Today’s Pips

Credit: NYT

November is already racing by. Friday will be the end of the first week of the month, and on we hurdle toward Thanksgiving. It’s been kind of an easy-breezy month for Pips so far, also, with few really challenging Hard Pips to conquer. I suppose that will change like the weather. In any case, if you’re looking for help with today’s Pips or just want to compare notes, read on!

Looking for Wednesday’s Pips? Read our guide right here.

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How To Play Pips

In Pips, you have a grid of multicolored boxes. Each colored area represents a different “condition” that you have to achieve. You have a select number of dominoes that you have to spend filling in the grid. You must use every domino and achieve every condition properly to win. There are Easy, Medium and Difficult tiers.

Here’s an example of a difficult tier Pips:

Pips example

Screenshot: Erik Kain

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As you can see, the grid has a bunch of symbols and numbers with each color. On the far left, the three purple squares must not equal one another (hence the equal sign crossed out). The two pink squares next to that must equal a total of 0. The zig-zagging blue squares all must equal one another. You click on dominoes to rotate them, and will need to since they have to be rotated to fit where they belong.

Not shown on this grid are other conditions, such as “less than” or “greater than.” If there are multiple tiles with > or < signs, the total of those tiles must be greater or less than the listed number. It varies by grid. Blank spaces can have anything. The various possible conditions are:

• = All pips must equal one another in this group.
• ≠ All pips must not equal one another in this group.
• > The pip in this tile (or tiles) must be greater than the listed number.
• < The pip in this tile must be less than the listed number.
• An exact number (like 6) The pip must equal this exact number.
• Tiles with no conditions can be anything.

In order to win, you have to use up all your dominoes by filling in all the squares, making sure to fit each condition. Sometimes there’s only one way to solve the puzzle. Other times, there can be two or more different solutions. Play today’s Pips puzzle here.

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Today’s Pips Solutions And Walkthrough

Below are the solutions for the Easy and Medium tier Pips. After that, I’ll walk you through the Hard puzzle. Spoilers ahead.

Today’s Easy Pips

Today’s Easy Pips

Screenshot: Erik Kain

Today’s Medium Pips

Today’s Medium Pips

Screenshot: Erik Kain

Hard Pips Walkthrough And Solution

Here’s today’s Hard Pips:

Today’s Hard Pips

Screenshot: Erik Kain

The interesting thing about this shapeless, formless Hard Pips is that it has three = groups that each require four of the same Pip and another that requires three. At least three of these will require a double-sided domino.

We have three doubles: 0/0, 1/1 and 2/2. Of our available dominoes we have four blanks, four 3’s, four 2’s and four 4’s. We can rule out 4’s in one of our larger = groups, however, because of the Pink 4 tile. That leaves us with only three.

Step 1

I began with one assumption and two facts.

The assumption is that the 2/4 domino will go from Blue = into Pink 4. I assume this because of the next two facts.

The first fact is that we have no dominoes with a 2 on one side >4 on the other, which we’ll need for the Purple > 4 tile. The second fact is that while we do have a 3/5 domino that could work there, we have no 3/3 domino to go above it. Therefore, Dark Blue = is almost certainly blanks.

Begin with 6/0 in Purple > 4 up into Dark Blue =. Lay the 0/0 domino above that in the next two Dark Blue = tiles and the 0/4 domino from there into the free tile.

Today’s Hard Pips

Screenshot: Erik Kain

Step 2

Next, pop that 2/4 domino into Blue = over into Pink 4. The 2/3 domino can sit beneath that from Blue = into Orange = and the 2/2 domino will go vertically in the remaining two Blue = tiles.

Today’s Hard Pips

Screenshot: Erik Kain

Step 3

We’ll slot the 1/1 domino in the top two Purple = tiles and place the 1/3 domino from Purple = into Orange =.

Today’s Hard Pips

Screenshot: Erik Kain

Solution

Finally, the 3/5 domino goes from Orange = into the central free tile, the 3/4 domino goes from Orange 3 into Green 8 and the final 5/4 domino can slot into the final free tile down into Green 8. That’s all folks!

Today’s Hard Pips

Screenshot: Erik Kain

This was the kind of Pips puzzle where really examining what you need for each group makes all the difference. Picking a good starting point, like the Purple > 4 tile is crucial. Plotting everything out a few steps ahead is doable with a Pips like this, and I’m pretty sure this is the only solution for this one. But maybe you came up with something else?

Let me know if you solved this a different way on Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook. Be sure to follow me for all your daily puzzle-solving guides, TV show and movie reviews and more here on this blog!