GFF MegaScrabble Game 5

ZERGRINCH WINS!

Let’s get this Scrabble show on the road. We’ve got 9 players this time around (sorry Krelian, we’ll get you next time).

How this works:
-When your turn comes around, you may play 2 words. If you use all your letters with those 2 words, you get a bingo bonus of 50 points. You may also use one of your moves to trade in letters.
-I’ll keep the first post updated with everyone’s current letters. As you use them, I’ll fill them up again before your next turn. When we get to the “final round” (when there aren’t enough tiles for everyone), I’ll divide the remaining tiles up (and maybe throw in a few extra) so that everyone has the same number of tiles for the last round.

Remember:
-POST YOUR WORDS IN CAPITAL LETTERS
-Post your moves/scores in the thread
-Letter/word multipliers only work for the first word(s) played on them (lots of folks make this mistake).
-When posting a blank, put [brackets] around the letter; I’ll change them to italics when I’ve checked the score.

I’ll be checking scores/letters for accuracy. If anyone makes a word for which they don’t have the letters, or any other illegal move, they forfeit that turn, and I’ll take the letters off the board if no one has played off them yet.

Helpful links:

Rules
Hasbro’s official Scrabble dictionary. You can only search words, not browse the list.
The official Scrabble Tournament Word List – All words must be found on this list and/or the Hasbro site. The Scrabulous site we used before is gone, but I had the word list saved to my hard drive.
A handy list of 2 and 3 letter words. ONLY THE TWL98 WORDS ARE VALID.
Game board for spectators
Link for players to edit the game board

LETTERS:

Blanks = []

Hawkeye: I-H-E-H-P-L-U-B-T

Dullenplain: A-F-O-F-A-T-E-S-P

nuttyturnip: V-O-L-O-V-R-T-C-E

Juanzen: Q-G-A-S-O-T-E-E-C

Tritoch: G-U-U-Z-N-H-N-Y-T

Sousuke: A-A-T-A-T-M-I-D-S

Zergrinch: N-U-L-G-Y-X-S-K-O

Rockgamer: E-I-O-I-I-A-O-H-Q

Araes: V-N-L-U-E-L-L-D-E

Tiles remaining: 0

Turn order: Hawkeye, Dullenplain, nuttyturnip, Juanzen, Tritoch, Sousuke, Zergrinch, Rockgamer, Araes

Scores:
1. Zergrinch: 955
2. Araes: 922
3. Sousuke: 846
4. Rockgamer: 708
5. nuttyturnip: 600
6. Dullenplain: 537
7. Tritoch: 463
8. Juanzen: 437
9. Hawkeye: 299

Detailed score info here

How ya doing, buddy?

Originally Posted by Zergrinch

Turnip, I think for fairness' sake, everyone should get the same number of wildcard tiles (worth zero points). I mean, here I am (probably with Juanzen, Tritoch, and Dullenplain) staring longingly at Rockgamer's 2 wildcard tiles :P

Everyone had exactly the same odds of drawing a blank (1 in 50). You'll survive somehow.

Originally Posted by Hawkeye

BINGO!!

WHAT

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Originally Posted by Hawkeye

Nutty, your link to the hasbro site doesn't work. Just so you know.

Thanks. I fixed it.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

We're going with TWL, since that's for North America. It's what we've always used.

Most amazing jew boots

I made INVITED for 44 points (2 double words) and LIEGE for 12 points.

Most amazing jew boots

Originally Posted by Lucario

It's sign. In any case, that puts me at 84 points, and apparently in third, and leaves me with WHNN, if I'm not mistaken.

WNLL, actually.

Most amazing jew boots

Originally Posted by Rockgamer

And then I'm playing [B]ET[W]IXT off of that for 16 points

BETWIXT is only worth 15 points (0+1+2+0+1+8+3=15).

FELIPE NO

I agree that there do seem to be a large number of "odd" letters this time, but there's not an easy way around that. A standard Scrabble set has 100 tiles. When I'm handing out letters, I use a random number generator to spit out X unique numbers from 1-100, using the same tile distribution as a normal Scrabble game (meaning you can never draw more than 1 J, K, Q, X or Z in one go). There's nothing stopping someone else from drawing another Q or Z, but at least most of the time each person gets a decent set of vowels, "normal" letters and a few high-point tiles.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

Originally Posted by Zergrinch

My suggestion for any future games:

1. Everyone gets a [] tile, as in Literati.

No on that. Literati starts you with a blank? It's been so long since I've played, but I don't remember that. At any rate, you have the same odds as anyone else in drawing a blank.

Quote:

2. Finite letter set, as in Scrabble. So there's only a specific amount of Ps, Qs, Ks, and so on. You can re-randomize after every substitution, or just tack them on to the end of the sequence for luls.
3. Randomize the letter sequence, and the players draw in that random order. Instead of randomizing every time letters are replenished.

