Asteria Gamer's Guide
Copyright © 2002 by Tobias D. Robison. All rights reserved.

Playing Asteria

Asteria is a fun game to play, even casually. But there is a lot of depth in this game, and you will enjoy it even more as you develop your skill. Here is a tutorial that will help you learn the game more quickly, and allow you to concentrate on developing a sense of judgment. It's pretty easy to remember these guidelines, but there are many situations in Asteria where you can think quite a bit about which of several plays is best.

Following these maxims will increase your chance of scoring 25,000 and more.

This text primarily addresses the "Hard" game. You can apply these maxims to the Easy and Medium options as well. In the Easy game there are five different kinds of tiles, so that as they drop randomly on the board they are much more likely to fall next to tiles of the same kind. In the Medium game there are six kinds, and in the Hard game there are seven.

This tutorial does not discuss the rules of Asteria. Read the rules and play the game a few times, then come here and read!

Basic Technique

Before you make a move, you must look carefully at the board and be aware of every possibility to make a line of three. When you don't see the possibilities, you are just shooting yourself in the foot. And you must see them all, because the first one you notice may not be as good as another one.

You must also stay aware of the lines of two that you cannot make into three. Some of these will be blocked. Others will have an open space, but there will be no piece you can move to fill it. Your plays must tend to open up these opportunities, so again it is important to look at all the openings on the board before you choose a move.

Learn to "see" the locked pieces. It is easy to miss an open two that has one locked piece in it because it looks different. Remember that although you cannot move a locked piece, you can still remove it by moving another piece to make a line.

Don't let the bonus sneak up on you! You want to fill the bonus bar with a very god move, so you have to plan ahead when you are getting close. (More about this later.) Try to avoid the experience of having the game suddenly shout "BONUS" at you when you are not expecting it.

You will usually want to make a line every turn if you can; if not, at least create opportunities to make a line next turn. If you seem forced to make a bad move, look hard for something better; maybe you missed something.

Basic Strategy

Your goal is to remove lines of tiles many turns in a row. Doing this will eventually get you a bonus, with more points and extra tiles removed. Without these bonuses you cannot remove enough tiles to keep the game going very long.

The bonus bar fills one step every turn that you make a line, no matter how many tiles or lines you remove. The bar "empties" one step when you fail to make a line. Then have to make a line just to get the bar back to where you were. A board that is not too clogged, that has lots of twos in a row on it, is the key to making many lines and getting bonuses. Consequently you will try to choose moves that make a line and also leave you one or more ways to make a line on your next move.

The basic probabilities

Every time you make a move, three more tiles fall on the board. If you remove three tiles every turn on average, you are playing even.

Sometimes you cannot make a line, and each time do, you fall three more tiles behind. You cannot keep the board from getting moderately full, but to keep the game going you must sometimes remove more than three tiles to in a turn. Remember the different ways to remove more than three at once:

• Make a line of four or more
• Make two lines at once with the same piece (horizontal and vertical)
• When the random drops of tiles give you a free three in a row, make another line on the same turn; both will disappear.
• When you earn the bonus, all tiles of the same kind as the tile you moved will disappear.

Your choice of moves has a big effect on your chances of making more lines. You will get a feeling for the probabilities as you play. Here is some basic advice:

• A move that creates two open lines of two is better than making one.
• A move that gives you two ways to make a line with the same tiles is better than one way.
• A move that gives you a chance of making a line by moving a tile one space is better than a move that gives you the chance of moving a tile through a long, narrow corridor to make the three.
• Removing a line of three to open a line of two is better than just making a line of three.
• Removing a line is almost always better than not removing a line. When you are tempted to make a great play that only improves your position you will usually be making a mistake. Your position may be better, but the board will be more clogged. If you make the line, a piece may drop that improves your position even more. Make the line!

Remember that after you move, three new locked pieces are going to fall and get in your way. The more alternatives you have, the less likely you are to suffer from the random drops.

The more pieces on the board, the more likely it is that random pieces will block all your plans. As the board fills up, you must make some adjustments in you play by assuming that you will only be able to move the tiles you want a short distance next turn.

Be good to Your health

Naturally you want your experience with this game to be pleasurable and good mental exercise. So watch out for the following:

• If you stay up all night playing Asteria, you should definitely buy the game. But try not to do that to often!
• Like most games, Asteria can unevenly wear your body if you play too much at a time. Take breaks, and play in a comfortable position. You need those breaks to stay mentally alert, also.
• Don't curse the random drops! If you can feel your blood pressure rising every time the random tile drops screw up your plans, remind yourself that sometimes Asteria puts the tiles just where you want them. Try to play calm, and don't shoot the software!

Asteria Maxims

You will find that most of the following maxims are common sense. You will also find that in many positions you are not sure which one to apply. The bottom line is that you want to make the move that gives you the greatest probability of making lines for the coming (many) turns. Experience will help you to judge this. The maxims are presented roughly in order of importance, but do not hesitate to apply them in whatever way you think best.

