MGWCC #791 — “Table Games”

An excellent puzzle written by one of the innovators of the meta crossword format. It comes out every Friday at noon and increases in difficulty throughout the month. Available for modest subscription (worth every cent) here: www.xwordcontest.com
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lbray53
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Location: Elkhorn, WI

#41

Post by lbray53 »

Beamed with the hints plus some help.

The first hint sent me off in a wrong direction. The second reeled me back.

But I made a significant error and needed help to make it home.

If only I could learn to pay attention to the whispers from things that do not seem quite right! Great puzzle.
My avatar proves that it is sometimes better to be lucky than good!
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Berto
Posts: 351
Joined: Sat Feb 05, 2022 4:10 pm

#42

Post by Berto »

I looked at the hints immediately because, well, week 4 of 4. And I have the in-laws in town. And my wife just got home from being in Italy for 2 weeks. Like @hcbirker I left it on solo solve but commented that I’d used the hints. Really clever puzzle IMO. Would have been a tough slog without the hints me thinks…
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DrTom
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#43

Post by DrTom »

Submitted but pretty sure. Beautiful puzzle, used 1 hint and a course correction. Heck even knowing what to do it took me forever to do it. This was so cleverly constructed and soooo well hidden.

Awaiting notification ⏳

OK, just outside the top 100 at 109!!
NUDGES!I am always willing to give nudges where needed; metas should be about fun, not frustration. Send me what you have done so far because often you are closer than you think!
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mkmf
Posts: 897
Joined: Mon Apr 29, 2019 12:22 pm

#44

Post by mkmf »

What fun. We needed all three hints, one at a time. We're not at all sorry to have used them, because the rest of the solve (still challenging and fun) was not to be missed. Thanks, Matt.
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Trish
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Location: Dallas

#45

Post by Trish »

Wow! What a ride this week. Beamed at 126 and feeling proud after a pretty obscure final clue!
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DCBilly
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#46

Post by DCBilly »

On the board at #133 and brandishing my first ever 10 streak badge, with thanks to the peerless Eckless for keeping me on task. That was a fun solve.
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Trish
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#47

Post by Trish »

Trish wrote: ↑Sat Jul 29, 2023 6:08 pm Wow! What a ride this week. Beamed at 126 and feeling proud after a pretty obscure final clue!
Forgot to say I needed the hints and still had a fun time finding the solution. Almost thought I was in a rabbit hole but hubby found the odd one to send us home! Great fun!
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MajordomoTom
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#48

Post by MajordomoTom »

Solo solve @ #144

:)

All three hints needed

Backsolved initial letter

Edit: just found it. Nice.
"Lots of planets have a North", the Ninth Doctor.
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DrTom
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#49

Post by DrTom »

Forgot to say... In Awe! When I grow up I wanna be a meta constructor, not just a hack like i ma now, a REAL meta constructor!!!
NUDGES!I am always willing to give nudges where needed; metas should be about fun, not frustration. Send me what you have done so far because often you are closer than you think!
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minimuggle
Posts: 564
Joined: Wed Nov 04, 2020 7:33 am

#50

Post by minimuggle »

Incredible puzzle. With helpful nudges from Wendy I have submitted and enjoyed a wonderful "aha" moment. Hope I got it right.
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Joe
Posts: 559
Joined: Sat May 11, 2019 12:45 pm
Location: New Hampshire

#51

Post by Joe »

Just submitted. Pretty sure I got it. I had to take a leap of faith at one point.

Personally I loved the hints and used them all. It was still a tough one.
Happy to give nudges. If you notice I've solved, please tell me about avenues you've explored so I can nudge you in the right direction and not off a cliff.
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BarbaraK
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#52

Post by BarbaraK »

Beam up requested with confidence. I tried a bit without hints but looked at the first two this afternoon. Shouldn’t have needed them, but I’m on vacation - that’s my excuse:)

I love Matt sending the hints! Seems a great way to level the playing field for those poor unfortunates who are not on this forum ;)
If you want help with a meta, feel free to PM me. The more specific you are about what you have and what you want, the more likely I can help without spoiling.

(And if I help you win a mug, I’ll be especially delighted.)
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Katiedid
Posts: 346
Joined: Mon Aug 30, 2021 8:53 pm

#53

Post by Katiedid »

Beamed up. It took all of the hints. I worked on the hints one at a time. Even though I had the right idea in general before hints, each one narrowed my focus until I got it.
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ricky
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#54

Post by ricky »

I finally got it but what an exhausting process.
Check out the meta challenge at Lexicon Devil

Latest puzzle: "This Place Looks Familiar," March 7, 2024

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BrennerTJ
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Location: Chicago suburbs

#55

Post by BrennerTJ »

Lots of rabbit holes even with the hints.
TableGamesGrid.png
TableGamesTable.png
-Tamara
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schmidzy
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#56

Post by schmidzy »

I initially assumed this puzzle would be about one of my favorite things, namely tabletop games, so it took the first nudge to gently pry my fingers loose from the threads I so desperately wanted to lead somewhere. On the other hand, 10-year-old me was a huge chemistry nerd (I voluntarily attended chemistry camp one summer!), so I suppose it was a win-win. All that to say, I really loved this puzzle and I especially loved that we could all interact with it on our own terms — I hope the "official" nudges will become a regular, although for the sake of my own lack of self-restraint, I might prefer to see them drop a few days after the puzzle's release!
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Katiedid
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#57

Post by Katiedid »

I love chemistry puzzles
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Trish
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Location: Dallas

#58

Post by Trish »

Well, I am amazed after checking this out! We totally got the right answer but wait til I explain how we got it!

15A Carbonara-Irene (e)
20A Gallium metro-all (l)
59A Copper tone-break wind (d)
68A Tin ore-noise (e)
4D Irony-Tina (a)
34D Gold coin-Kevyn (n)

Used the final letters and anagramed them to leaden.
We were so proud, haha!
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BrennerTJ
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Location: Chicago suburbs

#59

Post by BrennerTJ »

I modified my solving path by adding a room after reaching a dead end:
RaBBiThO...LE-A-DEN.
-Tamara
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ZooAnimalsOnWheels
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Location: San Diego, CA

#60

Post by ZooAnimalsOnWheels »

I also wanted this to be about tabletop board games at first. But after a puzzle a couple years ago called "Under the Table", I now associate any 'table' to periodic table. Having PLAT and TINA at 1A and 4D was distracting, but I had never heard of Kevyn Aucoin before, so that really made it stick out, along with emeralds in a safety deposit box being a very odd clue. Once I put those together, the scavenger hunt for the others was on.
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