Triangles
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Strategy

Triangles Strategy & Tips

A practical strategy guide for Triangles: take every free triangle, never add the second side of one early, count your safe lines, and sacrifice the smallest chain when you have no choice.

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The core idea

Count your safe lines, not just your triangles

Almost every strong Triangles habit comes down to two ideas: take a free capture the moment it is offered, and avoid drawing the second side of a triangle before you are forced to. A match is rarely decided by who captures first — it is decided by who runs out of safe lines last.

  • 01

    Take every free triangle

    If a line completes a triangle right now, draw it. Passing up a free capture — even a small one — hands your opponent the initiative and, usually, the extra turn that goes with it.

  • 02

    Never add the second side early

    Before you draw any line, ask whether it leaves two sides of some triangle already in place. That third side is a free capture waiting for your opponent on their very next move.

  • 03

    Count safe lines before you sacrifice

    Late in a match, every remaining line eventually sets up a triangle for someone. The player who runs out of genuinely safe lines first is the one forced to open a chain — track that count as the board fills in.

  • 04

    Sacrifice the smallest chain

    When you must give something away, look for the line that hands over a single triangle rather than one that opens a run of three or four connected ones.

  • 05

    Watch for chains before you trigger one

    A row of points each missing only their outer connection can cascade — completing the first triangle can open the next, and the next, all on the same turn for whoever finishes it.

  • 06

    Treat the crowded middle with care

    Points near the center of the board tend to touch more potential triangles than points on the edge, so lines through the middle create more danger — and more opportunity — for both players.

  • 07

    Use a capture chain to set up your safest position

    When a run of captures hands you several extra turns in a row, spend the last one leaving the board in the safest shape for your next real decision, not just grabbing whatever triangle is left in sight.

By mode

How the approach shifts

The habits above apply everywhere. What changes is how much room for error your opponent gives you — see the match modes section of the guide.

  • Vs. Computer — Easy

    The computer plays loosely and does not always take a free triangle. Practice reading the board and taking every capture you are offered.

  • Vs. Computer — Normal and Hard

    Normal always takes a free triangle and avoids obvious sacrifices. Hard also plans a move ahead to choose the biggest chain and the least costly forced sacrifice — expect a real fight in the endgame.

  • Vs. a friend

    The same habits apply, but a human opponent may not spot every safe line either. Counting the remaining safe moves out loud is a fair way to keep both players honest.

Ready to put it into practice? Read the full how-to-play guide or jump straight in.

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