We ran 23 new puzzles custom made for our solvers, fortnightly, during 2019, one short of 24 which we ran in 2018.
These were set by The Oracle (5), Gussalufz (4), Agrippa (3), Mythical (2), FaSupriya,, FANtastic Three, Pixie Dust,, Andhumanssoar, Avtaar, Hasslethymi, Teezer, Drumhead and Unstoppable Kums. Thank you setters for some brilliant grids.
During the year, thanks to our setter Gussalufz aka Viresh Ratnakar’s brilliant software Exolve, we were able to present an exceptional solving experience through complete interactive solving of a variety of puzzles. We are really grateful for your support Viresh and your responsiveness to all our queries. Exolve is a free software with exceptional possibilities for customization and I truly think it represents the future of interactive solving for all blogs running crossword puzzles.
Its also a matter of pride that three of our setters, including yours truly, Avtaar and Gussalufz, have turned professional during 2019 and are now setting for “The Hindu”, a leading publication with one of the most sought-after crossword puzzles in the sub-continent.
The total number of submissions received across puzzles, ranged from 29 (for some of the more difficult puzzles) to 48. There were 100 different participants across all the puzzles. Like the previous year, we continued to see interest and engagement grow among our solvers.
Here’s the Summary of the year’s puzzles
| S.No | Date | Puzzle | LB | HOF | Setter | Total # | Full Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23. | 15th Dec. | Happy Holidays | LB23 | Link | FANtastic Three | 36 | 31 |
| 22. | 01st Dec. | Dr. Boggle and R Blogged | LB22 | Link | Agrippa | 30 | 15 |
| 21. | 17th Nov. | A Leap of Faith | LB21 | Link | The Oracle | 48 | 18 |
| 20. | 3rd Nov. | Al’s Trick | LB20 | Link | Gussalufz | 34 | 17 |
| 19. | 20th Oct. | All That Glitters | LB19 | Link | Mythical | 42 | 5 |
| 18. | 10th Oct. | An Addagram a day | LB18 | Link | Unstoppable Kums | 29 | 2 |
| 17. | 15th Sep. | Metamorphosis 913 | LB17 | Link | Agrippa | 29 | 5 |
| 16. | 1st Sep. | Saunter Irresolutely | LB16 | Link | The Oracle | 46 | 28 |
| 15. | 28th Jul. | Baking Bread Playfully | LB15 | Link | Pixie Dust | 45 | 24 |
| 14. | 14th Jul. | Oh! To be a Lunatic! | LB14 | Link | The Oracle | 41 | 19 |
| 13. | 30th Jun. | Putting Two and Two Together | LB13 | Link | Gussalufz | 33 | 11 |
| 12. | 16th Jun. | One Off | LB12 | Link | Teezer | 35 | 8 |
| 11. | 2nd Jun. | 007 Preparing for a kill | LB11 | Link | Avtaar | 42 | 9 |
| 10. | 12th May. | Letters to the Listener | LB10 | Link | Hasslethymi | 39 | 25 |
| 9. | 28th Apr. | GOTCHA2 | LB9 | Link | FaSupriya | 37 | 19 |
| 8. | 17th Apr. | Cursory Appearances | LB8 | Link | Gussalufz | 35 | 7 |
| 7. | 31st Mar. | Flat Earth Theory | LB7 | Link | The Oracle | 43 | 26 |
| 6. | 17th Mar. | Entice Faithlessness | LB6 | Link | Agrippa | 36 | 21 |
| 5. | 3rd Mar. | A rabid milkman nodding | LB5 | Link | Andhumanssoar | 46 | 10 |
| 4. | 17th Feb. | Bird Box | LB4 | Link | Mythical | 43 | 26 |
| 3. | 3rd Feb. | Fat Cop In Tie | LB3 | Link | Drumhead | 46 | 19 |
| 2. | 20th Jan. | Fifteen Puzzles | LB2 | Link | Gussalufz | 48 | 18 |
| 1. | 6th Jan. | The Oracle’s Number Game – Puzzle | LB1 | Link | The Oracle | 48 | 0 |
Here’s our Top 10, at the end of the year.
Congrats to Venkatraghavan S. who topped the leader board with a perfect score of 2,300 points, scoring a full 100 in every puzzle posted this year. In second place is Lakshmi Prakash with 2,250 and the third place goes to Mona Sogal closely following with 2,240.
We are happy to announce the following prizes
Gift Voucher for INR 5000 for the 1st position – Awarded to Venkatraghavan S.
Gift Voucher for INR 3000 for the 2nd position – Awarded to Lakshmi Prakash
Gift Voucher for INR 2000 for the 3rd position – Awarded to Mona Sogal
Once again, heartiest congratulations to the winners.
Here’s our leaderboard (Top 50) for 2019
Hope you enjoyed all our puzzles. Which one was your favorite? Do you have any compliments / brick bats to share with us? Please do write in.