The Fourth Killer
(Published on 9. November 2023, 17:33 by marty_sears)
Rules:
- Normal sudoku rules apply.
- Four yellow killer cages are hiding in the fog. Enter correct digits to clear the nearby fog. No guessing is necessary (or allowed!)
- Digits in a killer cage sum to the small number in the top left corner of that cage.
- Digits CAN repeat within a cage. In fact, a digit in a cage indicates exactly how many times that digit appears in that cage. Eg: a 5 in a cage means that there are five 5s in that cage.
- Grey lines are bulbless thermometers. Digits along a grey line must be arranged in ascending order, from one end to the other.
- White dots connect two consecutive digits. Not all possible white dots are shown.
Click here to play on the CTC app
Please leave a comment if you enjoy, and enter the solution code below :)
Highlight below for a hint if you get stuck
Don't forget the title of the puzzle :)
Solution code: Column 9, reading downwards
Comments
on 25. September 2024, 15:59 by ThymePass
Beautiful from start to finish. A wonderfully constructed puzzle. Well done!
on 12. September 2024, 05:13 by soonertbone
Outstanding!
on 2. September 2024, 22:46 by FifthWorld
I used the fact that you have to have a sum in the top-left of the cage. Not sure if it can be done without using that. To me it wasn't completely clear in the rules, because although it was stated I wasn't certain that it would always be true for all four cages.
on 28. May 2024, 08:17 by wuc
Awesome. The math gives the spice. Loved it thx.
on 8. April 2024, 09:01 by cozoq
Very lovely puzzle! That rule was so sneaky and definitely tripped me up too!
on 27. February 2024, 15:29 by Virux
Super nice puzzle. Real joy to solve.
Although I would rate it 1 star diffuculty. For me at least.
Lovely setting!
on 17. January 2024, 02:39 by talldrinkofwater
What a pure joy to solve! Once you figure out the trick it starts smooth. But the sense of satisfaction once you figure out the biggest cage is incredible. And what a witty ending to cap it off! Just a brilliant puzzle! Thanks for setting Marty!
on 23. November 2023, 16:34 by Ratfinkz
Love this puzzle! (But then you already know that!) Having watched it a few times thought it was about time I solved it myself! Still took 30 mins as wanted to ensure I followed the logic and didn't just throw in bits I knew about! Lovely puzzle
on 16. November 2023, 06:44 by ddx01
I absolutely love this title!! I imagined from the start how it's going to play out, and I was not disappointed.
This is a very cute puzzle. I enjoyed it a lot. Many thanks! ^_^
on 15. November 2023, 17:49 by Klausku
Absolutely loved the logic in this puzzle. Especially identifying the fourth killer.
on 15. November 2023, 07:07 by vorash00
Loved it and I found this soooo smooth, my brain was definitely in the correct gear when I started this.
on 15. November 2023, 05:04 by Playmaker6174
I’d like to imagine Marty spending plenty of time for that one monumental moment, very interesting and fun puzzle overall x)
Marty: I certainly did :)
on 15. November 2023, 03:54 by OGRussHood
The disambiguation at the end was chef's-kiss brilliant.
on 15. November 2023, 00:05 by soonertbone
Really, really enjoyable. The first time I've gotten to solve a fog puzzle and I loved it.
on 14. November 2023, 23:37 by AdarshN
Anyone reading the comments, try the puzzle before you read more of this comment or any other comment; you won't regret it.
If you're still here: I will never forget the end of this puzzle; that was one of the most satisfying endings I've ever seen. I'm absolutely flabbergasted Marty can churn out puzzles every week and still have them all be this good. What a mad genius, with style and finesse to boot.
on 11. November 2023, 20:18 by Fool on Hill
What Nordy said - read the comments below after solving the puzzle: you will enjoy it more.
on 11. November 2023, 03:32 by Nordy
Some minor spoilers below. I recommend solving before diving into this comment section :)
on 10. November 2023, 22:47 by aerenhart
Awesome puzzle, thanks!
on 10. November 2023, 22:45 by sunevora
What a fun ending, brilliant puzzle!
on 10. November 2023, 21:17 by le bonhomme
Great puzzle, loved the interplay between the different rules :-) Thanks for the puzzle!
on 10. November 2023, 21:16 by WildEnte
loved every minute of it!
on 10. November 2023, 20:18 by TheRiddler
That was fun! :-)
Approaches 3* difficulty in my view
on 10. November 2023, 18:24 by Franjo
I had such a good flow till near the end. And then I got stuck… And read the rules again. And then suddenly a big smile appeared in my face. What an idea! Wish it was mine. Thank you very much for giving me so much fun.
on 10. November 2023, 15:08 by anyeyeball
Ingenious setting. Who would have thought that violating the usual "digits cannot repeat in killer cages" rule would be so much fun? Thanks!
on 10. November 2023, 14:11 by Shrouded
That is an awesome interacion between counting cages and fog. The overall idea became clear relatively soon, but even the final few steps were fun!
on 10. November 2023, 13:00 by Demparo
Cruel, but fun ending. Did som time figure it out. Saw the hint afterwards.
Nice idea.
on 10. November 2023, 11:49 by BaumJames
This is brilliant! Just amazing! Literally put a smile in my face. Just beautiful
on 10. November 2023, 10:27 by John Skeevers
Brilliant puzzle, thanks so much!
on 10. November 2023, 08:48 by LehanLehan
This is brilliant and fun, thank you,Marty.
on 10. November 2023, 00:31 by Silverscree
I really love the interplay of circle logic and killer logic here, made for a series of "oh I bet ______ is true" and then being able to prove it not long after. I thought the ending was completely fair too!
on 9. November 2023, 23:45 by antiknight
Funny and cool ending !
on 9. November 2023, 23:37 by Snaques
I mean I loved the puzzle, but the ending was just mean.
on 9. November 2023, 23:19 by Kawkaz
I'm blown away by this puzzle, well done marty_sears!!!
This is pure joy, try it yourself
on 9. November 2023, 20:21 by Flinty
Excellent puzzle. Echoing Fool on Hill, great use of 'Circles' type logic.
on 9. November 2023, 18:28 by Jolly Rogers
Brilliantly clever, as always with your puzzles! Thanks for setting :]
on 9. November 2023, 18:16 by GeorgeTheToad2
Nice idea and well executed. Thank you for sharing.
on 9. November 2023, 18:02 by Fool on Hill
A lovely puzzle to solve - and what an ingenious way of getting the counting circle kind of rule into the fog. Great work.
on 9. November 2023, 17:46 by ViKingPrime
The two thoughts that most often come to mind when solving a Marty Sears puzzle are "brilliant!" and "you cheeky-"; and I mean those both as sincere compliments. Fantastic puzzle, well done (as always)!
