Dutch Flat Mates (Entropic Snake) (Flinty & Palpot)
(Published on 19. June 2024, 11:30 by Flinty)
This is a collaboration, jointly set by myself and palpot.
Normal Sudoku rules apply.
Place the digits 1-9 so that they do not repeat in any row, column, or 3x3 box.
5s live in Dutch Flats
All 5s in the grid must have a '1' directly above it or a '9' directly below it. It may have both, but it doesn't need both.
Entropic Snake
- Draw a one-cell-wide snake of orthogonally connected cells.
- The snake can't touch itself, not even diagonally.
- Circles are on the snake.
- Squares are not on the snake.
- A digit in a circle/square counts how many cells of the same type (snake/non-snake) it sees in the row and column, including itself. The other type blocks vision.
- Every three cell sequence on the snake contains a low digit {1,2,3}, a middle digit {4,5,6} and a high digit {7,8,9}.
Special Thanks
This puzzle was set for Scojo's weekly prompt, which was a twitch channel points redeem from black_doom with the only requirement being collaboration!
Thanks again to Palpot for co-setting this puzzle.
The circles/squares idea was borrowed from many gdc loop puzzles.
But please note that today's puzzle is a snake, not a loop!
We made that mistake a few times in the early setting, as we weren't sure which to use - lol.
To play this puzzle please click here: Play CTC
Previous puzzles in the Dutch Flat Mates series:
- Classic
- Thermometers
- German Whispers
- Region Sum Lines
- Sandwich Sums
- Little Killer
- Kropki
- Zipper Lines
- Renban - By GoodCity
- Nabner - By GoodCity
- Skyscrapers - By GoodCity
- Dutch Whispers
- Killer Cages
- Arrows
- Ten Lines
- 159 Index and Even - By GoodCity
- Friendly Cells
- Quads
- Silent Killer - By GoodCity
- XV and Equality
- X-Sums
- Numbered Rooms - By GoodCity
- Diagonal X-Sums
- Yin Yang (Neighborhoods) - By Palpot
- Hit Points
- XY Difference - By GoodCity
- Double Sandwich Sums
- Foggy Knights
- Look and Say Little Killer
- Slingshot - By GoodCity
- 258 Index and Odd
- Rellik
- Search 9 - By Palpot
- Diagonal Outside
Hint to Start
The digit in R1C1 is forced whichever way it chooses to connect. This gives enough entropy information get a good grip on the top of your snake.
This Weeks Puzzle
Solution code: Only the digits from Row 5 that are ON the snake (from left to right).
Comments
on 4. December 2024, 19:11 by wuc
I can tell you now exactly how far you can solve without considering the flat mates :-). Great puzzle thx.
on 12. August 2024, 20:35 by ChinStrap
Combination of some of my favorite rulesets in a great way. Only problem I had is that I have one set of coloring rules for DFM (tracking eligible 5 positions and the status of the 1 and 9 in the columns), coloring rules for entropy, and then coloring rules for snake/not snake so things looked crazy until the snake had resolved itself.
on 5. July 2024, 16:49 by virus_dave
Very cute puzzle! Once i got my first toe hold, the rest flowed very naturally until i forgot about the "flat mates" constraint at the end. But once i remembered that, the rest came quite naturally. Nicely done!
on 20. June 2024, 20:35 by Flinty
Thank you all for the kind comments. <3
on 20. June 2024, 16:46 by sorryimLate
Very nice! I was almost finished and got stuck, read the rules again and remembered there's a flat mates constraint... The rest was just filling in.
on 20. June 2024, 11:29 by Salzkoernchen
Another beautiful puzzle in a great series! Very smooth solve
on 19. June 2024, 19:33 by Virux
Amazing!!!
on 19. June 2024, 17:07 by palpot
Thank you Flinty, It was a pleasure collaborating with you! :)
Flinty: <3
on 19. June 2024, 16:44 by marcmees
very nice ... again. keep on going Dutchies. Thanks
on 19. June 2024, 12:27 by 9Rookienumbers
Loved it! It seems like the dutch flat mates rule goes well with everything
