Can you storm the castle by getting across the MOAT? A weekly meta crossword constructed by forum member Ben (aka benchen71). These metas range from relatively easy to more challenging, depending on how many Australianisms he puts in them! Puzzles are posted in a new thread every Tuesday, with nudges appearing on Saturdays, and the solution coming out on Mondays. (At least, that's the plan. Given he lives in Australia, and they are so far ahead of the US time-zone-wise, things may get posted early!)
Can you storm the castle by getting across the MOAT? My surname can be traced back to Cornwall, a place known for smuggling goods into England for centuries. So it's clearly in my blood! There may or may not be some smuggling going on in this puzzle. It got past the border police, so hopefully you're smarter than them and can locate the answer to the meta, which is what goodies often become like by the end.
PM me with your submissions or submit on Crosshare. Either way, I'll compile a list of those who successfully solve the meta.
Don't forget that the 1st Pre-release MOAT Pack is available for purchase at https://www.ephesusscroll.com/about/interest4.html. US$10 gets you a pack of 12 meta puzzles - with PUZ and PDF files - including nudges and solutions. We're still more than a month away from the first of these coming out as the weekly MOAT, so if you were planning to purchase then make it so. (That said, the last one won't come out until Feb. 2023, so you should still get your money's worth!)
Last edited by benchen71 on Sun May 08, 2022 7:35 pm, edited 2 times in total.
Check out "The MOAT MEOW Mashup Pack" here. US$10 for 14 metas that don't always abide by the "rules" of the game: asymmetry, 2-letter words, uncrossed letters, who knows. And this time there's a mega-meta!
I have crossed the MOAT. It took a lot of Googling for me to find the theme and even more to complete the mechanism. This theme is unfamiliar to me though I may be in the minority.
My avatar proves that it is sometimes better to be lucky than good!
MMe wrote: ↑Tue May 03, 2022 5:36 pm
Enjoyed it. Not that it affects the solve, but I wonder if there is a dialect thingie that makes parts of this one sound a little odd to US ears?
I'd love to hear more about this once the answer is revealed.
Check out "The MOAT MEOW Mashup Pack" here. US$10 for 14 metas that don't always abide by the "rules" of the game: asymmetry, 2-letter words, uncrossed letters, who knows. And this time there's a mega-meta!
Well, here we are, nearing the end of the first 24 hours, and here's where we stand solvers-wise:
dplass
Meg
Tom Wilson
Capn Rick
DJB
boharr
ChrisKochmanski
Schmeel
Darth
Hector
CromsFury
kymike
Dave C
woozy
DIS
Bird Lives
lbray53
edestlin
markhr
BarbaraK
Bbaack
Tyrpmom
That's 22. That's an eleven-fold improvement on last week's total! And I'm hopeful that the 4th of May will bring in many more solvers for absolutely no specific reason whatsoever...
Check out "The MOAT MEOW Mashup Pack" here. US$10 for 14 metas that don't always abide by the "rules" of the game: asymmetry, 2-letter words, uncrossed letters, who knows. And this time there's a mega-meta!
Well that was a lot more fun, and a lot less difficult, than I tried to make it. Thanks Ben. I'll be interested in the post mortem on this, particularly how we get from point A to point B.
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!
I crossed the moat but don't think I entirely understand the drawbridge construction. It feels like there are connections that I'm missing.
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.)
