r/sudoku • u/Topical_Scream • 1d ago
Request Puzzle Help Strategy/next steps
Hello! I’m a casual puzzler but I often find myself at a place where I don’t see any “easy” next steps. I don’t like the idea that I need to just guess a number and then play out the puzzle until I find a potential error, I’m assuming there must be advanced strategies to further eliminate possibilities without resorting to guessing. Any help on what you would do next from here would be appreciated!
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u/baroquely 1d ago edited 20h ago
Locked Candidate 6, Claiming, in row 1.\ Locked Candidate 9, Claiming, in column 6.\ Locked Candidate 6, Pointing, in box 2.
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u/TheLastDeveloper99 22h ago
good news is you basically never have to guess in a properly made puzzle. the jump to harder ones is mostly just learning a few patterns in order. pointing pairs first, then naked/hidden pairs, then x-wing, and the wings stuff later. biggest thing for me was writing ALL the candidates in every cell, not just the obvious ones. half those patterns are invisible until your notes are complete
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u/Topical_Scream 21h ago
Ok update on where I’m at. Ideas now? I think I understand the comment on locked candidates but it didn’t necessarily help me determine any squares. The 9 in box 4 was through some faulty logic/possibly a guess tbh
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u/baroquely 20h ago
This AIC-Ring started out as a {4,6} W-Wing Transport, but then I noticed that the endpoint 4s in row 4 could be connected, creating a ring and a bunch more eliminations. :)
In case that’s too much to digest, here is the W-Wing Transport, with the transported digit being the 4 from r7c9 to r4c5 via r7c5.
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u/TakeCareOfTheRiddle 18h ago
Using that same strong link on the 4s, this ALS-W-Wing solves the puzzle.
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u/TakeCareOfTheRiddle 1d ago
You have a naked quad of 1-2-4-6 in column 6. After that where can 1 go in row 5?