Goal
Finish with the highest final score after score, coins, and leftover hand tiles are all counted.
Player Guide
Play AlfaPower with confidence
AlfaPower is a two-player word strategy game where every turn is a choice between scoring now, managing your hand, and buying the right power-up for the board in front of you.
At a glance
- 2 players
- 7 tiles in hand
- Coins buy power-ups
- Quick Join or private custom lobbies
1. Getting started
AlfaPower supports both instant public matchmaking and private lobbies. In both cases, the match does not begin until both players are present and ready.
Quick Join
Quick Join is the fastest way to play. Pick one preset, choose your language, and AlfaPower looks for a waiting public match with the same setup.
- If a matching public lobby already exists, you join it as the second player.
- If not, AlfaPower creates a new public preset lobby and waits for an opponent.
- Public preset lobbies use fixed settings and are not editable by the host.
Custom Match
Custom Match creates a private lobby. The host controls the settings, shares the room code, and can fine-tune the board, timer, items, prices, and rule values before the game starts.
- The guest joins with the room code.
- Only the host can change settings.
- Changing a setting resets both players to not ready.
Quick Join presets
| Preset | Board | Timer | Board layout | Included items |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Quick | 11 x 11 | Blitz (30s) | Normal bonus layout | Base items only |
| Standard | 15 x 15 | Standard (60s) | Normal bonus layout | Base items only |
| Strategy | 15 x 15 | No Timer | Blank board with only the center star | All items, including bonus-placement items |
Quick Join matchmaking is preset-specific and language-specific. A Quick English lobby does not mix with a Standard Swedish lobby.
All presets include the Alfa Power Tile feature with free placement enabled. By default, placing all 7 hand tiles in one turn earns an upgrade opportunity. In custom matches, the host can lower that trigger to any fixed value from 1 to 7 tiles.
2. Custom match options
Custom Match is where you shape the experience. The host can build a short, aggressive match or a longer strategy game before both players ready up.
| Setting group | What players can change |
|---|---|
| Map Size | Quick (11 x 11), Standard (15 x 15), or Grand (19 x 19). |
| Board Layout | Blank Board can be turned on to remove all built-in bonus squares except the center starting star. |
| Language | Svenska or English. |
| Turn Timer | Blitz (30s), Standard (60s), Relaxed (90s), No Timer, or a custom turn timer from 5 to 600 seconds. |
| Power-ups | Turn individual items on or off. At least one item must stay enabled. |
| Economy | Starting coins, base coins per turn, score-to-coins rate, pass bonus, and coin-to-point conversion. |
| Shop Prices | Adjust the coin cost of every enabled shop item. |
| Rules | Fortify cap, the late-game Blast surcharge, and other rule values shown in advanced settings. |
| Alfa Power Tile | Toggle the Alfa Power Tile reward on or off, choose whether it triggers at full hand size or a fixed 1-7 tiles, adjust the word multiplier, set per-game and on-board limits, and control whether the upgraded tile can replace existing tiles, can be placed freely without adjacency, keeps its permanent multiplier, or retains its upgrade when swapped. |
Normal board vs. blank board
A normal board includes built-in double-letter, triple-letter, double-word, and triple-word spaces. Blank board mode removes all of those built-in bonuses and leaves only the center starting square.
Public vs. private
Quick Join creates or joins public preset lobbies. Custom Match is private and is meant for players who want to invite a specific opponent with a room code.
3. Turn flow
A live turn stays with the active player until they place a word, pass, or run out of time. Buying items can happen at any time (even during the opponent's turn), while using items is part of the active turn.
- Buy power-ups. Open the Shop button to buy powers. Purchased powers appear in the power slot row above your hand tiles. You can buy during either player's turn, up to the slot limit (default 7).
- Use power-ups. Tap a filled power slot to activate it. Swap enters swap mode; other powers enter board placement mode where the next board tap places the power.
- Swap if needed. Using Swap changes selected tiles without ending your turn.
- Place a word or pass. A successful placement ends the turn after scoring. Passing ends it immediately.
- Alfa Power selection. If you meet the match's Alfa trigger (default: all 7 hand tiles), you are offered the chance to upgrade one of your newly drawn replacement tiles into an Alfa Power Tile before the turn resolves.
