Patterns 1: Stairs

Introduction to Patterns

Using the Blocking Method helps you get a thought process going for making chains, but you probably end up with lots of wasted Puyo and space. How on earth do players make those crazy 15-chains?

One way is to use patterns. A pattern is a special formation of Puyo that’s capable of repeating into itself. Take a look at these two chains.

3-1 Stairs	2-1-1 Sandwich

If you look closely, you’ll see that both chains use a certain arrangement of Puyo over and over, just in different colors.

Patterning is a lot more efficient than other styles of chaining since patterns are designed to (1) chain across the board and (2) require only the minimum amount of Puyo to pop. After some practice, they become really easy to make without thinking.

The first type of pattern we’re going to learn is called Stairs. This is usually the first pattern most players learn because it’s fairly simple and straightforward.

Here are some examples of Stairs chains. Try running them through the chain simulator.

Think of Stairs as cascading Puyo, if that makes any sense. The general idea behind Stairs is to place Puyo in such a way that the falling Puyo connect to each other on the side. Taking the above chains as an example, you can see that this is the case after the first chain pops.

If you're wondering why the above chains are called Stairs, take a look at the following picture.

Basically, each group of Puyo rests on a different “step” of the stairs, and when they fall they’ll connect on the sides.

3-1 Stairs

Now that we know the concept behind stairs, we can create a repeatable form of it (a pattern!!). The first Stairs pattern we’ll learn is called 3-1 Stairs.

A perfect 3-1 Stairs chain looks like this:

It’s called 3-1 Stairs because you need 3 of one color in one column, and the 4th Puyo -- the Key Puyo -- in the column next to it. You can then repeat this shape in order to make a longer chain, and when you’re ready to set it off, all you need to do is add the Trigger Puyo at the other end of the chain.

To make 3-1 Stairs, place monochromatic pieces vertically and dichromatic pieces horizontally. Once you have 3 in a column, make sure you put the fourth Puyo in the next column over.

2-2 Stairs

In 3-1 Stairs, you put 3 Puyo in one column and 1 Puyo in the next column. So, following the same naming scheme, in 2-2 Stairs you put 2 Puyo in one column, and 2 Puyo in the next.

2-2 Stairs isn’t as efficient as 3-1 Stairs, so I’d suggest you just focus on learning 3-1 Stairs for now. Later on, you’ll learn more useful applications for 2-2 Stairs.

Key Puyo Leeway

A nifty thing about Stairs is that you have a bit of leeway where you can put the Key Puyo. Try running this chain in the chain simulator.

For 3-1 Stairs, as long as you have the Key Puyo within 3 rows above the main group of 3, then the chain will still work! Knowing this trick can be useful, especially when the game decides to give you crappy colors.

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