"No Minor Entertainer" by benchen71

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!)
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benchen71
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#21

Post by benchen71 »

What a difference a day (and early nudges!) makes. We have 20 solvers to add to the list:

markhr
Ergcat
Pair O Ducks
Cindy Weatherman
boharr
MrTheHan
Meg
whimsy
Berto
woozy
Kent
Carolyn
Darth
Darrell
Tane
I K Snamhcok
MatthewL
DCBilly
lbray53
Laura M

That brings us up to 23.
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! :shock:
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benchen71
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#22

Post by benchen71 »

By the way, over night (for me, at least!) my total solves on Crosshare passed the 20,000 mark!

Image 001.png

And you might be interested to see "There's More To This" has taken top spot on my all-time most solved grids! :D
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! :shock:
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DrTom
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#23

Post by DrTom »

MOAT crossed with some difficulty, seems I was out of tune. Good puzzle though Ben. You can't help it if I am a music desert.
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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#24

Post by benchen71 »

At the end of day 2 we have a total of 26, after the following solvers made it over the moat:

DrTom
Gutman
Spid4567
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! :shock:
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Cinny
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#25

Post by Cinny »

FINALLY across the moat. Needed nudges, but a great aha moment. Thanks, Ben!
Cindy Heisler
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#26

Post by benchen71 »

Another solver update, bringing us up to 30:

CPJohnson
Cindy Heisler
Jaclyn
Abide

I'm thinking the next update will be Monday morning (Australia time) right before the answer reveal.
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! :shock:
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ReB
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#27

Post by ReB »

Late crossing the MOAT, with NO MINOR inconvenience...
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hoover
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#28

Post by hoover »

Yeah, I have no idea what to do after nudges 1-3.5, or how those connect to nudges 4 and 5. Time to start googling.
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MikeyG
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#29

Post by MikeyG »

I took all the nudges, even though they didn't tell me anything I wasn't already anticipating (except VERY FAST TRAIN). Definitely banged my head when I got the answer, as I was musing doing a meta regarding this musician in the future! Nice one, Ben!

Yes, it's 3:45 am. I'm going to bed now, I promise (I had a long nap earlier).
Less cross words, more crosswords.

Solve my latest "Pun of a Kind" Meta!: 97. Drab Bag
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KayW
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#30

Post by KayW »

:crossed_swords: :rabbit: :european_castle: Across the MOAT at last. None of the nudges revealed anything new, but for some reason I just wasn't connecting the dots...
Image
Thanks for a fun meta!
Contest Crosswords Combating Cancer (CCCC) is a bundle of 16 metapuzzles created to help raise money for cancer-related charities. It is available at CrosswordsForCancer.com.
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#31

Post by benchen71 »

Solver update:

ellequin
kurtalert
DIS
ReB
Cate C
JM
Philip Chow
Patrick OBrien
Sanne
Mikey G
KayW

That's a total of 41. Answer soon...
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! :shock:
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#32

Post by benchen71 »

Here's the solution to "No Minor Entertainer":

No Minor Entertainer (solution).png

This was intended to be a "week 1" puzzle. However, it was made more difficult by the fact that the acronym VFT for VERY FAST TRAIN was not well known in the US. Sorry about that!
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! :shock:
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Seattle DB
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#33

Post by Seattle DB »

I greatly enjoy Benchen's puzzles, and he is an Adult Entertainer, but I don't know which one of these guys is him...
Thunder from down under.jpg
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#34

Post by benchen71 »

Seattle DB wrote: ↑Sun Oct 08, 2023 8:03 pm I greatly enjoy Benchen's puzzles, and he is an Adult Entertainer, but I don't know which one of these guys is him...
I have a beard so that narrows the options slightly! :lol:
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! :shock:
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#35

Post by benchen71 »

It's taken me a while to find time to process the competition result, but the winner of the MOAT Music Meta Pack is...

@spid4567

Congratulations! Your pack has been sent to the email address you supplied. If it doesn't appear in your inbox, check the spam folder! :D

If you didn't win and you have not yet bought a copy, check it out here. US$10 gets you access to 12 music-themed metas that will not be publicly available at any time in the future. In other words, this is not a pre-release pack!
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! :shock:
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hoover
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#36

Post by hoover »

I take it BLANK SPACE has something to do with Taylor Swift?
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#37

Post by benchen71 »

hoover wrote: ↑Mon Oct 09, 2023 12:53 am I take it BLANK SPACE has something to do with Taylor Swift?
Yes, one of her big hits:

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! :shock:
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MikeyG
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#38

Post by MikeyG »

I can't believe I missed BLANK SPACE! Great Easter egg. When it comes to fun meta constructors, I'll write your name!
Less cross words, more crosswords.

Solve my latest "Pun of a Kind" Meta!: 97. Drab Bag
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spid4567
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Location: Ann Arbor, MI

#39

Post by spid4567 »

Ben,
Thanks so much for the MOAT Music Meta Pack! It was in the spam folder, so thanks for the heads up! I am looking forward to going through it!
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