- Resolve the turn. You draw back toward 7 tiles while the bag still has tiles, the turn passes to the opponent, and the next timer starts in timed matches.
| Action | Ends the turn? | Important note |
|---|---|---|
| Buy an item | No | Available on either player's turn. You can keep playing after the purchase. |
| Use an item | No | Items are consumed only when used successfully. |
| Swap | No | You can still place or pass afterward. |
| Place a word | Yes | The turn ends after validation, scoring, coin gain, and tile refill. |
| Alfa Power selection | Pauses turn | Triggered automatically after meeting the match's Alfa trigger. Choose one newly drawn replacement tile to upgrade or decline. |
| Pass | Yes | You gain the pass bonus instead of score-based coins. |
| Timeout | Yes | A timeout acts like an automatic pass and also increases your timeout streak. |
4. Placement rules
Every successful placement must follow the board rules below.
- Place at least one tile from your hand.
- All newly placed tiles must sit in one row or one column with no gaps inside the full word run.
- You cannot place on an occupied square, a dead square, or a square claimed by your opponent.
- You may place on your own claimed square.
- The first word of the match must cross the center starting square.
- Later words must connect to the existing board orthogonally.
- Every full word created by the move must be valid in the match language.
- Single-tile placements are allowed only when they still create a valid word of at least two letters.
- One-letter runs do not count as completed words.
- Alfa Power Tiles ignore alignment rules and, by default, adjacency rules too. They can be placed on any valid square, including occupied squares (replacing everything on the cell), but not on dead squares, opponent-claimed squares, or other Alfa Power squares. Normal tiles placed in the same turn as an Alfa Power Tile also skip the adjacency requirement.
Blank tiles
Blank tiles must be assigned a letter when placed. They count as that letter for word creation, but they are still worth 0 points unless Fortify adds bonus value to them.
If a move is invalid
Invalid placements are rejected. If any created word is not accepted, the move does not score and you must try again before your turn ends. Each failed attempt costs 1 point and 1 coin by default (configurable). Penalties accumulate and are shown in the last play summary when your turn ends.
5. Scoring and coins
AlfaPower scores the main word and every cross-word created by a placement, then adds them together into one turn score.
Scoring order
| Step | What happens |
|---|---|
| 1. Base value | Each tile starts with its face value. Fortify adds its bonus before anything else. |
| 2. Letter bonuses | Double-letter and triple-letter affect only newly placed tiles. |
| 3. Word bonuses | Double-word, triple-word, and the opening center star apply only if a new tile lands there this turn. |
| 4. Total turn score | All created words are scored separately and then added together. |
Coins from scoring
By default, a scored turn gives 3 base coins + 10% of your turn score, rounded down. Unspent coins carry over between turns.
Coins from passing
A voluntary pass gives the default 3-coin pass bonus. It does not give score-based coin income because no word was played.
What blanks do at the finish
Blank tiles are worth 0 penalty points if they are still in your hand at the end of the game. Fortify helps blanks only while they are on the board, not in your leftover-hand penalty.
Alfa Power Tile multiplier
An Alfa Power Tile permanently turns its cell into a 2× word multiplier (by default). Every future word crossing that cell gets the multiplier, not just the turn it was placed.
Alfa Power Tiles in your hand at the finish
If an Alfa Power Tile is still in your hand at the end of the game, its face value is multiplied by the configured word multiplier (default 2×) for the leftover-hand penalty.
6. Items and power-ups
Items are bought with coins and stored until used successfully. Any player can buy items at any time, but only the active player can use them. Using an item does not end the turn by itself.
Base items
3c
Swap
Exchange selected hand tiles with fresh draws from the bag, then continue your turn.
4c base
Fortify
Add +1 value to any board tile, even an opponent tile. Fortify does not stack — each tile can only be fortified once.
4c
Claim
Claim an empty square for yourself permanently so your opponent cannot place there.
10c base
Blast
Remove a tile and permanently kill that square so nobody can place there later.
When fewer than 10 tiles remain in the bag, Blast costs 2 extra coins by default.
