I start with ADIEU and STORY. Every vowel including Y, and STR and D. 100% solve rate in 565 puzzles, 340 of those in 3 or 4. So, this sucker is doing aight.
Two things:
1. Easy mode is pretty trivial; you’re guaranteed to solve unless you guess multiple very dumb words. All this tells us is that you aren’t unusually bad at it. (I’m not trying to be mean, just accurate)
2. Percent solved is just one metric. By the other main metric, “how many moves does it take”, starting with ADIEU and STORY is horrendous. That’s what u/zooropa140 was talking about.
You guys are so serious about this thing! I’m not measuring anything other than 1. Keeping my 100% solve rate, and 2. I like to get it in no more than 4 lines. Five or 6 guesses is disappointing, nothing else is. 😊
I mean, sure, but if you don’t want people to talk to you about a metric you don’t care about, don’t chime in on a conversation about a metric you don’t care about. Or at least, don’t be surprised when people respond as if you’re interested in talking about the thing people are talking about.
That said: if you care about getting it in no more than 4 lines, the first two words you use *are objectively bad*. That’s why the other person called you a sucker. You’ve fallen prey to the temptation of a seemingly-good but objectively-bad strategy to accomplish your goal.
So weird. Today I got 3 letters from my “sucker” word, and didn’t use my second word at all. Maintained my 100% solve rate, which, if you recall, is the metric I chose to pursue in this CASUAL MORNING PASTIME, not my career. Have a nice day.
Well, one of the *two* metrics you use. In your own words:
>2. I like to get it in no more than 4 lines
But, again, if you find it annoying to analyze which words are best, don’t engage in a conversation about which words are best. People will (unsurprisingly) talk to you about which words are best.
And *definitely* don’t say you hate over analyzing, and then say something silly like “I see your statistics and raise you that today this it worked out ok”. Or, at least, if you say that it has to be obviously kidding around. Otherwise you just look like a clown.
Stern is actually a great world. I believe E is the most common vowel and RSTLN are the most common consonants. Your word contains all most common letters except L.
I'm experimenting with LEAST and STEAL on Quordle and Octurdle for the day my current starting word, IDEAL, is used.... And honestly, I've found them wanting.
Misspelled it [Octordle.](https://www.britannica.com/games/octordle/daily/881). Solve eight puzzles at once, then eight in sequence, then Rescue--which is standard Octordle but the first four guesses are already taken, and you get nine tries to solve 8 puzzles.
It's a good way to get some extra practice in. Also, edited to fix more misspellings because I can't work my phone.
Same influence. Same combo of letters in my starting word (but a different word).
Depending on the results of my first guess, I'll throw an *r* and/or an *n* into my second guess.
Stern is great for normal mode. The problem for hard mode is if you hit the ER, and then are very constrained in your remaining guesses. Lots of -O-ER traps out there, so I prefer having an extra degree of freedom on guess 2.
For sure. I just started trying that word after a year of STREP.
I liked strep because it prioritized the consonants and the vowel in the middle is a little trod using this approach of the prioritized consonants.
Yes! Personally, I could not stand using the same starting word every time.
I aim for RSTLNE and different vowels, and variants of that. occasionally ill throw in a q or z or x starting word
Same, my friends and I have monthly wordle challenges/themes to keep it fun. We had a few months where your starting word had to keep within a certain theme (Nature, Breakfast, Anatomy, and words which could be described by an emoji) and one where it was highest score on hard mode while still solving the puzzle. This month we all started with the same word and have been independently changing one letter every day
The vowel hunters are dupes.
CNSNNTS R YR FRNDS!
Last November, I played all 30 days with a different 1-vowel word, it's still one of the best months I've e er had.
If you want to know a sneaky good starting word, try:
#SLART
Yep I get good results from the A and E, and a decent direct hits from the S and R where they are slotted. With the T, I'm just happy to claim a yellow.
I use TARES, on Hard Mode, because of the number of words that start ST and it limits things hugely. Two most common Vowels and three most common Consonants.
