Newest Questions
29,037 questions
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MPire coloring game basic strategy
The MPire coloring game is a game where several "empires" are laid out touching each other. Your task is to color each empire a different color, and not let two of the same color touch. You also have ...
- 667
26
votes
5
answers
8k
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N logicians wearing hats of N colors
N logicians are wearing hats which can be of N different colors (each hat has one color; there can be multiple hats with the same color). Each logician can see the colors of all hats except his own. ...
12
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1
answer
1k
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What rules are there for clue composition in a British cryptic?
Growing up on the cryptic crosswords I found in Games magazine and The New York Times, I'm used to a very rigid rule for clues: Every clue comprises two parts, one of which directly (if opaquely) ...
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22
votes
1
answer
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Worst case scenario in 2048
The game 2048 can be thought as a two player game, where one player shifts the table around to get to the 2048 tile, while the other player tries to hinder them by putting down 2s and 4s on the table. ...
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13
votes
2
answers
2k
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SlitherLink on moderate or large boards: going beyond 0s and 3s
When playing SlitherLink on moderate or large boards I usually find that after using the basic techniques:
filling out the values in the corners
setting lines where there are adjacent 3s
setting lines ...
- 680
15
votes
1
answer
11k
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What do question marks mean in crossword clues?
In a crossword, some clues have a question mark at the end. Is there any way to tell what these question marks mean based on the puzzle? I.E. rhetorical, compound word, etc.?
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8
votes
2
answers
1k
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Strategy for speedsolving 2048
Once one has mastered winning 2048 in general, it's often an interesting exercise to try to do it as fast as possible.
What strategies are there for speeding up 2048-solving?
For example, how can you ...
- 4,677
20
votes
4
answers
6k
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Alphametic (Verbal Arithmetic) general strategy
According to Wikipedia, Alphametics, also known as verbal arithmetic, can be defined as "a type of mathematical game consisting of a mathematical equation among unknown numbers, whose digits are ...
- 3,720
60
votes
4
answers
81k
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What is the largest tile possible in 2048?
I can get to 4096 max. There are videos on youtube of guys making it to 8192. What is the theoretical maximum limit on this?
PS: if you haven't played this, here is the link to addiction.
- 1,481
55
votes
3
answers
7k
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Sliding Bolt Puzzle
You are in a room with two adjacent doors locked by four sliding bolts. The bolts are movable and block only one door at a time; however, you do not know which bolt currently is blocking which door.
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- 1,008
22
votes
4
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2k
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General strategy for 2048
I, being a fan of 2048, was wondering if anyone has any proven strategies for playing 2048?
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15
votes
4
answers
6k
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How can I generate mazes that often have multiple "forks" or choices?
The basic algorithm for procedurally generating mazes goes something like this:
Choose a random available direction from the current square.
If there is one, go there and repeat from step 1.
Otherwise,...
- 4,677
17
votes
3
answers
7k
views
What is the maximum "minimum number of steps" needed to solve a rubiks cube?
If an algo X outputs the minimum "number of moves" (not the actual moves, just their count) to solve an input configuration, what's the maximum number ...
- 1,481
43
votes
6
answers
27k
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What is the optimal first move in tic-tac-toe?
I have been told that it is possible to guarantee no worse than a tie in normal 3x3 tic-tac-toe, but that the first move is very important. What is that important first move?
- 3,720
35
votes
6
answers
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What are the criteria for determining the difficulty of Sudoku puzzle?
What are the criteria for determining the difficulty of Sudoku puzzles?
Is it a subjective estimation based on the author's experience, or are there any precise guidelines?
For example, there are ...
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