You mean working out the correct distribution/ratio for tiles, and then generating a string of unique numbers 750 long for the whole game? Not only would that be unwieldy, but what if in this string of 750, there were 3 Zs in a row, or more likely, a string of 30 or so letters with no vowels? That would mean some poor schlub would get stuck with that.

In the system I'm using now, everything is equal. Sure, we might see more Xs, but you only get one at a time (unless you don't use the one you had), and everyone has an equal chance of getting a good or bad set.

Quote:

There's something wrong with your link to the two- and three-letter word list, nutty.

Fixed. I copied my opening post from Word, and the quotation marks copied differently on my links.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Originally Posted by Hawkeye

VOX is good for a respectable 46 points.

46 + 32 = 78 points round two, leaving my total at 194.

There are two problems with this. First, your letters were as follows: X-U-V-I-Y-A-H-A-V-R-A-I-E-M. Note that you didn't have an O. Second, forming VOX off of VOTIVE also creates OL, which is not listed in any of the resources in the first post.

Therefore, you forfeit the 46 points, and your total score is 148. I have removed VOX from the board.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Originally Posted by Hawkeye

oh no... I was going to use the E, when did I change it to an O? Bah.

Indeed, that would have worked. But since you posted VOX here, on the board, and on the score calculator, you must have had O on the brain. One might even say you've been O-wned.

hold your grOans

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

I made GIGGLE for 20 points, and JELLIFY for a sweet 189 points with the 9x word score.

Who needs bingos?

Most amazing jew boots

So Juanzen has drawn another Q, giving him 3 total. Would anyone object if I threw 2 of those back, and henceforth if anyone draws a "unique" letter (J/K/Q/X) when they already have that letter, I throw them back. Z would be an exception, since there are a decent number of words with 2 Zs.

I was speaking idiomatically.

It's been 24 hours, and I did remind Tritoch last night, so if Sousuke wants to take his turn, he can.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

Yes, you can still go.

FELIPE NO

Originally Posted by Tritoch

Then I followed up with HYBRI[D] (52) with a quadruple letter score.

Perhaps you did in your mind, but you didn't put it on the board. I'm not a mind reader, but I'm guessing you meant to play it off of the Y in ZOOTY, which unfortunately has been taken by Zergrinch. Sorry, but you're out of luck.

Originally Posted by Zergrinch

I took the liberty of changing zero-value tiles to a white text on black background scheme. Hope you don't mind.

Yes, I mind. That's just ugly and distracting when you're trying to read the board.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

If it was a computer glitch, I'll give you the points, since you did post your move here.

Also, I did replace Juanzen's 2 Qs, but he only did marginally better with J and L.

How ya doing, buddy?

Originally Posted by Rockgamer

So before I take my turn, I just want to confirm that while Tritoch's word counted, Zerg's is the one that will remain on the board?

Yeah, I'll just leave the board the way it is.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Yeah, no problem, Sousuke. As long as I know you haven't forgotten, we can wait a bit for you. Plus the whole questing thing today.

How ya doing, buddy?

I'm not really pushing for the game to progress as long as the questing stuff is up. You can see the Scrabble board, but you still have to look at the thread for your letters. I'm sure this won't last much longer, and then we'll get back to normal.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

Originally Posted by Dullenplain

I then use my remaining letters to make a simple EYE from the first E in INDEXE(S), with a double word score on the Y for a word score of 12.

So, 88 points from the words, and having used up all tiles, I garnered a BINGO, which adds 50 more points.

Total move score: 138 points

That would be an awesome piece of strategery if the rules allowed you to play more than 2 words in a turn. Alas, they do not. Therefore, no EYE and no bingo. Still a respectable 76 points.

EDIT: Beaten by Araes.

Most amazing jew boots

Originally Posted by Dullenplain

Does the two words rule exclude what occurred in Hawkeye's latest turn, where a word also forms other words in its wake?

As in normal Scrabble, if by playing one word, you form several other words (playing an S on the end of a word, or forming several 2 letter words, for example), that doesn't count towards the 2 word rule, no.

I played SHIVER by putting an S on LIEGE, giving me 28 and 9 points. Then I played QAID for 28 points. I'm sure I could have done better, but I'd rather watch the basketball game, and I'm just happy to be rid of my Q. Total of 65 points.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

No, Zerg is right about third place, but he's behind Sousuke, not Tritoch. He also has 288 points, as he forgot to include the triple word score on ID.

FELIPE NO

Originally Posted by Araes

Bah. Think I probably could have done better, and this leaves openings, but ran out of time after work.

VIATICUM, x2 V, x2 Word = 32
DOOWOPS, x2 Word = 26
UT = 2
MI = 3

63 + BINGO for 50

Total = 113

You actually made VIATICU[M] (note the blank); you scored VIATICUM correctly, but MI is only 1 point. I corrected the game board. Still, you got enough to take the lead.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

It's been more than 24 hours, and Hawkeye was online this afternoon, so Dullenplain can make his move if he wishes (Hawkeye can still go too).

Jam it back in, in the dark.