Puzzle 45: Which Way

Yajilin+. Follow regular Yajilin rules (draw a loop on cells’ centers and shade the unvisited non-given squares black so no two black squares share an edge; clues show the number of black cells in the given direction). But the directions of the arrows are unknown; it’s one of the given two directions. (The other direction may or may not have the given number of black squares.)

Sometimes there seems like not enough clues to solve a mystery, but it solves cleanly anyway. Sky has tried to construct such mystery, and apparently he’s satisfied with this easy-medium brainteaser… Need to put even less clues.

Puzzle 45: Which Way
Yajilin+

It might be very early to tell this, but stay tuned for May 2013.

Puzzle 44, Special Puzzles 6-7: Insane Mind Comes Again

EDIT in 2017 because someone tried solving these: in Special Puzzle 6, row 7, the right clues should say ? 5 (the 5 is to the right) instead of ? ?.

Puzzle 44: Outside Fillomino. Follow regular Fillomino rules. In addition, each of the number outside describes the content of some cell inside that is of distance at most 4 from the edge (for example, a clue above C1 points to some cell in R1C1-R4C1, and a clue below C1 points to some cell in R7C1-R10C1). No two clues point to the same cell, and the clues are read in order (the clue that is two squares above C1 points to a cell earlier than the cell that the clue that is one square above C1 points to). Yeah weird rules; I’ll attach an example if necessary.

Special Puzzle 6: Outside Fillomino. Exactly the same rules as above, only that question marks represent numbers (not necessarily all identical or all different) which are all less than 10.

Special Puzzle 7: Cipher Kropki. Fill in the squares with numbers between 1-6 such that each number appears exactly once in each row/column. If and only if two orthogonally adjacent numbers differ by 1, there is a white circle between them. If and only if the ratio two orthogonally adjacent numbers is 2 in some order (the larger is twice the smaller), there is a black circle between them. Either circle can appear between consecutive 1 and 2. If no circle appears, then neither of the two conditions above apply. Count the solutions.

When your mind goes wild, these are the results… And yes, this is the only line of the “story”. Medium for Puzzle 44 and Special Puzzle 6, medium-hard for Special Puzzle 7.

Puzzle 44: Insane Mind Comes Again
Outside Fillomino
(click to enlarge)

Special Puzzle 6: Insane Mind Comes Again
Outside Fillomino [Unknown]
(click to enlarge)

Special Puzzle 7: Insane Mind Comes Again
Cipher Kropki [Count the Solutions]

Blah.

In other news, it seems that the element(s) that manage the images are broken (see previous puzzle). I’m trying to get them fixed. (EDIT: Seems like alt property of a elements hates line breaks. Manual edit on each image to remove the alt property solves the problem.)

EDIT: Whoo so I apparently forgot that Special Puzzle 6 has been posted before. This post will then have Special Puzzles 7-8. Too much care on numberings 😛

Puzzle 43: Sum vs Product

Corral Antisymmetric Multiplicative. Follow regular Corral clues (draw a loop following grid lines so all numbers are inside the loop). For each clue, let be the number of cells that belong in the loop, all in the same row, all connected, and contains this clue’s square. Define similarly for cells in the same column. For each pair of symmetric clues (with respect to center), exactly one of them gives ; the other gives .

…so I can’t think up a story. I shouldn’t be typing this while Russia vs Macau is going in osu! World Cup 3… Easy-medium puzzle.

Puzzle 43: Sum vs Product
Corral Antisymmetric Multiplicative

UPDATE (9-Dec-2012, 20:06): Fixed ambiguity in bottom middle.

Enjoy. No particular comment.

Puzzles 41-42: Untruthful People

Puzzle 41: Liar Hidato. Follow regular Hidato rules (fill each white cell by a number between 1-66 inclusive so each number appears exactly once and consecutive numbers are adjacent (orthogonally or diagonally)). In addition, for every row/column that has at least a given, one of the givens is lying.

