xposts I'm reminded of a classic bit of dialogue from the Hallmark channel's Crossword Mysteries
Xword Ed.: "Nightingale did the Sunday puzzle?"Detective: "Well, not all, he just filled in the Across clues, in cursive"Xword Ed.: "Just the Across clues!?"Me: "SO ALL THE DOWNS TOO THEN BY DEFINITION!"This show, man. Truly high-end #CrosswordMysteries— Rex Parker šš¾āļøš¾š (@rexparker) September 9, 2019
― Vaguely Threatening CAPTCHAs, Monday, 15 June 2020 14:09 (three years ago) link
This weekās series of Thursday/Friday/Saturday has been difficult for meāI havenāt finished any of them and Iām at a standstill in each. I flip between them to look at clues with fresh eyes but it doesnāt seem to be helping. Tough week!
― unashamed and trash (Unctious), Saturday, 20 June 2020 17:49 (three years ago) link
I found Saturday really easy, and posted my personal best time. Friday, though, was definitely hard, and I didn't finish before the streak deadline.
― Learned Leeegue (Leee), Saturday, 20 June 2020 17:57 (three years ago) link
I thought Thursday's gimmick was cute, and nicely telegraphed at 31D.
I agree that Friday was tough. I didn't get a foothold until the southwest quadrant (I think 34D was my first confident answer).
Today? It seemed to be of appropriate overall difficulty, but the structure lends itself to "you know it or you don't" type answers, rather than things you can work out with perseverance. Like, the long answer in the middle.
If you have even modest familiarity with Miles Davis album titles, you can confidently fill in a huge section of puzzle without even needing the downs for confirmation. If you don't, then you will have a tough time getting traction.
― If you choose too long a name, your new display name will be tru (Ye Mad Puffin), Saturday, 20 June 2020 18:15 (three years ago) link
somehow i failed to even look at the miles clue until i was well into the puzzle : /
― mookieproof, Saturday, 20 June 2020 18:48 (three years ago) link
Funny, this week also kicked my butt. On Thursday I broke my streak because I had 'Ines' for Inez' and couldn't spot the error and had to use the correcting tool in the app.
Friday was just hard. It also wasn't fun. I got naticked twice.
I've liked today's so far (I don't do it in one setting). I didn't know the Miles Davis album, but with just a few crosses I was able to intuit it.
― rb (soda), Saturday, 20 June 2020 20:26 (three years ago) link
saturday nyt was my best time yet too
― Fuck the NRA (ulysses), Sunday, 21 June 2020 00:42 (three years ago) link
I had 8:45, vs. a 10:47 Saturday average- not best but pretty good.
― If you choose too long a name, your new display name will be tru (Ye Mad Puffin), Sunday, 21 June 2020 01:06 (three years ago) link
lol you guys are maniacs
― Li'l Brexit (Tracer Hand), Sunday, 21 June 2020 08:43 (three years ago) link
i timed myself once and i hated it. i felt hustled and bullied along. i like just kind of dawdling over it.
I am nowhere near that fast, best time is 13.12 for saturday
― Fuck the NRA (ulysses), Sunday, 21 June 2020 09:02 (three years ago) link
I wish I didn't care but I kind of do. It's an inner conflict.
― If you choose too long a name, your new display name will be tru (Ye Mad Puffin), Sunday, 21 June 2020 11:21 (three years ago) link
See, to me, UK-style crosswords seem weird.
Sure sure sure - I meant from a UK perspective, I'd expect the same the other way.
Requiring all the letters to work in two different words is harder from a construction perspective
Absolutely, yes - it's very impressive.
is a different intellectual challenge for the solver.
I agree here literally, but I'm not getting the sense why it wouldn't just be an easier challenge? What's the thing that makes it harder (to solve) that you only get when every letter is twice covered?
My Thursday time was my best ever (while still terrible, Thursdays just kick me ass for some reason) - isn't it rare to see an answer like the central one?
― LOScamposinos (Andrew Farrell), Sunday, 21 June 2020 20:28 (three years ago) link
Not as rare as you might think. Thursdays in particular are kind of famous for these tricksy ones that bend the rules.
― Li'l Brexit (Tracer Hand), Sunday, 21 June 2020 20:55 (three years ago) link
I nearly got Naticked on a WEDNESDAY puzzle of all days.
― AxoLOLtl (Leee), Friday, 26 June 2020 05:02 (three years ago) link
Natick is still a funny term to me since Iāve lived in Boston for a long time and have always known about Natick. Used to pass the train stops for it all the time. The pandemic has given me a lot of time for puzzles. Out of seemingly nowhere, I got hooked on variety crosswords and cryptics back in January and I donāt know if I can go back to a normal crossword again. There seems to be more online versions of these types around too.
