Krillion rarity tiers
Krillion Rarity Tiers Explained: Too Clever, Deep Cut & One in a Krillion
Learn how Krillion rarity tiers work, what Too Clever, Deep Cut, and One in a Krillion mean, how tier points relate to scoring, and how players approach rare answers.

Krillion Rarity Tiers Explained: Too Clever, Deep Cut & One in a Krillion

Krillion scores every answer in one of six rarity tiers, from Plankton at 10 points to One in a Krillion at 100. Rarity is decided by the crowd: the more players who typed the same answer in that day's dive, the shallower it lands. Knowing the tiers by name, value and behavior is the difference between guessing and playing — this page is the tier dictionary, and the full mechanics live in scoring explained.
Verification note: tier names and point values were verified against the live game in September 2026 (see also the score calculator, which uses the same values).
How is Krillion rarity determined?
Rarity is relative, not absolute. After each daily dive, Krillion compares every accepted answer against all answers other players submitted for the same prompt. If thousands of players typed "pizza" for a food prompt, pizza floats at the surface. If two players typed a regional dish that is equally correct, it sinks. The same logic repeats inside theme packs, where your answers are still ranked by how uncommon they were.
Three properties follow from this design:
- There is no universal deep answer. Today's Deep Cut can be tomorrow's Plankton if the crowd catches up to it.
- Correctness is the floor, rarity is the score. A wrong answer scores nothing; a common answer scores little; a rare correct answer scores a lot.
- Your tier depends on timing and crowd. Early in the daily cycle the answer pool is thinner — the game compares you against everyone who played that day.
The six Krillion rarity tiers and their points
Every accepted answer lands in exactly one tier. Deepest first:
| Tier | Points | What lands here |
|---|---|---|
| One in a Krillion | 100 | Answers almost nobody else found — correct, verifiable, and rare |
| Deep Cut | 85 | Niche-but-correct knowledge the crowd nearly missed |
| Rare | 60 | Solid, uncommon answers — the workhorse tier for strong players |
| Schooler | 30 | Reasonable answers many players also gave |
| Too Clever | 15 | Slightly off-beat answers that were still common |
| Plankton | 10 | The obvious picks almost everyone typed |
Two tiers deserve special mention because players ask about them by name. Too Clever is the "almost deep" tier: you dodged the obvious answer, but plenty of players had the same clever idea. Treat it as progress — your instinct is one ring away from the crowd. One in a Krillion is the jackpot tier that gives the game its name: a correct answer so uncommon that you were, almost literally, one in a krillion.
From tiers to score, depth and bearing
The seven prompt scores add up to your dive total, and depth equals the total times ten — a 420-point dive reaches 4,200 meters. The final total also maps to a bearing band that names your performance:
| Total score | Bearing |
|---|---|
| 450+ | One in a Krillion |
| 351–450 | Deep Cut |
| 251–350 | Rare |
| 151–250 | Schooler |
| below 151 | Plankton |
The score calculator computes all three from your seven tier picks, so you can see exactly what swapping one answer from Rare to Deep Cut is worth before you commit.
How to reach the deeper tiers
Depth is a knowledge-positioning problem. Four habits move answers deeper:
- Audit your shallows. After each dive, find the answers that scored Plankton or Too Clever — those are your crowd-instinct tells.
- Produce a sibling answer. For every shallow pick, name a correct alternative one ring further out (a sequel instead of the original, a microstate instead of a headline country).
- Study what rare looked like. Past reveal sheets in the answer library show real examples of every tier, every day.
- Drill your weakest family. The theme packs concentrate one domain at a time, so the rare answers you learn stick.
The full scoring system — how tiers combine into depth and bearings — is in scoring explained, and the validator guide explains why some correct-sounding answers are rejected before tiers even apply.
Play the tiers, not the clock
Every daily prompt gives you 25 seconds, and the fastest answer is usually the crowd's answer. Slowing down just enough to produce your second-best idea is the single highest-value habit in Krillion. Track whether it works in your logbook, and check tips to beat your score for the complete strategy set.
FAQ
How is Krillion rarity determined?
Rarity is relative to the crowd: every accepted answer in a prompt is compared against all answers other players typed the same day. The more players who gave your answer, the shallower the tier it lands in.
What are the six Krillion tiers worth?
Plankton 10, Too Clever 15, Schooler 30, Rare 60, Deep Cut 85 and One in a Krillion 100 points. Seven prompts add up to your final score, and depth equals the total times ten.
What does the Too Clever tier mean in Krillion?
Too Clever (15 points) is the second tier from the bottom: a real answer that was slightly too rare to be common but not deep enough to score big. It is a signal your instinct is already one ring away from the crowd.
What is the highest tier in Krillion?
One in a Krillion (100 points) is the deepest tier, reserved for correct answers almost nobody else typed that day. A full dive of deep answers can finish above 450 points, the top bearing band.
