1. Graffito
Normal sudoku rules apply (fill each row, column, and 3x3 box with the digits 1-9 once each), and all clues are standard.
Digits cannot repeat on the indicated diagonal.
Killer cages: the sum of the digits inside each cage is equal to the small number in the top left corner, and digits cannot repeat within a cage.
Very rough difficulty estimate: 4/10
Play online: SudokuPad | unshaded | F-Puzzles
New to variant sudoku? Check out these beginner-friendly guides to killer cages and other popular rulesets.
2. Windfarm, by rockratzero
Normal sudoku rules apply (fill each row, column, and 3x3 box with the digits 1-9 once each), and all clues are standard.
Renban lines: purple lines contain a non-repeating set of consecutive digits in any order.
Digits in cells separated by a V sum to 5.
Digits in cells separated by an X sum to 10.
Very rough difficulty estimate: 4/10
Play online: SudokuPad
3. Throwback
Normal sudoku rules apply (fill each row, column, and 3x3 box with the digits 1-9 once each), and all clues are standard.
Killer cages: the sum of the digits inside each cage is equal to the small number in the top left corner.
Arrows: the sum of the digits along an arrow is equal to the digit in the connected circle.
Digits in cells separated by a white dot are consecutive.
Very rough difficulty estimates: 9/10, 6/10
Play online: SudokuPad | unshaded | F-Puzzles
Extra clues: SudokuPad | unshaded | F-Puzzles
As I've developed as a setter, my puzzles have become “cleaner”, for lack of a better word. I've improved at making everything fit together nicely, often with strong symmetry and a clear visual theme. That's all for the better, I think, but at times I feel nostalgia for the more chaotic grids I tended to come up with early on. This feels like a bit of a “throwback” to that style, albeit with (IMO) much better execution than I would’ve managed a couple years ago.
Prime Week Bonus Puzzle! For new subscribers, I recently started a thing that nobody asked for, where in prime-numbered weeks I include a free bonus puzzle with weird rules. This one, Ghost Digit (6x6), is a bite-sized follow-up to one of my very early puzzles, and was originally included as a hidden bonus puzzle in Cracking the Cryptic’s monthly Patreon pack last October. I added a couple clues to smooth things out—click here to try it in its original form.
Normal 6x6 sudoku rules apply (fill each row, column, and box with the digits 1-6 once each).
Killer cages: the sum of the digits inside each cage is equal to the small number in the top left corner, and digits cannot repeat within a cage.
Thermometers: digits on the thermometer increase from the bulb.
Digits in cells with a shaded square must be even.
Digits in cells with a shaded circle must be odd.
But! One of the digits from 1-6 is a ghost, and is not constrained by those rules. The ghost digit does not count toward cage sums, can repeat in a cage, can appear anywhere on a thermometer (including in multiple cells on the same thermometer), and can be on any square or circle regardless of its parity.
Very rough difficulty estimate: 7/10
Play online: SudokuPad
Some other puzzles I enjoyed this week:
The Wrogn Core, by wuc
Casting About in the Dark, by FullDeck and Missing a Few Cards
The Lost Geometry Exam, by Ridhwan
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This week’s meta-description:
I’m proud of every set of puzzles, but I’m especially proud of this week’s slate.
For premium subscribers, hints and two more bonus puzzles are below. If you’re intrigued by the idea of a puzzle with counting circles and a negative constraint, this would be a good week to sign up.
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