How to Solve Sudoku Puzzles

Y u no love Japan?!?!

   
        "Why the (insert swear word here) would I want to do a Sudoku puzzle?" Well, I can't force you to try one out, but virtually everyone I've introduced a Sudoku to said that it was easier and more rewarding than they thought. Yes, I promise, no math! Give it a try, and if you don't feel that sense of accomplishment when you complete one (and yes, you *will* succeed), then sue me.

I repeat, no math!

Your life goal.

What are the rules?

• The numbers 1-9 (including 1 and 9) must all be present in a row, no repeats
• 1-9 must also be in every column, no repeats, no exceptions
• 1-9 must ALSO be in the nine 3x3 boxes, no repeats, no exceptions!
• That's about it.

        If that sounds next to impossible, or somehow reminds you of the matrix, let me reassure you that it's easier than you think. Ready?

     
     
How to Succeed:


         1. Pick out your enemy. Size him up. If it's your first Sudoku, I recommend a beginner or easy puzzle.

You're going down, Websudoku.com.

        2. Use the rules of the game to win the game. What do I mean? Well, if you remember, a number cannot appear more than once in any row or column, so we can use this to imagine lines where 3's cannot go. Like so.

Using the 3's "line of sight" to see where that gets us.

        3. If we look at the box in the center, we can see that it is lacking a three, and that there is only one place for that 3 to go. So, we've solved that box! Go ahead and fill that in, and enjoy a little rush of dopamine.

1 down, 42* to go.

        4. Try that strategy with whatever numbers you like. On the easiest of puzzles, that should be enough. After going through a full cycle of all the numbers, you might want to check for newly forced boxes.

4's, yo.

Using the newly discovered 4's in a chain reaction.

          5. Looking at this situation right here, we can see that in the third row there is only one number missing. After quick analysis, it becomes apparent that the only number missing is 9. So put the nine where it belongs and dance a jig, dingus.

Mad skills.

        6. We didn't forget the rule about 3x3 boxes, did we? If you recall, boxes must also follow the 1-9 rule. Since we found a 9 for the box in the top left corner already, none of the other squares in that box can have a 9. So we can combine our box rule here with our "missing number" strategy from step five, and conveniently place a different nine on the board.

Ooh, purple!

       6.5. Then, we can go back and finish off the column with ease!

          7. I promise, you'll pick up speed as you do more boxes, and after a while you'll be solving these puzzles like this:

Rain Man speeds, it's how we do.

       And this:

Almost there...

         8. Fill in the last box with pride, and show everyone in the immediate vicinity your accomplishment! Then, sit back and remark on your logic abilities, and see if you can do another one more quickly.

Brain training games? Pssht, I do Japanese logic brain training.

         

          You may get stuck at points, where finding the next number might take a long while. It happens, just make sure you try different strategies, and look through every possible outcome. If you're looking for more advanced strategy for more difficult puzzles, check out this article.

             

         

                                                                                                 P.S. - The last number was an 8!

Shit on Your Neighbor

Everybody loves Dinkleberg.

          This is a game that I love to play with a large group of people who "deny" being card players. It's simple, takes five minutes to learn, and despite the title's appearance, is actually appropriate for people of any age. This game doubles as a conversation piece, but beware: you may end up making as many enemies as friends. You may or may not lose your existing friends as well. Sometimes I play this game by myself.

The Basics:

• At least 1 deck of cards, without jokers
• 2+ players; better with more people!
• 3 tokens per person (e.g. quarters, chips)
• Objective: Be the last person with tokens by never having the lowest card.
• The morality of a competitive arse

Gameplay:

1. One player, the dealer, gives one card face-down to everyone at the table, including his or her self.  The dealer rotates each game.
2. The player left of the dealer begins. After looking at their card, they can decide whether or not to trade with the person to their left ("shitting"). Aces are low.
3. If the neighbor has a King, they can reject the trade by flipping it over, and saying whatever derogatory phrase they want. Otherwise, they are forced to give up their card.
4. Each player has this choice until play goes to the dealer. 
5. On the dealer's turn, he or she can either keep their card or take the top card off of the remaining deck.
6. All of the cards are then flipped over, and the player(s) with the lowest value must throw a chip into the pot. 
7. In the case of a tie between two people who are both on their last token, another game is played.
8. The player with the last token gets everyone else's.

