Historical route lab

Poople #470 GRID Answer

Poople #470 started at GRID on November 27, 2026. Its selective opening changes letters in the sequence D>P, G>D, I>O, D>P, R>O, with 3 par-preserving first moves.

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Archive value: this is not a copied daily page. Its tables are calculated for GRID, including 6 legal openings and route signature 4-1-3-1-2.
Calculated from the current word graph

GRID route profile

Par5 moves6 words including start and target
Shortest routes3Exact routes in the current accepted graph
Legal first moves63 keep par
Route shapeselective openingLetter positions 4-1-3-1-2
Spoiler controls

Choose how much to reveal

The hint describes the move without naming the word. The full route stays closed until you ask for it.

Reveal a direction, not a word

The current row reads G-R-I-D. Change position 4 and keep positions 1, 2, 3 fixed. Look for a consonant-to-consonant change. 3 different first moves preserve the shortest length.

Reveal the complete 5-move answer

GRID -> GRIP -> DRIP -> DROP -> PROP -> POOP

Step 0GRIDStart
Step 1GRIPBridge
Step 2DRIPBridge
Step 3DROPBridge
Step 4PROPBridge
Step 5POOPTarget
Route anatomy

What changes at every step

  1. Step 1GRID -> GRIP

    Tile 4 changes D to P; the move is closer by letter shape. GRIP has 6 legal neighbors, 1 shortest continuation, and 4 moves remaining. Other legal exits from GRID include GRAD, GRIM, GRIN, GRIT.

  2. Step 2GRIP -> DRIP

    Tile 1 changes G to D; the move is sideways by letter shape. DRIP has 3 legal neighbors, 1 shortest continuation, and 3 moves remaining. Other legal exits from GRIP include TRIP, GRIM, GRIN, GRIT.

  3. Step 3DRIP -> DROP

    Tile 3 changes I to O; the move is closer by letter shape. DROP has 3 legal neighbors, 1 shortest continuation, and 2 moves remaining. Other legal exits from DRIP include TRIP.

  4. Step 4DROP -> PROP

    Tile 1 changes D to P; the move is closer by letter shape. PROP has 11 legal neighbors, 1 shortest continuation, and 1 move remaining. Other legal exits from DROP include CROP.

  5. Step 5PROP -> POOP

    Tile 2 changes R to O; the move is closer by letter shape. POOP has 11 legal neighbors, target reached, and 0 moves remaining. Other legal exits from PROP include PLOP, CROP, PREP, PROS.

Opening decision

Which first moves preserve par?

GRID has 6 legal one-letter neighbors. GRIP, GRAD, GRIM keep the route at 5 moves, while sampled detours begin GRIN (+1), GRIT (+1), ARID (+2).

Compare 6 calculated first moves
MoveChanged tileTotalVerdictShortest continuations
GRIP4: D -> P5Keeps par1
GRAD3: I -> A5Keeps par1
GRIM4: D -> M5Keeps par1
GRIN4: D -> N6Adds 1 move2
GRIT4: D -> T6Adds 1 move2
ARID1: G -> A7Adds 2 moves3

GRID opening fingerprint

GRID groups its legal first moves as tile 1: ARID; tile 3: GRAD; tile 4: GRIP, GRIM, GRIN, GRIT. Two moves from the start, 21 off-route words are reachable; the nearest sampled frontier is GOAD, PRIM, BRIM, GLAD, GRAM, GRIM, TRAD, TRIM, TRIP, GAIN, GRAB, GRAN, GRAY, GRIN, GRIT, GAIT, WRIT, ACID, AMID, ARIA, AVID.

Your route

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Graph reading

DRIP is the narrowest displayed bridge

After GRIP becomes DRIP, only 1 move preserves the shortest remaining distance. At the prior row, alternatives such as TRIP, GRIM, GRIN, GRIT show what the route declined.

Direct-shape gains
4
Sideways steps
1
Temporary shape detours
0
Steps touching a vowel
2

How these figures were calculated

Poople recomputes adjacency and distance from the accepted 2,398-word graph. "Shortest routes" counts every path that lowers the remaining distance by one at each move; it is not a guess based on page text or player scores.

The displayed answer is one shortest route selected from that graph. Community scores and notes are kept separate because they describe player activity, not the mathematical route.

Data mode: live Graph synced: 2026-08-18 17:08 UTC Puzzle date: November 27, 2026