Welcome to our ‘Not As Easy as ABC‘ grid logic puzzles!
If you enjoy grid puzzles like our Easy as ABC puzzles or are a fan of grid logic puzzles like Sudoku, you will love these ‘Not As Easy As ABC’ puzzles. They follow the same basic rules as the Easy as ABC puzzles, but have one twist – and that is that instead of their being a letter at the top of the grid saying which letter is nearest – there is a letter and number saying how far away from that edge the letter shown is.
Simple…??
Well no!!! This is where the twist comes in. Remember the spaces – each row or column will contain exactly one space and that isn’t counted.
Therefore there are two options for where each letter is placed depending on the layout and letters already placed.
The Goal & Grid Layout
A standard Not As Easy as ABC grid will have anything from 3 to 25 or more cells arrayed as a square or rectangle.
Around the edges will be a letter and number. It will look like the grid below.
What Are Not As Easy As ABC Puzzle Rules?
The aim of the Not As Easy as ABC puzzles is to complete the grid like the one below:
Note how each row and column features just one of each letter – and one space.
Not as Easy as ABC logic puzzles, like so many other puzzles of this type, has deceptively simple rules!
There are just two fundamental rules that govern every move:
- No Repeats! Every row and column must contain exactly one of each letter and one space.
- Row & Column Limits: The clue letter and number represents the number of cells across the grid that letter should be placed – not counting spaces!
Pro Tips & Strategies for Solving Not As Easy As ABC for Beginners
1. The ‘Only One of Each Letter and a Space per Row/Column Rule
This rule is essential when looking to complete the grid. When you see a letter or space in a column/row you know it cannot be repeated.
2. The Process of Elimination
As the grid becomes more complete you can start eliminating options. For example, if a row has only one space left – you can instantly work out what it is. However, this can also work when rows are less complete depending on the grid, so it is worth checking if you get stuck.
3. Don’t Forget the Spaces!
The spaces add a degree of trickiness into the puzzles, not least because it is difficult to identify what is a space and what is just an uncompleted cell – therefore I strongly recommend filling ‘space’ cells with an X or another symbol so you can see them with ease on the grid.
Not As Easy as ABC Walkthrough
This is the pùzzle grid we are going to use for this walkthrough. If you would like to follow along, you can download it here
Star Battle Walkthough
Step1:
Start by looking at the clues and seeing what information they give. Notice how the clue H6 tells us that the H will be the 6th letter in that column. However when you count where the H which is already placed is, it is 7 away from the edge.
Therefore we know that the space cell will be one of the empty ones.
I mark the cells where spaces can appear to help keep track of them. This is probably more useful with larger grid puzzles.
Step 2: Compare Columns and Rows
Remember that only one of each letter and one space can appear in each column and row.
Note the letter E is exactly 4 cells from the edge – therefore we know that none of the cells above it can be a space cell – therefore one of the cells below the E will be the space cell in this column.
However – when we look at the row marked B5 on the right – we can see that the B is exactly 5 cells in from the edge, therefore the cell which is in both the column and row CANNOT contain a space, narrowing down our options
Step 3: Process of Elimination
We soon see that knowing where letters and spaces CAN’T go, opens up where they CAN go. Here we know that the space in the left hand column must be above the H. We know that the space in the row second from bottom must be AFTER the B. Therefore the only place it can go is where it is highlighted.
Below you will see that as we know where there can’t be spaces, the only place where a space can go in this row is where the arrow is highlighting it:
Remember the ‘Only One of Each Letter in a Row/Column’ Rule
When looking to place letters following the clues around the edge, take a look along the column and row and see if that letter already exists. That will narrow down your options and perhaps make it clear where a letter is to be placed as we can see below.
While theoretically the B could be placed in either the second or third cell from the bottom depending on where the space cell is, the fact that a B already exists in the second row from the bottom means there is only one place where the B in this column can go to avoid duplicating letters in a row or column.
Although I haven’t marked it, you will also see that this has shown us where the space should go in this column. It must go in the bottom row as there is already a space in the second from bottom.
Continue working through like this.
Continue to Fill Cells Following the Rules
Continue to fill the grid. As you can see, I have marked each clue that is complete and clues where I have not yet filled the cell, because there are more than one option currently available
Keeping in mind the ‘no touching’ rule, we know that a star can’t go where I’ve circled the X below. Therefore we also know that the two regions with arrows must contain a star, and we know that only one star can be in each row/column. Therefore by the process of elimination we can place the next two stars.
When Enough Cells Are Complete – Try Eliminating Options
When enough cells are complete – you can try looking to see which letters are missing and seeing if the options have been eliminated making only one cell possible. We can see this below. In the column that the arrow is pointing to, the letter B is required. There are three open cells, however the placement of Bs already on the grid mean that only one call is the correct position.
And the same applies now to a row where we can see that all columns have a B except one, and therefore we can see exactly which row and cell the B should go in so as not to result in a duplicate letter in any row/column
Mark Options If Necessary
It may be helpful to mark where you have two options available. Personally, I don’t do this till near the completion of the grid as otherwise it becomes to messy to be able to get a quick overview, however I do find it helpful. Here is an example:
Revisit Unsolved Clues
As the grid becomes filled with more letters, don’t forget to revisit any clues that you haven’t completed yet as they may now be obviously solvable.
Keep working through the grid, eliminating options and looking for opportunities until the grid is completed.
