The Rule Breakers
(Published today, 10:45 by Rab3aron)
The Rule Breakers
Rules:
Regions: Divide the grid into 9 non-overlapping orthogonally connected regions. Exactly one region is a 3×3 box. Thick black lines show some region borders.
Sudoku: Place the digits 1–9 exactly once in each row, column, and region.
Path: Draw a directed orthogonal path from the green diamond cell to the purple diamond cell. The path does not branch or overlap. An “X” on a border means the path cannot cross that border.
Region crossings: For each region, the path may enter it at most once and exit it at most once.
Circled digits: A circled digit N means its region is the N-th region visited by the path.
Squared digits: A squared digit N means the path visits exactly N cells in that region. All squared digits are different.
Outside sums: An outside clue is the sum of digits from that edge inward up to the first region border.
Arrows: In an arrow cell, the digit equals the total number of cells in the arrow directions that lie in the same region as the arrow cell (counting the arrow cell itself). Region borders block the view.
Parity steering: When the path enters a circled/squared cell, the digit’s parity determines the direction type of the next move: one parity always forces horizontal (left/right) and the other always forces vertical (up/down). Which parity does which is for the solver to deduce. Example: if even→horizontal, entering a circled 6 forces the next step left/right.
Rule breakers: Exactly two circled/squared cells are rule breakers. If the path visits one, treat its digit as the opposite parity for the next-move rule. One of them is already shaded, and the other must be deduced by the solver.
Happy solving!
Solution code: Enter the digits of Row 4, followed by the number of path cells in Row 5, followed by the number of different regions seen in Row 6. Example: 12345678965
