NG 169

New game 169 is now available.


Round 1: T R R E A C E B O

I had REAR, CARET, TERRACE (it's practically spelled out there), ABREACT (I mentioned this back in episode 2: "to experience an abreaction"), and REACTOR / CREATOR.  For a moment I thought that BOATRACE was there but that duplicates the wrong vowel.  I also noted that a final E instead of that O would have allowed CEREBRATE ("to think") for nine.

Seven seems to be the limit here; the others are CATERER / RETRACE, ERECTOR, TABORER (someone who plays a tabor, which is a small drum), CEREBRA (plural of CEREBRUM), and OCREATE ("having an ocrea or ocreae; sheathed").

My selection: TERRACE


Round 2: N U P I D U R T E

I had RUIN, TURNIP, and UPTURNED.

UPTURNED is the only eight; the sevens are PRINTED, INTRUDE / UNTRIED / TURDINE ("belonging or related to the thrushes [...]"), and UPTREND / PRUDENT.

My selection: UPTURNED


Round 3: Target 164 from 75 25 4 5 10 3

My first thought was to make this as 4*41, but although there are some near misses I was not able to make the 41.  But switching back to the standard method brought dividends in the shape of 164 = 3*25 + 75 + 10 + 4.

My selection: 164 = 3*25 + 75 = 10 + 4


Round 4: I R L E T A G C A

I had RILE, LITRE, RETAIL, ARTICLE / RECITAL, CARTAGE, and that guided me to CARTILAGE.  Woohoo, a full monty!

Just as well, as I could easily have missed the eights: TRAGICAL (variant form of TRAGIC), GLACIATE ("to cover with ice or glaciers"), and TAILRACE ("the race, flume, or channel leading away from a waterwheel or the like").

The other sevens are GLACIER / GRACILE ("gracefully slender") and REGALIA.

My selection: CARTILAGE


Round 5: H J D O E M B H U

An ill-fitting assortment this time; I had MODE, JUMBO, and DEMOB ("to discharge (a soldier) from the army").

The other fives are HOMED, DUMBO, and ODEUM ("a hall or structure for musical or dramatic performances").

My selection: JUMBO


Round 6: Target 254 from 100 75 50 8 9 6

The standard method would suggest getting to 250 then adding 4.  That seems difficult, though, and I was a bit stumped until I realised that instead of 4 I could make 54; the rest of it then fell nicely out to give 254 = 8*(75 - 50) + 6*9.

My selection: 254 = 8*(75 - 50) + 6*9


Round 7: S E E W T E O N M

I had WEES / EWES, SWEET, SWEETEN, and wondered about TONEMES (TONEME (Chambers): "(in a tone language) a phoneme which can be distinguished from another only by its particular intonation").  I recalled checking up on it before, though, and knew that the Macquarie did not list it.

The other seven is MENTEES (MENTEE: "a person who is being supervised or guided by a mentor").

My selection: SWEETEN


Round 8: Target 140 from 50 100 75 8 10 2

A disappointing finish to the numbers rounds, although I did take the scenic route.  I focused on the factor of 10 and first found 140 = (2*8 - 100/50)*10, then took the more sensible simpler approach of 140 = 100 + 50 - 10.

My selection: 140 = 100 + 50 - 10


Round 9: FLUID LINE

The problem of the conundrum generation process that I use is that I never know if the result is going to be usable, or even anything that I've heard of.  Sometimes I have to go through a great many in order to get one, and the longer I go the hastier I get in moving on.  This was one such case, alas, where I was presented with a different form and tried an unlikely FLUID LINE before looking for the next candidate.  It was solvable, though, and I like to think I might have done so with that certainty.  A shame, as it turns out I was on a maximal game until this point.

My selection: [invalid -- tried FLUID LINE after 4.9s]
Best: NULLIFIED