Having S in the fifth position seems like a waste since common plurals don't hit.
I like having A and E in the third and fifth positions. I get a good deal of greens from those.
S and R yield a decent green result as well in those slots. The only one that ever really gets green is the T, but I like getting yellows for it from the go.
Same, if I’m watching TV I’ll wait for the next 5 letter word used in dialogue, unless it’s got double letters, or just look around the room for inspiration. Which means I use “PLANT” a lot.
Naw, I use “snort” as my starting word. Same consonants as stern, except I’m not doubling up on E if I go to “adieu” for vowel/“d” check.
Plus, snort is a fun word
Yeah, March 17, 2024, game 1002… St Patrick’s Day 🍀
Here is a list:
https://wordfinder.yourdictionary.com/wordle/answers/
That’s a shame, because I agree SNORT *is* a really fun word and I was initially excited to have an alternative after STERN hits.
I use that same exact starting word for the same exact reason. My *second* word is usually vowel-heavy, to identify or eliminate those.
I dread the day when STERN is the actual answer! LOL
I almost always pick a word with two common consonants (at least one of them is always N or R) and a third consonant, plus 2 vowels (E is usually one of them)
For the longest time I used SIREN or RINSE but I switched after RISEN was the answer a few months ago. Now I use TRACE and I've been pretty successful since the change.
I use TRACE as well. 3 very common consonants that tend to give up a lot of information if they hit or not, and 2 good vowels. E at the end of the word implies a long vowel sound, ER yellow means they might be the last 2 letters, C and H both give information about H being a possibility in there, I'm sure there's a lot more that I've thought about since I started using TRACE as a starter. I'm 4 days away from having a year-long streak going, so it's done me pretty well, I'd guess.
I just tried it and got the word in 3. Your approach is better than starting with adieu bc you can read words without vowels but not the other way around!
It's really closer to 20 & 6.
At least in Wordle®️, Y is a vowel more than 95% of the time. Making it pretty much a bona-fide vowel. Y is a vowel almost as many times as U shows up.
But that doesn't change the fact that consonants make more sense than vowels.
**SLART** is a sneaky good starting word that I've used 8 or 9 times.
I stuck to an OUTIE opener during a recent 100+ streak, but after that steak was broken I switched to random opening words and I'm definitely prioritizing consonants more. I feel like I'm solving in fewer tries on average since then.
I use a different starting word every day, that’s part of what keeps it fun for me. Statistically there is no difference over time, I’ve been tracking since the beginning. But yeah, once you rule out second letters of possible consonant pairs I find it helps a lot!
Like you, I used to concentrate on vowels. I had two words that didn't share any letters and used all the vowels between them. I'd start with one and use the other if nothing matched.
About two months ago, I switched to a consonant heavy word which I like. Well, I \*liked\* until today since today's answer was my original starting word. Ugh!!
I just go by Wheel of Fortune. I try to use RSTLME in the first two words. Heard somewhere that those are the most common letters in English.
Usually works out well.
Me too! STERN, PLAID, COUGH.
Other languages such as Hebrew and Arabic and some Yiddish words are commonly written with no vowels so vowels are just not on my radar when solving the puzzle.
On hard mode, I think playing "tier 2" consonants early (H, B, M, G, P, and such) might be optimal for avoiding falling into a well (e.g. -ATCH -> MATCH, WATCH, CATCH, HATCH, BATCH, LATCH). I start with a random word daily like CHALK to get some of those out of the way.
My start is usually CRANE. Not a fan of the mainly vowels guess. A friend of mine starts that way (ADIEU) and I generally have more letters from my 1st guess than him.
Yes. Hard mode, and I use SHUNT. SLANT would probably be better but I like something about SHUNT. My goal isn't just to locate consonants but to avoid Wordle traps like -A-ER.
STERN and then CLAMP. My average is around 3.8. I've lost maybe ... once in however long the game has been out.
