Sudoku Mania: 2010

AntiKnight N1

Wishing Everyone a Very Happy New Year!!!!!!!!!!!!

Todays puzzle is an Anti-Knight Sudoku.

Rules of Classic Sudoku apply. Additionally, Same number cannot repeat at a Knight step (as in Chess )

For Solution click Here.

Sorry in the delay for uploading todays puzzle. Todays is a Consecutive Sudoku. This Sudoku was created by my wife Neetu and I for the Mock Test 19 at LMI.

Rules of Classic Sudoku apply. Alternatively, adjacent cells having consecutive numbers are marked by a bold line.

For Solution click Here.

Non-Consecutive N1

Todays puzzle is a Non-consecutive Sudoku.

Rules of Classic Sudoku apply.

Additionally, consecutive numbers cannot occupy adjacent cells, horizontally or vertically.

For solution click here.

Windoku N1

Todays puzzle is Windoku.

Rules of Classic Sudoku apply.

Additionally, the four extra regions marked also contain digits 1 to 9.

For Solution Click Here.

AntiKnight-NonConsecutive N1

Rules of Classic Sudoku apply...

Additionally, 2 consecutive numbers cannot occupy adjacent cells (rules of Non-consecutive Sudoku ) and also the same number cannot be at a knights step also. (Anti-Knight Constraints apply also )

For Solution click Here

Combinational Sudokus

Over the next 15 days I will be uploading 15 sudokus which are combinations of 2 variants. If you all have played the Variant 7 at Sudokucup, you will know what I am talking about. Since I am hosting a Monthly Test at LMI in February, which is called "Double Delight",. In that test we will have 15 puzzles which are basically combinations of 2 variants. So these 15 puzzles which I will be putting up in the next 15 days will serve as good practice of them. Then there will also be 15 examples in the IB. So here is to Happy Solving.

Rishi

LMI December Sudoku Test

The Chinese authors TTHsieh and Lin Minfang created a Sudoku contest keeing in mind the Christmas time around. Both are well known authors who have conducted test at LMI earlier too. This is going to be another great contest. Further details are at the link pasted below.

http://www.logicmastersindia.com/forum/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=239&posts=15&start=1

The test is over and the results are out.. Below are the top 10 results.

Below are the top 10 Indian standings.

Detailed scorecard is available here.

Argyle Sudoku N1

Todays puzzle is an Argyle Sudoku.

Rules of Classic Sudoku apply.

Additionally the digits cannot repeat on marked diagonal lines.

For Solution click Here

Sudokucup Variant 7

A sudoku that I created, which is a Diagonal Sudoku with Anti-Knight constraints is being displayed at sudokucup. All interested people can attempt that puzzle at the sudokucup website.

Diagonal N1

Todays sudoku is a Diagonal Sudoku.

Rules of Classic Sudoku apply.

Additionally, Each main diagonal also contains digits 1 to 9.

For Solution click Here

Renban Classic N1

Rules of Classic Sudoku apply.

Additionally, greyed out cages contain consecutive numbers.

For Solution Click Here

Greater Than N1

Todays puzzle is Greater than Sudoku also known as Inequality sudoku.

Rules of classic sudoku apply.
Additionally the numbers follow the mathematical pattern of greater than and less than.

For Solution Click Here

Sudoku Solving Techniques

Here I will be listing out the solving techniques which will help you understand and solve sudoku easily. There will be an example given for each technique for better understanding. I will be updating this page frequently. It is possible that I may have missed out on a particular technique, so I would appreciate if you can bring that to my notice and I will update it immediately.

The techniques we will be discussing are :

Buddy Cells
Naked Single
Hidden Single
Naked Pair
Naked Triplets
X-Wing
Swordfish
XY-Wing
XYZ-Wing
Solving Technique for Consecutive Sudoku.
Solving Technique for non-Consecutive Sudoku
In-Out ( for Irregular/Jigsaw Sudoku)
L shape Technique for Anti-Knight
Solving Technique for Magic Square Sudoku

Irregular N1

Todays puzzle is an Irregular Sudoku, also known as Jigsaw Sudoku or Chaos Sudoku.

Classic rules of sudoku apply. and every area of 9 squares has digits 1 to 9.

