Star Battle by Grant Fikes

Star Battle by Grant Fikes

PDF

or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools; in composite Star Battle mode a left click places a star, right click in a cell marks off the cell, and a right click on an edge or corner marks in a dot as a placement note.)

Theme: T Time

Author/Opus: This is the 371st puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Grant Fikes.

Rules: Standard Star Battle rules. One star per row, column, and region.

Difficulty: 1 star

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 0:25, Master = 0:45, Expert = 1:30

Solution: PDF and solving video.

Note: Follow this link for other classic Star Battles and this link for Star Battle variations. 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, in the books Star Battle by JinHoo Ahn and Star Battle 2 by JinHoo Ahn and Murat Can Tonta, and in our beginner-friendly collections Intro to GMPuzzles by Serkan Yürekli and Starter Pack 5: Star Battle by JinHoo Ahn.

Cave by Matej Uher

Cave by Matej Uher

PDF

or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools; use tab to shift between shading mode and the linex mode where left click+drag draws lines and right click marks X’s)

Theme: Sequences

Author/Opus: This is the 3rd puzzle from guest contributor Matej Uher.

Rules: Standard Cave rules.

Difficulty: 2 stars

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 1:45, Master = 2:45, Expert = 5:30

Solution: PDF and solving video.

Note: Follow this link for classic Caves and this link for Cave variations. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Cave Puzzles to get started on. More Cave puzzles can be found in Roger Barkan’s Colossal Cave Collection, in The Art of Puzzles, and in our beginner-friendly collection Intro to GMPuzzles by Serkan Yürekli.

Cave by William Hu

Cave by William Hu

PDF

or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools; use tab to shift between shading mode and the linex mode where left click+drag draws lines and right click marks X’s)

Theme: Tulip

Author/Opus: This is the 8th puzzle from guest contributor William Hu.

Rules: Standard Cave rules.

Difficulty: 1.5 stars

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

Solution: PDF and solving video.

Note: Follow this link for classic Caves and this link for Cave variations. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Cave Puzzles to get started on. More Cave puzzles can be found in Roger Barkan’s Colossal Cave Collection, in The Art of Puzzles, and in our beginner-friendly collection Intro to GMPuzzles by Serkan Yürekli.

Statue Park by David Altizio

Statue Park by David Altizio

PDF

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

Theme: Off by One

Author/Opus: This is the 8th puzzle from guest contributor David Altizio.

Rules: Standard Statue Park rules. This puzzle uses a double tetromino set.

Difficulty: 1.5 stars

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

Solution: PDF and solving video.

Note: Follow this link for other classic Statue Park and this link for Statue Park variations. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Statue Parks to get started on. More Statue Park puzzles can be found in the ebook Statue Park by Murat Can Tonta.

Statue Park by Grant Fikes

Statue Park by Grant Fikes

PDF

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

Theme: Magic Mirror

Author/Opus: This is the 370th puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Grant Fikes.

Rules: Standard Statue Park rules. This puzzle uses a standard tetromino set.

Difficulty: 1.5 stars

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 1:00, Master = 1:15, Expert = 2:30

Solution: PDF and solving video.

Note: Follow this link for other classic Statue Park and this link for Statue Park variations. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Statue Parks to get started on. More Statue Park puzzles can be found in the ebook Statue Park by Murat Can Tonta.

Kakuro by Serkan Yürekli

Kakuro by Serkan Yürekli

PDF

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

Theme: Big and Small

Author/Opus: This is the 365th puzzle from our managing editor Serkan Yürekli.

Rules: Standard Kakuro rules.

Difficulty: 1 star

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 0:50, Master = 1:05, Expert = 2:10

Solution: PDF; a solution video is also available here.

Note: Follow this link for classic Kakuro and this link for Kakuro variations. More Kakuro puzzles can be found in Kakuro and Variations by Serkan Yürekli and in The Art of Puzzles 2.

Skyscrapers (Cipher) by Serkan Yürekli

Skyscrapers (Cipher) by Serkan Yürekli

PDF

or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools; note that solution checking requires the eleven ciphered clues and the twenty-five interior cells to all be marked)

Theme: Numbers

Author/Opus: This is the 364th puzzle from our managing editor Serkan Yürekli.

Rules: Standard Skyscrapers rules, using the integers 1-5. Also, each letter represents a different positive integer, for the solver to determine.

Difficulty: 2.5 stars

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 1:40, Master = 2:45, Expert = 5:30

Solution: PDF; a solution video is also available here.

Note: Follow this link for classic Skyscrapers puzzles and this link for variations on Skyscrapers puzzles. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Skyscrapers Puzzles to get started on. More Skyscrapers puzzles can be found in The Art of Puzzles, in our beginner-friendly collection Intro to GMPuzzles by Serkan Yürekli, and in the e-book Skyscrapers by Ashish Kumar.

Note from Thomas (2022-03-22 8:18 AM PT): I rarely post my own editorial comments anywhere, but I just solved this puzzle for the first time and have to say this is really elegant and fun! Thanks Serkan for sharing this great Cipher puzzle with the world. I’m (we’re) blessed to have you as managing editor AND puzzle constructor for Grandmaster Puzzles.

Kuromasu by JinHoo Ahn

Kuromasu by JinHoo Ahn

PDF

or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools; use tab to shift between shading mode and the linex mode where left click+drag draws lines and right click marks X’s)

Theme: Double Sequences

Author/Opus: This is the 44th puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster JinHoo Ahn.

Rules: Shade some empty cells black so that each number indicates the total count of white cells connected vertically and horizontally to that number including the numbered cell itself. Black cells cannot share an edge, and all white cells must belong to a single connected group.

Also see this example:

Kuromasu by Thomas Snyder

Difficulty: 1 star

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 0:30, Master = 1:00, Expert = 2:00

Solution: PDF; a solution video is also available here.

Note: Follow this link for more Kuromasu puzzles.

Tapa-Like Loop by Emin Erzurumluoğlu

Tapa-Like Loop by Emin Erzurumluoğlu

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 on edges)

Theme: Triangles

Author/Opus: This is the 1st puzzle from guest contributor Emin Erzurumluoğlu.

Rules: Variation of Tapa: Form a single non-intersecting loop. Clues inside the grid represent the number of neighboring cells visited by the loop; if there is more than one number in a cell, each number should be represented with a separate loop segment. There is no 2×2 rule of Tapa in this puzzle.

See also this example:

Tapa-Like Loop Example by Serkan Yürekli

Difficulty: 2 stars

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 1:15, Master = 2:15, Expert = 4:30

Solution: PDF; a solution video is also available here.

Note: Follow this link for other Tapa-Like Loop puzzles. More Tapa-Like Loop puzzles can be found in the Tapa-Like Loop Collection by Prasanna Seshadri.

Tapa-Like Loop by Serkan Yürekli

Tapa-Like Loop 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 on edges)

Theme: 3.14

Author/Opus: This is the 363rd puzzle from our managing editor Serkan Yürekli.

Rules: Variation of Tapa: Form a single non-intersecting loop. Clues inside the grid represent the number of neighboring cells visited by the loop; if there is more than one number in a cell, each number should be represented with a separate loop segment. There is no 2×2 rule of Tapa in this puzzle.

See also this example:

Tapa-Like Loop Example by Serkan Yürekli

Difficulty: 1.5 stars

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 0:45, Master = 1:37, Expert = 3:14

Solution: PDF; a solution video is also available here.

Note: Follow this link for other Tapa-Like Loop puzzles. More Tapa-Like Loop puzzles can be found in the Tapa-Like Loop Collection by Prasanna Seshadri.