Our master+ subscribers receive access to two bonus puzzles each week in addition to other rewards. We make these posts so those supporters have a space to comment on these puzzles, mark as FAVES, or log their solving. If you are interested in subscribing and seeing these bonus puzzles, click here for more info.

Theme: Four Squares

Author/Opus: This is the 235th puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Serkan Yürekli.

Rules: Standard Star Battle rules. Two stars per row, column, and region.

Answer String: For each row from top to bottom, enter the number of the first column from the left where a star appears. Enter these numbers as a single string with no separators.

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 2:00, Master = 4:15, Expert = 8:30

Note: Follow this link for other classic Star Battles. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Star Battles to get started on. More Star Battle puzzles can be found in The Art of Puzzles and in our beginner-friendly collection Intro to GMPuzzles by Serkan Yürekli.

PDF

or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools; use tab to alternate between a composite mode for line/edge drawing and a number entry mode.)

Theme: Two-year-old Baby Snakes

Author/Opus: This is the 234th puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Serkan Yürekli.

Rules: (Hybrid of Fillomino and Snake Puzzles.) Divide the grid along the boundary lines so that every cell belongs to a snake. A snake is a one-cell-wide path at least two cells long that does not touch itself, not even diagonally. Circled cells must be at one of the ends of a snake. A snake may contain one circled cell, two circled cells, or no circled cells at all. Numbered cells must be part of a snake with a length of exactly that number of cells. A snake may contain one number, multiple identical numbers, or no numbers at all. Two snakes of the same length cannot touch each other horizontally or vertically.

Also see this example:

Answer String: For each cell in the marked rows/columns, enter the length of the snake it belongs to. Enter just the last digit for any two-digit number. This example has the key “35522,44462”.

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 3:30, Master = 5:45, Expert = 11:30

Solution: PDF

Note: Follow this link for more Snake Pit puzzles. Follow these links for other Fillomino or Snake puzzles.

Our master+ subscribers receive access to two bonus puzzles each week in addition to other rewards. We make these posts so those supporters have a space to comment on these puzzles, mark as FAVES, or log their solving. If you are interested in subscribing and seeing these bonus puzzles, click here for more info.

Theme: Opposite Consecutives

Author/Opus: This is the 233rd puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Serkan Yürekli.

Rules: Standard Castle Wall rules.

Answer String: Enter the length in cells of the horizontal loop segments from left to right in the marked rows, starting at the top. If the loop only has vertical segments in the marked row, enter 0. Separate each row’s entry with a comma.

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 3:45, Master = 7:30, Expert = 15:00

Note: Follow this link for more Castle Wall puzzles. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Castle Wall puzzles to get started on. More Castle Wall puzzles can be found in our beginner-friendly collection Intro to GMPuzzles as well as the larger collection Castle Wall, both by Serkan Yürekli.

PDF

or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools in linex mode where left click+drag draws lines and right click marks X’s)

Theme: Clue Symmetry and Logic

Author/Opus: This is the 232nd puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Serkan Yürekli.

Rules: Standard Castle Wall rules, but none of the clue colors are given. For each symmetric pair of clue cells, one cell is white and the other cell is black.

Answer String: Enter the length in cells of the horizontal loop segments from left to right in the marked rows, starting at the top. If the loop only has vertical segments in the marked row, enter 0. Separate each row’s entry with a comma.

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 2:45, Master = 5:00, Expert = 10:00

Solution: PDF

Note: Follow this link for more Castle Wall puzzles. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Castle Wall puzzles to get started on. More Castle Wall puzzles can be found in our beginner-friendly collection Intro to GMPuzzles as well as the larger collection Castle Wall, both by Serkan Yürekli.

PDF

or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools in linex mode where left click+drag draws lines and right click marks X’s)

Theme: Do Not Touch

Author/Opus: This is the 231st puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Serkan Yürekli.

Rules: Standard Castle Wall rules.

Answer String: Enter the length in cells of the horizontal loop segments from left to right in the marked rows, starting at the top. If the loop only has vertical segments in the marked row, enter 0. Separate each row’s entry with a comma.

