Dr. Sudoku Prescribes #42 – Sudo-Kurve
or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools)
Theme: Totally Twisted: a challenging grid shape
Rules: Standard Sudo-Kurve rules.
Answer String: Enter the “row” marked A, followed by a comma, followed by the “row” marked B.
Time Standard: Sudo-Kurve Grandmaster = 9:00, Master = 15:00, Expert = 30:00
Solution: PDF
Note: Advice on solving this puzzle has now been posted in “Ask Dr. Sudoku #7”
Impressive layout !
I used conditional formatting in Excel to assist in seeing the ‘rows’ easier, so I could put pencil marks easier. Maybe that helps others who struggle with this one…
Next to the 3×3 regions, each cell belongs to a ‘row’ and a ‘column’. But because not all parts of the rows are horizontal and not all parts of the columns are vertical I felt the need for a visual aid to see the rows/cols.
I labeled each row/col with a letter (A-R) and placed in each cell the 2 corresponding labels. Using conditional formatting I could easily cylce through all letters to show the cells in each row/col and cycle through all digits to spot singles/pairs.
Weird. This is likely the only type of puzzle I have hit expert time on, and it’s the first time I have seen Kurves. Not sure if it is because I am used to marking all cells and then seeing patterns (from doing iPhone Sudoku where it auto pencil marks) or what, but this felt more like work instead of puzzling.
The geometry killed me on this one. I just couldn’t keep the spaghetti strands separate. I placed a few digits and then hit a wall and went to bed. After I finally found the 8 in the top left box (a very nice deduction), I made slow and steady progress to the end. But I had to resort to writing in all the possibilities for each square to find that 8.
Dont think there could be a tougher sudokurve than this one.
Amazing just 2 really really narrow points in this sudoku which is super hard to find in this sudoku maze.
The first i realize is deducing that 8 lies in the second column of the first box.
Coupling this with the deduction that 8 lies in the first row of the 4th box gives 8 in the fourth and first box!!!
The second most narrow point(which is more of a spotting a single) namely 3 in the second box!!!
2 really sticky points
Time : If you complete this sudoku you are an expert!!!irrespective of the time.Such is the difficulty that doctor sudoku has imparted in this sudoku that he has taken time factor totally out of question.
Thanks to Sam Cappleman-Lynes, I’ve just discovered this, and I ported it into penpa if anyone wants an online solving link: [redacted as we have our own link now with answer checking]