The Sphinx's Lair

1:23 AM

a question for the veteran cryptic solvers... how did you get into it? I've read a variety of guides/how-to's/FAQs on them and when presented with a clue and subsequent answer, I can connect the dots to see how the answer came about, but I struggle to actually solve them myself.

I'm all for the "practice makes perfect" mantra, which is the reason I'm following the CCCC's, but is there any advice for persisting through the feeling of not being capable of solving them?

Omega Krypton

@Dmihawk +1 here!

i myself make cryptic crosswords to familiarise myself with the mind of creators

Dmihawk

@OmegaKrypton how do you go about creating them? Do you start with words and make clues to fit them, or do you start with a potential clue and work towards coherent solutions?

Omega Krypton

@Dmihawk make the grid first, then compose the clues

maybe we should chat here? v

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Sphinx

5:23 AM

0

Q: Neighbouring numbers summing to a prime

Can you place every number from 1 to 9 on a 3x3 grid such that every pair of neighbouring (horizontally and vertically) numbers sum to a prime? Good luck!

Sphinx

6:23 AM

0

Q: Not the Cotton Bowl

The following words and phrases have something in common: Final In case Record Defeated Desire Figure out what that connection is, then fill in the blanks of the following list with suitable phrases: Cotton item ??? Cotton item Cotton item ???

wordplay pattern

Sphinx

7:43 AM

0

Q: Find the least expense?

you want to build the shop between three roads in the shape of an equilateral triangle. what would be the best location for the shop so that you can reach each road within minimum transportation cost? obviously, it would be in the middle of the triangular roads but I need to know how you w...

triangle

Puzzling Meta

8:17 AM

0

I was about to post the Q3 installment of the "best of" series when I was prevented by the system. It doesn't allows me posting because it recognizes the question to be a "duplicate" of some previous post. Admittedly, and on purpose, the working is near-identical except that the dates are cha...

support best-of

Gareth McCaughan

9:19 AM

@Dmihawk The CCCCs are particularly difficult because you don't generally get any letters to work with, whereas with a cryptic crossword every clue you solve gives you hints towards a bunch of others.

I think I learned from my parents, many years ago. The advantage of learning from someone else is that you get a whole lot of clues explained for you.

I think CCCCs are also frequently harder than most newspaper cryptic clues, not least because CCCC setters are trying to be clever and only have one clue at a time to set.

You can find a lot of solved cryptics with explanations at fifteensquared.net, which is probably a useful resource.

Many UK newspapers have regular cryptics, and some of them are available on the internet. E.g., the Guardian puts all theirs up on their website. I think they have a pattern of easier ones earlier in each week. (And I think they have an easier cryptic ?every day? called something like Quiptic.)

So the process I'd recommend is something like: make a habit of attempting some not-too-hard newspaper cryptics regularly, spend (say) at least half an hour on each, and then when the solutions are available take a look and see what you missed. You'll feel stupid for a while but gradually improve.

You might want to make notes of things that might be useful in future; e.g., there are some kinda-standard abbreviations and short words that are common in crosswords and useful to know about. (An example you probably know already "About", when it doesn't mean "surrounding" or "anagrammed", is likely to indicate C, CA, or RE, all of which mean "about" in one sense or another. "Note" might mean anything from A-G or one of the tonic solfa note names. Military terms like RA, RE, TA. Etc.)

There are already online lists of this sort of thing, I believe, but the advantage of making your own lists is that it helps you remember.

jafe

10:06 AM

there's also a pretty detailed "cryptic clue guide" on PSE

Gareth McCaughan

10:21 AM

Dmihawk said "I've read a variety of guides/how-to's/FAQs on them", so while I agree that Deusovi's one here is excellent I think Dmihawk is looking for something other than guides.

Sphinx

10:44 AM

0

Q: Is there another name for this puzzle? (Kyudoku, Nine Find)

Is there another name for this type of puzzle? I can only find two examples of it online: https://www.brainzilla.com/logic/kyudoku/ http://ninefind.com/ In the game you start with a 6x6 grid filled with the numbers 1 to 9. One number on the grid is circled. The aim is to remove numbers (you c...

logical-deduction

Dmihawk

11:05 AM

@GarethMcCaughan thanks for all the tips, I'll definitely have a go at some daily ones and will follow/attempt the CCCC ones in here as well

I have to say a really huge thank you to @OmegaKrypton, who spent over 1.5 hours with me, slowly walking me through one of his (already solved) puzzles on PSE. He gave me the chance to think aloud and nudged me in the right direction, adding notes similar to what you mentioned (like abbreviations) and by the time I had solved the first 8 (with guidance), I managed to knock out the remaining ones on my own (albeit being easier because I had letter clues).

Omega Krypton

@Dmihawk you're really welcome ;) on this site, I have been benefited a lot more than I have contributed, and I'd be contented as long as this enjoying conversation can kindle your interest in cryptic clues and can be of help to you :) As I always say, Happy Puzzling!

Rubio

12:49 PM

@GarethMcCaughan I’m still waiting for the point where I stop feeling stupid and start to improve.

