Fish Tank
(Published on 31. January 2023, 13:11 by Jeet Sampat)
Drifting Boxes
The difficulty of this puzzle is definitely on the lower side of 3/5 if not 2/5. The interesting thing about this puzzle for me is how every clue is necessary for a unique solution, despite the 'drifting boxes' symmetry. It is sort of obvious once you solve the puzzle and try to think about why that is the case, but it is a puzzle on its own. I hope you enjoy solving it!
Rules:
Normal Sudoku rules apply.
In cages, digits must sum to the number in the top-left corner.
Purple lines join consecutive digits.
Green lines join digits with a difference of 5 or more.
Try it on the CTC app or on f-puzzles.
Puzzle:
Solution code: Row 4 (left to right) and column 8 (top to bottom); 18 digits, no spaces.
Comments
on 2. February 2023, 11:30 by RyanMax
I rarely input the solution code to puzzles but felt I needed to so I could rate this highly!
Got stuck last night but so glad I came back to it this morning to spot the last few deductions
on 1. February 2023, 18:37 by sacklunch
@rusirius I run into that a lot as I'm learning how to tackle these variant sudokus, and it is frustrating when I have to resort to bifurcation. I think we can get help on discord with puzzles, but I haven't figured that out, haha. Anyway, I've been staring at this puzzle yesterday, I'm looking forward to untangling it!
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Jeet: As someone who has struggled with this, my advice would be try to avoid bifurcating as much as you can since it might turn into a habit. It is an important tool for speed-solving but not really a tool to learn how to tackle Sudoku variants. Most setters these days are mindful of the solve-path of their puzzle, and make sure that the least amount of guessing is required to finish it. In my experience, everyone here is kind enough to provide hints and suggestions via hidden comments, so asking for help is the easiest way to figure out what is intended in the puzzle.
on 1. February 2023, 15:40 by rusirius
Loved the puzzle with one exception, and this is on me, not the creator. Very early on in the solve I determined two "paths" I could take. I just couldn't seem to find any logic that would dictate which was correct, so shamefully I just "guessed" at which way around it should be, and the solve completed. No doubt the other way around would have failed, but I'm still not sure I know why or what should have led me to make that determination.
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Jeet: I'd be more than happy to look at the step where you started to have problems if you wish. You could write a hidden comment here with some details, or better yet ping me on the CTC discord server if you're a member there.
on 1. February 2023, 14:12 by ThibautV
Wonderful!
Deriving uniqueness is so much more satisfying than taking it for granted. :)
on 1. February 2023, 13:39 by Jeet Sampat
Thanks for the feedback! I am happy to see you liked the puzzle. :)
on 1. February 2023, 10:57 by apendleton
The resolution of this puzzle was really satisfying!
on 31. January 2023, 23:33 by Elliott810
Brilliant construction! Thanks:)