For solution click here.

Classic N1

Fill the grid such that every row, column and 3x3 box has the digits 1 to 9. No digit can be repeated in any row, column or 3x3 box.

For Solution Click Here

The Crazy World of Sudokus

With so many blogs going around ... I decided its high time I joined the Bandwagon. I have started a blog where every day a new puzzle will be displayed and the next day we will be discussing the steps and methods used to solve the sudoku. It can be a classic or a variant.

Apart from the sudokus here, we will also be making everyone aware of all the competitions going on around the globe, be it online or offline.

Classic N1

Naked Triplets

Very similar to naked pairs but here we have 3 possible numbers for 3 cells. When we look at the image below, in box 5 and column 6, we have 1,2,3 as possible numbers for the 3 cells, R4C6,R5C6,R6C6, which have been circled. The buddy cell to all thes e3 cells is highlighted in yellow which is R2C6.

Hence 3 is eliminated from R2C6 and we have only the number 5 as a possibility for R2C6.

The same can be extended to 4 cells, 5 cells too.

Naked Pair

If any two cells in a row, Column or 3x3 box has the same 2 possible candidates then those two numbers can be eliminited from the buddy cells of both those cells. The example below will make it clear.

In Row1, R1C2 has the possibilities of 5,9 and also R1C8 has the possibility of 5 and 9 again. Hence irrespective of where the 5 and 9 come in these 2 cells, they cannot occur in any cel which is a buddy to both these cells. Cell R1C9 is a buddy to R1C2 and also to R1C8 hence neither 5 nor 9 can be in R1C9. Similarly, if we look at Box 2, R2C5 and R3C5 both have possibilities of 3 and 4 so irrespective of that neither number can be in R3C6 which is a buddy to R3C5 and R2C5.

Naked Single

Any cell that has only one number as a possibility is known as a Naked Single. Look at the circled cell R4C4 in the image given below.

The numbers 2,3,8,9 are eliminated as they already occur in the row 4. The numbers 4,5,6 are also eliminated since they occur in Column 4 and the number 7 is eliminated as it already occurs in Box 5. Hence the only possibility for the circled cell R4C4 is the number 1. This is known as the Naked Single Technique.

Diagonal Non-Consecutive N1

Consecutive N1

Jigsaw N1

AntiKnight N2

Greater Than N1

Hidden Single

If any digit can occur in only one cell in any Row, Column or 3x3 Box, among all possibilities for that cell, then it becomes a hidden single for that cell. The images below will give a better explanation.

The first image shows all the pencil marks (possible numbers for any given cell). We have four possibilities for the cell at R6C6, viz. 2569.

Now when we look at the second image, I have yellowed out all the cells in Box 5, where the number 5 cannot occur due to the 5 at R2C4 and R4C3.

so that allows for number 5 to be in R6C6 only. The reason it is called hidden single is because in the first image there were other possibilities too for the cell R6C6 and the number 5 was hidden amongst them. Though the terminology is just FYI, I thought I will share it with you.

Kropki N1

Buddy Cells

In a given Sudoku, every cell in the grid has 20 buddy cells. The buddy cells are highlighted in green in the given image below. In the example the number 1 is in cell R1C1 (R1C1 being Row 1 and Column 1) All the green cells are buddy cells to R1C1 and cannot contain the number which is already there in R1C1.

Extra Region N1

Windoku N1

Renban Classic N1

Samurai N1

Irregular Diagonal N1

XYZ-Wing

XYZ-Wing is similar to XY Wing, except that the cell which contained the possibility of XY also has a third possibility of Z. Take a look at the image. Cells which are buddy to ALL 3 marked cells are highlighted in yellow.

Since Z is common in all 3 marked cells and has to be in one of these 3 marked cells, it is eliminated from all the buddy cells to these 3 marked cells. Lets take a look at the example below.

Cells, R4C2, R4C4 and R6C4 form an XYZ-Wing with R4C being the cell with possiblity XYZ. Here the value of Z is 2. Cell R4C6 is highlighted since it is buddy to all the 3 marked cells. (same row as R4C2 and R4C4, and same box as R6C4. Since the number 2 has to be in one of the three marked cells, it is eliminated from R4C6.