I’m going to have to assume the possibility of some vagueness here, as I have met it in person.
The remaining letters in each step not only remain constant in that step, they also:
must remain in their original positions. No transposing allowed! That is, you may not change two letters and then make an anagram.
And as long as I’m belaboring it, YES, you do have to change 2 letters at each step. Changing only 1 would be a invalid as changing more than 2 per step!
So… just how many steps are needed for such very different words?
I saw a solution in Games magazine back in the '80’s or '90’s involving about a dozen or more. BUT the actual answer is SIX!
So make that your goal.
Start your engines!
(A glance at some of the word games here shows me that they are usually sequential. That is: Let’s establish a process and see where it goes.
This challenge is not, and I’m presuming it still fits the forum. If you can show a chain of 6 steps, and are the first, you win. If you can go fewer than 6, I’ll no doubt faint!)
Not the one I came up with, but it is a set of 6 changes, with common, uncapitalised English words. I’ll wait a while to reveal mine, and others may come up with their own 6-step sets as “also rans” but in the meantime you are definitely the winner.
Also, I’m a curmudgeon)