How to play Puppy Nap, the Star Battle puzzle
In short. Puppy Nap is a free daily logic puzzle from Daily New Game, based on the classic Star Battle. Pepper the puppy needs a nap spot for every puppy on a patchwork quilt: exactly one puppy in each row, each column and each patch, and no two puppies touching, not even at the corners. Every quilt has one solution you can find by logic alone.
Play today's Puppy NapAll levels
Puppy Nap at a glance
| Kind of puzzle | Star Battle logic puzzle |
|---|---|
| Board sizes | 5 by 5 to 10 by 10 |
| Played with | Pepper the puppy |
| Price | Free. Plus is optional, from 2.99 € a month |
| Daily puzzles | A new daily puzzle every day, free |
| Levels | 1,000 in five difficulties, every one free to play |
| Free each day | Every daily, 10 new levels per game, and unlimited replays |
| Ads | None |
| Tracking | No tracking cookies and no third-party scripts |
| Account | Not needed (optional and free, sign in with an email code) |
| Download | Not needed: plays in the browser, or add it to your home screen |
| Devices | Phones, tablets and computers, also offline |
| Comfort | Dark theme, colour-blind colours, larger tiles and text, relaxed mode without hearts, keyboard play |
| Hints | Free and unlimited, and every puzzle has exactly one solution |
The puzzle behind Puppy Nap: Star Battle
Star Battle is a modern pencil puzzle. It is usually credited to the Dutch puzzle designer Hans Eendebak, and it became widely known after it appeared at the World Puzzle Championship in the early 2000s. You place stars on a grid split into outlined regions, so that every row, column and region holds the same number of stars and no two stars touch, even diagonally.
Puppy Nap always uses one star per row, column and region, the version most people meet first. Many competition Star Battle puzzles are 10 by 10 with two stars in each. Here the stars are napping puppies, the regions are quilt patches and your marks are crosses. Quilts grow from 5 by 5 to 10 by 10, and a puppy in the wrong spot costs one of three hearts unless you play in relaxed mode.
How to play Puppy Nap
Pepper and the puppies each need their own nap spot.
- Every row, every column and every patch gets exactly one puppy.
- Puppies never touch, not even at the corners.
- A puppy in the wrong spot costs a heart. You have three.
- Finish with every heart and no hints for three stars. A hint or two caps the quilt at two stars, and lots of hints at one.
- Relaxed mode in the settings has no hearts: it only shows when two puppies break a rule.
What you can never do
- Two puppies never touch, not even at the corners.
- Never two puppies in one row, column or patch.
Controls with Pepper the puppy
- Tap a square to cross it out. Drag to cross out several.
- Double tap, or press and hold, to place a puppy. Or pick the puppy tool and tap.
- With a keyboard, use the arrow keys to move, Space to cross out, Enter to place a puppy and Backspace to clear.
- Undo takes back your last move. Hint shows the next step, and why.
Strategies for beginners
Start with the smallest patch
A patch of one square is a puppy straight away. Patches of two or three squares come next, because their puppy has only a few places to nap. Look at them before the big, sprawling patches.
Cross out around every puppy
Once a puppy is placed, cross out its eight neighbours, the rest of its row and column, and the rest of its patch. None of them can hold another puppy. Turn on "Cross out squares a puppy rules out" in the settings and Pepper marks them with a small dot for you.
Find the last open square
When a row, column or patch has only one square left that is not crossed out, a puppy naps there. This is the move you make most often, so scan every line and patch after each new puppy.
A patch in one line claims that line
If every open square of a patch sits in one row, that patch's puppy will be in that row, so cross out the rest of the row. The same works for columns, and the other way round: a row whose open squares all lie in one patch claims that patch.
Rule out squares that would block a patch
Picture a puppy on a square and everything it would rule out. If that leaves a row, column or patch with no open square, no puppy can nap there. A square that touches every open square of a small patch is the classic case.
Count patches and lines together
Two patches that fit inside the same two rows use up both of those rows, so every other square in them is crossed out. On the big quilts the idea grows to three or four patches: when some patches fill exactly as many rows or columns, the rest of those lines stay empty.
Follow a chain on the hardest quilts
Many Master quilts need a longer what-if: imagine a puppy on a square, follow the puppies that would be forced next, and see whether a line runs out of room. If it does, cross that square out. It is still logic, not a guess, and a hint shows the whole chain.
Quick tips from the game
- A patch that fits inside one row claims that row: cross out the rest of the row.
- Squares next to a puppy, and in its row, column and patch, can never hold another one.
Words to know
- Quilt
- The board, a square grid. A quilt with 8 rows has 8 columns, 8 patches and 8 puppies.
- Patch
- One of the coloured areas of the quilt, called a region in Star Battle. Each patch gets exactly one puppy.