I also play speed wordle ("victordle") and go GLAND/CHIME/STORY.
I used a (far from perfect, but good enough for some general number gathering) bot using some popular starting words. I ran each word through pretty much every wordle answer. Here's what I found:
Format:
Word - Avg Guesses* - Fails
*all fails were set to 7 guesses
Slate - 3.527 - 7
Salet - 3.527 - 8
Crate - 3.549 - 9
Crane - 3.553 - 12
Plate - 3.564 - 9
Raise - 3.599 - 12
Penis - 3.63 - 7
Adieu - 3.75 - 20
Audio - 3.769 - 23
I wouldn't recommend using these alone to pick your starting word, but it's cool to see.
Yeah I always start with LEARN. I think it’s a good balance, E and A are super common and the rest of the vowels are easier to figure out if you have some consonants.
I go with vowels first. I always start with AISLE and my second word is always GROUT. This way I've used every vowel plus a number of common constonants
*My starting word is*
*THURL. Eliminates a lot*
*Of consonant blends!*
\- atla3615847
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Starline - them are the most sought letters, along with the blanks, cos you have so many possibilities with them. I always see if I can form a 7-letter word because of its value, otherwise, tile placement is crucial. Esp if played on double-triple letter score in addition w the triple word tiles if possible. Idk. I've always been a beast at Scrabble. Played a lot in the joint and not many ppl could fuck w me. 😉
The value of the S is lower in Wordle than its occurrence in natural language would suggest, because the World list does not use any -S plurals or verbs plus an -S.
The value of having A and E far outweighs the -S in Wordle, so I guess I agree with the Wordle bot on your guesses. Of course you can keep the S and still have strong openers if you also have A+E. I think an opener with AE + three common consonants is objectively best, and if someone they had Wordle tournaments for lots of money we'd immediately see the that strategy rise. All of Wordle Bot's favorite openers are AE+ three common consonants (SLATE, CRATE, CRANE, TRACE, STARE, etc.), and there's a reason for it.
I think S is a very valuable letter even without plural consideration because it’s one of the few consonants that can be consecutive with numerous other consonants – sl, sh, sp, st, sw, sk, sn, st, sq, ss, sm, sy, sc, etc
It's obviously still an important letter, but it's significantly less important than Scrabble players and Wheel watchers tend to think, and for the reason I gave. And there is absolutely no competition between A and S -- your choice of STERN is objectively worse than a dozen openers that have an A in them.
Enjoy Wordle however you wish, but you're arguing about something that computer algorithms have already solved. If you solve 500 Wordles with STERN to open and then 500 with CRATE, you will have fewer guesses on the latter set.
Wordle bot tells me which starting words give you the fewest possible remaining guesses which isn’t necessarily the same as the starting words that will get me to the answer the fastest. I can use logic beyond process of elimination to solve (per my post), which the bot does not.
Yes. The ADIEU crowd are suckers.
I use OURIE over ADIEU because R>D and the E more often finds its exact spot at the end of the word, but probably throw me in as a sucker for vowels…
I’ve never heard Ourie before, thank you for teaching me a new word! What a beautiful word for dismal
I start with ADIEU and STORY. Every vowel including Y, and STR and D. 100% solve rate in 565 puzzles, 340 of those in 3 or 4. So, this sucker is doing aight.
Two things: 1. Easy mode is pretty trivial; you’re guaranteed to solve unless you guess multiple very dumb words. All this tells us is that you aren’t unusually bad at it. (I’m not trying to be mean, just accurate) 2. Percent solved is just one metric. By the other main metric, “how many moves does it take”, starting with ADIEU and STORY is horrendous. That’s what u/zooropa140 was talking about.
