Araf Killer Sudoku
(Published on 28. July 2020, 09:00 by Phistomefel)
About the rules:
- The usual sudoku rules apply.
- The grid must be decomposed into different areas. Each cell belongs to exactly one area.
- Each area contains exactly two clues.
- The sum of all digits in an area lies between the two clues, but may not reach them. For example, if the clues for an area are 21 and 24, the sum of the digits in the area is 22 or 23.
- Digits may not repeat within an area.
If you want to learn some solution strategies for Araf puzzles (which can also be applied in this puzzle) I can recommend the CtC video about Murat Can Tonta's Araf puzzle to you.
Now for the puzzle. It is also available online via Penpa. Have fun solving!
Solution code: 5th and 8th row
Comments
on 17. January 2024, 05:56 by KNT
lovely puzzle. it's been over half a year since your last hybrid puzzle; don't you think it's time for a new one? :)
on 19. September 2023, 06:33 by CrazyCrypticC
I got confused a bit at first because I watched the Araf video first and I kept trying to make this work the same way which, of course, it doesn't. Once I wrapped my head around the differences, I followed the path fairly smoothly and easily, and I had a lot of fun! I hope to see more like this!
on 27. July 2023, 23:16 by asii
Absolute Masterpiece. (CtC link: https://app.crackingthecryptic.com/sudoku/hDNMJqPmTh)
on 21. January 2023, 21:19 by Agent
Fantastic puzzle! A very narrow solution path with many surprising and rewarding deductions. It was challenging until the very end.
on 26. September 2022, 02:24 by thoughtbyte
Stunning puzzle, thanks Phistomefel!
on 16. September 2022, 09:16 by Christounet
Very nice constraint and puzzle !! Loved the last bit which requires a careful region exam to get the last cages !
on 12. June 2022, 18:47 by Krokant
Toll, toll, toll! Und gar nicht so schwierig, wie die Wertung vermuten lässt. Das hat sensationell viel Spaß gemacht. :)
on 1. September 2021, 14:17 by Prutsbeest
This puzzle is ridiculously nice! Not too hard because the logic flows so nicely, but always beautiful. Thank you for setting these kind of puzzles, Phistomefel!
on 21. August 2021, 18:45 by Phistomefel
Added tag "Online solving tool".
on 7. April 2021, 22:45 by ibag
Mir hats auch gefallen.
on 6. April 2021, 10:54 by Mody
Eines der schönsten Rätsel hier im Portal. Ich habe es in meine Favoritenliste der unvergessenen Portalrätsel aufgenommen.
on 23. January 2021, 18:50 by wydadman
خرافي! أسطوري! يا سلام عليك يا فيسطوميفيل! ثلاث ساعات من التفكير والمتعة القصوى! أكثر من رائع!!!
on 23. November 2020, 13:52 by marcmees
ingenius. thanks a lot.
on 17. September 2020, 14:03 by cdwg2000
Video problem solving from Bilibili website: https://b23.tv/GEvC7w
on 16. August 2020, 11:04 by Phistomefel
@Statistica: Dankeschön! :)
on 16. August 2020, 11:00 by Statistica
Extraordinary! Thus puzzle really deserves its 100% rating.
on 5. August 2020, 11:33 by kmoter
Nice one, was like 3 hours of walking through maze here and there :-)
@kmoter: Thank you! I hope you had a thread with you. ;-)
on 3. August 2020, 20:32 by joecat
Amazing puzzle - what a construction.
@joecat: Thank you! :)
on 3. August 2020, 18:14 by Philip
Absolutely incredible and amazing puzzle. Brutally difficult logic.
It felt like a triumph just to be able to place the first digit into the grid.
I registered just to leave a comment and rating.
@Philip: Thank you very much for your feedback and for registering only for this puzzle. That is so cool! :)
on 3. August 2020, 17:08 by nordloc
It took me four attempts over a week but I made it in the end.
Amazing puzzle!
@nordloc: Thanks for your persistence and the nice comment!
on 2. August 2020, 17:40 by Phistomefel
Thank you very much for your praise, MagnusJosefsson and Madmahogany!
on 2. August 2020, 16:05 by MagnusJosefsson
A superb puzzle! Very challenging from beginning to end.
on 2. August 2020, 15:08 by Madmahogany
Insane! What an ending!
on 29. July 2020, 13:53 by marcinj
Really hard, but really nice puzzle. There was one time I wasn't able to figure out a logical next step and made a quess (which turned out true). I'm looking forward to CtC video on this puzzle to see what I failed to spot and what the right way to solve it is.
on 29. July 2020, 07:31 by Phistomefel
Thank you everyone for the amazing feedback. I'm very glad you liked it.
on 29. July 2020, 06:03 by henrypijames
Several times during the solve I thought: That's it - this is how far I can go. There's simply not enough information for me, who's never heard of Araf before, to proceed. But then I kept playing a bit more and suddenly - unexpectedly - new insight came to light that allowed me to venture on. It was quite a roller coaster ride.
on 29. July 2020, 03:09 by japoorva
This puzzle is HEAVENLY!!! What an outstanding construction. I loved how you had to keep alternating the focus on the arithmetic and developing the regions to proceed the solve. Absolutely amazing!
PS. I don't think 5 stars are enough to grade either the difficulty or the beauty of this puzzle! This one is beyond that.
on 29. July 2020, 00:26 by MumboJumbo
Brilliant. Really liked the logic towards the end. Well done.
on 28. July 2020, 21:13 by Phistomefel
Thanks a lot, emmettcito! :)
on 28. July 2020, 20:16 by emmettcito
This is probably my favorite out of all your recent puzzles. Really enjoyable. Well done setting this :)
on 28. July 2020, 16:27 by Phistomefel
Thank you very much, udukos!
on 28. July 2020, 14:31 by udukos
What an amazing puzzle!!