― Michael F Gill, Friday, 26 June 2020 05:17 (three years ago) link
Which cryptics are you doing?
― Barry "Fatha" Hines (James Redd and the Blecchs), Friday, 26 June 2020 15:01 (three years ago) link
I do mainly North American ones. I read fifteensquared and appreciate the UK ones for their difficulty/creativity, but I actively dislike their heavy reluctance to modernize their vocabulary/references/slang. I haven't done the ones in Australian papers as they all seem to be behind paywalls.
My favorite free daily one is Lovatts from Australia though. I do the weekly puzzles by Cox/Rathvon, Kosman/Piciotto, and the archival ones by The New Yorker. Monthly I do the ones by Aries puzzles, NYT, and WSJ. A bunch of other places occasionally run a cryptic like the Incubator, AVCX, and Outside The Box.
There are lots more links to personal sites if you go to The Puzzler group on FB. Also the Fill Me In podcast does a live stream where they solve cryptics.
― Michael F Gill, Saturday, 27 June 2020 22:52 (three years ago) link
Thought Cox/Rathvon did a Monthly Cryptic these days for the WSJ and the weekly was a regular Sunday-sized puzzle.
― Two Spocks Clash (James Redd and the Blecchs), Saturday, 27 June 2020 23:07 (three years ago) link
The Sunday crossword was recently revived on Patreon, but theyāve been doing a weekly non-variety cryptic for The National Post in Canada since 1998 I think. Thereās a blog that has a post about each one since 2010, including the blank grid.
― Michael F Gill, Sunday, 28 June 2020 00:39 (three years ago) link
are there any good profiles of Cox & Rathvon out there? They've been doing this for decades.
― all cats are beautiful (silby), Sunday, 28 June 2020 00:41 (three years ago) link
My friend - and neighbor! (no, not the one you are thinking of) met them once, think they live out in Hershey, PA, and told me Emily was really shy, that's all I know.
― Two Spocks Clash (James Redd and the Blecchs), Sunday, 28 June 2020 00:55 (three years ago) link
I've only seen little blurbs here and there, like these: https://wordplay.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/11/08/acrostic/ or https://www.the-scientist.com/contributors/contributors--64959
Hard to believe they've been doing it since the late '70s. (See http://chall.us/hex/hex_puzzles.html for the complete list)
― Michael F Gill, Sunday, 28 June 2020 00:59 (three years ago) link
I've been meaning to ask if you've tried the cryptics in the Enigma and now I just got a message from a B finalist crossword guy about my expired NPL membership.
― Two Spocks Clash (James Redd and the Blecchs), Monday, 29 June 2020 01:55 (three years ago) link
And I'm back in. Am I the only one?
― Two Spocks Clash (James Redd and the Blecchs), Monday, 29 June 2020 19:26 (three years ago) link
I tried that book of NPL cryptics and had little success. Maybe I'll try again another day. I sort of associate NPL with people who do puzzle hunts and are constantly in search of puzzles that they find difficult. I know that's not 100% the case, but for me its more fun to watch them solve those impossible puzzles then it is to actually do them.
― Michael F Gill, Monday, 29 June 2020 22:54 (three years ago) link
NPL cryptics do very wildly in quality. Many of them are insanely difficult.
― Two Spocks Clash (James Redd and the Blecchs), Monday, 29 June 2020 22:58 (three years ago) link
Yes, I've seen Kevin Wald's cryptics! EEK.
― Michael F Gill, Monday, 29 June 2020 23:03 (three years ago) link
Coax troubled cry (3)
― all cats are beautiful (silby), Tuesday, 30 June 2020 00:50 (three years ago) link
Seems simple, but still canāt get that one, sorry.Came to post that I just heard a WBGO DJ talking about the crosswordese word ONER.
― Lipstick O.G. (James Redd and the Blecchs), Sunday, 12 July 2020 14:37 (three years ago) link
HI DERE.Redd's Roster of Crosswordese: Do not read if you hate DRNO
― Isolde mein Herz zum Junker (James Redd and the Blecchs), Wednesday, 15 July 2020 11:50 (three years ago) link
Letters that cross two name clues can go fuck themselves
― unashamed and trash (Unctious), Wednesday, 12 August 2020 20:01 (three years ago) link
yah, especially when it's olympians and monarchy
― Fuck the NRA (ulysses), Wednesday, 12 August 2020 21:27 (three years ago) link
blind crossings
https://crosswordfiend.com/2011/09/20/mgwcc-172/
― wasdnous (abanana), Thursday, 13 August 2020 03:58 (three years ago) link
anybody else participate in lollapuzzoola? it's just wrapping up (all online this time). my only goal for these is "don't come in last" and mission accomplished! i'm something like 341st out of about 1200.