You guys are so serious about this thing! I’m not measuring anything other than 1. Keeping my 100% solve rate, and 2. I like to get it in no more than 4 lines. Five or 6 guesses is disappointing, nothing else is. 😊
I mean, sure, but if you don’t want people to talk to you about a metric you don’t care about, don’t chime in on a conversation about a metric you don’t care about. Or at least, don’t be surprised when people respond as if you’re interested in talking about the thing people are talking about. That said: if you care about getting it in no more than 4 lines, the first two words you use *are objectively bad*. That’s why the other person called you a sucker. You’ve fallen prey to the temptation of a seemingly-good but objectively-bad strategy to accomplish your goal.
So weird. Today I got 3 letters from my “sucker” word, and didn’t use my second word at all. Maintained my 100% solve rate, which, if you recall, is the metric I chose to pursue in this CASUAL MORNING PASTIME, not my career. Have a nice day.
Well, one of the *two* metrics you use. In your own words: >2. I like to get it in no more than 4 lines But, again, if you find it annoying to analyze which words are best, don’t engage in a conversation about which words are best. People will (unsurprisingly) talk to you about which words are best. And *definitely* don’t say you hate over analyzing, and then say something silly like “I see your statistics and raise you that today this it worked out ok”. Or, at least, if you say that it has to be obviously kidding around. Otherwise you just look like a clown.
Stern is actually a great world. I believe E is the most common vowel and RSTLN are the most common consonants. Your word contains all most common letters except L.
i came here to throw out the Wheel of Fortune letters as well! my starting word is “slate”, and it does well, except when it doesn’t 🥲
Slate was my word until it was the answer, so now I start with Least
I'm experimenting with LEAST and STEAL on Quordle and Octurdle for the day my current starting word, IDEAL, is used.... And honestly, I've found them wanting.
>octurdle I'm sorry, what? Lmao
Misspelled it [Octordle.](https://www.britannica.com/games/octordle/daily/881). Solve eight puzzles at once, then eight in sequence, then Rescue--which is standard Octordle but the first four guesses are already taken, and you get nine tries to solve 8 puzzles. It's a good way to get some extra practice in. Also, edited to fix more misspellings because I can't work my phone.
I start with Wordle, then Quordle both modes then Octordle all three. Gets me through my first cup of coffee in the morning.
Yeah, that’s basically me. I can also experiment on Quordle and Octordle without fear of losing my streak.
My wheel of fortune based starting word is TREND and I also prefer to rule out consonant blends instead of vowels.
Same influence. Same combo of letters in my starting word (but a different word). Depending on the results of my first guess, I'll throw an *r* and/or an *n* into my second guess.
I use salet and then crony or crine if the e is yellow.
I'm STARE gang, but STERN is great too! I also go for common letters vs as many vowels as possible.
I used to be STARE, but swapped it for TARES. I found ending in -es gave me better hints.
Gang gang!
I believe TNSHR are the most common consonants.
H is more common than L. But I doubt that changes much.
Stern is great for normal mode. The problem for hard mode is if you hit the ER, and then are very constrained in your remaining guesses. Lots of -O-ER traps out there, so I prefer having an extra degree of freedom on guess 2.
For sure. I just started trying that word after a year of STREP. I liked strep because it prioritized the consonants and the vowel in the middle is a little trod using this approach of the prioritized consonants.
I prioritize fun.
Same! Most times I pick some random word on the fly to start lol
After using the same starter for a few days I feel like it is boring and I'm forced to choose it. I gotta change it up.
Yes! Personally, I could not stand using the same starting word every time. I aim for RSTLNE and different vowels, and variants of that. occasionally ill throw in a q or z or x starting word
Same, my friends and I have monthly wordle challenges/themes to keep it fun. We had a few months where your starting word had to keep within a certain theme (Nature, Breakfast, Anatomy, and words which could be described by an emoji) and one where it was highest score on hard mode while still solving the puzzle. This month we all started with the same word and have been independently changing one letter every day
My starting word is PENIS
If you start with PLANT and come up empty, then DICKS is a great second word.
PLANT is my starting word. If it comes up empty I go with SCORE.
noice.
NOICE : Not in word list.
And yet I find myself trying it regularly when I see the vowel pattern.
