Kerslide › Guides › Levels strategy

Levels mode: clear the gems, earn three stars

Gems leave the board when their line clears or when a shift pushes them off the edge. Here is how to plan for both.

▶  Play free In your browser · no download · no sign-up

Levels mode turns Kerslide into a puzzle with a goal. Each level starts with blocks already on the board, and some of those blocks are gems. You win when every gem is gone. This guide explains how gems leave the board, how levels get harder, and how to earn three stars.

Two ways to remove a gem

1. Clear its line. If a gem sits in a row or column that you complete, it is removed with the rest of the line.
2. Push it off the board. After any row clear, the whole board moves one cell right; after any column clear, it moves one cell down. A gem in the last column leaves with the next row clear, and a gem in the bottom row leaves with the next column clear. This is often the quicker route.

The second way is what makes Levels mode different from other gem puzzles: you often remove a gem without ever filling its line, simply by clearing a different line at the right moment. See the shift rule with pictures.

Reading a level

• Gems near the bottom-right are cheap. One or two clears in the right direction push them out.
• Gems near the top-left are expensive. They have the longest way to travel, so you usually need to clear their line directly, or clear several lines in a row to walk them to the edge.
• Count the moves each gem needs. A gem three cells from the right edge needs three row clears to leave that way. If its own row is half full, finishing that row may be faster.

How the difficulty grows

Levels are generated from their number, so everyone plays the same level 12. Every level is played by the game's solver before you see it, and only boards the solver can win are used, so every level is solvable. The difficulty climbs in three ways:

From level 7 onward, gems are also placed away from the bottom and right edges, so they can no longer be pushed off with a single clear. The numbers stop growing at around level 40; after that, levels stay at full difficulty with a new board every time, up to level 999.

Stars

Each won level awards one to three stars, based on how many moves you used compared with the solver's par:

• 3 stars: finish within par.
• 2 stars: finish within twice par.
• 1 star: any win.

Winning a level unlocks the next one, so you can always come back later for the missing stars.

Five tips for three stars

1. Plan the direction first. Decide for each gem whether it leaves through its own line, through the right edge (row clears) or through the bottom edge (column clears).
2. Group gems by exit. Two gems near the right edge can both leave on the same row clear. Line them up and save moves.
3. Every clear moves every gem. A row clear helps all right-side gems at once. Count how many gems each clear brings closer to an edge.
4. Do not over-fill. Moves that clear nothing still count toward your total. Prefer pieces that complete a line.
5. Stuck? Use a hint. Where hints are available, you can watch a short ad for a hint that shows a good next move.

▶  Play Kerslide free

More guides: all guides · How to play · Tips