Don't always make a line on the free move

Sometimes the randomly dropped tiles will form a line. This "free line" is not removed until you move, and the line DOES advance the bonus bar. If you make another line on the same turn, you will remove at least six tiles, and the board will clear somewhat. But often you should NOT make another line. Instead you should take your "free" move to open up some other two's, so that you can keep that bonus bar moving on your next turns. In general, if the board is clogged with pieces, or the bonus bar is nearly empty, make that other line. If the bar is half full or more, and the board is not too clogged, use your free move if you find a good one.

Use the Bonus Well

On the move that makes the bonus, all of the tiles of the same kind as the tile you moved will come off the board. Try to make a line where there are at least three more of the same kind on the board. If you can choose, you will usually remove the kind with the most tiles. But suppose the kind with the most tiles has several open two's on the board; it may be better to choose the other kind, since you are likely to keep being able to make more lines.

If your only way to get the bonus removes less than six tiles, you usually should still take that bonus. What if you can only get the bonus by making a line of the last three tiles of one kind? In that case, consider what will happen if you refuse to make a line and open up another opportunity instead. The bar will drop one notch, and when you finally get your next shot at the bonus, you must remove six tiles to break even. This might occasionally be a good gamble.

In the Easy game you can often plan ahead five or six moves to leave many tiles of one kind on the board until it's time to get the bonus. In the Medium game you should try the same thing, but it is harder to do. You should always be flexible and ready to abandon such a plan if you need to use that kind of tile to make lines.

Use the "Free" Bonus Well

Okay, it's time to get the bonus, and the random drop has created a line. You don’t have to make another line! That free line will get you the bonus, and if you move a tile of another kind, THAT kind will disappear altogether. Use this great opportunity well.

Keep your lines of communication open

In deciding how to apply many of the maxims below, keep this very important maxim in mind. Blocked pieces cannot help you. If every piece on the board can move almost anywhere else, you have your best chance to find and make lines. Often you will choose between equally reasonable moves by picking the one that gives you more freedom to move the remaining pieces.

Break up clumps

A clump is a large number of tiles next to each other, unable to move. You will see boards where you have lots of space on one side, but the other side is completely full of tiles. The tiles inside that clump do nothing for you except limit your remaining workable space. They can't move and you can't remove them.

You should plan your moves to minimize the buildup of clumps. When a clump happens, be aggressive about making inroads into them. Move the outer pieces when you can, perhaps to expose chances to make a line inside the clump. In other words, open lines of communication into the clump!

Don't give up too soon

When the board starts to fill up with tiles, things tend to seem hopeless. Don’t give up too soon. As long as you can make two's that you might be able to complete, a little luck will give you a new lease on life. In the hard game, you often have to deal with a board that is 3/4 full. In the easy and medium games, if you are playing well, the board will rarely get that full.

Open up another two when you make a line

It's a good move to make a three while also unblocking a two in a row, especially if you have a tile that can complete that two next turn.

Make two twos if you can't make a three

If you can't make a line, you may find a move that makes a two while unblocking another two.

Make four if you can't make two two's

If you cannot make a line, look for a move that will let you make a four next turn.

Make high percentage two's

When you make a two in a row, consider how easy it will be to turn it into a line. At one extreme: the two is open at both ends and you can complete the line next turn by moving a tile one square. At the other extreme: the line is open in the middle, and to make a line you have to move a tile from far away along a narrow corridor.

Hold an opportunity for a locked piece

Very often a new locked piece will appear that clogs up your open areas on the board, and worse yet, you could make a line at once if only you could move it. If you can make some other line this time, do so, hoping to move this clogging piece and make a line next move.

Think twice before making a four in a row (or more)

It's exciting to remove more than three tiles in one move because you gain empty space on the board -- you are removing more tiles than will drop on you. BUT often you could have made a line of three this turn AND a line of three next turn using those same tiles. Don't be eager to take this kind of four or five, unless you have other open two's to use next turn.

Choose a long move over a short one

Suppose you have two ways to make lines this turn. Neither way will unblock another two. One way involves moving a tile one square. The other involves making a long move that could easily be blocked next turn. Unless it is more important to keep communication lines open or break up a clump with the short move, you will prefer the long move.

Don’t be mesmerized by deadlocks

Consider the case where two tiles of one kind are above and below an open space, and two tiles of another kind are on each side of that space. If you could drop a tile in the middle, you could make a line. But you can't, and the random drops of the game are unlikely to help you. It's usually not a good idea to let these deadlocks sit around. As soon as you have a good reason to move one of the four tiles, you are creating an open two that might really be useful.

Please send your comments on these maxims to Tobias D. Robison, tobyr21@alumni.princeton.edu
You can download Asteria from the beelogic website at http://www.beelogic.com