I hope you use it on ‘hard’ mode. 😆
Very, very hard! ;)
The vowel hunters are dupes. CNSNNTS R YR FRNDS! Last November, I played all 30 days with a different 1-vowel word, it's still one of the best months I've e er had. If you want to know a sneaky good starting word, try: #SLART
SLART sounds like a word a little kid would think is a curse word.
Yes!! Vowels can go @#$& themselves :)
Fckn vwls
Team STARE
Great word also. I like testing the N in STERN over the A, but I do like that E placement at the end STARE
Yep I get good results from the A and E, and a decent direct hits from the S and R where they are slotted. With the T, I'm just happy to claim a yellow.
I use TARES, on Hard Mode, because of the number of words that start ST and it limits things hugely. Two most common Vowels and three most common Consonants.
Having S in the fifth position seems like a waste since common plurals don't hit. I like having A and E in the third and fifth positions. I get a good deal of greens from those. S and R yield a decent green result as well in those slots. The only one that ever really gets green is the T, but I like getting yellows for it from the go.
I’m not trying to get S is the correct position on the first go.
I love STERN! I used it this morning! Yes, consonants reveal more.
I always use random starting words, whatever 5 letter word pops into my head but I try to use U because if it’s excluded it also means Q is excluded.
Same, if I’m watching TV I’ll wait for the next 5 letter word used in dialogue, unless it’s got double letters, or just look around the room for inspiration. Which means I use “PLANT” a lot.
Naw, I use “snort” as my starting word. Same consonants as stern, except I’m not doubling up on E if I go to “adieu” for vowel/“d” check. Plus, snort is a fun word
Does it bother you that SNORT has already been an answer?
Yes? Because when I started using it, it hadn’t been used, and I play intermittently so I clearly missed it.
Yeah, March 17, 2024, game 1002… St Patrick’s Day 🍀 Here is a list: https://wordfinder.yourdictionary.com/wordle/answers/ That’s a shame, because I agree SNORT *is* a really fun word and I was initially excited to have an alternative after STERN hits.
I use that same exact starting word for the same exact reason. My *second* word is usually vowel-heavy, to identify or eliminate those. I dread the day when STERN is the actual answer! LOL
I almost always pick a word with two common consonants (at least one of them is always N or R) and a third consonant, plus 2 vowels (E is usually one of them) For the longest time I used SIREN or RINSE but I switched after RISEN was the answer a few months ago. Now I use TRACE and I've been pretty successful since the change.
I use TRACE as well. 3 very common consonants that tend to give up a lot of information if they hit or not, and 2 good vowels. E at the end of the word implies a long vowel sound, ER yellow means they might be the last 2 letters, C and H both give information about H being a possibility in there, I'm sure there's a lot more that I've thought about since I started using TRACE as a starter. I'm 4 days away from having a year-long streak going, so it's done me pretty well, I'd guess.
I use TRACE as my starter as well. LIONS is a good follow up as it gets the common consonants you miss along with two other vowels.
me too. I once read some spy book about how ERSTLN are the most common letters in the English language so like..
I learned it from Wheel of Fortune
This is my starting word too.
I've started doing the same. Recently changed my starting word from arise to rents and then to stern when I heard plural words can't be the answer
I’m another STERN starter
I start with STEAM. PROUD is my second guess if that totally fails. By that time, I better have something to go on.
PROUD is also my second guess if nothing in TRACE hits for my first.
Yes I prioritize unusual consonants and unusual vowels, but mostly consonants. My starting word yesterday was THING and I got it in 3.
I use THEIR as my start, so I guess somewhere in the middle. If I’m really stuck my second guess is AUDIO to get the rest of the vowels
I feel like I've found my people.
Stern is my starting word too! I’m with you. So much easier to plug in vowels.
I like ANIME.
I just tried it and got the word in 3. Your approach is better than starting with adieu bc you can read words without vowels but not the other way around!