Bonus-placement items
These items permanently add new bonus spaces to empty normal squares. They are included in the Strategy preset and can also be enabled in custom matches.
| Item | Cost | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Place DL | 5c | Turns an empty normal square into a permanent double-letter space. |
| Place TL | 8c | Turns an empty normal square into a permanent triple-letter space. |
| Place DW | 10c | Turns an empty normal square into a permanent double-word space. |
| Place TW | 14c | Turns an empty normal square into a permanent triple-word space. |
Important targeting and duration rules
- Claim can be placed only on empty squares with no bonus upgrade (type "empty"), that are not dead or already claimed.
- Bonus-placement items also require an empty normal square with no claim effect on it.
- Blast clears any claim effect on the square it destroys.
Alfa Power Tiles are fully immune to all items. They cannot be targeted by Fortify, Blast, Claim, or any bonus-placement item. By default, they can also be placed freely without needing to connect to existing tiles on the board.
7. Timers and rejoining
Timed matches reward fast decisions, but they are strict. If your clock runs out, the game treats it as an automatic pass.
Timer choices
- Blitz: 30 seconds per turn
- Standard: 60 seconds per turn
- Relaxed: 90 seconds per turn
- Custom: 5 to 600 seconds per turn
- No Timer: unlimited turn length
Timeout streaks
Three consecutive timeouts by the same player end the match as a forfeit. Only a successful placed word or a voluntary pass clears your timeout streak.
Leaving and coming back
- Your opponent is notified if you disconnect during a live game.
- In timed matches, your turn timer keeps running while you are away.
- If you reconnect in time, you return to the current board state and remaining turn time.
- If you do not return in time, the match is abandoned.
| Match type | Reconnect window | If you do not return |
|---|---|---|
| Timed match | 5 minutes | The match is abandoned after the reconnect window expires. |
| No Timer match | 24 hours | The match is abandoned after the reconnect window expires. |
8. Endgame and rematch
The match ends as soon as one of the live end conditions below is met.
How a match can end
- The tile bag is empty and at least one player has emptied their hand.
- A single player passes 3 consecutive times (concede) — the opponent wins regardless of score.
- One player reaches 3 consecutive timeouts and forfeits.
- A disconnected player does not return before the reconnect window expires, so the match is abandoned.
Final score
- Start with the score you earned from played words.
- Add your endgame coin bonus: by default, every 2 coins become 1 extra point.
- Subtract the face value of the tiles still in your hand.
- Blank tiles in hand are worth 0 penalty points.
If the final totals are tied, the first player in the match wins the tiebreak.
After the match
Players can propose a rematch from the end screen. A rematch starts only when both players accept. If one player leaves, the rematch option is no longer available for the remaining player.
9. Common questions
Can I swap and still place a word?
Yes. Swap is a hand-management action inside your turn, not your full turn action.
Does swapping count like a pass?
No. Swapping resets your consecutive-pass counter. Only actual passes and timeouts count toward the concede threshold.
Can I fortify an opponent tile?
Yes. Fortify can target any eligible tile on the board, not only your own tiles.
Is a Claim permanent?
Yes. A claimed square stays claimed until a tile is placed on it or a Blast destroys it.
What happens if I run out of time after only buying items?
If the timer expires before you place or voluntarily pass, the game still records an automatic pass and adds to your timeout streak.
What happens if every word is not valid?
The full placement is rejected. Every word created by the move must be accepted in the active language.
What if I pass 3 times in a row?
Three consecutive passes by the same player triggers a concede — your opponent wins regardless of score. After 2 consecutive passes, the Pass button changes to "Concede" as a warning.
What is an Alfa Power Tile?
By default, placing all 7 tiles from your hand in a single turn lets you upgrade one of your newly drawn replacement tiles into an Alfa Power Tile. In custom matches, the host can lower that trigger to any fixed value from 1 to 7 tiles. The upgraded tile can be placed anywhere on the board (including disconnected from other tiles), replaces existing tiles, gives a permanent word multiplier on its cell, and is immune to all items.
Can I decline the Alfa Power upgrade?
Yes. During the selection phase you can press Decline to skip the upgrade. The turn resolves normally without any tile being upgraded.