This year, we are going to have some extra difficult Sunday Stumpers, about once a month. These will be quite tough puzzles, but with a logical path to be found (and solution videos to help). This first Sunday Stumper is a challenging Sudoku variation in the style of some of the unusual rule mash-ups and difficulty seen on the Cracking the Cryptic channel.

PDF

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

Theme: Have a Cracking New Year!

Author/Opus: This is the 371st puzzle from Thomas Snyder, aka Dr. Sudoku.

Rules: Standard Sudoku rules. Some arrow shapes are in the grid; the sum of the digits along the path of each arrow must equal the digit in the circled cell (digits can repeat on an arrow). Some thermometer shapes are in the grid; the digits along the thermometer must be strictly increasing from the round bulb to the flat end. Some rectangular cages are in the grid marked by dashed lines; the sum or product of the digits in these cages must be either 20 or 21. Finally, some arrows are given outside the grid; the sum or product of the digits along these marked diagonals must be either 20 or 21 (digits can repeat on a diagonal).

Difficulty: 5 stars

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 15:00, Master = 30:00, Expert = 60:00

Solution: PDF; a solution video from Cracking the Cryptic is here.

Note: Follow this link for other variations on Sudoku.