Verified solution
The shortest route from MUGS
MUGSBUGSBOGSBOOSBOOPPOOP
- 01MUGS → BUGS1st letter, M to B
- 02BUGS → BOGS2nd letter, U to O
- 03BOGS → BOOS3rd letter, G to O
- 04BOOS → BOOP4th letter, S to P
- 05BOOP → POOP1st letter, B to P
First moves
What happens after the opening word?
MUGS has 11 legal one-letter moves. These are the best routes after move one:
BUGS4 leftHUGS5 leftJUGS5 leftLUGS5 leftPUGS5 leftRUGS5 leftTUGS5 leftMAGS5 leftMUDS5 leftMUMS5 leftMUSS5 left
Answer notes
Why there can be more than one answer.
This opening has 1 distinct path at the minimum length of 5. The route shown above is one complete answer, not the only valid sequence. Any route reaching POOP in 5 moves is equally short.
Calculate a route from a different word →