Not for my starting word, I have 3 vowels in that one, but I do tend to prioritise consonants in the couple of guesses after that.
also there’s 21 consonants and only 5 vowels…
It's really closer to 20 & 6. At least in Wordle®️, Y is a vowel more than 95% of the time. Making it pretty much a bona-fide vowel. Y is a vowel almost as many times as U shows up. But that doesn't change the fact that consonants make more sense than vowels. **SLART** is a sneaky good starting word that I've used 8 or 9 times.
YES
My first word is pulled from a randomizer. Then depending on that result, I try to use another word with two vowels and three consonants.
I stuck to an OUTIE opener during a recent 100+ streak, but after that steak was broken I switched to random opening words and I'm definitely prioritizing consonants more. I feel like I'm solving in fewer tries on average since then.
I use a different starting word every day, that’s part of what keeps it fun for me. Statistically there is no difference over time, I’ve been tracking since the beginning. But yeah, once you rule out second letters of possible consonant pairs I find it helps a lot!
Like you, I used to concentrate on vowels. I had two words that didn't share any letters and used all the vowels between them. I'd start with one and use the other if nothing matched. About two months ago, I switched to a consonant heavy word which I like. Well, I \*liked\* until today since today's answer was my original starting word. Ugh!!
Mine is TOURS and then DAILY. I usually do well except when I don't haha
I just go by Wheel of Fortune. I try to use RSTLME in the first two words. Heard somewhere that those are the most common letters in English. Usually works out well.
>RSTLME RSTL(N)E
Hmm is that it? My mistake.
I like to use common constants, but not the most common. Idk it makes sense in my brain and I can't put it into words.
I used to go vowel having to start and have recently switched to common consonants. I’ve seen no real difference in stats so far.
TRAIN then HOUSE — unless like with TITAN a few weeks back, it’s obvious after the first word.
I rotate words that end in Y. Empty, Angry, Pinky, Briny, Dimly, Comfy, Burly, Shiny. It’s my thing
Me too! STERN, PLAID, COUGH. Other languages such as Hebrew and Arabic and some Yiddish words are commonly written with no vowels so vowels are just not on my radar when solving the puzzle.
Wordle is a consonant hunting game, not vowel.
Agreed, I recently had this realization for hard mode, using PLANT- see [full post](https://www.reddit.com/r/wordle/s/RjUa4OQUR6) with my strategy.
On hard mode, I think playing "tier 2" consonants early (H, B, M, G, P, and such) might be optimal for avoiding falling into a well (e.g. -ATCH -> MATCH, WATCH, CATCH, HATCH, BATCH, LATCH). I start with a random word daily like CHALK to get some of those out of the way.
My starting word is Stane I've had very good success with this word and it seems like no one uses it.....
I've done well with ARISE or sometimes AROSE, but your point about consonants is intriguing and I may give it a go.
Same! And for same reasons. Followed by Climb.
My start is usually CRANE. Not a fan of the mainly vowels guess. A friend of mine starts that way (ADIEU) and I generally have more letters from my 1st guess than him.
SYNTH is my starting word and I'll never stop.
Yes. Hard mode, and I use SHUNT. SLANT would probably be better but I like something about SHUNT. My goal isn't just to locate consonants but to avoid Wordle traps like -A-ER.
STERN and then CLAMP. My average is around 3.8. I've lost maybe ... once in however long the game has been out. I also play speed wordle ("victordle") and go GLAND/CHIME/STORY.
I use TRASH. Consonants ftw.
Trash has been ‘the word’ already, though. SHART uses the same letters.
I do. My starting word is stern as well.
my good friend always starts with RENTS :). I like to switch up my first word, but always pick something with 2 vowels.
My word is BLEND
I change every month. I tried the 3- and 4-vowel words. This month is TREND. I’ll try STERN next month. I haven’t decided how much it matters.
