Tag: Solution

This puzzle starts as a basic crossword. Solvers will be able to find seventeen different bird names hidden in the puzzle. They will also find a few horizontal phrases which confirm this (and wish them a Happy New Year). The completed grid looks like this:

Observant solvers will notice that each bird name crosses other bird names on at most two letters. These intersections connect these birds in a single chain from EAGLE to SWAN. Recording the connecting letters (EAGLE/TANAGER is A, TANAGER/STARLING is N, etc.) gives the phrase ANSWER ANGRY BIRDS. The answer is ANGRY BIRDS.

The most obvious themes in this puzzle are A Christmas Carol and pirates. Besides appearing in the flavor text, there are six clues explicitly referring to each theme. They are:

• 8-A) Dickens’ first ghost
• 24-A) Like a certain dodger in another Dickens story
• 35-A) Snake, like one left to guard pirate treasure
• 36-A) Common wood in a pirate ship
• 76-A) Counterpart of northing on a pirate map
• 83-A) Any of several characters in Treasure Island
• 1-D) Captain Flint’s ship, and others of the same name
• 8-D) Pirates might sing about fifteen of them
• 23-D) Irregular gait, such as Tiny Tim’s
• 36-D) The Ghost of Christmas ____
• 63-D) Mr. Scrooge
• 85-D) “Tiny” Cratchit child

Highlighting these answers in the completed reveals that there are six locations where a pirate answer and a Christmas Carol answer cross:

Reading the intersections of these pairs of answers from top to bottom reveals the answer MUPPET. Solvers are reminded of the existence of both The Muppet Christmas Carol and Muppet Treasure Island.

Each of the clues leads to a four-letter answer which is an anagram of three other answers (Some clues have been shortened to fit better here):

LINE (A queue)	NEIL (First man on moon)	LIEN (Legal hold)	(The answer to this puzzle)
SORE (Achy)	ORES (Bauxite and galena)	ROSE (Flower)	EROS (God of love)
TUBS (Bath places)	BUTS (Companion of ifs and ands)	STUB (Injure a toe)	BUST (Boom opposite)
SPOT (Dog name)	POTS (Sinks a snooker ball)	POST (Washington newspaper)	STOP (Word on a red sign)
RAPT (Fascinated)	PART (Not whole)	TRAP (Snare)	TARP (Waterproof cover)
SNIP (Cut with scissors)	PINS (Wrestling bout enders)	SPIN (Turn rapidly)	NIPS (What Jack Frost does)
LIAR (Deceiver)	LAIR (Den)	RAIL (Mode of transport)	LIRA (The Euro replaced it)
META (Facebook company)	TAME (Not wild)	MATE (Ship officer)	TEAM (Squad)

The answer to the puzzle must be an unknown word that is an anagram of LINE, NEIL, and LIEN. The only reasonably common word which matches this criteria is NILE.

Each of the clues leads to an answer that is two letters followed a word (or occasionally, two words). In order, they are:

• SB Nation
• HP Inc.
• BB Gun
• VR Headset
• IQ Test
• ZZ Top
• pH Indicator
• JP Morgan
• PC Engine
• MC Hammer
• SS Edmund Fitzgerald
• CB Radio
• BJ Ojulari
• DC Entertainment
• EA Sports

After completing this list, the first letters of the words (the third letter of each full answer) spell out NIGHTTIME HEROES. Looking for an answer which follows the same letter/word pattern gives the answer PJ MASKS.

Each of the given strings of letters can be disentangled into two related words. Those words refer to two things which have been combined to make a third object. (This is easiest to figure out from the COPPER/ZINC and YELLOW/RED mixes.) The words and their resulting combos are as follows:

• LEMONADE + ICED TEA (ARNOLD PALMER)
• SANDOZ + CIBA-GEIGY (NOVARTIS)
• FORK + SPOON (SPORK)
• WHEELJACK + GRIMLOCK (WHEELGRIM)
• GERMAN SHORTHAIRED POINTER + ALASKAN HUSKY (EUROHOUND)
• FAT+ FLOUR (ROUX)
• COPPER + ZINC (BRASS)
• YELLOW + RED (ORANGE)
• TIGRESS + LION (LIGER)
• MANONGAHELA + ALLEGHENY (OHIO)
• KIDD’S ORANGE RED + GOLDEN DELICIOUS (GALA)
• COBRA + HUMAN (NAGA)
• WONDER WOMAN + STORM (AMAZON)

The first letters of the new mixtures spell out ANSWER BOLOGNA. The answer is BOLOGNA.

In this anacrosword puzzle, the letters from the clues go into the grid to form a phrase. The answers to the clues are:

• HILLS
• ENCHANT
• SPHERE
• ABASE
• INTERNET
• DISPLAY
• INFAMY
• TABLECLOTH

And the completed grid:

As is typical in an anacrostic, the first letters of the answers are important. In this case, they spell out HE SAID IT. The person to whom the quote is attributed is YOGI BERRA.

In each of the featured games of tic-tac-toe, the current player has exactly one move which wins instantly.

These winning squares can be read using a variation of the pigpen cipher using three grids:

Comparing the shape and number of dots for each region with the letter in that space in the key gives the answer FIRST PRIZE.

The text of this puzzle consists of only six unique letters – the letters in ANSWER. As the title suggests, solvers must count the number of occurrences for each letter:

• A – 18
• N – 5
• S – 16
• W – 5
• E – 1
• R – 20

Converting each of these numbers to a letter, with A=1, B=2, etc., gives the answer REPEAT.

Each of the lines describes an event that can happen in one of the listed games. Solvers must identify the games and calculate how many points the described scenarios are worth:

EUCHRE – Working with your partner to collect either three or four tricks earns 1 point.

GUILLOTINE – Double Feature collects the first two nobles in line. The Regent is worth four points, and the Martyr is worth negative one point, for a total of 3 points.

SUSHI GO – Sashimi are worth nothing unless you have three, and Tempura are worth nothing unless you have two. Puddings are only worth points at the end of round three. Two Dumplings are worth three points, and a Salmon Nigiri is worth two points, giving 5 points.

BLACKJACK – This situation doesn’t care about winning the hand, but all number cards are worth their value. Six plus three is 9 points.

HEARTS – Each heart taken is worth one point, and the queen of spades is worth thirteen, so this hand was 14 points.

CRIBBAGE – Four, five, and six add to fifteen for two points, as do ten and five. Four, five, and six also form a run of three for three more points, for a total of 7 points.

PHASE 10 – At the end of the round, one through nine are worth five points each, and ten through twelve are worth ten points each, giving a score of 15 points.

SOLO SPADES – Ten points for each bid trick, plus one point for each overtrick gives a total of 12 points.

UNO – Adding up the face values of the cards gives 6 points.

Converting the number of points scored in each game to letters using A=1, B=2, etc., gives the phrase ACE IN GOLF. In golf, the term ACE refers to a HOLE IN ONE. (This answer may also be hyphenated, but as always, the answer checker will not accept any punctuation.)