Starcell
(Published on 17. March 2026, 14:18 by pz01)
I designed this sudoku-inspired puzzle called "Starcell". It is fully tested to have a unique solution and can be solved with pure logic. However, since this is a brand new variant, I would love for human testers to confirm if it can be solved smoothly without any guessing (bifurcation).
[Rules]
Standard 3x3 Sudoku rules DO NOT apply.
Place the digits 1-9 exactly once in each of the following 22 regions on the 73-cell grid:
- 5 Rows and 5 Columns: The continuous 9-cell lines.
- 2 Main Diagonals.
- 9 Overlapping 3x3 Boxes: Clustered in the center (standard corner boxes do not exist).
- 1 "Center" Region: Composed of the 9 exact central cells of the overlapping 3x3 boxes.
A playable Penpa+ link is provided. Please let me know how the logic flows!
Penpa+ Link
Solution code: Enter the 9 digits of the main diagonal from top-left to bottom-right (starting with 5), followed directly by the 9 digits of the main diagonal from top-right to bottom-left (starting with 9). (18 digits in total, no spaces)
Comments
on 18. March 2026, 06:14 by pz01
Thank you, MSDOS, for trying it out and leaving such helpful feedback! Taking your thoughts and suggestions from other communities into account, I'm currently tweaking the ruleset to make the logic flow much smoother. I'll be uploading an improved version very soon. Thanks again for testing it!
on 17. March 2026, 17:20 by pz01
Added Sudokupad link!
on 17. March 2026, 15:56 by pz01
Oh, apparently the HTML parser ate the 'and 5 Columns' part because I used an ampersand. I updated it to prevent any confusion. Thanks for pointing it out, marcmees! :) Hope you enjoy the puzzle!
on 17. March 2026, 15:33 by marcmees
5+2+9+1=17. Maybe one should add 5 columns to get to 22?
My sudoku mind had some trouble accepting repeats on the rows and columns 1379. :-)
on 17. March 2026, 15:06 by pz01
Added the puzzle image and fixed HTML formatting.