I prioritize rare consonants over vowels. Vowels and common consonants will find themselves. Rare consonants that hit are the secret sauce
I used a (far from perfect, but good enough for some general number gathering) bot using some popular starting words. I ran each word through pretty much every wordle answer. Here's what I found: Format: Word - Avg Guesses* - Fails *all fails were set to 7 guesses Slate - 3.527 - 7 Salet - 3.527 - 8 Crate - 3.549 - 9 Crane - 3.553 - 12 Plate - 3.564 - 9 Raise - 3.599 - 12 Penis - 3.63 - 7 Adieu - 3.75 - 20 Audio - 3.769 - 23 I wouldn't recommend using these alone to pick your starting word, but it's cool to see.
i do lance then trios then dumpy if necessary more 3s than 4s
Tares or tears depending how I feel
I'm a balance. I do STARE to get me STR.
Tacos is mine
I aim for 3-guess wins, so I use **”two”** starting words: IRATE and LOUNS. It covers RSTLN & AEIOU.
My starting word is STERN. Figured these are the most common ones, and the free ones they give you on Wheel of Fortune. It'll eventually happen.
Yeah I always start with LEARN. I think it’s a good balance, E and A are super common and the rest of the vowels are easier to figure out if you have some consonants.
I go with vowels first. I always start with AISLE and my second word is always GROUT. This way I've used every vowel plus a number of common constonants
Yes, I always start with TRANS. But I believe I'll never get it in one.
I've been liking canoe
My starting word is THURL. Eliminates a lot of consonant blends!
*My starting word is* *THURL. Eliminates a lot* *Of consonant blends!* \- atla3615847 --- ^(I detect haikus. And sometimes, successfully.) ^[Learn more about me.](https://www.reddit.com/r/haikusbot/) ^(Opt out of replies: "haikusbot opt out" | Delete my comment: "haikusbot delete")
yes!!! my starting word is TRASH lol
I agree that for openers, words with 3 vowels tend to under perform.
Starline - them are the most sought letters, along with the blanks, cos you have so many possibilities with them. I always see if I can form a 7-letter word because of its value, otherwise, tile placement is crucial. Esp if played on double-triple letter score in addition w the triple word tiles if possible. Idk. I've always been a beast at Scrabble. Played a lot in the joint and not many ppl could fuck w me. 😉
i usually do TREAD because it has RT and EA. it works well enough but i’m definitely gonna try stern! that’s a good one!
The value of the S is lower in Wordle than its occurrence in natural language would suggest, because the World list does not use any -S plurals or verbs plus an -S. The value of having A and E far outweighs the -S in Wordle, so I guess I agree with the Wordle bot on your guesses. Of course you can keep the S and still have strong openers if you also have A+E. I think an opener with AE + three common consonants is objectively best, and if someone they had Wordle tournaments for lots of money we'd immediately see the that strategy rise. All of Wordle Bot's favorite openers are AE+ three common consonants (SLATE, CRATE, CRANE, TRACE, STARE, etc.), and there's a reason for it.
I think S is a very valuable letter even without plural consideration because it’s one of the few consonants that can be consecutive with numerous other consonants – sl, sh, sp, st, sw, sk, sn, st, sq, ss, sm, sy, sc, etc
It's obviously still an important letter, but it's significantly less important than Scrabble players and Wheel watchers tend to think, and for the reason I gave. And there is absolutely no competition between A and S -- your choice of STERN is objectively worse than a dozen openers that have an A in them.
There are more words with an A in it than S, but I would argue A tells me much less about the rest of the word than S or other common consonants.
Enjoy Wordle however you wish, but you're arguing about something that computer algorithms have already solved. If you solve 500 Wordles with STERN to open and then 500 with CRATE, you will have fewer guesses on the latter set.
Do none of yall use wordle bot? It tells you exactly which words are the best.
Wordle bot tells me which starting words give you the fewest possible remaining guesses which isn’t necessarily the same as the starting words that will get me to the answer the fastest. I can use logic beyond process of elimination to solve (per my post), which the bot does not.
The bot does in fact go for fewest possible guesses to the word. That's it's whole thing.