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)

Theme: Black Cross

Author/Opus: This is the 31st puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Palmer Mebane.

Rules: Standard Castle Wall rules.

Answer String: Enter the length in cells of the horizontal loop segments from left to right in the marked rows, starting at the top. If the loop only has vertical segments in the marked row, enter 0. Separate each row’s entry with a comma.

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

Solution: PDF

Note: This is our first week of Castle Wall puzzles. You can find other Castle Walls from their inventor Palmer Mebane here.

PDF

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

Theme: PAFCIO (This is a thank you puzzle to one of our major patrons)

Author/Opus: This is the 206th puzzle from Thomas Snyder, aka Dr. Sudoku.

Rules: Standard LITS 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 = 3:00, Master = 6:30, Expert = 13:00

Solution: PDF

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

PDF

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

Theme: Symmetry and Logic

Author/Opus: This is the 53rd puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Prasanna Seshadri.

Rules: Standard LITS rules. Also, the letters outside the grid indicate the first tetromino encountered in the corresponding direction. Or see this:

(Example by Chris Green, a patron who requested this puzzle style.)

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 = 2:45, Master = 3:45, Expert = 7:30

Solution: PDF

Note: Follow this link for more variations of LITS and this link for classic LITS. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest LITS to get started on.

PDF

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

Theme: Symmetry and Logic

Author/Opus: This is the 52nd puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Prasanna Seshadri.

Rules: Standard LITS rules. Also, the letters outside the grid indicate the first tetromino encountered in the corresponding direction. Or see this:

(Example by Chris Green, a patron who requested this puzzle style.)

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 = 2:30, Master = 3:30, Expert = 7:00

Solution: PDF

Note: Follow this link for more variations of LITS and this link for classic LITS. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest LITS to get started on.

PDF

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

Theme: One, Two, Three

Author/Opus: This is the 51st puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Prasanna Seshadri.

Rules: Standard Cross the Streams rules.

Answer String: Enter the length in cells of each of the black segments from left to right/top to bottom for the marked rows/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 = 2:45, Master = 4:00, Expert = 8:00.

Solution: PDF

Note: Follow this link for other 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 the tab key to alternate between shading and number entry modes)

Theme: Given Symmetry

Author/Opus: This is the 144th puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Grant Fikes.

Rules: Standard Nanro rules.

Answer String: Enter the length in cells of each of the segments labeled with numbers 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 = 1:45, Master = 2:30, Expert = 5:00

Solution: PDF

Note: Click here for other Nanro puzzles. If you are new to this puzzle type, please first try out the example on the Rules and Info page as well as this easy Nanro post.

PDF

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

Theme: Invaluable

Author/Opus: This is the 2nd puzzle from guest contributor John Bulten.

Rules: Standard TomTom rules, using the integers 1-5. Also, each cage must have a non-negative integer operation value (i.e., is equal to 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, …).

Answer String: Enter the 1st row from left to right followed by the 2nd row from left to right. Separate all rows with a comma.

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 3:15, Master = 7:00, Expert = 14:00

Solution: PDF

Note: Follow this link for variations of TomTom and this link for more classic TomTom. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest TomTom to get started on.

PDF

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

Theme: Clumps of Givens

Author/Opus: This is the 142nd puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Grant Fikes.

Rules: Standard TomTom rules, using the integers 1-6.

Answer String: Enter the 3rd row from left to right followed by the 4th row from left to right. Separate the rows with a comma.

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 3:00, Master = 4:30, Expert = 9:00

Solution: PDF

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

PDF

or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools; use Tab key to alternate between line drawing and shading)

Theme: Clue Symmetry and Logic

Author/Opus: This is the 59th puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Serkan Yürekli.

Rules: Variation of Nurikabe. Shade some empty cells black so that the grid is divided into white areas, each containing at most one number. A white area with a number must have the same area in cells as that number. White areas may only touch diagonally. All shaded cells must be connected with each other, but no 2×2 group of cells can be entirely shaded. Also, all shaded cells must be divisible into snakes with the heads and tails given in the grid. Snakes cannot cross each other.

Also, see this example:

Answer String: Enter the length in cells of each of the black segments from left to right for the marked rows, starting at the top. Separate each row’s entry with a comma. This example has the key “7,32,31”.

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 3:30, Master = 4:45, Expert = 9:30

Solution: PDF

Note: Follow this link for other variations of Nurikabe and this link for more classic Nurikabe. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Nurikabes to get started on.

PDF

or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools; in default linex mode: left-click+drag draws line, right click marks X on edge)

Theme: Getting Even

Author/Opus: This is the 6th puzzle from guest contributor Craig Kasper.

Rules: Draw a single loop in the grid which may cross itself orthogonally, but otherwise does not touch or retrace itself. The clue numbers to the left/right of the rows indicate the number of squares visited by the nearest section of the loop that travels horizontally in the rows. The clue numbers to the top/bottom of the columns indicate the number of squares visited by the nearest section of the loop that travels vertically in the columns.

Also, see this example:

Answer String: Enter the number of empty squares for each row from top to bottom, followed by a comma, and then the number of turns for each row from top to bottom. This example has the key “100000,422224”.

Solution: PDF

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 3:30, Master = 6:00, Expert = 12:00

Note: Follow this link for other Round Trip puzzles. Some more Round Trip puzzles can be found in the book Loop Variety Collection by Ashish Kumar and Murat Can Tonta.