Variety: Diagramless

I came late to this party - busy time of year - but offer this little hint... Take a standard crossword grid without the numbers. Fill in the numbers and figure out what the list of Across & Down clues must include. Do this for several grids until you have a real understanding of why the numbers are where they are. https://www.xwordinfo.com/Grids?show=all This simple strategy will up your diagramless game instantly. Many diagramless puzzles use grid art (= not normal symmetry), so a good next level would be to figure out the numbering implications of unusual grids: https://www.xwordinfo.com/Thumbs?select=symmetry

It's great to see a diagramless puzzle in the variety slot. They're my second favorite with cryptics being my #1 choice. Cryptics, however, are everywhere in the English speaking world while the diagramless puzzles are very rare. I wish there were more of them in the NYT, even if it meant fewer acrostics and other variety puzzles.

If you happen to have Crossword Compiler or similar, you can use that to solve the diagramless. Setting the symmetry and trying various placements is MUCH more convenient than pencil and paper. As an inexperienced diagramless solver, it took me a quite while to realize that the first three acrosses had to be on separate lines. Like others I first wanted THE BABE but when I noticed the MBI from ARMY and WEB and LAIC, BAMBINO popped in. After that it was slow but steady progress.

Let me join in the small chorus of Diagramless lovers. I'm old enough to remember the halcyon days when the puzzles appeared much more frequently in the rotation and there would be two offered, omitting the grid and the format hint. I found this one more challenging than usual and lots of fun to figure out. @Liz B, I agree about those SEQUINEd VISIGOTHs.

I always enjoy the diagramless puzzles, such fun and my absolute favorite type! This one I found particularly challenging, but eventually got it rolling after needing a little Google assistance for another nickname at 4 & 6A!

Considering there are but two favorable posts and one favorable reply, it's no wonder we don't see a bevy of diagramless puzzles. Not many takers out there. They are not my favorite, but will do one in a pinch.

I love the diagramless puzzles! I really look forward to their appearance twice a year. Would love to see a book of them. Would love to see them more often. That said, I thought I wasn't going to get very far on this one. I got all the way to 4A and 6A and thought, "Ah! THE and BABE!" Alas, not even close. Okay, I knew the BAMBINO but not the GREAT BAMBINO. So I had to argue with the Downs until things slotted into place. And then 14A--GOOD CHARLOTTE???? Never heard of them. Never would have gotten it, given the grid layout, so I had to look that up in order to proceed. But once past that roadblock, things settled down and were solvable. I didn't realize the diagram was a house until I came to the column; it looked more like a giant arrow to me. And I also didn't notice the GREAT-GOOD-AVERAGE-POOR ladder down the middle. VISIGOTH and SEQUINED on the same row tickled my funny bone (aka "humerus").

I enjoyed the Hex Nuts puzzle, but I was stuck on one snag for the longest time. I was convinced I had Row C correct (not!), and I could not fathom how to read Hex 5. Once I realized there was another very similar word for Row C, it finally fell into place.

Once again, it's Diagramless Week! YAY!!!! My favorite Variety Puzzle. Some years ago, the NY Times published 7, 8, or 9 or these a year. Now we have to get by with only 2 or 3. Please don't ever stop publishing these grand and venerable puzzles. I wish everyone would give them a try. As with regular crosswords, they may look impossibly hard at first until you practice and learn how to do them. With most Diagramless puzzles, the first trick is not trying to solve the wide-open grid all at once. Use scrap paper to build little corners and islands of interlocking pieces, and join them together as the joining-up places become evident. Then you can "move into" the grid once you've figured out the placement, or just finish up on scrap paper and call it done. This week's Diagramless puzzle is fun, and the placement of the fill is relatively easy to deal with. If you peek at the note and find out what kind of symmetry it has, that type of symmetry is much easier to begin with than normal rotational symmetry, since you know how each row has to fit across the width of the grid once you're sure of the fill. The puzzle flows naturally from top to bottom, right there at home in the grid itself. Sorry if I get cheer-leadery every time Diagramlesses show up. But it pains me to watch their frequency dwindle down, and hear disappointment expressed when they take their all-too-infrequent turn in the rotation. I just want to make sure the fans of the form are heard from too.

I must say that I have immense respect for the abilities of the people who can actually solve a Diagramless. Personally, I have to admit to being disappointed when I see the Diagramless, because I always look forward to the Novelty puzzle every fourth week. In that category, I hope we get the Spiral again soon. I am happy that at least the Novelty now does come at that interval, because for many years it was only every six weeks. Deb Amlen must remember those days well. P.S. Can anybody explain 14D in today’s (Saturday’s) Mini? I got KEY only from the crossings, but I absolutely cannot figure out what they meant by “and share one”.