STEKIUS
Name, Animal, Plant online at STEKIUS
Play nowName, Animal, Plant, Thing is the word game we all played on a sheet of paper, at school, on holiday or around a table with friends. A letter comes up and everyone races to write a word for each category that starts with it. Whoever finds the rarest words gets the most points.
At STEKIUS you play it online, with no paper and pencil: you open a room, send the code to your friends and you all play together, each from their own device. If nobody is free, you add AI players and practise. Below you will find all the rules, how objections work and how the points are counted.
How a game starts
Without an account you play only against AI; at a table with people, everyone needs an account. With the slider you set how many players there will be, and for each seat you choose Human or AI. The AI seats have their own difficulty too, so that they match your level.
When there are human players, a room with a code opens. You send it to your friends and they join from wherever they are. The words are played in the host’s language, that is, the language of whoever opened the room.
The letter and the categories
The human players draw the letter in turn. As soon as it comes up, you write one word in each category that starts with that letter. There are ten categories, so you need quick thinking and a little imagination. Enter takes you straight to the next field, so you do not lose time with the mouse.
When you have filled in every category, you can press Stop. From that moment the others have only a few seconds to finish what they are writing. That is why it pays to be quick: whoever presses Stop first puts pressure on everyone else.
Checking the words and objections
When a letter is over, everyone sees everyone’s words. If a word looks wrong to you, you raise an objection and write why. Whoever wrote the word can reply and explain their choice.
The final judgement is made by the host. On the host’s own words the other players decide, so that nobody judges themselves. That way the game stays fair even when the group disagrees about whether a plant really exists.
How the points are counted
Every correct word brings points, and the more unique it is, the better. The system is simple and rewards imagination:
- A unique word, that nobody else wrote: 10 points.
- The same word as another player: 5 points.
- The only answer in a category, when nobody else found a word: 20 points.
How long the game lasts
The game goes through the whole alphabet, letter by letter, or stops earlier when the host presses End. So you can play a quick game of a few letters or a long evening with the whole alphabet.
Chips, practice and leaving
Your points become chips, the virtual chips shared by all the games of the site. The chips start to count after the first three letters: then they are added all at once, and from there on after every letter. Words give chips up to a limit each day; after that you can keep playing for fun, and the chips start again the next day.
When you play only with AI players, the game is practice: you do not win chips and you can leave whenever you like at no cost. It is the best way to warm up before you take on your friends.
Tips for more points
- Avoid the most obvious words: if others write them too, you get only half the points.
- Do not get stuck on one category; write the easy ones first and come back to the hard ones later.
- Use Enter to move quickly from field to field.
- A word in a category nobody else filled is worth twice as much as a unique word.
Questions
How many players can play?
You set the players with the slider before you start, and every seat can be a human or an AI.
Which language are the words in?
In the host’s language, that is, the language of whoever opened the room.
Who decides whether a word is correct?
Anyone can raise an objection and the word’s author can reply. The final judgement is made by the host, and on the host’s own words the others decide.
Can I play on my own?
Yes, with AI players. It is practice: no chips are won and leaving is free.