Additional Notes:

        Some people I play with play on their honor, in which a person's "honor" (nothing) is their last token. My mama raised me not to throw away my honor that quickly, though.

Clarifications, questions, or comments? Always willing to help.

Chinese Poker

None of this.

         Whenever I attempt to explain this game, most people's eyes glaze over. Hopefully from now on I can just redirect them to this blog, and save myself the breath. Before we begin, let me assure you, this game does not involve any ancient Chinese proverbs, poorly translated movies, or bizarre finger traps. In fact, there's not much ethnic about this game at all, besides me learning it from my Asian mom, who learned it from her Asian mom. Just saying, I've managed to integrate this game to my white friends, and I think you'll like it, regardless of race.


                                                                     

The Basics:

• 2 standard decks (with jokers) are recommended
• 2-5 players (though we've broken that rule a few times)
• No poker chips needed.
• Objective: get rid of all of your cards first.
• Knowledge of poker hands is a prerequisite (we've got you covered, though! Five card draw guide here.)
• Aces are high or low, straights can go roundabout

Gameplay:

1. The dealer hands out fifteen cards face-down to each player before the game begins. The remaining cards are discarded.

2. As per Chinese custom (I lied, I'm a filthy liar) the player with the three of hearts goes first. If there are multiple 3-hearts out, we go by Chinese Food Friday custom: an intense game of rock-paper-scissors is played until a winner is determined.


3. The first player decides what poker hand to lay down first -i.e. a pair of 6s. (Note: only the pair is played, no other cards.) Play goes clockwise.


4. The next player, in order to play anything, must lay down a better hand of the same kind* -i.e. a pair of 7s. Otherwise, he passes.


5. When everyone passes, the player who laid down the best hand can decide what to play next. Play goes until someone successfully rids their hand of cards.


*The only exception to this rule is if the hand played is a single card. At any point on a single card, a player may play a full house (this is referred to as "stabbing") or a four of a kind with a kicker (this is loosely referred to as "exploding") on top. After that, better five card hands must be played on top.

What now?

The winner of the round gets his very own trump value (first win- 3, last win- Ace). Everyone plays the next round with the trump value being higher than ace (still lower than joker). The goal of the match is to raise your trump value to ace and then win a final time. However, you can stop whenever.


A bit confusing? An example of a real game can be found here: ____________






Suggestions, questions, comments? Reach us. (info in the "About Me" section)
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Five Card Draw... for Dummies

          To be honest, I don't play poker games (except this) all that much. It's not that they're not fun, I just don't like to gamble away my money on games too often -i.e. I'm spineless. However, this is still a game that everyone should have in their repertoire. For those of you who are a little more daring with your cash, this game can be a great way to have a good time and swindle others out of their money.

The Basics:

• 2-6 players recommended
• The objective is to have the best five-card hand at the table.
• Standard 52-card deck(s)
• Cash, fake or real, required
• A "dealer chip" required

The Gameplay:

1. Each player antes, or puts a set amount of cash into the pot. This is the money to be won by the player with the best poker hand.
2. The cards are dealt out, five to each player.
3. The player to the left of the dealer decides whether to bet, or check (not bet) depending on their cards. Betting goes clockwise, with subsequent players deciding whether to raise call (match) a bet, or fold (give up). This continues until everyone is satisfied with their bets. Note that folding does not result in a refund of one's money.
4. All those who are still playing determine how many of their cards they wish to replace. This is done in a clockwise fashion.
5. Another round of betting occurs, just like in step 2. 
6. The poker hands are turned over, and the player with the best hand wins the pot.

