Tapa (Total False) by Prasanna Seshadri
Note: When we said everything was a lie in last week’s schedule, that included there being just 6 puzzles. Enjoy this bonus ‘Sunday’ challenge from Prasanna.
or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools; use tab to shift between shading mode, a number entry mode for placing Tapa clues, and the composite Yajilin mode where left click marks cells, right click marks dots in cells or X’s on edges, left click+drag draws lines.)
Theme: Clue Symmetry and Logic
Author/Opus: This is the 38th puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Prasanna Seshadri.
Rules: Variation of Tapa Rules. Every given clue is lying in two ways: first, the number of given clues in that cell is false; second, the value of any given clues is not true for any part of the Tapa around that cell. For example, a 3 clue could actually indicate 24, but it could not indicate 2 (same number of clues) or 23 (the digit 3 appears). 0 is not a valid clue for this Tapa.
Answer String: Enter the length in cells of each of the shaded segments from left to right for the marked rows, starting at the top. Separate each row’s entry from the next with a comma.
Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 8:00, Master = 16:00, Expert = 32:00
Solution: PDF
Note: Follow this link for classic Tapa. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Tapa puzzles to get started on.
I take it the “off by one” rule for lies earlier in the week doesn’t apply here, right?
No. The lies here are only about the observed digits and the count of those digits. Trying to be exhaustive for the example case, a 3 clue could become a 1+1+1+1, 1+2+2, 1+1+2, 1+1+1, 1+5, 1+4, 1+2, 1+1, 2+4, 2+2. (It’s possible I missed something there.) None of these new clue values use a 3, or use just a single digit.
I don’t think you’ve missed any. You can’t go any higher than 5 to have at least 2 digits in there to prove a singleton wrong, and I can’t see any other possibilities without a 3 in it. The multiple-digit clues eliminated due to having a 3 in them are 1+3, 2+3, 3+3, 1+1+3.
09:18, done while half sleepy.
Great puzzle with many interesting tricks.