Bowtie
(Published on 12. September 2026, 09:15 by Fool on Hill)
Puzzle rules
Normal Sudoku rules apply.
On a green line adjacent digits must differ by at least 5 (standard German whisper)
If two digits are separated by a black dot, one must be twice the other. Digits separated by a white dot are consecutive (partial Kropki - not all dots are necessarily given).
Play on SudokuPad: Bowtie
This is an old puzzle I have just recovered from my archive. The grid is unique without the three-cell "nose", but I don't think that version is reasonably humanly solvable. Let me know if you discover otherwise. I think it should be a nice test of German Whisper technique. I hope you will appreciate the part the nose plays in the solve. This puzzle is in a way a companion to my recent puzzle The Antidot , which is disambiguated by a negative constraint on black dots.
Solution code: Row 5
Comments
on 15. September 2026, 05:12 by harwiltz
Wow, this was wonderful! Unless I missed something, this requires some pretty interesting logic well beyond the norm of German whispers. I had a blast.
on 14. September 2026, 18:33 by ofsmul
Good fun! My time suggested a 2*, but maybe I got lucky looking at the right places.... and the nose was definitely useful!
on 12. September 2026, 13:07 by amirs
Very nice puzzle. The "nose" was definitely useful for me.
on 12. September 2026, 11:58 by damo_89
Lovely, looks more like an elephant than a bow tie to me.
on 12. September 2026, 11:10 by Snookerfan
Very nice! The 'nose' gave me crucial information at the start of the solve, which I used, so I did not try it the hard way. Very smooth puzzle with some lovely steps. Thanks
