hutt's puzzle dump

     In the close distance, a pair of trolls are guarding the castle gate. Felix tells Renn, "Stow your axe and follow my lead." The men approach the gate at a friendly pace. Troll 1 says, "Halt! Where do you two think you're going?" Felix says, "To the gate." The trolls share a short-lived chuckle, then Troll 1 says, "Very well, then. But we can't let you pass any farther." Felix inquires, "What if we answer your riddles three?" The trolls smile widely. Troll 2 says to the other, "We've had no one to riddle but ourselves. Come on, it'll be just like old times!" Troll 1 gives in. Renn steadies himself.      Troll 2, who noticed Renn's ax, writes an equation into the dirt. 2*3*5=60 <4>      He says, "Here is riddle one. Just some simple practice, eh?" Renn asks, "Isn't this nonunique," then, "Isn't this impossible?" The troll says, "Your weapons may be more po...

    A vast moat encircles Neward's castle. Felix looks for a drawbridge and notices that it's been broken from the inner end. After he asks Terra if the bridge was broken before she left, she grows vines from the ground beneath them that cross the chasm. She claims, "I have to use a lot of mana. You do not see some of the vines. Those vines dig into the ground, and help to make these vines stick." Once the exposed vines reach the other end, they become stiff. To avoid suspicion, Terra walks effortlessly across a tightrope and through the castle gate, leaving the explorers to brainstorm a safe way across on their own. Renn thinks about trying to zip across. Rules:  Solve as a Latin square. Diamonds are the centers of Zipper Sudoku clues: lines extend in two directions in equal distances from each clue, and cells connected equidistant from the center of a diamond sum to the digit in the diamond. The lines may only move horizontally and vertically and no cell will be vis...

     The trek to the fortress is mostly uneventful, with one noteworthy exception. It comes as they traverse a low, bumpy area with gray dirt and scarce grass. The few blades that could adapt in the environment stand out distinctly. The three travelers make light conversation. While walking backward, Renn trips over something but manages to regain his balance. Looking down, he realizes he disturbed a termite mound. Felix is merely disappointed, but Terra suddenly seems deathly afraid. She says, "The spell also means that I am made of plants. I do not feel pain. But, I was told, if I ally, and I am not complete, then I will not be complete when I ally." Felix concludes, "We ought to rebuild the mound so that she doesn't fracture a bone." When Renn suggests that she could mend herself, Terra claims that what she's made of is highly specific and hard to grow perfectly; she fears that the wrong plant could have strange consequences on turning back. She sighs and...

     Once the trio are certain they haven't been followed, they rest in a serene meadow. Renn's stomach growls. He says, "I didn't expect to need so many rations. We may have to stock up on food somewhere." To this, Terra says, "I can grow something for us." She brushes aside some flowers and concentrates on a lone patch of grass. Suddenly, a tomato bush begins to grow, its orbs beginning to manifest among the leaves... but it stops short. Terra staggers weakly. She exerts, "I must be low on mana again." After some slight hesitation, a small sector of flowers wilts. Then, the bush matures. Felix decides to bake some of the tomatoes while Terra slowly focuses to restore the flowers alongside her mana.     Renn tells her, "You seem to know your power well. What else have you grown before?" Terra says, "My master loves exotic fruits. If I find a plant, I can grow it later. I keep many seeds. And I have been spending lots of mana on ...

     Everyone in the castle seems to swarm to the sides: the soldiers to figure out what's happening, and the civilians to be close to the soldiers. After Terra dons the cloak she used at the checkpoint, the three in the tower slide down some vines and run for the main gate. On the way, nobody is relaxed enough to stop or even really suspect them. It's only once they've taken a few paces out the gate that somebody yells at them to turn around. As they do, they behold Richard, looking dapper as ever and rather furious. His eyes are trained on Terra as he yells, "I thought it was you! Dahlia was right, you came for them!" He starts to run for the unattended bonfire when, instinctively, Terra works to impede him. Yet, with her present attitude, she wishes not to constrain him entirely. She calls to Renn and Felix for a little guidance. Rules: Divide the grid into rectangular regions and solve as a Cocktail Lamp . Clue numbers are always in the top-left corner of thei...

FYTTE THE THIRD   in which powers extend to new territories.     After a decently long back-and-forth with Terra over the probable intentions of Neward, her qualms begin to overtake her. She admits, "I think my master did ally, a year or two years ago. It happened when my master got a golden bookcase. After that, my master has not been speaking the same way; my master has not been speaking about the same things." She calls off the vines, and neither of the men retaliate. Finding his old confidence, Renn says, "Someone must remind him of who he was, who he should be. I want to confront him." When Terra sends the vines back around Renn, Felix says, "We wouldn't be violent. I think he's been possessed. We should only need to dispel what is acting through him." Terra asks, "Dispel?" Felix elaborates: "It is like cleaning up magic. We would not be hurting your master. If anything, he would feel much better." A beacon of hope swells w...