What is Chain Link?
Chain Link (CHN LNK) is a word puzzle where you build a vertical chain of linked phrases by clicking letters. Each word must combine with the word below it to form a common phrase. You reveal letters across the entire chain at once rather than guessing words individually. Vowels remain locked in red until all consonants are found. You start with five lives and lose one per wrong letter.
How to play Chain Link
- Start by clicking a consonant; the vowels are locked.
- If the letter is correct, every instance of it lights up across all the words at once.
- A wrong guess costs one of your five starting lives, so keep an eye on the total.
- The vowels unlock only when you’ve found all the consonants.
- Finish the chain, and any lives you have left turn into stars—up to five per day.
How the chain structure changes the game
Revealing a letter across all words at once makes common consonants more valuable than in traditional word games. A single click can illuminate multiple phrases and give you footholds in sections you had not yet examined. The vowel lock prevents the shortcut of working from known word centers and forces you to build outward from consonants. The game layers a bonus system over this core (safety nets, mystery letters, dynamites, star-for-life exchanges) that rewards multi-day play.
Reading the feedback
Feedback is immediate and global. Locked vowels do nothing when clicked. A correct consonant lights all its tiles green across the chain. A wrong letter removes one dot from the life bar. The board displays remaining lives, stars earned, dynamites available, games played, win percentage, current streak, and star distribution.
Modes
Normal mode
The numbered daily chain. Five lives, no timer.
Timed mode
Optional at game start. You have one minute to find a correct letter or lose a life. Rewards include three dynamites for a perfect run and an extra star if you finish without using dynamites.
Past chains
Accessible through a "PLAY PAST CHAINS" link on the page.
Tips for better scores
Letters reveal across the entire chain, not just one word. Frequent consonants yield multiple tiles per click, which is impossible in games solved word by word.
The vowel lock acts as an indicator. As long as vowels remain red, at least one consonant is still missing somewhere in the chain.
The mystery letter bonus only pays off if you guess it on the next click. It does not carry forward.
A perfect run requires zero errors and zero dynamites. Using a dynamite for convenience closes the day's bonus even if the rest of the chain is flawless.
The safety net appears after four consecutive days and absorbs one error. It disappears after use or after skipping a day. It does not stack.
Common questions
How many lives in Chain Link?
Five, shown as dots on the board. Each wrong letter costs one. When on the last life, the game offers once per day to exchange two stars for an extra life.
Why are vowels locked?
It is the central rule. Vowels remain red and unclickable until all other letters in the chain have been identified. The chain must be built through its consonants.
What are dynamites for?
A dynamite removes three invalid keys at random (letters still active on the keyboard but absent from all remaining words). Dynamites are earned through the mystery letter, perfect runs, streak milestones, and monthly leaderboard podium finishes.
How do you earn stars?
By finishing the chain. Unused lives convert to stars, up to five per day. A timed mode completed without dynamite use adds one more.