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 1:15, Master = 2:00, Expert = 4:00

Solution: PDF

Note: Follow this link for more Castle Wall puzzles. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Castle Wall puzzles to get started on. More Castle Wall puzzles can be found in our beginner-friendly collection Intro to GMPuzzles as well as the larger collection Castle Wall, both by Serkan Yürekli.

Our master+ subscribers receive access to two bonus puzzles each week in addition to other rewards. We make these posts so those supporters have a space to comment on these puzzles, mark as FAVES, or log their solving. If you are interested in subscribing and seeing these bonus puzzles, click here for more info.

Theme: Dominoes

Author/Opus: This is the 230th puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Serkan Yürekli.

Rules: Standard Sudoku rules.

Answer String: Enter the 2nd column from top to bottom, followed by a comma, followed by the 5th column from top to bottom.

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 4:30, Master = 7:30, Expert = 15:00

Note: Follow this link for other classic Sudoku. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Sudoku to get started on. More classic Sudoku puzzles can be found in The Art of Sudoku, The Art of Sudoku 2 and in our beginner-friendly collection Intro to GMPuzzles by Serkan Yürekli.

PDF

or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools)

Theme: Refraction of Light

Author/Opus: This is the 229th puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Serkan Yürekli.

Rules: Standard Arrow Sudoku rules.

Answer String: Enter the 5th row from left to right, followed by a comma, followed by the 9th row from left to right.

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 3:00, Master = 4:30, Expert = 9:00

Solution: PDF

Note: Follow this link for more Arrow Sudoku. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Arrow Sudoku to get started on. More Arrow Sudoku puzzles can be found in The Art of Sudoku 2.

Our master+ subscribers receive access to two bonus puzzles each week in addition to other rewards. We make these posts so those supporters have a space to comment on these puzzles, mark as FAVES, or log their solving. If you are interested in subscribing and seeing these bonus puzzles, click here for more info.

Theme: Regular Diagonals

Author/Opus: This is the 228th puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Serkan Yürekli.

Rules: Standard Even/Odd Sudoku rules (i.e., cells with a square contain an even digit; cells with a circle contain an odd digit).

Answer String: Enter the 6th row from left to right, followed by a comma, followed by the 9th row from left to right.

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 2:15, Master = 3:45, Expert = 7:30

Note: Follow this link for more Even/Odd Sudoku puzzles. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Even/Odd Sudoku to get started on. More Even/Odd Sudoku puzzles can be found in The Art of Sudoku 2.

Our subscribers receive access to bonus puzzles each week. We make these posts so those supporters have a space to comment on these puzzles, mark as FAVES, or log their solving. If you are interested in subscribing, click here for more info.

Theme: Black Hole

Author/Opus: This is the 227th puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Serkan Yürekli.

Rules: Standard Balance Loop rules.

Answer String: Enter the length in cells of the horizontal loop segments from left to right in the marked rows, starting at the top. If the loop only has vertical segments in the marked row, enter 0. Separate each row’s entry with a comma.

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 2:45, Master = 4:15, Expert = 8:30

Note: Follow this link for other Balance Loop puzzles and this link for other less common Loop variations. More Balance Loops can be found in our beginner-friendly collection Intro to GMPuzzles by Serkan Yürekli.

PDF

or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools; use tab to alternate between a composite mode for line/edge drawing and a number entry mode.)

Theme: Clue Symmetry and Logic

Author/Opus: This is the 226th puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Serkan Yürekli.

Rules: Standard Fillomino rules.

Answer String: For each cell in the marked rows/columns, enter the area of the polyomino it belongs to. Enter just the last digit for any two-digit number. Start with the 2nd row, followed by a comma, followed by the 8th row.

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 1:20, Master = 1:45, Expert = 3:30

Solution: PDF

Note: Follow this link for other classic Fillomino and this link for more variations on Fillomino puzzles. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Fillomino puzzles to get started on. More Fillomino puzzles can be found in The Art of Puzzles, in Fill o’ Fillomino and Fill o’ Fillomino 2 by Grant Fikes, and in our beginner-friendly book Logic Puzzles 101.