Puzzle rules
I [think] know this is [rather] much harder than the other puzzles I have posted recently. I am often on the CTC discord server and am happy to discuss it there.
Normal Sudoku rules apply.
On a green line adjacent digits must differ by at least 5 (standard German whisper)
The digits in a cage may not repeat and must sum to the total given in the top left corner.
This has proved rather challenging and one piece of logic which helps a fair amount may be difficult to see, so here is a hint - highlight the white text to see it (It is designed to illuminate the logic rather than give the whole thing away):
The crosses in rows 123 interact with each other more than you might expect. In particular they affect the distribution of high/low digits which are not on the crosses as well as the ones that are. The cells looking down into the cages are particularly significant as the cages are low/high. One question which might help is "Where do R1C46 go in boxes 1 and 3?"
Here is the Cracking the Cryptic link: In memoriam
Here it is on F-Puzzles: In memoriam
Solution code: Row 9
on 30. August 2023, 11:54 by Fool on Hill
Improve hint
on 30. August 2023, 11:53 by Fool on Hill
Added hint
on 29. May 2023, 20:06 by Fool on Hill
Adapt text to reflect difficulty