From 5×5 to 12×12
The rules stay the same at every size: a 12×12 board needs twelve crowns, each in a different row, column and region. More cells mean more candidates to inspect, but a large board is not automatically harder than every smaller one.
Puzzle difficulty labels come from a reproducible analysis of deduction steps and techniques. They have not yet been calibrated against real players' solve times. Treat the rating as guidance while you learn which patterns take you longer.
- Use region letters and auto-marking to reduce the amount you must track mentally.
- Increase one grid size when you can explain your placements at the previous size.
- Use Expedition to unlock boards and replay for hint-free mastery stars.
- Try fixed-size Survival first. Climb moves up one size after three solved boards, up to 12×12, and adjusts time rewards to the grid.
What changes on big boards
- More candidates to track: use marks and auto-marking so you do not hold everything in your head.
- Longer chains: a 12×12 board averages about 17 deductions, against about 7–8 on 5×5.
- More region groups: two-regions-in-two-rows locks appear on most 11×11 and 12×12 boards.
- Missed singles: a row with one free cell is easy to overlook among many marks — scan line by line.
A good progression is 5×5 and 6×6 to learn forced crowns, 7×7 and 8×8 to practice line locks, then 9×9 and up for region groups. Move up when you can explain every crown you place.
Try one move
Tap a still-open cell this deduction rules out. This is a real position from 5×5 puzzle #5-standard-002.
👑 placed crown · × already ruled out · · still a candidate. Row and column numbers start at 1.
How board size changes the puzzle
| Size | Avg. deductions | Hard boards | Need region groups |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5×5 | 7.5 | 9% | 17% |
| 6×6 | 9.2 | 24% | 43% |
| 7×7 | 10.2 | 33% | 45% |
| 8×8 | 12 | 15% | 56% |
| 9×9 | 13.3 | 26% | 58% |
| 10×10 | 15.9 | 32% | 45% |
| 11×11 | 16.6 | 23% | 72% |
| 12×12 | 17 | 26% | 95% |
Length grows steadily with size, but the share of hard boards does not: 7×7 has the highest share of hard boards, because difficulty comes from which techniques a board needs, not from its size alone. See the full Queens puzzle statistics.
Questions about this technique
Are bigger Queens boards always harder?
No. Bigger boards take longer, but difficulty depends on which techniques a board needs. Many of the hardest boards in this game are 10×10 rather than 12×12.