The Sphinx's Lair

12:51 AM

CCCC: With fitting lining, fix collar (7)

1:19 AM

@Deusovi Solution to your CCCC is APT lining CURE, making CAPTURE (= collar).

That's correct!

1:41 AM

CCCC: Sorrow of Walrus after knocking back last bits of oyster (7)

(with apologies to Eric Tressler)

Q: It is all Special Prime Meeting

1:53 AM

0

Four immediate Prime neighbors, belonging to special class, join (Sum) together to form just another Prime Who are they?

mathematics no-computers

2:38 AM

@GarethMcCaughan ah, learnings. The archaic word for Walrus, apparently, was MORSE, which after the last bits of oystER knocked back gives REMORSE

Yup! I was half-expecting Eric's clue to use that, since it contained sorrow and an obvious M...

I’m guessing the number of people in this room who know MORSE=WALRUS is, well, now two. Lol

Dictionaries are a thing!

Anyway, it's super-late where I am, so bedtime now.

I found it on Wikipedia but I had a sneaking suspicion I would

CCCC: Complex followed orders about a Persian? (11)

2:55 AM

@Rubio three now

@Rubio immortal again...?

3:08 AM

@OmegaKrypton sometimes one clue leads to another :)

Some of us are fast enough to do ‘em off the cuff. I’m not one of those folks hehehe

Q: From the given Square - Factorial Relationship, deduce the unknowns

0

$Given$: A, B, C, D are distinct digits and can vary from 1 to 9. DB is a concatenated number. From the following relationship, solve for A,B,C,D. Give your deductive reasoning. $(A! + C! + D! )$ = $(A+B)^2$ + $(2C+B)^2$ + $(DB)^2$- $3B$

mathematics no-computers

@Rubio three

3:30 AM

@Brandon_J nope im third lol

it's four now

3:45 AM

oops

@Rubio COMPLI(CAT)ED

lol

BTW, I've submitted my nomination for chess.SE mod. Thanks to everyone who gave me suggestions on what to expect.

@Ankoganit ooh, very nice

@Ankoganit wow

CCCC: Corrupt Persian soldier captures two men, creating a difficult situation (8'1,7)

@Brandon_J Ooh, best of luck!

it's always Persian...

3:56 AM

:D

is it (8'1 7)?

yeah

means the same thing

@Ankoganit Thanks!

@Brandon_J joined chess.SE just to vote for you :)

remind me during the election thanks!

or can i? is there rep limit?

4:18 AM

@Ankoganit PRISONER'S DILE(M+M)A*

@Deusovi yep

4:30 AM

@Deusovi could you please elab? thanks!

"corrupt" is an anagram indicator, and "man" is abbreviated "M"

"corrupt PERSIANSOLDIER captures M+M" = PRISONERSDILE(M+M)A*

ohhh...

nice clue and answer..

CCCC: Bubbly auditor's false annoyance (9)

The Persian streak is broken...

:(

jk nvm

4:51 AM

@Deusovi CHAMPAGNE ("sham pain")

@jafe yup, that's right

CCCC: Devastated Spurs carrying leading Anfield stars to top (7)

SURP(A_+S_)S*

20 seconds :o

just wow

yeah, correct

4:57 AM

To be fair I was about 5 seconds behind Deus on that one hehe

Clicked the box to start typing and his answer showed up

But I liked that clue

Just finished the last episode of Good Omens. That was fun

5:21 AM

worth taking a free trial of amazon prime?

i assume it's not shown anywhere else

CCCC: Item for pushing agenda, ultimately to assimilate nonbeliever! (10)

combinatorics logical-deduction mathematics

PROPAGANDA is PRO(PAGAN)D+A _

er _A sorry

yup, that's correct!

ooh, nice!

noice!

111 3

5:29 AM

forreals how do you make a &lit that good. *hattip*

first time i saw such a simple identicon

heh, thanks -- I was really happy with this one

hattip *2

bleh. i swear i throw out more c4s than I ever post.