Puzzle 42: Liar Akari. Follow regular Akari rules (put some lamps which lit the entire unobstructed (by grid edges or black cells) paths to up+down+left+right of each so all squares are lit and no lamp lights another, and numbers on black cells represent the number of lamps orthogonally adjacent to the corresponding black cell). In addition, all givens are lying.

It has never been the case that people in Flygrass Town are lying en masse, but it never removes the possibility. Indeed, today is perhaps the “Lying Day” where people are basically lying all the time. Almost.

In the Allgreen Forest, guards are sometimes lying. Fortunately, no two lying guards can be in the same line of sight, as either will report the other and hell will break loose. But still, the visitors of the forest are confounded. After several reports, Sky decides to fix this by putting a correct traversal path. If he can.

Meanwhile, in the Art Museum, a blackout occurs. But it’s Lying Day, so no guard gives the correct response when they are queried about the number of lights they guard. Apparently they all conspired to answer zero? Whatever, Sky still gets to handle it.

Puzzle 41: Untruthful Forest Guards
Liar Hidato

Puzzle 42: Untruthful Museum Guards
Liar Akari

Enjoy these very unusual Liar variations. It will probably be a long time before I get around these things again.

Why Liar Akari’s black squares are much lighter? I suspect that you will write the correct given for each cell…maybe. But it’s better to prepare too much than too little. If you want a version with darker black squares, just comment; I’ll provide one if there is enough interest (say, 2 people?).

Puzzle 40: Sky’s Revenge

Liar Slitherlink. Follow regular Slitherlink clues (make a loop following the gridlines that doesn’t touch/cross itself anywhere, and givens tell the number of sides used around that cell). However, exactly one given in each row/column is wrong. The task of determining which givens are lying is given to you.

It was a tough journey, but Sky made it to Odd Island. He was pretty surprised to see a few zeroes; perhaps the zeroes betrayed Even Island inhabitants? In any case, he managed to avoid suspicions, and in case someone attacked him (he’s #492, so yeah), he simply Seed Flared them away.

He made it to the prison that he suspects to hold many of the twos, and boy, what a surprise! No less than 86 twos are present. They sure kidnapped a lot of twos! He wanted to free them all from those pesky guards, but he surely could not Seed Flare those innocent twos. So he went with a very unusual approach…of Liar Slitherlink-ing them.

Wait… Isn’t Sky’s previous puzzle a Liar Slitherlink? Is Sky our hero? Hm…

Puzzle 40: Sky’s Revenge
Liar Slitherlink

Yes, MellowMelon-inspired. Although I don’t think he made that for the purpose of maximizing the number of 2s; mine started with a grid of 2s and givens got replaced when they don’t fit.

Also, if you’ve solved the grid, you may continue the story:

Sky’s bizarre strategy worked! Somehow. The guards were disoriented by being called liars and stuffs, and they all went arguing, allowing those twos to escape. They all went back, Sky was reunited with his lost two, and he could finally make another puzzle involving twos. Maybe next time…

Puzzle 39: Where Are My Twos?!

Liar Slitherlink. Follow regular Slitherlink clues (make a loop following the gridlines that doesn’t touch/cross itself anywhere, and givens tell the number of sides used around that cell). However, exactly one given in each row/column is wrong. The task of determining which givens are lying is given to you.

BREAKING NEWS: Leader of Flygrass Town lost his twos; police are looking at possible suspects
“It was all there when I went to sleep last night, but I found them missing this morning!” Sky cried.

That was two days ago. Now Sky has gotten over his loss, and he wants a revenge. “I’ll show them what I can do even without those 2s!” Sky adamantly proclaimed. After leaving this medium puzzle, he leaves to the Odd Island, the most probable suspect of where the 2s are kept hostage in.

Puzzle 39: Where Are My Twos?!
Liar Slitherlink

Yes, no 2 at all. Stay tuned for the second part (and also the final part) of Sky’s mini-adventure of reclaiming his 2s!

Imposing Self-restrictions

It won’t work for me. I failed to make Puzzle 30 large and I’m feeling really uninspired to make Puzzle 40 large either (Puzzle 39 constructed and no large grid ready in my puzzle book).

