Is the first click always safe?

Yes. Mines are placed after your first click, never on it or next to it, so the first click always opens an area.

How do I flag on a phone?

Long press a square, or switch on Flag mode with the button above the board so every tap places a flag.

When a number already has as many flags around it as its value, clicking it opens all of its other neighbours. If a flag is wrong, a mine goes off.

Everyone gets the same Intermediate board each UTC day, with the same opening square, so times are directly comparable.

Number and logic puzzles

Clear the board without hitting a mine. Every number tells you how many of its eight neighbours hide a mine.

Setting up the board

1.Reveal every square that does not hide a mine. Reveal a mine and the game is over.
2.A revealed number shows how many mines touch that square, including diagonals. A blank square has none, and opens its neighbours automatically.
3.Flag a square you are sure hides a mine. The counter shows mines minus flags.
4.Your first click is always safe and always opens an area.
5.Chording: click a revealed number whose flags already match it to open all its other neighbours at once.

Controls
Input	Action
Click or tap	Reveal a square
Right click, long press, or Flag mode	Place or remove a flag
Click or tap a satisfied number	Chord: open its unflagged neighbours
N	Start a new game

Start from the edges of the opened area, where the numbers give the most information.
A 1 touching exactly one covered square means that square is a mine. Flag it, then chord the neighbours.
Learn the 1 2 1 and 1 2 2 1 patterns along a wall: they tell you exactly where the mines are.
When logic runs out, guess where the odds are best, usually far from crowded numbers.
Use chording to clear safe squares fast; it is the biggest time saver on Expert.

Is the first click always safe?: Yes. Mines are placed after your first click, never on it or next to it, so the first click always opens an area.
How do I flag on a phone?: Long press a square, or switch on Flag mode with the button above the board so every tap places a flag.
What is chording?: When a number already has as many flags around it as its value, clicking it opens all of its other neighbours. If a flag is wrong, a mine goes off.
How does the daily board work?: Everyone gets the same Intermediate board each UTC day, with the same opening square, so times are directly comparable.

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