CCCC: Woman I arrested was hiding an obsession (5)

@Rubio _MANIA_

5:43 AM

of course

CCCC: Woman I arrested really disheartened all the people (8)

now it's "woman i arrested"...

hehe

EVE+(R_Y)+ONE

5:58 AM

yep

"I arrested" ?

"Woman + I" arrested "really disheartened"

^

oh

got it

nice clue :)

@Rubio thanks :D

6:08 AM

nice clue...

guessed it was everyone, yet didnt know the wordplay...

CCCC: Woman I arrested making the Spanish drug is innocent (4-4)

what have i started. lol

6:45 AM

Spanish drug? really?

6:56 AM

heh

0

Q: Rubiks cube not solving

I have trouble with those that edge. Please give algorithm or images for solutions for turning it up so that i can form a cross

rubiks-cube

ah, those spaniardesses... well known for their cooking skills

she was just following orders?

it is The Picard! *cowers*

... why is there a triple-quote

7:09 AM

I think you're the first of over 128,000 people to notice that

or at least to say anything

it is my gift .... my curse .....

it indicates the pronunciation of "orderses", gollum-style

apostrophe at the end

@jafe no. just no. heh

@Deusovi W + I + DE(la->E)YED = WIDE-EYED?

yup

7:19 AM

@jafe why DE(la->E)YED?

man

la is "the" in spanish, E is slang for ecstasy (a drug)

I looked at that half a dozen times and didn't see that

of course I was looking at "H" for drug

thanks @jafe

same @Rubio

7:49 AM

CCCC: Female I almost arrested holds large hostility at heart, with resistance as delaying tactic (10)

7:59 AM

@jafe F + I + _LI_ + BUSTE_ + R i believe

or I guess more correctly F + I(_LI_)BUSTE_ + R

what is buste_?

BUSTE[d] (almost arrested)

aha

has the "immortal" Persian died...

8:17 AM

apparently

though I have one more arrested woman to offer

@Rubio your C4?

usually I'd wait for jafe's confirmation but I'm pretty sure that one is correct

this is a little dodgy but worth it to keep the arrested developments going ;)

CCCC: Woman I arrested rises above her inheritance? (9)

8:33 AM

yeah that was correct :)

8:46 AM

the question mark is generally a pretty reliable indicator of "i'll never guess it"

lel @jafe

just asking, but do you guys play computer games?

does online chess count? :)

@jafe @Rubio @Deusovi

and everyone who happpens to be online

hm

not really, apart from that (and sometimes poker)

8:51 AM

@jafe same :)

@Rubio is hm a game?

I play WoW and, occasionally, other Blizzard titles

ah...

and chess as well, though not so much these days

I'm also on this online site that explores puzzles ;)

of course...

i used to play some team games online but that was way back when :P

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starsiege:_Tribes <- like this

not that much (uninterrupted) free time now...

9:19 AM

hm, the newest cccc doesn't go to the top automatically in the sidebar?

should it be auto??

no idea how it works tbh

it's pinned there manually. assuming someone remembers to do so.

knowledge language geography ryhme

1

Q: Where Mongol herds graze

One of us – largest outside polar regions; another one's island's shared with Indonesians; a third one is found at the edge of the first, a break from the dryness to quench people's thirst. One of us separates Swedes from the Finns; one – lake with skiing, casinos and inns; on...

@Rubio how?

9:24 AM

mods can pin messages

Q: From the given Square - Factorial Relationship, deduce the unknowns

mods and room owners can "pin" a message on the starboard

ah i see

(vs merely starring)

oh i see

10:22 AM

Re this:

-1

$Given$: A, B, C, D are distinct digits and can vary from 1 to 9. DB is a concatenated number. From the following relationship, solve for A,B,C,D. Give your deductive reasoning. Please read all the comments, I have dropped an important clue. This problem is pure logic at work. But you need to...

mathematics no-computers

it's probably not a great puzzle, but i don't think it's a textbook problem either

> puzzling.stackexchange.com/questions/84665/…

comment more than a little relevant

but - having said that - I do believe OP, that it's a deducible puzzle and not a mere brute force grind math problem

I'm not going to hammer it back open, but I don't think it should be closed

11:32 AM

I agree with Rubio (including the "not going to hammer it back open" bit).

