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

Theme: Logical

Author/Opus: This is the 117th puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Grant Fikes.

Rules: Standard Cross the Streams rules. Also, the solution has 55 shaded cells which must be divisible into the 11 given pentominoes (rotations and reflections allowed) without overlapping.

Answer String: Enter the length in cells of each of the black segments from left to right for the marked rows and from top to bottom for the marked columns in the two grids, going in order from A to B to C to D and separating each entry with a comma.

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 3:15, Master = 6:00, Expert = 12:00.

Solution: PDF; a solution video is available here.

Note: Follow this link for variations of Cross the Streams and this link for other classic Cross the Streams. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Cross the Streams to get started on. Follow this link for other puzzles involving Pentominoes.

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 letter entry mode.)

Theme: Clue Symmetry and Logic (Originally on the Indian Puzzle Championship).

Author/Opus: This is the 35th puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Prasanna Seshadri.

Rules: Divide the grid into 20 pentominoes so that no two pentominoes of the same shape (including rotations/reflections) share an edge. A cell with a letter in it must be part of the pentomino shape normally associated with that letter. An inventory of pentominoes is given below the puzzle but not all shapes must be used.

Answer String: Enter the letter associated with the pentomino occupying each cell in the two marked rows from left to right, separating the rows with a comma. Use CAPITAL LETTERS!

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

Solution: PDF

Note: Follow this link for other puzzles involving Pentominoes.

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 letter entry mode.)

Theme: Clue Symmetry and Logic.

Author/Opus: This is the 96th puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Grant Fikes.

Rules: Variation of Fillomino rules where regions with the same shape must avoid each other instead of regions with the same size (all regions in a pentominous puzzle are pentominoes).

Specifically, divide the grid into 20 pentominoes so that no two pentominoes of the same shape (including rotations/reflections) share an edge. A cell with a letter in it must be part of the pentomino shape normally associated with that letter. An inventory of pentominoes is given below the puzzle but not all shapes must be used.

Answer String: Enter the letter associated with the pentomino occupying each cell in the two marked rows from left to right, separating the rows with a comma. Use CAPITAL LETTERS!

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 1:45, Master = 2:30, Expert = 5:00

Solution: PDF

Note: Follow this link for other puzzles involving Pentominoes.

PDF

or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools in a composite mode for line/edge drawing)

Theme: Grandmaster Puzzles (GMP in the shapes)

Rules: Divide each of the three shapes into four pentominoes so that all 12 pentominoes are present exactly once across the three shapes. An inventory of pentominoes is given below the puzzle; rotations and reflections of these shapes are allowed.

Answer String: Enter the capital letters for the pentominoes sitting in each cell along the indicated long row. Enter as a single string of 14 characters.

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 2:30, Master = 5:30, Expert = 11:00

Solution: PDF

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: “Hard” Practice (this was a WPC puzzle style) — in contrast to this post.

Rules: Place each of the 11 pentominoes into the grid exactly once, with rotations and reflections allowed, to form a valid “Coral”. In a Coral puzzle, all blackened areas are connected, but no group of 2×2 cells is entirely blackened. Also, there are no unshaded areas enclosed by the coral (meaning each unshaded cell must have a path through its edges with other unshaded cells to a border). Numbers outside the grid indicate the lengths of groups of shaded cells in that row/column, but not necessarily in order.

Or see this example from the 22nd WPC instruction booklet.

Answer String: Enter the identities of the pentominoes (one capital letter for each, even if in multiple cells) appearing in the marked rows from left to right (eg “ILN,WVXT”).

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 10:00, Master = 20:00, Expert = 40:00

Solution: PDF

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: “Easy” Practice (this was a WPC puzzle style)

Rules: Place each of the 11 pentominoes into the grid exactly once, with rotations and reflections allowed, to form a valid “Coral”. In a Coral puzzle, all blackened areas are connected, but no group of 2×2 cells is entirely blackened. Also, there are no unshaded areas enclosed by the coral (meaning each unshaded cell must have a path through its edges with other unshaded cells to a border). Numbers outside the grid indicate the lengths of groups of shaded cells in that row/column, but not necessarily in order.

Or see this example from the 22nd WPC instruction booklet.

Answer String: Enter the identities of the pentominoes (one capital letter for each, even if in multiple cells) appearing in the marked rows from left to right (eg “ILN,WVXT”).

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 4:15, Master = 6:30, Expert = 13:00

Solution: PDF

Editorial Note: Many solvers can confuse Coral with another puzzle type with similar spelling. An easy way to remember the difference is that Cave has no R’s and also has no 2×2 Region constraint. Coral puzzles, with an R, do have this region constraint. The other general rules (about not enclosing white spaces and having a single shaded group) are shared between Cave and Coral puzzles.

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 letter entry mode.)

Theme: Logical

Rules: Variation of Fillomino rules where regions with the same shape must avoid each other instead of regions with the same size (all regions in a pentominous puzzle are pentominoes).

Specifically, divide the grid into 20 pentominoes so that no two pentominoes of the same shape (including rotations/reflections) share an edge. A cell with a letter in it must be part of the pentomino shape normally associated with that letter as given below the grid. Not all pentomino shapes need appear.

Answer String: Enter the letter associated with the pentomino occupying each cell in the two marked rows from left to right, separating the rows with a comma. Use CAPITAL LETTERS!

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

Solution: PDF

Note: Follow this link for other puzzles involving Pentominoes.

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 letter entry mode.)

Theme: Logical

Rules: Variation of Fillomino rules where regions with the same shape must avoid each other instead of regions with the same size (all regions in a pentominous puzzle are pentominoes). See an earlier Pentominous puzzle here.

Specifically, divide the grid into 45 pentominoes so that no two pentominoes of the same shape (including rotations/reflections) share an edge. A cell with a letter in it must be part of the pentomino shape normally associated with that letter as given below the grid. Not all pentomino shapes need appear.

Answer String: Enter the letter associated with the pentomino occupying each cell in the marked rows from left to right, separating the rows with a comma. Use CAPITAL LETTERS!

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 6:30, Master = 10:30, Expert = 21:00

Solution: PDF

Note: Follow this link for other puzzles involving Pentominoes.

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 letter entry mode.)

This is a “Twisted Tuesday” puzzle variation.

Theme: Logical

Rules: Variation of Fillomino rules where regions with the same shape must avoid each other instead of regions with the same size (all regions in a pentominous puzzle are pentominoes).

Specifically, divide the grid into 20 pentominoes so that no two pentominoes of the same shape (including rotations/reflections) share an edge. A cell with a letter in it must be part of the pentomino shape normally associated with that letter as given below the grid. Not all pentomino shapes need appear.

Answer String: Enter the letter associated with the pentomino occupying each cell in the two marked rows from left to right, separating the rows with a comma. Use CAPITAL LETTERS!

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 2:00, Master = 4:30, Expert = 9:00

Solution: PDF

Note: Follow this link for other puzzles involving Pentominoes.

PDF

or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools; use tab to shift between shading mode 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.)

This is a “Franken-Friday” puzzle variation.

Theme: Pentapa

Rules: Standard Tapa rules. Also, the Tapa wall in this puzzle is made using one of each pentomino given below the grid with no overlaps. Rotations and reflections are allowed. (Note: There is no P pentomino here because it would violate Tapa rules).

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 = 6:30, Master = 11:00, Expert = 22:00

Solution: PDF