Best Word

[Railroader66]

How is the BEST WORD determined?

[Spike1007]

Are you asking about how words are scored? If so, if n is the number of letters, the "base score" for the word is m*(n-1), where m is a multiplier based on the word rarity. This is 1 for common words, 1.3 for wide, 1.6 for rare and 2 for ultra-rare (with appropriate rounding down going on). Then b, points for bonus letters, are added. There, if I remember right, K is 1, X is 2, Z is 3 and Q is 4. (Although only one of each counts, so for example, two Zs only add 3 points.) If you get a good enough word, the base score maxes out at 42 points, even if the word has more than 22 letters. Bonus points are added, but the total won't go above 45. (During play, it does show the full unmodified score, but that can be lowered once the board is completed.) The wild card here is m. No idea where they get the "rarity" value, and it can be surprising. Drop an S or something and a word can go from ultra-rare to rare (or vice versa).

The best word for the board or your personal stats is the first word found with the highest score.

[Spike1007]

J also has a bonus score of 1. Let me know if I screwed up anything here.

[bwt1213]

How is the BEST WORD determined?

Any word that is more points than the previous best word is the new best word. If your highest-point word is not more points, it is not the "best word", no matter how rare it is. To replace the current "best word" for a board, you must find one that scores more points. To find the number of points for a word, see Spike's posts.

[Railroader66]

Wow!!! In a million years I would never have thought the answer was so complex! But reading it a number of times, it starts to make sense. Thank you so much for taking the time for the terrific explanation.