11:56 AM

@Ankoganit Definitely needs to be reopened.

Only one vote to go, so a mod who votes now wouldn't be hammering it ;-)

@Randal'Thor done and done.

Also, aren't we deleting answers like this?

"Solving" number sequence puzzles by just doing a polynomial interpolation.

I flagged as not an answer

The community saw fit to overrule

I’m ... moderately disinclined to overreach.

Meh.

Ideally we’d amend the number sequence meta post to address that or something

12:09 PM

Do I need to ping a posse in here to get it gone? :-)

Be my guest

There’s at least two recent answers of that ilk btw

put our service to the test

I don’t have the other one handy

32

Q: No, It's Not A Polynomial

There is a simple way to generate every one of the thirty-seven numbers below. They form a closed set; that is, there are no more numbers with this property. My apologies in advance if this doesn't go as planned. This is my first number pattern and my puzzles tend to be either impossible to solve...

pattern

Just gotta share that title :-)

(the puzzle is good too)

@Rubio He's not pingable here.

@hexomino @Alconja Three of us should be enough to get this answer gone, if we downvote and delete-vote.

Mmmhmmm

12:13 PM

I just flagged as NAA, so reviewers with <20k can also help.

It’s already gone to VLQ before, I don’t think another flag will do anything now

Depends who happens to be reviewing.

6 mins ago, by Rand al'Thor

Meh.

Just two reviewers last time.

More flags now and it'd need more reviews.

Hm. I thought once it went through VLQ it wouldn’t go back through. Though it has been edited in the interim...

Oh, maybe you're right.

In which case it will just stay in the mod queue until someone has the gumption to delete it :-P

Except apparently I’m NOT cuz it’s in review. So I dunno.

hexomino

12:19 PM

It showed up in the review queue for me so I've voted to delete.

@Rubio Oh.

@Mith ^ there you go

I will learn how flagging actually works with review queues one of these days.

Today is not that day. Tomorrow isn’t looking good either.

If you do, let me know, 'cos I've no idea either.

A: Number Sequence Series – Question 1

-1

The next number is Because you are displaying the sequence: for which, the first 6 nonzero natural numbers $j = \{1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6\}$ yields: This is the simplest and neatest solution because

@Rubio Voted to delete that one too.

As has someone else (@hex?)

12:30 PM

Danke

1:17 PM

@Rubio once per revision within a certain time span IIRC

Q: And admirable to the letter

1

These are my very first try on making cryptics after a very bad-formulated and inaccurately clued cryptic crossword, but are my very own attempts to pay tribute to those who have contributed sooo much. So, here you go! (1) Dog primitively underestimated by online games (5) (2) Ultimate...

wordplay cryptic-clues

2:43 PM

@Sphinx i wonder why this was downvoted just now...

Tim lost his keys.

3

wdym? is that a meme?

2:58 PM

A SE meme, yes :P

where?

meta.stackexchange.com/questions/215379/…

Q: This riddle is not to see but to solve

2

Sitting on a fish, in the north. Sitting on you, further north. Getting angry, in the west. Solemn faced, in the east. At the bottom, in the middle. Using rope, in the southeast. What am I and why am I travelling so much?

riddle word

3:15 PM

thanks for your consolation, @Mithrandir

but i mean, is there anything i can improve on?

@jafe @Deusovi @Rubio?

pinging you guys coz you're so great at these...

