has set a theme, it shows above the board and every word must fit it.

On your turn

Click an empty square and type a letter. The dots above the board show how many letters you have left.
Backspace removes a letter you just placed. Click a letter twice to retype it. Arrow keys move to the next free square.
Letters lock in your team's color when the turn ends. They stay on the board for everyone.
The board starts with a few gray letters already placed, so the first turn isn't a dead one.
Read positions aloud using the numbers: the row down the side plus the column across the top — "an S at 34" is row 30, column 4. Hovering a square shows its number.
The starting team rotates from game to game, and whoever starts gets one extra letter.

Claiming a word (any team, any time)

Choose your panel first — the one outlined in gold receives your clicks. Press 1, 2 or 3 to switch.
Words must sit on a straight line of touching squares — across, down, or diagonal — and be clicked in reading order. Backwards along the line is fine.
Click a letter already in your word to cut the word back to that point.
The panel shows the word's coordinates (e.g. 13→15) so it can be read out and checked.
The teacher is the judge — real words only, no names or abbreviations — and can remove a claimed word with the ✕ on its tag.

Powers (optional mode)

Every team starts with 1 token ⚡, and earns another every time it ends a turn without scoring a word — so tokens build up for whoever is struggling, not whoever is winning. Maximum 3 held.
One power per turn, on your own turn only.
✚ Extra Letter (1) — place one more letter this turn.
⏱ Extra Time (1) — add 30 seconds to your turn.
◈ Shield (1) — protect one square. It can never be moved, removed or swapped.
⤢ Move (2) — pick up any locked letter and drop it on an empty square.
✖ Remove (2) — delete a locked letter. The square is free to use again.
⇄ Swap (2) — exchange two locked letters' positions.
Shielded squares are immune to Move, Remove and Swap — defense is deliberately the cheapest option.
Words already claimed keep their points. Wrecking the board can't take a score away.
The clock stops while you aim. From the moment you pick Shield, Move, Remove or Swap until you've chosen your square(s), the timer is frozen — so deciding where to strike doesn't eat your turn. Press Esc or Cancel to back out and the clock starts again.

The clock

Each turn has a timer. When it runs out the turn ends automatically and any letters placed are locked.
When the board fills up there's a final round: one last timed turn each. No new letters go down, but teams can still claim words — and spend any tokens they've been saving.
Fast Finish: if the team whose turn it is claims a word using a letter it just placed, the turn drops to 20 seconds. Turn it off in setup.

Teacher controls

⏸ pauses the clock. "Show Board" keeps the board visible with the clock still frozen — nothing can be typed or claimed while paused.
↶ Undo reverses the last claim, turn end, or word removal.
Keys: P pause · E end turn · U undo · 1/2/3 pick panel · Enter claim · ? rules · Esc close.