― maura, Saturday, 15 August 2020 21:30 (three years ago) link
I'm doing it! it's pretty fun, I'd never be able to participate in person
― Wayne Grotski (symsymsym), Saturday, 15 August 2020 21:33 (three years ago) link
oh yay! yeah, i was bummed i missed the boston-based one boswords (also all virtual) but this has been fun!
― maura, Saturday, 15 August 2020 21:36 (three years ago) link
No, but I paid for the puzzles, it'll be perfect for a camping trip in a few weeks. :)
― change display name (Jordan), Sunday, 16 August 2020 15:54 (three years ago) link
I struggle at best of times with cryptics, but can usually parse the answers in hindsight. However canāt make head nor tail of the single letter clues in yesterdayās Guardian https://www.theguardian.com/crosswords/cryptic/28218 What am I missing?
― Dan Worsley, Saturday, 22 August 2020 11:46 (three years ago) link
Ooft, way beyond my capabilities. I don't know if maybe someone here can give a pointer rather than jumping to the answers, but fifteensquared.net has explanations, if you do want to go that route.
― brain (krakow), Saturday, 22 August 2020 12:19 (three years ago) link
I can confirm that they're impossible to get by themselves - if you have all the crossers then 23 down might be the easiest to start with?
― Andrew Farrell, Saturday, 22 August 2020 13:45 (three years ago) link
Also 21 Across could be viewed as (3-5)? I mean not really but as you'll see it's important that each answer is in at least two parts.
― Andrew Farrell, Saturday, 22 August 2020 15:56 (three years ago) link
They almost look like the question is the answer and the solution is the clue. As you say canāt see how you could get them without having the other answers to fill in the gaps.
― Dan Worsley, Saturday, 22 August 2020 16:25 (three years ago) link
Dan, itās funny that you posted that you canāt make āheadā or ātailā of those clues :) The G clue is one Iāve seen a couple times (although usually as part of a charade), but I probably would have been tripped up on it if it was the first time I saw it.
― Michael F Gill, Saturday, 22 August 2020 18:28 (three years ago) link
at some point in the not too distant future, i'll need to learn how to do cryptics
― Fuck the NRA (ulysses), Saturday, 22 August 2020 18:31 (three years ago) link
That's been on my to do list, too, but the feeling of getting in on the ground floor is really too humbling for me to keep at it.
― Ruth Bae Ginsburg (Leee), Saturday, 22 August 2020 18:33 (three years ago) link
What first got me into cryptics was 1) this introductory post/video by the New Yorker:https://www.newyorker.com/puzzles-and-games-dept/cryptic-crossword/reintroducing-the-new-yorkers-cryptic-crossword
And 2) doing this Crypto Quiz over at Lovatts, which concisely lists all the clue types and presents cryptic clues with multiple choices answers:https://lovattspuzzles.com/online-puzzles-competitions/crypto-quiz/
The daily Lovatts cryptics are also very accessible (although they lean more towards British/Australian English).
― Michael F Gill, Saturday, 22 August 2020 18:39 (three years ago) link
I finally learned how to do them in the past few months (using my free time wisely) but I still need to do a lot of cheating/checking to complete a puzzle. The explanation linked here really made it clear how cryptics work:
https://www.ariespuzzles.com/2018/10/introducing-aries-cryptic.html
and doing those puzzles and then reading the explanation in the answer key also helped a lot.
I could actually do that Lovatts puzzle without cheating, they are nice and simple!
― Wayne Grotski (symsymsym), Saturday, 22 August 2020 19:36 (three years ago) link
Nice theme today.
― Ruth Bae Ginsburg (Leee), Tuesday, 1 September 2020 15:41 (three years ago) link
So a few puzzlers have been playing NYT's Spelling Bee.
Here are some of the observations I've assembled:
1. You'll get at most 3 vowels (not counting Y, though I'm not sure if I've seen a set of letter with 3 vowels and also Y).2. The only letters or combination of letters that I've yet to see appear are S (obviously) and ER. (Until recently, I hadn't seen ING or ED.)3. If you're going for the Queen Bee, I've found that the genius level threshold is 70-75% of the total possible point value.4. Humans are fallible, and almost certainly decide what is and is not accepted as words. COPE wasn't accepted yesterday, and one of METONYMY/METONYM wasn't accepted while the other was. I'm also pretty sure that ANNAL wasn't accepted at one point.5. So much for words that aren't obscure: PENTANE and HEPTANE have both been accepted answers, as has PHILHELLENE.5a. DILDO, ANAL, and PORN are all accepted.6. A set of letters can have multiple pangrams.
― Ruth Bae Ginsburg (Leee), Saturday, 5 September 2020 23:39 (three years ago) link