Sort Dock techniques: 5 patterns to clear any color-sort puzzle

Pattern 1: build a single-color stack in an empty tube

The first move on any Sort Dock board is to find a tube with a single-colour top and an empty tube next to it. Pour the colour into the empty tube. This is your anchor for the rest of the board: a stack of one colour that you will never bury. The single-colour stack becomes the target for every other tube of that colour, and it usually finishes the first colour in three or four pours.

Pattern 2: pour a top colour onto its own partial stack

Once you have a single-colour stack, the next move is to find a tube with the same colour on top and pour it onto the stack. This is the easiest pour in the game: the colours match, the target is not full, and the result is one less mixed tube. Repeat for every other tube of that colour. The pattern works for all four colours in the same way: build a stack, then drain every other tube of that colour into the stack.

Pattern 3: consolidate two half-tubes into one full stack

When you have two tubes that are each half full of the same colour, you can pour one onto the other to make a single full stack. The remaining empty half becomes a fresh empty tube you can use for the next pattern. Consolidation is the most efficient way to free up an empty tube without losing progress.

Pattern 4: temporarily park a mixed colour in an empty tube

When no other pour is possible, take a single-colour top off a mixed tube and pour it into an empty tube. The empty tube is now a parking spot for that colour, and the original tube is one step closer to being a single-colour tube. Parking is the most common source of wasted undos: a parked colour often blocks the empty tube it lives in, so only park when you have a clear next move in mind.

Pattern 5: clear the last two mixed tubes together

The last two mixed tubes on a board often hold the key to finishing. If both have the same two colours at the top (e.g. blue-blue on tube A and red-red on tube B), you can pour A onto B and B onto A in two moves, clearing both. If the two tubes have different top colours, you usually need to find an empty tube and use it as a temporary parking spot for one of the colours. The last two tubes are the part of the board that most players waste undos on, because they try to brute-force the last pour instead of working backwards from the empty tube.

The right order

The five patterns work best in this order: build a stack (1), drain that colour (2), consolidate half-tubes (3), park mixed colours (4), clear the last two tubes (5). Skipping from 2 to 4 is the most common mistake: parking a mixed colour before the easy drains are done usually blocks the empty tubes you needed for the easy drains. The order is what makes the plan repeatable.

A 3-level practice plan

1. Level 1 (5 boards, Easy): Force yourself to follow patterns 1 and 2 only. No parking, no consolidation. Just build a stack and drain its colour. Your score will not be great, but you will learn the basic move.
2. Level 2 (5 boards, Normal): Add patterns 3 and 4. Now you can consolidate half-tubes and park mixed colours, but you cannot use the last-two-tubes trick. Most boards will finish in under 15 moves.
3. Level 3 (5 boards, Hard): All five patterns allowed. Your goal is to clear every board in 12 moves or fewer with one undo left over. If you hit the goal, you are an expert.

The stuck-board checklist

If you are stuck on a Sort Dock board, run through this checklist. (1) Have you built a single-colour stack yet? If not, do that first. (2) Are there any half-tubes you can consolidate? If yes, do that. (3) Are there any mixed colours you can park in an empty tube? If yes, park the smallest mixed top. (4) Are the last two tubes cleared together? If not, find an empty tube to break the deadlock. If you have worked through all four and still cannot move, undo the last move and try a different parking choice.