Hard Star Battle

Hard Star Battle answer — April 24, 2026

Stuck on the April 24, 2026 hard Star Battle (also called Two Not Touch)? Here's the complete step-by-step solution to the 10×10 grid — every star placed with pure logic, one deduction at a time, no guessing. Tap Next to step through it, or brush up on the rules first.

Solve walkthrough Step 1 of 57

Full written solution

Every deduction from the walkthrough above, in order. Each technique is explained in the Star Battle strategy guide.

  1. Starting position — the grid is split into regions (bold outlines). Each row, column, and region needs exactly two stars, and no two stars may touch.
  2. 3-cell region rule: Middle cell can't hold a star (row 4, column 3).
  3. Region completion: 2 stars needed, 2 candidates (row 3, column 3).
  4. Mark 7 cells adjacent to stars as X (row 2, column 2).
  5. Region completion: 1 star needed, 1 candidate (row 5, column 3).
  6. Mark 5 cells adjacent to stars as X (row 5, column 2).
  7. Column 3 complete: Mark 5 remaining cells as X (row 1, column 3).
  8. 3-cell region rule: Middle cell can't hold a star (row 5, column 5).
  9. Region completion: 2 stars needed, 2 candidates (row 4, column 5).
  10. Mark 4 cells adjacent to stars as X (row 3, column 5).
  11. Region completion: 1 star needed, 1 candidate (row 6, column 5).
  12. Mark 4 cells adjacent to stars as X (row 6, column 6).
  13. Column 5 complete: Mark 5 remaining cells as X (row 1, column 5).
  14. Blocking rule: a star here would touch every other open cell in its region, leaving no room for the region's second star (row 9, column 7).
  15. Blocking rule: a star here would touch every other open cell in its region, leaving no room for the region's second star (row 2, column 9).
  16. Clump analysis (Region 2): candidate clumps can only just supply the remaining stars (row 8, column 7).
  17. Clump analysis (Region 7): candidate clumps can only just supply the remaining stars (row 8, column 2).
  18. Clump analysis (Region 9): candidate clumps can only just supply the remaining stars (row 3, column 9).
  19. Crowding (Region 10): a star here would leave too little room for its 2 remaining stars (row 2, column 7).
  20. Generalized counting (rows 1-3): region star limits exclude these cells (row 3, column 7).
  21. Generalized counting (rows 1-4): region star limits exclude these cells (row 4, column 7).
  22. Row completion: 1 star needed, 1 candidate (row 4, column 1).
  23. Mark 2 cells adjacent to stars as X (row 3, column 1).
  24. Row completion: 1 star needed, 1 candidate (row 3, column 10).
  25. Mark 1 cell adjacent to stars as X (row 2, column 10).
  26. Clump analysis (Region 6): candidate clumps can only just supply the remaining stars (row 1, column 10).
  27. Two-option rule: Cell adjacent to both candidates (row 1, column 8).
  28. Clump analysis (Row 5): candidate clumps can only just supply the remaining stars (row 6, column 8).
  29. Clump analysis (Region 7): candidate clumps can only just supply the remaining stars (row 1, column 1).
  30. Region completion: 1 star needed, 1 candidate (row 1, column 2).
  31. Row completion: 2 stars needed, 2 candidates (row 2, column 6).
  32. Mark 2 cells adjacent to stars as X (row 1, column 6).
  33. Region completion: 1 star needed, 1 candidate (row 1, column 4).
  34. Row 1 complete: Mark 1 remaining cell as X (row 1, column 9).
  35. Region completion: 1 star needed, 1 candidate (row 2, column 8).
  36. Clump analysis (Column 1): each clump must supply its full share of stars (row 7, column 2).
  37. Mark 3 cells adjacent to stars as X (row 6, column 1).
  38. Region completion: 1 star needed, 1 candidate (row 9, column 1).
  39. Mark 1 cell adjacent to stars as X (row 10, column 2).
  40. Two last candidates (row 6): Eliminate 2 cells adjacent to both (row 5, column 8).
  41. Clump analysis (Column 4): each clump must supply its full share of stars (row 6, column 7).
  42. Mark 2 cells adjacent to stars as X (row 5, column 7).
  43. Row completion: 1 star needed, 1 candidate (row 5, column 9).
  44. Mark 1 cell adjacent to stars as X (row 6, column 9).
  45. Column completion: 1 star needed, 1 candidate (row 10, column 7).
  46. Mark 3 cells adjacent to stars as X (row 9, column 8).
  47. Region completion: 1 star needed, 1 candidate (row 8, column 8).
  48. Mark 1 cell adjacent to stars as X (row 7, column 9).
  49. Region completion: 1 star needed, 1 candidate (row 8, column 6).
  50. Row completion: 1 star needed, 1 candidate (row 7, column 10).
  51. Mark 1 cell adjacent to stars as X (row 8, column 10).
  52. Row 8 complete: Mark 1 remaining cell as X (row 8, column 4).
  53. Column completion: 1 star needed, 1 candidate (row 10, column 9).
  54. Mark 2 cells adjacent to stars as X (row 9, column 10).
  55. Row completion: 1 star needed, 1 candidate (row 9, column 4).
  56. Mark 1 cell adjacent to stars as X (row 10, column 4).
  57. Solved! Every row, column, and region has its two stars, none touching.

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This step-by-step walkthrough is generated by the TryHard Puzzles solver to teach Star Battle (Two Not Touch) solving technique.