PDF

or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools; use tab to alternate between a shading mode and a composite mode where left click inside cell shades square, left click + drag draws line segment, right click inside cell adds dot, and right click on cell edge adds an x.)

Theme: Logical

Author/Opus: This is the 154th puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Grant Fikes.

Rules: Standard Cross the Streams rules. Also, the shaded region must be able to be split into tetrominoes to form a valid LITS solution (meaning all tetrominoes are connected but no two tetrominoes sharing an edge are the same shape, including rotations and reflections).

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 = 5:45, Master = 7:30, Expert = 15:00.

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.

PDF

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

Theme: Logical

Author/Opus: This is the 123rd puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Grant Fikes.

Rules: Variation of Cross the Streams rules. Some groups of outside clues are lying and refer to the white cells in that row/column, not the black cells. It is up to you to determine which clue groups are lies. (It is possible for a clue group to be true for both the white and black cells in that row/column.)

Answer String: Enter the length in cells of each of the black segments 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 = 5:30, Master = 9:00, Expert = 18:00

Solution: PDF

Note: Follow this link for regular Cross the Streams. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Cross the Streams to get started on.

PDF

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

Theme: Logical

Author/Opus: This is the 119th puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Grant Fikes.

Rules: Double variations of Cross the Streams rules. First, both the shaded and the unshaded cells must be valid streams (single connected groups with no 2×2 areas). Second, while row clues act as usual and refer to shaded cells, the column clues refer to the distribution of white cells.

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 = 5:00, Master = 11:00, Expert = 22:00.

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.

PDF

or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools; use tab to alternate between a shading mode and a composite mode where left click inside cell shades square, left click + drag draws line segment, right click inside cell adds dot, and right click on cell edge adds an x.)

Theme: Logical

Author/Opus: This is the 118th puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Grant Fikes.

Rules: Standard Cross the Streams rules. Also, the shaded region must be able to be split into tetrominoes to form a valid LITS solution (meaning all tetrominoes are connected but no two tetrominoes sharing an edge are the same shape, including rotations and reflections).

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 = 5:00, Master = 8:30, Expert = 17:00.

Solution: PDF

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.

PDF

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.

Editor’s Note: It seems a lot of people aren’t taking us seriously this week, as if our April 1st announcement of a puzzle app combining TomTom with 2048 and Threes! was just a joke. Today’s puzzle actually grew out of a past April 1st announcement that led to a real audiobook deal for our Grandmaster titles. This puzzle is a sample from Grant Fikes’ upcoming Cross the Streams audiobook. Listen carefully or you won’t be able to solve the puzzle.

or Click here to download the audio file.

The following grid may be helpful to keep in mind (or actually on paper in front of you):

PDF

or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools; use tab to alternate between a shading mode and a number entry mode to track clues.)

Theme: Asterisk, Asterisk, Asterisk, _***

Rules: Standard Cross the Streams rules. Also, (as transcribed from the audio file): “You will hear the clues read to you, first the across clues (starting with the topmost row and moving towards the bottom) and then the down clues (starting with the leftmost column and moving towards the right). In this beautiful 10×10 puzzle, called “Asterisk, Asterisk, Asterisk”, grandmaster Grant Fikes has challenged the normal conventions of Cross the Streams, sometimes having two or more consecutive asterisks in a single row or column.”

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

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 7:00, Master = 12:00, Expert = 24:00

Solution: PDF 1 and PDF 2; a solution video is available here.

PDF

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

This is a “Franken-Friday” puzzle variation.

Theme: Logical

Rules: Standard Cross the Streams rules, except that the puzzle uses an early number system that only has the concepts of “one” and “many”. All number clues greater than 1 are represented by a + symbol.

Answer String: Enter the length in cells of each of the black segments from top to bottom for the marked columns, 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 = 6:30, Expert = 13:00

Solution: PDF

Editorial Note: This variation was inspired by a puzzle on a recent Tapa Variations Contest by Serkan Yürekli. A new Tapa Variations Contest runs this weekend for those that are interested.

PDF

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

This is a “Twisted Tuesday” puzzle variation.

Theme: Inverted Clues

Rules: Variation of Cross the Streams rules. The clues in this puzzle are inverted. They indicate the WHITE (unshaded) areas, not the black areas as in other Cross the Streams. The shaded cells must still obey the regular rules (connectivity, no 2×2 squares).

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

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 2:15, Master = 3:30, Expert = 7:00

Solution: PDF

PDF

or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools; use tab to alternate between a Shading mode and a composite Yajilin mode where left click inside cell shades square, left click + drag draws line segment, right click inside cell adds dot, and right click on cell edge adds an x.)

This is a “Franken-Friday” puzzle variation.

Theme: Mostly logical; after solving, did you notice the message in the top few rows?

Rules: Standard Cross the Streams rules. Also, the shaded region must be able to be split into tetrominoes to form a valid LITS solution.

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

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

Solution: PDF