I played a few games of Scrabble last night, and in one of them I drew both Cs and both Vs. I really don’t like drawing C or V.
Welcome to the next installment of my Scrabble series. Search for the “Gaming” category to read through the other posts. I am offering my tips and tricks for playing the game of Scrabble, a game I enjoy quite a bit.
The trouble with C and V is that there are no two letter words in the Official Scrabble Dictionary (in the entire English language?) that involve either C or V. Since in the game of Scrabble one must connect each new play to a previous word played, this is most easily achieved by way of a two letter word. When C or V are involved, this is impossible.
Perhaps this is why C and V carry a higher point value, with C carrying 3 points and V worth 4. However, that value seems like it should be higher considering the difficulty in playing these letters. Consider X and Q, or J for instance. Q is 10 points; X is 8; and J is 8. Even K is 5. And all four of those letters connect easily to at last one vowel, some more than one, to form two letter words, and yet X Q K J are all worth more than the pesky V and C. I wonder why that is?
As the “big” letters (and we will throw in Zed here) Z Q X J K have surfaced, let’s take a moment to consider them. Not only are they the highest point-value letters, but they, in contrast, play very well with two letters: Za, Qi, Xi/Xu/oX/aX/eX, Jo, oK/Ka. In fact, these letters are a dream to play! Perhaps their high point value comes not from the fact that they are difficult to utilize, but that there are only one of each of them. That certainly is plausible, but also a bit of an unfair advantage, given their ease of play over C and V. Were I to design Scrabble, I might rank K and J a little lower in point value and C and V a little higher. I don’t know. Given that Scrabble has been around a long time, and stands the test of that time, maybe it is fairly well balanced after all.
What do I do, then, when I draw C or V? I stop all other strategies and try to play them as quickly as possible, in any way possible. Rarely do I exchange a rack of letters to avoid V or C (after all, they could easily come back next draw!). They are playable and do yield a few points, so what I tend to do overall is to take a hit in points and play a simple 3- (but often 4-) letter word to get rid of the offending C or V in a productive way, even if a small one.
When I can manage it, “vice” is a great way to play both letters at once and be done with them. The word “cove” is a bit better as it can become “coven” but “vocation” is almost impossible to play (due to the 8 letters required). Best to stick with shorter words and move on to better letters that yield higher points and easier plays.
Maybe you’ve got a few sneaky C or V words you can share that I haven’t come across that are great for scoring more points, or playing both letters at once. I’d love to hear about them! Drop a comment and let me know. For myself, I breathe easier when I don’t draw V or C, and can move right to clever plays and scoring higher points.
a simple man 