Section 2: Components
A complete two-player setup requires the following equipment. A commercial set may combine the fleet and targeting grids into one folding game board for each player, while a homemade set may reproduce the same information on separate boards.
- Game boards: Each player needs a concealed fleet grid and a visible-to-self targeting grid. Every grid has 10 columns labeled A through J and 10 rows labeled 1 through 10.
- Playing pieces: Each player needs five ship pieces occupying 17 grid spaces in total.
- Pegs: Each player needs enough pegs to record hits and misses. A player also uses hit pegs on ship pieces when the design of the set supports them.
Standard Fleet
| Ship | Length | Grid Spaces Occupied |
|---|---|---|
| Carrier | 5 | Five consecutive spaces |
| Battleship | 4 | Four consecutive spaces |
| Cruiser | 3 | Three consecutive spaces |
| Submarine | 3 | Three consecutive spaces |
| Destroyer | 2 | Two consecutive spaces |
Peg colors vary by set. When two colors are available, use one consistently for hits and the other for misses. If only one peg style is available, players must use another clear method to distinguish the two results without changing previously recorded information.
All coordinates must be legible and unambiguous. Before play, both players should verify that their game boards use the same orientation and that the intersection of a lettered column and numbered row identifies exactly one space.