Train Tracks for Beginners: Your First Puzzle in Five Minutes

The idea in one sentence

Lay one continuous railway from the entrance to the exit, so that each row and column contains exactly the number of track squares shown beside it.

Your first move

Look for the zeros and cross those lines out, then look for any number as big as the grid is wide and treat that whole line as track. Those two checks give you a foothold on almost every Easy board.

Then find the entrance tab. The square it touches must hold a piece that connects to the tab, so the clue for that row or column tells you how the line leaves it.

The controls

There are four ways to mark the board, all in the tray under the grid.

• Draw: drag along the route and the right piece lays itself. A square that isn't part of the route costs a life.
• Pick a piece: choose a straight or corner, then tap a square.
• ✕: mark a square as empty. Free and unlimited.
• Eraser: clear a square.

Easy, Medium and Hard

The difficulties differ in size and in how forgiving they are. Easy is a 5×5 board with 5 lives, Medium is 7×7 with 4 and Hard is 9×9 with 3. Practice puzzles include two hints each; the Daily does not.

Mistakes to avoid

Almost every early loss comes from the same few habits.

• Guessing a direction instead of using the counts.
• Forgetting the border rule, which kills a lot of otherwise tempting pieces.
• Ignoring ✕ marks: crossing squares out is how Medium and Hard boards get solved.
• Drawing before the route is clear, which burns lives.

Where to go next

Once an Easy board feels comfortable, try today's Daily and see where your time lands on the leaderboard. The strategy guide covers the techniques that make Medium and Hard boards manageable.