- Puppy
- The piece you place, the star of the classic puzzle.
- Cross
- Your mark for a square that cannot hold a puppy. Crossing out is free and never costs a heart.
- Neighbour
- Any of the eight squares around a square, corners included. Puppies never nap on neighbouring squares.
- Line
- A row or a column. Many tricks work the same way for both, so hints often talk about lines.
- Hearts
- Your three chances. A puppy placed where no puppy belongs costs a heart and a star.
Questions about Puppy Nap
What is a Star Battle puzzle?
A Star Battle puzzle is a logic puzzle where you place stars on a grid so that every row, column and outlined region has the same number of stars, and no two stars touch, not even diagonally. Puppy Nap is the one star version: one puppy per row, column and patch.
Is Puppy Nap free to play?
Yes, Puppy Nap is free: the daily quilt is always free, and you can start 10 new levels a day on top. The count resets at your local midnight, and replaying a quilt you have already finished never uses one up. More about free play.
How many levels does Puppy Nap have?
Puppy Nap has 1,000 levels in five difficulties: Easy, Medium, Hard, Expert and Master. Quilts grow from 5 by 5 in Easy to 10 by 10 in Expert and Master. Win 20 Easy quilts to open Medium, then keep climbing. How levels and difficulty work.
Is there a new Puppy Nap puzzle every day?
Yes, there is a new daily quilt every day, the same one for everyone, and it changes at your local midnight. The daily grows from a 6 by 6 on Monday to a 10 by 10 on Saturday, and Sunday's is a big but gentle 9 by 9. Play today's quilt.
How do you solve a Star Battle puzzle?
You solve a Star Battle by ruling squares out rather than guessing where the stars go. Cross out every neighbour of a placed star, look for rows, columns and regions with one open square left, and notice when a region fits inside a single row or column. The strategies above follow that order.
Can two puppies touch diagonally?
No, two puppies can never touch, not even at a corner. All eight squares around a puppy stay empty, which is why the corners next to a new puppy are often the first squares you can cross out.
Is Puppy Nap the same as the eight queens puzzle?
No, Puppy Nap is not the eight queens puzzle, though they feel alike. Queens may never share a diagonal anywhere on the board, while puppies only have to stay out of each other's eight neighbouring squares. Puppy Nap also adds patches, so every coloured patch needs exactly one puppy too.
What happens when I run out of hearts?
When the third heart goes, the quilt ends and you can try the same quilt again from the start. If you would rather play without that pressure, relaxed mode in the settings has no hearts and only shows you when two puppies break a rule. Settings and accessibility.
Do hints lower my stars?
Yes, hints cap your stars: one or two hints allow at most two stars, and lots of hints allow one. In return a hint shows the next step and explains why it works, which makes it a good way to learn a new trick. Crossing out squares never counts against you.
Who is Pepper?
Pepper is the puppy who hosts Puppy Nap and shows you how to play, step by step. At the end of the tutorial you can watch Pepper solve a whole small quilt. You can also dress Pepper up with items from the wardrobe that every game shares.
Puppy Nap is in these lists
- Free puzzle games9 free daily puzzle games in your browser: word, number and logic puzzles, 9,000 levels, no ads, no sign-up and no download.
- Relaxing puzzle gamesFree relaxing puzzle games with no timer, no ads and a relaxed mode without hearts. Calm logic and word puzzles with cosy animal friends, in your browser.
- Logic puzzlesSix free logic puzzles with a new one every day: Star Battle, Nurikabe, Light Up, Skyscrapers, Battleships and sudoku. One solution each, no guessing.
- Quick puzzle gamesFree puzzle games for a coffee break or a commute: small boards, quick rounds, no ads and no sign-up. They open in a tap and work offline too.
- Brain teasersFree daily brain teasers that get harder as you go: logic, number and word puzzles from Easy to Master, with one solution each and no guessing.
- Puzzle games for kidsFree puzzle games children can play safely: friendly animals, no ads, no chat, family-friendly words and gentle first levels. No account needed.
- Puzzle games for seniorsFree puzzle games for older players: larger tiles and text, no ads, no timer, no sign-up and nothing to download. Sudoku, word and logic puzzles.
More help
- Free playEvery daily puzzle is free, plus 10 new levels per game every day. No ads, no download and no account needed. Here is exactly what free play includes.
- Daily puzzlesA new daily puzzle for every game at local midnight, harder from Monday to Saturday with a relaxed Sunday. How dailies, missed days and the archive work.
- Levels and difficultyEach game has 1000 levels in five difficulties, Easy to Master. How to unlock them, how stars and hints work, and what hearts and relaxed mode do.
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- How to play FirefliesHarry is scared of the dark: light every square, and no firefly may see another.
- How to play Hide and seekPip counts the hiders in every line. They never touch.
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