Battleship · Rules guide
Battleship rules: how to play
The grids, the five ships, how shots and hits are called, when to announce a sunk ship, and the variants worth knowing — including the one rule everybody argues about.
The short answer
- Each player hides five ships on a 10×10 grid — 17 ship squares in total.
- Ships are placed horizontally or vertically and, in the standard rules, may touch.
- Players alternate calling one coordinate; the defender answers hit, miss, or names the ship sunk.
- The 1990 and 2002 fleets differ only in ship names, not sizes.
- The first player to sink all five enemy ships wins.
The grids, the fleet and the object
Battleship is a search problem dressed as a naval battle. Each player hides a fleet on a 10×10 grid that the opponent cannot see, then the two take turns calling coordinates. Sink all five enemy ships first and you win.
- Two grids each: your ocean grid, holding your fleet, and a target grid where you record your shots.
- Coordinates: rows A–J, columns 1–10. A shot is called as "B7".
- Ships are placed horizontally or vertically, never diagonally, and may not overlap.
The fleet: two standard versions
The ships changed in 2002, which is why two people can each be certain they know the "right" fleet. Both are standard; agree before you start.
| Size | 1990 fleet | 2002 fleet |
|---|---|---|
| 5 | Carrier | Carrier |
| 4 | Battleship | Battleship |
| 3 | Cruiser | Destroyer |
| 3 | Submarine | Submarine |
| 2 | Destroyer | Patrol Boat |
The important point is that both versions have 17 ship squares across five ships, with two ships of length three. Everything about search strategy follows from those numbers, not from the names.
Taking shots, hits and sinking
Players alternate, calling one coordinate per turn. The defender must answer honestly:
- "Miss" — nothing there.
- "Hit" — a ship occupies that square.
- "You sank my battleship" — that was the last unhit square of a ship, and the defender must say which ship.
Why announcing the sunk ship matters
Because it removes a whole length from the possibilities. If the three-square Submarine is sunk, every remaining unknown square can be reasoned about knowing only a 5, a 4, a 3 and a 2 remain. Some house rules drop this announcement — a genuinely different and harder game.
Winning
The first player to sink all five enemy ships — 17 squares — wins. Since players alternate, the attacker who is first to finish wins even if the opponent would have finished on the same turn.
Variants and house rules
| Variant | How it plays |
|---|---|
| Salvo | You fire one shot per surviving ship each turn — the game gets faster for whoever is winning. |
| No touching | Ships may not be adjacent, even diagonally. Sharply changes the maths of where ships can be. |
| Moving ships | Ships may move one square per turn, turning the game into a pursuit. |
| Bigger grids / bigger fleets | Common online; slows the game and rewards systematic search. |
| Hidden sinks | The defender says "hit" but never says which ship sank — much harder deduction. |
| Electronic Battleship | Adds special weapons and automatic bookkeeping. |
The rule people argue about
Whether ships may touch. The printed rules of the classic game allow it. Many players learned otherwise, and the "no touching" version is a legitimately better game for skilled players because each sunk ship rules out a ring of squares around it. Decide before deployment.
Common questions
How many ships are in Battleship?
Five per player, occupying 17 squares: one of length 5, one of 4, two of 3 and one of 2. The 1990 and 2002 editions use different names for the same sizes.
Can ships touch in Battleship?
In the official rules, yes — ships may be adjacent. Many players use a house rule forbidding it, which makes the deduction game considerably richer. Agree before you deploy.
Do you have to say which ship was sunk?
In the standard rules, yes. It is a significant amount of information, which is why the harder house variant simply announces "sunk" without naming the ship.
Can ships be placed diagonally?
No. Ships lie horizontally or vertically only, which is what makes systematic search possible.
What is Salvo?
A variant where you fire one shot per surviving ship each turn. It accelerates the endgame dramatically and punishes the losing player, which some find brutal and others prefer.
How long does a game take?
Ten to twenty minutes. With good search technique a fleet usually falls in about 40–50 shots, and with random shooting it takes far longer.
Play Battleship free, right now
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