Words are walls. You place letters in a straight line to form real words, and the words stand on the map as fortifications — but the score is not the letters, it is the empty ground you close in behind them. The board edges count as permanent walls, so a line of words against a corner seals a region, and sealed ground is yours.
And any wall can be stolen. Cross an opponent's word with one of your own and the wall flips — a single letter can take several walls at once, and the territory behind them re-scores on the spot. The map keeps changing hands to the last turn.
The daily is solo, and the opponent is the sea. Water seeds wake along the edges on staggered clocks and each front adds a cell on its own beat — the water scores against you. Wall it out, seal the coast, and the day is judged from Slack Water up to King Tide: everyone in the world gets the same tide, the same seeds, the same 25 rounds. Seal the coast early and the verdict says so.
Open and Conquest are the two-player duels — sixteen rounds, hidden territory or seal bounties. Eight Kingdoms seats four players on a 15×15 with eight crowns, connected words or free placement. All of it is hotseat: one device, real names, pass it around.