or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools)
Theme: Double Diagonals
Rules: Standard Surplus Sudoku rules, with numbers from 1-8.
Answer String: Enter the 4th row from left to right, followed by a comma, followed by the 5th row from left to right.
Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 1:45, Master = 2:45, Expert = 5:30
Solution: PDF
or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools in edgex mode where left click+drag draws lines and right click marks X’s)
Theme: All for One and One for All
Rules: Standard Slitherlink rules.
Answer String: Enter the length in cells of each of the internal loop segments from left to right for the marked rows, starting at the top. Separate each row’s entry with a comma.
Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 3:00, Master = 5:00, Expert = 10:00
Solution: PDF
or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools)
Theme: Not Your Standard 6×6 Sudoku! An homage to my favorite (10×10) puzzle from the original “Udoku” set of Deficit Sudoku by Wei-Hwa Huang.
Rules: Standard Deficit Sudoku rules, with numbers from 1-7.
Answer String: Enter the 1st row from left to right, followed by a comma, followed by the 1st column from top to bottom.
Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 1:00, Master = 1:30, Expert = 3:00
Solution: PDF
or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools in edgex mode where left click+drag draws lines and right click marks X’s)
Theme: Parquet
Rules: Standard Slitherlink rules.
Answer String: Enter the length in cells of each of the internal loop segments from left to right for the marked rows, starting at the top. Separate each row’s entry with a comma.
Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 0:45, Master = 1:15, Expert = 2:30
Solution: PDF
Eighth in a series with puzzle solving tips. This time with advice on battleships puzzles, particularly missing clues and subs.
Solving Battleships is an odd experience for me. I think I want to enjoy them, but I’m not sure I ever really do very much. See, they were the first logic puzzle type I ever grew to love. But that means they also became the first logic puzzle type to bore me, and I’ve now been in the “bore me” stage for over half my life. And there is so much sameness in the Battleships you can find in the world right now. ~99% are randomly generated, ~99% give all of the outside clues which limits the challenge, ~99% solve by placing the largest ship(s) in the only possible spots and being good at bookkeeping of seas afterwards. As a member of the puzzling 1%, I am looking for something more. This week I tried to vary the formula a bit to make some more interesting — or at least different — puzzles.
So last week was a week at sea for the solvers with Battleships and Battleship Sudoku. It was also my first week at SEA(ttle). And while it already feels like home I have a lot of apartment set-up to do still, and a growing pile of work as I take time to buy and build furniture.
My most observant solvers may have noticed I’ve been following particular genres in YRBGW order so far with my puzzle styles. If you don’t know what I mean, search the website a bit more. But I hate being predictable. I wrote a championship “Trophy” sudoku puzzle once with a first row ?2345678?. My occasional partner in puzzle-solving crime, Wei-Hwa Huang, saw that pattern and thought it was as likely that I would do 923456781 in a competition as 123456789 just to be sneaky. This week, I’ve decided I’ll just flip a coin to determine what I’ll post of the remaining options so you can’t possibly know better than 50:50 what puzzle type is coming. Or maybe that last sentence is a lie. Or maybe every other sentence in this paragraph is a lie. In all honesty, there are no hidden puzzles in this paragraph. But there are two more puzzle styles to come this week: a familiar sudoku style from me and Wei-Hwa, and whichever of “heads” or “tails” wins the coin toss today.
This week I’m going to start hiding the solving times behind a spoiler tag. I don’t know how choosing to see these times before starting will affect your solving, but I’d welcome a discussion on how times, or “points” on a competitive test, change your solving style. Does this differ when you have hand-crafted puzzles with a particular time goal versus, say, a generated croco-puzzle with a particular time standard set from other solvers?
or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools; use tab to alternate between number placement, ship placement, and shading modes. The shading mode in gray, which numbers can be written on top of, may work better than default ship placement.)
Theme: Twister
Rules: Standard Battleship Sudoku rules.
Answer String: Enter the 2nd row from left to right, followed by a comma, followed by the 8th row from left to right.
Time Standard: Battleship Sudoku Grandmaster = 6:30, Master = 10:30, Expert = 21:00
Solution: PDF
or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools; use tab to alternate between ship placement and shading modes. In ship placement mode, right click gives sea, left click gives circle/square, left click and drag for rounded ships.)
Theme: The Bermuda Quadrangle? The missing radar clues will complicate the solve.
Rules: Standard Battleships rules.
Answer String: For each row from top to bottom, enter the number of the first column from the left where a ship segment appears. If the row is empty, enter 0. Enter these numbers as a single string with no separators.
Time Standard: Battleships Grandmaster = 3:45, Master = 7:00, Expert = 14:00
Solution: PDF
Note: Advice on solving this puzzle has now been posted in “Ask Dr. Sudoku #8“
or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools; use tab to alternate between number placement, ship placement, and shading modes. The shading mode in gray, which numbers can be written on top of, may work better than default ship placement.)
Theme: Four Islands
Rules: Standard Battleship Sudoku rules.
Answer String: Enter the 8th row from left to right, followed by a comma, followed by the 6th column from top to bottom.
Time Standard: Battleship Sudoku Grandmaster = 5:30, Master = 8:00, Expert = 16:00
Solution: PDF
Note: Advice on solving this puzzle has now been posted in “Ask Dr. Sudoku #8“
or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools; use tab to alternate between ship placement and shading modes. In ship placement mode, right click gives sea, left click gives circle/square, left click and drag for rounded ships.)
Theme: Just Try Two Find Us
Rules: Standard Battleships rules.
Answer String: For each row from top to bottom, enter the number of the first column from the left where a ship segment appears. If the row is empty, enter 0. Enter these numbers as a single string with no separators.
Time Standard: Battleships Grandmaster = 1:45, Master = 2:45, Expert = 5:30
Solution: PDF