Try a move. See why it works.

A small experiment before the real match. Aim a pen, read a drawing, and play one card turn with an explanation of what happened.

These are fixed teaching scenarios. No room, account, saved score, or other player is involved. The Pen Fight and Fairway Nine examples use the same rules engine as their games.

Pen Fight: aim before adding power

Your blue pen starts close to the red pen near the right edge. A pen is out when its centre crosses the desk boundary. Try a straight shot at 25% power, then compare 65%. Resetting returns both pens to exactly the same positions.

01 / THE PRACTICE DESK

Direction 0° · rightPower 25%

Try this shotReset the desk

Set direction to 0° to aim right. Start at 25% power, then try 65%.

What to look for

In this fixed position, 0° at 25% stops short of the red pen. At 65%, a straight shot knocks red off while blue stays on. The change comes from the distance, the pens’ weight and grip, and their contact. It is not a universal winning power setting.

Now change the angle. The same power can miss because your path no longer meets the other pen. In a full game, check the space behind your target as well as the space your own pen needs to stop. Learn straight shots before adding spin.

Play Pen Fight → · Read all the rules

Pictionary: draw the big clue first

A useful drawing communicates the main shape early. Step through this fixed example before revealing its answer. You can describe your guess aloud; this exercise does not record it.

02 / ONE DRAWING TURN

Step 1 of 3: a square outline. Many objects could fit this clue.

Add the next clueStart again

Reveal the teaching answer

House. The roof does more to narrow the answer than decorating the square. The door and windows reinforce the idea. This is one suggested drawing sequence, not a required technique.

Seconds remaining when a correct guess arrives45 seconds20 seconds5 seconds

At 20 seconds remaining: the guesser earns 120 points; the drawer earns 50.

What happens in a real room

For a correct guess, HeyloBuddy awards 100 points plus the remaining seconds rounded up. With exactly 20 seconds left, that is 120. The drawer receives 50 points for that successful guess. Incorrect guesses do not earn points. The round reveals the answer once the timer ends or every guesser has solved it.

Only the assigned drawer sees the secret word during the turn. Draw its meaning without writing the answer. Put the big shape on the canvas first, then add one distinguishing detail at a time. Everyone takes a drawing turn in each round.

Create a Pictionary room → · Read all the rules

Fairway Nine: play the whole turn

This is a fully revealed teaching hand, starting at −8 strokes. All cards are visible so you can compare the choices. Draw the fixed 0 from the deck, then choose which card to replace. A real deck is shuffled and some cards stay hidden.

03 / DRAW → COMPARE → REPLACE

First, draw the practice card.

Draw the practice card

7Top · 17Top · 2−5Top · 310Top · 4 7Bottom · 17Bottom · 2−5Bottom · 32Bottom · 4

Starting score: −8 strokes. Matching columns matter more than a card’s value alone.

Reset this turn

Compare two complete decisions

Replace the top-left 7 with 0: the total rises to 9. You break one zero-scoring pair and lose the two-column matching bonus. Reset and replace the top-right 10 with 0: the total falls to −18 because both matching columns survive. Lower is better.

A draw from the discard pile must be used. A draw from the hidden deck can instead be discarded, followed by revealing a hidden card, with the game’s one-hidden-card exception. This exercise isolates replacement choices; the full guide explains the other branches of a turn.

Play a three-hole match → · Try the scoring calculator