Puzzle #14
Breakwater
9 × 9Advanced9 colorsPublished October 8, 2026
Solve it in the solver Download .flow
Colors: Blue, Orange, Green, Red, Purple, Brown, Pink, Gray, Lime.
Purple's path goes the long way on this board, from its top dot around the top-left corner, down the entire left edge and into the bottom-left corner. Most of the right side falls quickly to forced moves. The hard part is the left edge, where every step Purple takes has to be checked against the pocket it would leave behind.
New to these puzzles? Read how to play first. Connect each pair of dots with a path, fill every cell, and don't let paths cross. This board has exactly one solution.
Hints
Hint 1: where to look
Start in the top-right corner and follow the forced moves down the right side.
Hint 2: the first idea
Purple's lower dot at row 9, column 3 can't go up without cutting Red off. Send it left into the bottom-left corner.
Hint 3: the key step
Keep Purple climbing the left edge all the way to row 4, since turning right at any point seals a pocket no color can finish. Then Brown can't go up from row 8, column 4 without cutting Red off, so Brown runs left and climbs column 2.
Techniques used: Forced moves, Edges and corners, Dead ends, Bottlenecks.
Step-by-step walkthrough
Every step below follows from the rules alone, with no guessing. Try the puzzle first and use the walkthrough when you get stuck.
Step 1 of 9
A long chain of forced moves fills most of the right side. Green runs from the top-right corner down column 8 to its lower dot, with Orange's two halves on either side, one down column 7 and one down the right edge and back along row 6. Gray, Pink and Lime settle the bottom right, Gray along row 7 and Pink through the bottom row and up column 5. Purple's top dot drops and turns left, Blue steps toward its partner, and Brown's lower dot steps up.
Step 2 of 9
Orange's lower path at row 6, column 6 could keep going left. That would seal off a one-cell pocket, so Orange turns up instead and ends right below its other half.
Step 3 of 9
Purple's lower dot at row 9, column 3 could go up or left. Going up would cut Red off from its partner, so Purple heads left into the bottom-left corner and turns up the left edge.
Step 4 of 9
At row 8, column 1, turning right would seal a one-cell pocket that no color can finish. Purple keeps climbing the left edge.
Step 5 of 9
The same idea repeats one row up. From row 7, a right turn would seal a two-cell pocket, so Purple climbs again.
Step 6 of 9
From row 6, turning right would now seal off three cells with no way to fill them. Purple goes up once more.
Step 7 of 9
At row 5, turning right would seal a four-cell pocket where no color can finish, so Purple climbs to row 4.
Step 8 of 9
Brown's path at row 8, column 4 could go up. That would cut Red off from its partner, so Brown runs left along row 8 and climbs column 2 to row 5. Pink's left dot now has only one open side and steps right, next to its other half.
Step 9 of 9
Red's lower dot at row 6, column 3 can't go up without being boxed in. It heads right, up column 5 and back left along row 4 instead. From there everything is forced, and Orange joins up while Brown's upper dot steps left to its partner. Red runs left and up to its dot at row 2, column 2, Purple's top end wraps through the top-left corner to meet its path on the left edge, and Blue and Pink close their gaps.