The New Sudoku Players' Forum

[Fortesque92]

https://postimg.cc/mhrbKwwR

Found a few X-Wings this time!

[Leren]

Code: Select all

...5.9...1.....7...5..72..678...693.....4.....297...655..81..4...4.....7...4.3...

The XWings get you to here, where the easiest solution involves a new move for you called an Empty Rectangle.

Code: Select all

*-------------------------------------*
| 26-8 4  7   | 5 68 9  |d18 c128  3  |
| 1    69 268 | 3 68 4  | 7   5    29 |
| 389  5  38  | 1 7  2  | 4  c89   6  |
|-------------+---------+-------------|
| 7    8  1   | 2 5  6  | 9   3    4  |
| 36   36 5   | 9 4  18 | 2   7    18 |
| 4    2  9   | 7 3  18 | 18  6    5  |
|-------------+---------+-------------|
| 5    39 23  | 8 1  7  | 6   4    29 |
|a289  1  4   | 6 29 5  | 3  b289  7  |
| 2689 7  68  | 4 29 3  | 5   1289 18 |
*-------------------------------------*

Empty Rectangle in 8's: Base Cells r8c1 r8c8 + Empty Rectangle Box 3 + Target Cell r1c1 => - 8 r1c1. I'll let you read about how the ER works on Hodoku here.

Code: Select all

*---------------------------------------*
|a26    4  7    | 5 68 9  | 18 18-2  3  |
| 1    b69 68-2 | 3 68 4  | 7  5    c29 |
| 389   5  38   | 1 7  2  | 4  89    6  |
|---------------+---------+-------------|
| 7     8  1    | 2 5  6  | 9  3     4  |
| 36    36 5    | 9 4  18 | 2  7     18 |
| 4     2  9    | 7 3  18 | 18 6     5  |
|---------------+---------+-------------|
| 5     39 23   | 8 1  7  | 6  4     29 |
| 289   1  4    | 6 29 5  | 3  289   7  |
| 2689  7  68   | 4 29 3  | 5  1289  18 |
*---------------------------------------*

This then enables an XY Wing in cells a-b-c removes some 2's as shown above and solves the puzzle.

Leren

[Fortesque92]

Ah yes, I've heard about Empty Rectangles through the Cracking the Cryptic youtube channel. Just gotta work on spotting them. Thanks!