The Neighbours Are Whispering
(Published on 18. May 2026, 15:25 by Pulsar)
Rules:
Normal sudoku rules apply.
Doublers: If a digit within a box is equal to its relative position in that box (read from left to right and top to bottom), the value of that digit is doubled. Each digit from 1-9 is doubled exactly once, and each row and column must contain exactly one doubler. Boxes may contain zero, one, or more than one doubler.
Whispering Neighbours: Each cell in the grid has at least one orthogonally adjacent cell such that their values differ by at least 5.
Gated Communities: Orthogonally adjacent cells that are separated by a cage border have values that differ by less than 5. Digits and values may repeat inside a cage. Cages cannot be divided into smaller cages.
The grid is covered in fog, which will clear completely after certain digits are placed correctly.
Links:
SudokuPad (includes solution check)Solution Guide (pdf)
Note: this is not a typical Fog-Of-War puzzle. The fog was added to help you focus on the first deduction. After the initial step, the entire grid will be revealed.
FischmitFahrrad and I have been exchanging ideas about sudokus with a
'global whispers constraint'. It became a wonderful collaboration, inspiring both of us to each create a puzzle; the companion sudoku by FischmitFahrrad (different ruleset, different solution) can be found here. Enjoy!
Solution code: The digits in row 9, from left to right.
Comments
on 9. June 2026, 17:46 by breitfuss
@Pulsar Thank you!
After the initial confusion, I now managed to solve it, very nice although challenging puzzle! Thank you for including the guide, I had to use it a few times to nudge me in the right direction :)
on 9. June 2026, 16:42 by Pulsar
@breitfuss I've updated the links. Ironically, it's now back to the original wording. I had changed it after feedback during testing, but I didn't catch the confusing implications. Apologies, that was a genuine oversight.
on 9. June 2026, 15:55 by breitfuss
@Pulsar can you make this rule change/clarification more obvious? Both the sudokupad and your guide say the doubling only applies to whispering neighbours (yet the guide uses it to place 6 in r2). Very odd wording to include a specific rule (instead of maybe 'doubles its value'), when its supposed to apply globally
on 8. June 2026, 08:58 by Pulsar
@blueberrypug the doublers and neighbour constraint apply to the entire grid, including across cage borders.
on 8. June 2026, 05:03 by blueberrypug
when it says the values are doubled for the neighbours constraint, does that mean that a doubled cell isn't doubled in value, ie it just has its digit as its value, for the purposes of the gated communities rule?
on 21. May 2026, 20:22 by illegel
Amazed that under Whispering Neighbours constraint, you were able to complete the entire puzzle with so few additional clues. That's fantastic!
on 19. May 2026, 23:34 by Khepri
Very cool :)
