Touching Tails

Published Mar4 2024.

Update (Mar5 2024): added image examples to rules, and a clarification to the fourth rule.

Update (Mar9 2024): check out Pedro's fancy implementation!

Update (Mar9 2024): added puzzle from Seren!

Update (Mar10 2024): added puzzle Fortune.

Update (Mar11 2024): check out PuzzleSquareJP's genre listing!

Summary

Unite the lover mice by tracing their tails.

Background information and credits

Inspired by Anurag Sahay's Reachability (also on Kudamono). Genre name by Abi.

Special thanks to Abi, Blaž Urban Gracar, Katelyn Δ, and Seren for ruleset implication hunting!

And shoutouts to Katelyn Δ for misunderstanding the original rules in a clever way, sending me on a seven-month journey through geometry heck.

Playtesters:

Rules

Draw non-intersecting paths through the centers of some cells.

Examples

Incorrect - disjointed path:

Path not connected to a mouse, and mouse not connected to a path.

Incorrect - endpoint not facing another endpoint:

Path endpoint faces a mouse instead of another endpoint.

Incorrect - two networks:

Two paths in one network, and two paths in a separate network.

Incorrect - two regions of unoccupied cells:

Paths split the unoccupied cells into two regions.

Correct:

Unique solution follows all rules.

Puzzles

  1. Lovers
  2. Polycule
  3. Telemours
  4. Seattle

Edges

Paths may not pass through bold edges.

  1. Absentee
  2. Split Ladder

Clusters

Draw n paths extending from mouseholes of value n.

  1. Network
  2. Hearts Intertwined

Hex

Puzzles on a hex grid.

  1. Fortune

From other authors

Seren [info]