Meh. No longer any guarantee of large puzzles. I feel better to make puzzles that employ a particular trick as its attractive point. Large puzzles I made tend to combine stuffs so no trick is really highlighted. Maybe if I want to employ a trick that simply cannot be done in small puzzles, sure, but let’s see.

Meanwhile, Puzzle 39? Yes, I have a puzzle to be posted when I get on computer. Where are my twos :O

Puzzle 38: Fillomino Party! Part Finale!

Kropki Fillomino. Follow regular Fillomino rules. In addition, Kropki clues appear on the grid. If two numbers are separated by a black circle, then one is double of the other. If two numbers are separated by a white circle, then they are consecutive integers. Note that if there is no circle, then it doesn’t mean that the two cells have none of the two relationships (double or consecutive). Between 1 and 2, either circle may appear.

And we’re finally on the last puzzle! It’s apparently a genre invented by…er…let me see.
*skims*
*skims further*
*doesn’t skim further* Okay, sorry. Apparently this is the chef’s original, or it should be so since the chef was too lazy— err, failed to find any other puzzle of the same variant. Anyway, enjoy our last medium meal…
…wait, Chef! Why is it another medium?!
Uhm anyway, enjoy this one, and see you in the next party!

Puzzle 38: Fillomino Party! Part Finale!
Kropki Fillomino

Uh wait. Chef, is this lower-right part is truly empty?
…uh, no answer. My chef likes to escape from questions. Anyway, I suppose that means yes.

Yes indeed. Have fun with this final puzzle! I’m off to study for finals. Don’t expect too much until, say, a few days after 3 December? My last finals will be on 3 December. Non-puzzle posting will probably resume as usual depending on whether I get something to post.

Puzzle 37: Fillomino Party! Part 2!

Greater-Than Fillomino. Follow usual Fillomino rules. In addition, inequality signs appear on the grid. Given inequalities must be satisfied by the numbers in the corresponding cells. Try MellowMelon’s too if you don’t get the rules.

So, you’re satisfied with the first meal? You’re not done yet.
This one is a puzzle, which genre is inspired from some yellowish fruit. A melon perhaps? Although I’m not sure how a melon can make puzzles. Or is it a Melon-pult? *shudders*
Umm, anyway. Enjoy. Another medium meal. Hey chef, is there going to be any heavy meal or something?

Puzzle 37: Fillomino Party! Part 2!
Greater-Than Fillomino

Part 2 of the party. One more to go. This theme of no number at all should have been done somewhere. (After an educated guess and a look on it, the original Fillomino Fillia has it.) Yay. Stay tuned for the last in the batch…let’s take a guess on the variant, shall we?

Puzzle 36: Fillomino Party! Part 1!

LITS Fillomino. Follow usual Fillomino rules. However, there can be no number 4 in the grid; all 4-minoes are replaced by L,I,T,S shapes. All LITS shapes must form a single connected polyomino, no two identical LITS shapes may be adjacent (including after rotation and/or reflection), and no 2×2 region may be completely used by LITS shapes. Basically a cross between Fillomino and LITS that’s invented by mathgrant.

Welcome to my Fillomino party! I’m Shaymin, your host. I’m not sure why I get to host this while some polyomino can be chosen instead, but whatever.
So… You will be served three Fillomino puzzles. To avoid getting too full, we will serve each puzzle 12 hours after the previous, so you will get a 24-hour party. Neat!
Here’s your first puzzle. I heard that this genre is invented by some foxy animal, although I’m sure he’s not a Vulpix or something. Seriously, I can’t recall any Pokemon which is fox-like and is cyan…err, wait, he’s not a Pokemon? Okay then.
This one should be a medium meal. After all, you have 12 hours to digest it before your second meal.

Puzzle 36: Fillomino Party! Part 1!
LITS Fillomino

Yes. Fillomino party. Over the next 24 hours, you will be presented a total of 3 Fillomino puzzles…or probably variants.

This one is a gift for betaveros, for solving Puzzles 34-35. Two spots left! No, the other two puzzles aren’t gifts for Puzzles 34-35 solvers.

Finals in 3 days. Why am I still making puzzles? Sigh.