3:53 PM

well, I don't yet understand how #1 works so I can't comment on that. #2 has some issues. First, the definition (which I assume is "amazing rep generator") overlaps with the wordplay. You're not meant to do that. Normal clues have def and wordplay disjoint, sometimes with something like "is" in between. &lit clues have def and wordplay the same, taking up the whole clue. Yours doesn't do either.

Second, the wordplay is a bit strange. "Omega" isn't (so far as I can recall seeing) a standard indicator for taking last letters of things; it's not wholly unreasonable for it to mean that, I guess, but it seems a little bit of a stretch.

Third, the definition is a bit weak. Not that GPR isn't a fine puzzler, of course! But he's not one of the first few names you'd think of if you were listing "people who haul in a lot of rep points on PSE".

Fourth, there's not much of a surface reading (and what there is is mostly just the actual definition). Compare e.g. Rubio's current C4 clue, which conjures up a fairly vivid image of the author collaring a woman who somehow transcends what you'd expect of her given her family background, none of which (I assume) is what's actually going on in the solution.

Also, it's not uncommon for perfectly good questions and answers to get downvotes, because tastes differ and some people (on some occasions) are just stupid. Definitely not worth getting upset about.

4:44 PM

To add to Gareth's second point, I'd also point out that the word "omega" doesn't grammatically apply to the words after it. "Omegas of amazing rep generator" would be acceptable wordplay for "GPR" (though a bit strained, because "omega" doesn't quite mean "ending" in the same way. It would be understandable, but weird.). But "Omega:" doesn't really seem to apply, either as a command or as a description, to the words you want it to.

5:29 PM

0

Q: Find this terminology

Congrats Niranj Patel for finding the answer of Steve's crossword Find the Cricket Terminology. A part of me is famous for a drink, I'll make the batsman out in a blink ! Sometimes I may be equivalent to a wrong'un, But definitely make the batsman stun. Again, ...

riddle

5:45 PM

@Rubio Fair enough. It looked like (to me) like an interesting equation to solve. Interesting, but still an equation. Looks like the community has leaned toward your point of view (which is completely fine of course) but I just wanted to let you know where I was coming from when I decided to VTC

6:56 PM

@Brandon_J Uvc”s rapid delivery of similarly themed puzzles are, well, a bit divisive right now. I feel there are far too many and many (as the OP has admitted) feel like something they came up with a couple minutes based on some random thought. They kinda feel like that too; a few have been little short of math-trivia or guess-what-I’m-thinking. So I don’t hasten to their defense.

But something that seems solvable via a bit of well directed thinking, which would otherwise/elsewise be solvable by brute force search of some unwieldy domain, is a puzzle in my firm opinion, even if not necessarily obviously so

@OmegaKrypton I’ll agree with what Gareth and Deusovi already said.

And also say I have no idea what #1 is doing.

7:12 PM

I’ll note that usually when I see a solved cryptic, at least here, my reaction is “oh, of course!” - when you see the elaboration of the wordplay, it’s pretty clear what is going on, and there’s little question that the solution is correct. (For some cryptic crossword entries in The Guardian, YMMV: some of those, even knowing the answer I can’t figure out any reasonable construction, but (a) I’m not familiar with all the Briticisms and (b) I know they get complaints sometimes too.)

Your #1 though has people in the comments (and myself) straining to fit any sensible wordplay to the presumed solution, which ... is not ideal :)

(as an aside, that clue probably warrants a “?” for the “dog” part.)

8:46 PM

...there. 1 year and 7 months in between two installments of a series. That's got to be some sort of Puzzling.SE record.

Q: The Poetry Book - Clue Thirty-Two

0

<<--- first clue <--- previous clue (?) "[redacted]," you say aloud. Nothing seems to happen. You look around the room again. Suddenly, you notice something that wasn't there before. Sitting on the desk was a book. There was a piece of paper sticking out, marking a page. You walk over and op...

enigmatic-puzzle

0

Q: What is the next item in the following sequence?

11111111, 333333, 5555, 77, ? Find the most complete and simplest solution that fits.

riddle logical-deduction pattern number-sequence