Krillion tips: how to dive deeper
Updated October 22, 2026 · 3 min read
Krillion is easy to learn and hard to do well: anyone can name a hot drink, but naming one that is right, rare and spelled well enough in 25 seconds takes a plan. These tips start from how the game actually scores, as Krillion's own pages describe it, then turn that into habits you can use from tomorrow's dive.
How a dive is scored
Every day brings seven prompts, the same for everyone. Each one shows for a three-second preview, then you have 25 seconds to type an answer. Behind every prompt sits an answer sheet built from dictionaries, encyclopedias and other sources, and every accepted answer belongs to a rarity tier.
- Plankton, 10 points: the answers almost everyone gives.
- Too Clever, 15 points: the go-to "obscure" pick that turns out not to be obscure at all.
- Schooler, 30 points; Rare, 60; Deep Cut, 85.
- One in a Krillion, 100 points: one hand-picked gem per prompt, chosen for how satisfying it is to land as well as for rarity.
- Every point is ten metres of depth, so seven perfect answers make 700 points and a 7,000 m dive.
Use the clock: a rejected answer costs only time
An answer that is not on the sheet is simply rejected, and you can try again until the clock runs out; only a prompt with no accepted answer scores zero. That makes the best strategy a ladder. Spend the first part of your 25 seconds on the rarest answer you are confident is real, and if it bounces, step down to something safer. Keep one solid answer in reserve for the last few seconds, because a Plankton is still worth ten times more than an empty prompt.
Tips that work on most prompts
- Use the three-second preview. Read the prompt and decide which corner of the category you will raid before the clock starts.
- Skip your first thought. Whatever arrives instantly has arrived instantly for everyone else too, which is what makes it Plankton.
- Beware the famous obscure answer. The pick every trivia fan reaches for when they want to look clever is exactly what Too Clever means.
- Go one level down. For a country, think of microstates and island nations; for an animal, think of a whole family rather than its best-known member; for a film, think of a director's second-best work.
- Spell carefully. Autocorrect is generous because many answers have aliases, but that same generosity can match a near-miss to a different answer, so check obscure names letter by letter.
- Read the reveal. Each dive shows you what the deep answers were. Those are the categories Krillion likes, and the same corners come round again.
Practise between dives
Krillion gives you one daily dive, so practice has to happen elsewhere. Krillion's themed packs include a free Words & Language pack while it is in beta, and the first game of each paid pack is free. Outside Krillion, timed typed-answer quizzes build exactly the recall you need, and a survey game teaches you what the common answers are so you can steer around them.
Pick list quizzes in the categories Krillion keeps asking about, such as countries, elements or animals, and play them until the rare answers come to you as fast as the common ones.
Its map quizzes are the best way to learn the small countries and capitals that turn a Plankton geography prompt into a Deep Cut.
- Common GroundOurs
Ten prompts a day where you try to match a stranger, and you see what most people said under every row. A quick way to learn which answers are the obvious ones to avoid in Krillion.
Questions people ask
What does Too Clever mean in Krillion?
Krillion's FAQ describes it as the go-to "obscure" pick that is not actually that obscure. It scores 15 points, a little more than the most common answers but far less than Rare or Deep Cut.
Why was my correct answer not accepted?
The answer sheet is built from sources such as dictionaries and encyclopedias, and the developer says that a fair answer is sometimes missing because a source was missed. While the clock is running you can try another answer straight away.
Why is the One in a Krillion answer sometimes less rare than a Deep Cut?
Because it is not chosen on rarity alone. Krillion's FAQ says the top gem is also picked for fun, as an answer at least a few players will actually find, so a stranger answer can sit in the Deep Cut tier.
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