Sphinx

1:04 PM

0

Q: Solve the wordplay riddle

1) There is 'ground measurement' in its essence. 2) There are 3 types of it. 3) It was supposed to be 10 but it became 14. 2 was already there. 4) In one of them, there is 'human'. From a contest, I will post the answer when I get it :)

riddle wordplay

Sphinx

1:25 PM

1

Q: Magic Maze Puzzle

Inspired by the board game, Magic Maze Set-up: Cut out each 4x4 tile, and the four small tokens (orange, yellow, green and purple), from the provided image below. Place tile 1 on a flat surface with surrounding space, and squares 2-10 in a stack (with 2 on top). Place the four small tokens on t...

grid-deduction mazes board-games

Sphinx

2:45 PM

0

Q: Fill the Image Sequence Ep. 1

Well, I just figure out another puzzle type, let find out whether it could be the good series or not :P This puzzle will provide several images, and these images compose a sequence with one or more properties. Please try to identify what the properties contained by this sequence, making images g...

pattern visual

Sphinx

6:46 PM

0

Q: Advanced Matrix Puzzles Mensa style

Found these five puzzles in a random Whatsapp group. Someone said it's from one of the free online Mensa tests. Exact source unknown. Marked answers should be the correct ones, still don't understand why though. Do explain if you can crack any. Task 1 Task 2 Task 3 Task 4 Task 5

progressive-matrix

Sphinx

7:06 PM

2

Q: “Short” And Sweet Math

In the following chess diagram, how many possible chess postions exist? No looking at the solution! Source: P1359129 & Andrew Jonathan Mestel, Retros mailing list, 2/1/2019

mathematics no-computers chess

0

Q: Survive from death by asking the right question twist

You are at a path and there is two roads splitting from it. The first one is certain death and the other is the way home. You do not know which way is the right way home, but there are two people. You can only ask one question. Now to make this harder from the typical liar-truth teller. You do...

logical-deduction liars

Dmihawk

9:27 PM

I'm working on the guardians "easy" cryptic crossword and I don't want to peek at the answers, for "Arouse tailless beat with time and energy (7)", is "animate" likely the answer?

msh210

@Dmihawk yes, if ANIM or ANIMA is clued by "tailless beat", but I don't see how.

Eric Tressler

@Dmihawk how are you getting "tailless beat" == anima?

Dmihawk

oops, my bad "tailless beast"

Eric Tressler

oh. then yes

msh210

Ah, much better.

Dmihawk

9:31 PM

thanks folks :)

msh210

pleasure

@Dmihawk Most appropriate you should copy a Grauniad clue incorrectly. :-)

Dmihawk

haha good point :P

if I may bug the room with another question... what does "for example" in a clue hint at? I assume in the format "x, for example, y" means x = def, y = wordplay - is it just a connector or does it have another meaning?

msh210

It's a way to use "bird" as a clue for "crow" or vice versa without people crying fowl. Er, foul.

You have an example at hand?

GentlePurpleRain

I don't think the "vice versa" applies.

"Crow, for example" could clue "bird", but I don't think "bird, for example" could clue "crow".

Dmihawk

"Doctor, for example, beginning to swallow sediment" (5) N.B. please don't solve it for me :)

msh210

9:42 PM

@GentlePurpleRain Maybe you're right.

GentlePurpleRain

It can also sometimes indicate that some lateral thinking is involved. Maybe not "doctor" in the traditional way of thinking of it. Maybe a celebrity who's name includes "doctor", or a dentist, chiropractor, etc.

msh210

@GentlePurpleRain I'd prefer "a bird" to clue "crow"

GentlePurpleRain

(Don't quote me on my last statement. I'm not too confident in that.)

Eric Tressler

"bird, for example" could clue "animal" -- because a bird is an example of an animal. A bird is not an example of a crow

Dmihawk

oh, I wonder if Dr. [Dre] + beginning of [s]wallow [s]ediment = "dress"

GentlePurpleRain

9:45 PM

But then where is the definition?

Dmihawk

that's what I was wondering...

msh210

And then the "for example" is the wrong way around, as GPR points out.

And @EricTressler

GentlePurpleRain

Perhaps it means the verb "to doctor"?

msh210

"No, for example" could clue "Dr". But "Dr, for example" can't really clue "No", I don't think

Dmihawk

right, so Doctor belongs to the category, rather than being the category?

Eric Tressler

9:47 PM

yeah

Dmihawk

oh, I just got it, I was looking at it the wrong way round haha :P

GentlePurpleRain

Or "for example beginning" clues the letters FE, and the def. is just "doctor"

What is it?

Eric Tressler

though you can't rely on anything too heavily -- there could be some trickery such that "for example" just clues "eg"

Dmihawk

"dregs"

GentlePurpleRain

@EricTressler Good timing. :P

msh210

9:48 PM

@Dmihawk yes

Dmihawk

Dr + eg + beginning to [s]wallow

sediment was the def!

Eric Tressler

I wasn't trying to spoil it; I hadn't solved the clue

Dmihawk

thanks (again) folks :)

I'll try to avoid spamming the chat with my amateur questions and see if I can't solve a few on my own

msh210

10:08 PM

@Rubio Moving = HYPER; in a curving path = ARCHIC; a people = NA; without a leader = HYPERANARCHIC. I consider this unlikely (especially because archic is nonstandard) but not completely implausible.

Sphinx

10:47 PM

0

Q: Distance between two friends

Two friends are 200 meters apart in a concourse. They then both walk 100 meters each with their faces towards to each other. Yet after this 100 meter walk they are still 200 meters apart.

mathematics physics

Rubio

11:47 PM

@msh210 not the intended solution, though impressive finding. Hyper is much more active than it is moving, and I don’t really see ”archic” attested with that meaning at all (though I didn’t look terribly deeply).

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