“The perimeter comprises FIVE OF A KIND, and the answer to one clue might be found in any of them. Solvers must highlight this entry in an appropriate colour. Unchecked letters in the perimeter could spell MAN GUZZLES BAR CLEAN FOR MONTH. Chambers Dictionary (2016) is recommended.”
Enigmatic Variations
Enigmatic Variations 1397 TT Chapter by Vismut
A misprint in the definitions of each clue. An unclued entry and 23 cells to highlight. Should be fun. My first thought was that this was at the easier end of the difficulty … Read more >>
Enigmatic Variations No. 1396: Up and Down and Round and Round by Ifor
Hi everyone. This week we have a puzzle from Ifor which I much enjoyed, finding it nicely chewy in the clueing and with an endgame that didn’t give up its secrets too easily. … Read more >>
Enigmatic Variations No. 1395: Differences by Dysart
This was nearly a DNF (did not finish) for me – in fact it still may be – and it was certainly an MSD (missed submission deadline), as I didn’t crack the final … Read more >>
Enigmatic Variations No.1394 – Coup de Grace by Gaston
“The unclued entries have been practising for the COUP DE GRACE by removing a thematic group of consecutive letters from eight normally clued entries, always leaving shorter, real words to be entered in the grid. In all other clues, wordplay indicates the answer with an extra letter; in clue order these letters reveal the theme. Solvers should administer the COUP DE GRACE themselves by blacking out two symmetrical groups of six.”
Enigmatic Variations 1393 Missing Person by Chalicea
A single letter missing from downs spelling out an instruction to fill in the unclued entries – a person to be removed and then another one to be highlighted. Quite a few unusual … Read more >>
Enigmatic Variations No. 1392: Name That Tune by X-Type
Hello everyone. I was happy to see a puzzle from a Jaguar (even if this one isn’t one of my cousins!). For me it was very much at the easier end of the … Read more >>
Enigmatic Variations No. 1391: Cary by The Ace of Hearts
I am familiar with ‘The Ace of Hearts’ from his(?) devious circular Listener puzzles, but a search of this site shows a few recent EVs and IQs, several of which I think I … Read more >>
Enigmatic Variations No.1390 – Bolder by Jaques
“In clue order, the first letters of the answers give part of a quotation (in ODQ). Solvers must fit the answers jigsaw-style into the grid, although some are too short for the available space and must be entered with initial blank cells. Where answers begin with the same letter, their clues are presented in conventional order. Having entered the answers, solvers must take the BOLDER choice from the quotation, adapting one entry and completing the
remainder. Finally, solvers must show suitable confidence with their choice by altering three other letters in the grid. Apart from one, which is thematic, all entries in the final grid are real words. Numbers in brackets refer to answer lengths.”
Enigmatic Variations 1389 Perimeter by Gila
A central area that needs letters to move to the top/bottom/ left or right and the wordplay and then something else to consider with the normal clues. Some relatively straight forward clues with … Read more >>
Enigmatic Variations No. 1388: The End by Stick Insect
Warm greetings to you all from a sunny London, where I have landed myself in comfortable air-conditioned lodgings for a long weekend. Purr! Stick Insect has relatively recently added blocked puzzles to his … Read more >>
Enigmatic Variations No. 1387: Wonderful Ghoul by Kcit
I thought this was a ‘blinking’ hard puzzle from Kcit (aka Phi)…educational and challenging…just how I like ’em… The preamble states that: “Wordplay in eleven clues varies from the entered answer by one … Read more >>
Enigmatic Variations No.1386 – Suitable Powder by Oxymoron
“In SUITABLE POWDER, two letters must be removed from the answers in each row and column and placed at either end of that row/column. All answers are affected and the leftmost/uppermost omitted letters are to be placed in the leftmost/uppermost cell of the column/row. Solvers must complete the grid and highlight a symmetrically disposed representation of the perimeter (6,4). Chambers Dictionary (2016) is recommended.”
Enigmatic Variations 1385 Winning Formula by proXimal
Across entries have a missing letter each time it occurs (indicated by wordplay) and 5 down clues need to be altered before entry to make new words. Well not quite – only the … Read more >>
Enigmatic Variations No. 1384: Handover by Samuel
Hello everyone. Another fun puzzle from Samuel, which I found to be one of the gentler EVs that I’ve done, but with plenty of entertainment value. The preamble reads: In HANDOVER, all … Read more >>