CW Battleship Help Guide

Master Morse Code Through Strategic Gaming

🎯 Learn while you play! CW Battleship combines classic strategy gaming with authentic Morse code practice.

Quick Start Guide

1. Setup Your Game

  • • Choose Single Player (vs AI) or Multiplayer
  • • Set CW speed (10-30 WPM)
  • • Adjust tone frequency (400-800 Hz)
  • • Set comfortable volume level

2. Place Your Fleet

  • • Select ship type, toggle orientation
  • • Click grid to place (green=valid, red=invalid)
  • • Click placed ships to reposition them
  • • Right-click for orientation options
  • • Use "Random" or "Clear All" buttons

3. Battle in CW

  • • Enter coordinates (e.g., A4, B7)
  • • All commands played in Morse code
  • • Listen to hit/miss feedback in CW
  • • Watch the CW display for patterns

4. Win the Game

  • • Sink all enemy ships to win
  • • Strategic thinking improves CW focus
  • • Review statistics and accuracy
  • • Play again to build CW fluency

Core Features

📡 Complete CW Integration

Audio Features:

  • • Professional jscwlib integration
  • • Authentic Morse code timing
  • • Adjustable speed and tone
  • • Clear phonetic coordinates

CW Messages:

  • • "HIT ALPHA FOUR" for successful shots
  • • "MISS BRAVO SEVEN" for water shots
  • • "SUNK DESTROYER" when ships destroyed
  • • "GAME START", "YOUR TURN", etc.

🧠 Strategic AI Opponent

Smart Ship Placement:

  • • Edge, center, corner strategies
  • • Scattered placement algorithms
  • • Avoids predictable patterns
  • • Realistic human-like placement

Intelligent Targeting:

  • • Probability-based shot selection
  • • Hunt and destroy algorithms
  • • Memory of previous hits
  • • Strategic finishing moves

🎨 Beautiful Interface

Visual Design:

  • • Responsive grids for all devices
  • • Gradient backgrounds and effects
  • • Hit/miss animations
  • • Professional game styling

User Experience:

  • • Drag-and-drop ship placement
  • • Click-to-target on enemy grid
  • • Real-time status indicators
  • • Touch-friendly mobile controls

Learning Benefits

🎯

Focused Practice

Strategic gameplay keeps your mind engaged while practicing CW recognition and transmission timing.

📍

Coordinate Skills

Learn grid coordinates in CW format, essential for amateur radio emergency communications.

🏆

Motivation

Game mechanics provide natural motivation to improve CW skills through competitive play.

Advanced Ship Placement System

🚢 Complete Ship Placement Control

CW Battleship features a sophisticated ship placement system with multiple ways to position and reposition your fleet:

🎯 Basic Placement

  1. Select a ship type from the selection panel
  2. Use "Orientation" button to toggle Horizontal/Vertical
  3. Hover over grid to see green (valid) or red (invalid) preview
  4. Click desired location to place ship
  5. Ship automatically deselects after placement

🔄 Advanced Controls

  • Right-click empty cell: Toggle orientation
  • Shift + click: Place with flipped orientation
  • Click placed ship: Remove and reselect for moving
  • Right-click ship name: Start repositioning
  • Clear All button: Remove all ships

🎨 Visual Feedback

  • ● Green preview: Valid placement location
  • ● Red preview: Invalid placement (overlap/bounds)
  • ● Placed ships: Clickable with hover effects
  • ● Selected ship: Highlighted in selection panel
  • ● Placed ships: Grayed out with "Right-click to move"

⚡ Quick Actions

  • Random Placement: AI places all ships automatically
  • Clear All: Remove all ships and start over
  • Ready to Play: Enabled when all 5 ships placed
  • Auto-deselect: Ships clear selection after placing

💡 Pro Tip: Ship Movement Workflow

To move a placed ship: Click the ship on grid OR right-click its name → Ship gets removed and selected → Hover new location for preview → Click to place in new position. You can change orientation before placing!

Pro Tips & Strategies

🎯 Battleship Strategy

  • • Use checkerboard pattern for initial shots
  • • Focus on center squares first (higher ship probability)
  • • When you hit, immediately target adjacent squares
  • • Remember ship sizes to finish sinking efficiently

📡 CW Learning Tips

  • • Start with slower CW speed (10-15 WPM)
  • • Focus on listening without trying to write
  • • Learn the sound patterns of coordinates
  • • Use headphones for better CW clarity

⚓ Ship Placement Controls

  • • Click "Orientation" button to toggle H/V
  • • Right-click empty cells to rotate
  • • Hold Shift while placing to flip orientation
  • • Click placed ships to reposition them
  • • Use "Clear All" to reset and start over

🧠 Mental Focus

  • • Keep a mental map of your shots
  • • Listen carefully to CW feedback
  • • Don't rush - accuracy beats speed
  • • Practice regularly for best results

Troubleshooting

🔇 No CW Audio

If you don't hear Morse code:

  • • Check browser volume settings
  • • Try clicking somewhere on the page first (browser audio policy)
  • • Verify the volume slider is not at minimum
  • • Test with different browsers (Chrome/Firefox recommended)

📱 Mobile Issues

For mobile device problems:

  • • Use landscape orientation for better grid visibility
  • • Tap firmly on grid cells for targeting
  • • Enable browser notifications if prompted
  • • Close other apps to free up memory

🎮 Game Performance

For slow or laggy performance:

  • • Close unnecessary browser tabs
  • • Refresh the page to reset game state
  • • Check internet connection stability
  • • Try reducing CW volume if audio stutters
Ready to Play CW Battleship!