The Hands:

(unless you're this guy)

• Four of a Kind with a Kicker- (ex. K K K K A) Less than 1 in 1000 of your hands should actually produce this. Pretty self-explanatory. If you play against someone with this hand, give up the fight of your life.
• Full House- (ex. 3 3 3 2 2) This hand is rarer than it may seem, and I assure you, it's really quite good. Kick ass and relax with this hand. A triplet and a pair make a really good team.
• Flush - (ex. 2 5 7 J A of hearts) You're pretty well off if you've got this. This trumps everything lower on the list, and consists of five cards of the same suit. In the case of a tie, the highest card of the flush counts for the win, and so on and so forth.
• Straight- (ex. 5 thru 9, off suit) Not a bad hand at all. 5 cards with their values in a row, but not all of the same suit. The highest card in the straight is used as a tie-breaker. 
• Three of a Kind- A fairly uncommon and decent hand that can lure someone with a two pair out of a lot of money. The other two lone cards are used as tie breakers.
• Two Pair- (ex. two 6's, two 9's) A somewhat common hand that can usually win the round. In the case of a dispute, the highest pair overall wins. A single card tiebreaker is used if necessary.
• Double Card/Pair- A very common hand, and therefore the second worst. If the win comes to a tie between pairs, the higher value pair wins. If the pairs are the same value, then the rest of the cards are used in a single card tiebreaker.
• Single Card/High Card- It's  impossible to not have this hand- which is why it is so worthless. If no player has a rarer hand, the winner is determined by who has the highest value single card. If there is a tie, the second highest card is used, then third, etc. On the off-chance that everything is a tie, those two players will split the pot.

Tips and advice to come. Clarifications, questions, or comments? We're always willing to help.

Bartok

    We're not really sure what language Bartok comes from, or what it means, but it's one of our favorite games. There's tons of room to be creative, and this game (sometimes called Shithead, by the way) always results in a lot of laughs and (friendly or not-so-friendly) yelling. Ideally, Bartok takes over an hour, and gets more fun as the game goes on. An outlandish party game which we hope you'll give a chance.

The Basics:

• 2-4 players ( two decks for up to 6 players)
• Standard 52-card deck(s)
• The objective is to get rid of all of your cards.
• You may play 1 card at a time
• When the game begins, you may not tell any lies or ask any questions.
• Breaking the above rule results in the drawing of one card per offense.
• The winner of each round gets to make a new rule which can be anything
• ANY rule can be created, modified, deleted, etc. unless declared utterly stupid by everyone.

Gameplay:

• Seven cards are dealt out to every player before the game begins, and the top card of the pile is turned face up. 
• The dealer announces when the game begins, and the player to their left must place a card of the same suit or value (i.e. on a 6 of spades, a spade or a 6 may be played). If they cannot play a card, they must draw a card and their turn is over.
• Play goes clockwise. 
• The penalty for breaking any of the rules (e.g. the no question rule) is drawing a card.
• When a player is down to one card, he or she must announce "Bartok." If they are caught not doing so, they must draw X amount of cards. (We usually use 3)
• When a player plays the last card in their hand, the round has ended and they win. Gameplay is paused for shuffling and rule-making.

Some of our Favorite Rules:

1. Snaps 
   • If a player has a card in their hand of the same value as the one out, they can lay it down regardless of whose turn it is and declare "Snap!" 
   • Saying "Aww snap!" or some other variation of the phrase is acceptable.
2. 5-second rule
• For all those masterminds who like to plan out the whole game in advance on their turn, we invented this time limit. 
• Those who take longer than 5 seconds per turn will draw a card and have their turn skipped.
3. Strip Bartok
• Winner of the round chooses one loser to remove an article of clothing. Keep it classy.*
4. Taboo Words
• Certain words or types of words are not permitted during gameplay.
• Our favorites are "you" and pronouns
5. Card Values
• e.g. Aces reverse the direction of play, 2's make the next player draw two cards
6. Jokers Wild
• Jokers may be played on top of any card, and the player may declare a different suit.
7. Gestures and Actions
• Great for being an asshole. Sometimes we like to be fancy and ban elbows on the table.

*optional

Any suggestions, questions, or comments? Email us.