PDF

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

Theme: Don’t Get Mad, …

Author/Opus: This is the 113th puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Grant Fikes.

Rules: Standard Skyscrapers rules.

Answer String: Enter the 4th row from left to right, followed by a comma, followed by the 5th row from left to right.

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 1:00, Master = 1:30, Expert = 3:00

Solution: PDF

Note: Follow this link for other classic Skyscrapers. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Skyscrapers to get started on.

PDF

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

Theme: U’s Full

Author/Opus: This is the 112th puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Grant Fikes.

Rules: Standard Slitherlink rules.

Answer String: Enter the length in cells of each of the internal loop segments from left to right for the marked rows, starting at the top. Separate each row’s entry with a comma.

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 1:00, Master = 1:30, Expert = 3:00

Solution: PDF

Note: Follow this link for other classic Slitherlink. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Slitherlink puzzles to get started on.

All the puzzles from last week have been grouped in this PDF.

Soon we will be making some updates to the site including finally adding an e-book store. When we launch (tentatively this Friday), 4 e-books comprising 80% of “The Art of Puzzles” collection will be available. Within the month we expect to add the last part of “The Art of Puzzles” and also an electronic form of “The Art of Sudoku”. You can get an individual part of The Art of Puzzles for $4, or the entire collection for $16. If you start by buying individual parts, the cost to complete the collection will continue to decrease (-> $12 -> $8 -> $4) so you can choose to try a few before you buy them all.

In coming months, we will release e-books and sometimes print books for titles with LITS, Caves, and an easier puzzle collection from Grant Fikes that will be a good introduction to several of our puzzle styles.

This coming week is another variety week (highlight to view):

Monday: Slitherlink by Grant Fikes
Tuesday: Skyscrapers by Grant Fikes
Wednesday: Statue Park by Murat Can Tonta
Thursday: Cave by Prasanna Seshadri
Friday: Tapa (Transparent) by Prasanna Seshadri
Saturday: Thermo-Sudoku by Thomas Snyder

The bonus puzzle for our high-level supporters will be a Tapa (Transparent) by Prasanna Seshadri.

PDF

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

Theme: Clue Symmetry and Logic

Author/Opus: This is the 50th puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Serkan Yürekli.

Rules: Divide the grid into gray and white regions, each containing exactly one number and with an area equal to that number. Numbers in white cells are part of white regions; numbers in gray cells are part of gray regions. Same colored regions cannot share an edge.

This example image should help:

Answer String: Enter the length in cells of each group (white and gray) in the marked rows. Separate the rows with a comma. For the Example, this is “13,121”.

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 3:15, Master = 6:30, Expert = 13:00

Solution: PDF

PDF

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

Theme: Clue Symmetry and Logic

Author/Opus: This is the 49th puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Serkan Yürekli.

Rules: Divide the grid into gray and white regions, each containing exactly one number and with an area equal to that number. Numbers in white cells are part of white regions; numbers in gray cells are part of gray regions. Same colored regions cannot share an edge.

This example image should help:

Answer String: Enter the length in cells of each group (white and gray) in the marked rows. Separate the rows with a comma. For the Example, this is “13,121”.

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

Solution: PDF

PDF

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

Theme: Clue Symmetry and Logic

Author/Opus: This is the 48th puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Serkan Yürekli.

Rules: Divide the grid into gray and white regions, each containing exactly one number and with an area equal to that number. Numbers in white cells are part of white regions; numbers in gray cells are part of gray regions. Same colored regions cannot share an edge.

This example image should help:

Answer String: Enter the length in cells of each group (white and gray) in the marked rows. Separate the rows with a comma. For the Example, this is “13,121”.

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

Solution: PDF

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: It All Adds Up (to 8) – every valid clue that sums to 8 appears at least once.

Author/Opus: This is the 31st puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Prasanna Seshadri.

Rules: In this variation of Tapa, the wall is in the form of 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. This example image should help:

Answer String: Enter the length in cells of the horizontal loop segments from left to right in the marked rows, starting at the top. Separate each row’s entry with a comma. For the example, this would be “11,12”.

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 2:30, Master = 3:15, Expert = 6:30

Solution: PDF

Note: Follow this link for other Tapa-Like Loop puzzles. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Tapa puzzles to get started on.

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: 1 to 8

Author/Opus: This is the 30th puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Prasanna Seshadri.

Rules: In this variation of Tapa, the wall is in the form of 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. This example image should help:

Answer String: Enter the length in cells of the horizontal loop segments from left to right in the marked rows, starting at the top. Separate each row’s entry with a comma. For the example, this would be “11,12”.

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

Solution: PDF

Note: Follow this link for other Tapa-Like Loop puzzles. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Tapa puzzles to get started on.

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: Pairs

Author/Opus: This is the 29th puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Prasanna Seshadri.

Rules: In this variation of Tapa, the wall is in the form of 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. This example image should help:

Answer String: Enter the length in cells of the horizontal loop segments from left to right in the marked rows, starting at the top. Separate each row’s entry with a comma. For the example, this would be “11,12”.

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

Solution: PDF

Note: Follow this link for other Tapa-Like Loop puzzles. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Tapa puzzles to get started on.

All the puzzles from last week have been grouped in this PDF. While Gemini continues, this marks the official end of our twin “Twin Weeks”. I hope you enjoyed the ~24 puzzles over the last couple weeks. I say ~24 as even I’m not sure I’ve found them all.

Next week will debut a slightly new format idea which is the split author week. I’ve let both Prasanna and Serkan focus on a single puzzle type and develop it over three puzzles. Prasanna will take the first three days with Tapa-Like Loop and Serkan will take the last three days with Light and Shadow, a new variant for this site.

The bonus puzzle for our high-level supporters is a Skyscrapers by Grant Fikes.