Coming from Queens
Queens was the warm-up.
If you're finishing LinkedIn Queens in two minutes and wishing it fought back — you've already found the door. Queens is a one-star Star Battle. This is the real game behind it: bigger boards, two stars per region, and difficulty that goes as far as you do.
Queens is Star Battle — the training-wheels edition
LinkedIn Queens took a decades-old logic puzzle, Star Battle, and shipped its gentlest form to a few million phones: a small coloured grid, one queen per row, column, and region, none touching, auto-marked so you can't even make a mistake. It's a brilliant on-ramp. It's also, deliberately, the shallow end.
Full Star Battle keeps the exact same no-touching rule and asks for two stars in every row, column, and region — usually on a bigger board, with no auto-marking. That one change multiplies everything: more stars interacting, longer chains of deduction, and puzzles that stay genuinely hard for twenty minutes instead of two.
| LinkedIn Queens | Star Battle (Zavija) | |
|---|---|---|
| Stars per unit | One per row, column, region | Two per row, column, region |
| Board size | Small, fixed daily | Up to 14×14 and beyond |
| Marking | Auto-marked for you | You mark by hand — housekeeping matters |
| Depth | Singles & simple logic | Counting, forcing, look-ahead |
| Supply | One per day | Never runs out |
| Touching rule | No two touch, incl. diagonals | Identical |
What actually gets harder
The jump from one star to two isn't linear — it's where the interesting techniques live. With a single queen per unit, most moves are "only one square left." With two stars per unit, you start counting: how many stars a band of rows owes, weighed against the regions inside it. You start forcing: placing a star in your head and watching a region break. And on the hardest boards you look ahead — following a forced line several moves out to prove a square impossible.
None of it is guessing. A good Star Battle always has a forced next move; the skill is finding it. If you enjoyed the click of a Queens solution, this is that click — deeper, and on demand. The techniques guide walks the whole ladder.
Making the jump without the wall
Coming straight from Queens, the two-star board can look busy at first. Three things make it click fast:
- Start easy, size up gradually. Begin at a small two-star board and let the boards grow as the moves become second nature.
- Use the hint as a teacher. Stuck? Zavija names the technique and shows you where to look — so next time you find it yourself. Hints are free and unlimited.
- Read the review. After every solve, see which moves you nailed, where a simpler line was sitting there, and whether you deduced or guessed. It's the shortcut Queens never gave you.
Common questions
Is Star Battle harder than Queens?
Yes — meaningfully. Two stars per unit on a larger board multiplies the interactions and the depth of deduction, and difficulty scales far past anything Queens offers. But it starts gentle: an easy two-star board is a comfortable next step, not a cliff.
Are the rules different?
The core rule is identical: no two stars touch, even diagonally. The only change is two stars per row, column, and region instead of one. Full rules here.
Do I have to pay or sign up?
No. There's a free weekly puzzle and a rotating set of boards with no account needed. Unlocking the full library — every size and difficulty — is a single one-time $7.99, no subscription.
Will I run out of puzzles like I do with Queens?
No — Zavija generates fresh, engine-verified boards, so there's always another. That's the whole point of graduating.
Ready for one that fights back?
Start with an easy two-star board — free, no account — and size up as it starts to feel small.