Variant Sudoku 101: German Whispers
(Eingestellt am 17. Dezember 2025, 07:59 Uhr von PhoenixAki)
My Variant Sudoku 101 series introduces common variant sudoku rules, frequently using dynamic fog to help point the solver where to look next. The target audience is those who are comfortable with classic sudoku, but new to variant sudoku. In other words, you are expected to be able to identify things like (but not limited to) pairs and triples in rows/columns/boxes and know how to take advantage of them. I welcome everyone to try this series regardless, just be warned you may have a harder time if you're new to sudoku in general.
- Normal sudoku rules apply. Place the digits 1-9 in each row, column, and 3x3 box without repetition.
- German Whispers: Adjacent digits on a green line must have a difference of at least 5.
To increase accessibility to my puzzles, I include hints in my puzzle posts (see below). I also post solution videos on my Patreon and YouTube channel. Puzzles released prior to February 2026, as well as my snackdoku and variant sudoku 101 series will continue to get public solution videos on YouTube, while others will be Patreon-exclusive.
Hint 1: There's 2 important freebie bits of info about German whispers. First, can 5 ever go on one? Second, what does that mean about how the lows and high digits must be dispersed on a line?
Hint 2: Another good piece of info to realize is that 4 and 6 are very hard to place onto long German whisper lines. 4 must be paired with 9, and 6 must be paired with 1. Apply that info to boxes 1 and 9 and pencilmark the results as far as you can.
Hint 3: Column 2 is special once you work out box 1's digits. Where can 4 and 6 go in the column, and what digits does that leave left over? Doing all that is enough to resolve box 9.
Hint 4: Where can 3 go in row 8?
Hint 5: Continue to pencilmark the lines as you go, remembering about lows and highs and 4's and 6's. The most important observation involves where 4 can go in row 2. That is enough to resolve a lot of things and kickstart the end of the puzzle.
Lösungscode: Box 5 in normal reading order (left to right, top to bottom). 9 digits.
Kommentare
am 17. Februar 2026, 06:54 Uhr von PhoenixAki
"Solver Hints" tag was missing.
am 28. Januar 2026, 01:25 Uhr von PhoenixAki
Added links to Patreon.
am 22. Januar 2026, 03:29 Uhr von PhoenixAki
Added hints after learning recently how to do that in HTML. Wish I knew this a few weeks ago when I went over all my posts...oh well.
am 5. Januar 2026, 22:56 Uhr von PhoenixAki
Updated post as part of an effort to improve consistency of rule phrasing and post layout across all my puzzles.
am 19. Dezember 2025, 04:28 Uhr von marajade
This puzzle does a fantastic job of being easy without being boring (which is something I feel like German whispers can be at risk of more than most constraints). I feel like this would be a lovely introduction to German whispers for someone who hasn't encountered them before, while still being plenty of fun for someone like me who has loved German whispers for a long time!
am 17. Dezember 2025, 19:13 Uhr von sparkymanu
I agree it was more subtil than I expected from 1* GW, very enjoyable, thank you for sharing!
am 17. Dezember 2025, 15:36 Uhr von Fra314
Approachable but not trivial, very nice!
am 17. Dezember 2025, 14:23 Uhr von rojspencer
Found it more challenging than expected. Enjoyable solve.
am 17. Dezember 2025, 11:51 Uhr von SennyK
Nice and easy, well constructed, thank you for sharing! :-)
