Star Battle questions and answers
What is Star Battle?
Star Battle is a logic puzzle played on a square grid divided into coloured regions. You place two stars in every row, every column and every region so that no two stars touch, not even diagonally. Each puzzle has exactly one solution.
Is Star Battle the same as Two Not Touch?
Yes. Two Not Touch is the name The New York Times uses for the two-star version of Star Battle. The rules are identical: two stars in each row, column and region, and no stars touching.
Can every board be solved without guessing?
Every Twin Stars board can. Each one is checked by a solver that only uses logical steps a person could follow, and a board is only published if that solver finishes it and the solution is the only one.
Why two stars?
With one star per row, column and region the puzzle is quick and close to other "one per line" puzzles. Two stars makes the no-touching rule matter far more, because stars compete for space inside every region, and that is what produces the deeper deductions Star Battle is known for.
How big are the boards?
Twin Stars boards are 8×8, 9×9 and 10×10. An 8×8 grid is the smallest that can hold two stars in every row and column without any touching.
Is Twin Stars free?
The daily puzzles, the practice boards and the solver on this site are free and need no account. The Twin Stars app adds a campaign of 600 levels and larger puzzle packs.
How do I start a Star Battle puzzle?
Look for the smallest regions first. A region with few tiles has few places for its two stars, and a small region that fits inside a single 2×2 block can't hold two stars at all without them touching, which tells you its shape must stretch further. Mark every tile that touches a star as soon as you place it.
What do the dots mean?
A dot marks a tile that cannot hold a star. Tap a tile once for a dot and again for a star. Keeping dots up to date is most of the work: once a row, column or region has only two open tiles left, both must be stars.