Mental Judo: A Cryptic Blog (11)

It's collaboration time! Herzwesten and I have whipped up a quick cryptic for you! Here's what he has to say about the whole ordeal: We've all seen crosswords with phrases spread across two (or more) entries, and I've sometimes thought about how those entries are connected to one another. And I know it's a puzzle and they aren't physically connected, but wouldn't it be fun if they were? I brought this idea to Joe as a Portal-themed puzzle and he helped take it to the next level! Joe is always fantastic to work with and, who knows, it might continue to happen! Thanks to skaldskaparmal (please check out his puzzles ) for the helpful test solve, and also to Norah Sharpe (please check out her puzzles ) for an excellent definition (we leave it to you to guess which). You can solve online at  squares.io or in a Google sheet (just make a copy and you'll be good to go). Thank you for solving!

Today is a special occasion: my first published cryptic! I'm very grateful to AVCX for the opportunity. I was so fortunate to work with  Stella Zawistowski , who greatly improved the puzzle, and I'm also thankful for the testers and others on the AVCX team for their help! You can get the puzzle for $1 here (or you can  subscribe to get access to a ton of really good puzzles). --- If you found your way here from the AVCX puzzle, welcome!  Here's an overview of what's on this blog: Cryptics 101 : A series of 7x7 puzzles meant for people brand new to cryptics; each one introduces (and is limited to) a single clue type.  Cryptic of the Year : A series wherein each puzzle has a set of answers related to a specific year. Where in the World : A series wherein each puzzle has a set of answers related to a particular place in the world, with circled letters throughout the grid serving as a revealer. Collaborations : There are a few of these, including variety cryptics (go on

Seven of this puzzle's answers relate to a specific year—can you figure out which? Online solvers: the answer shows up when you complete the puzzle. Thanks to Juff (they construct , they solve , they do it all!), who requested this puzzle via a channel-point redemption on my stream—and who is our first repeat customer! Thanks also to dadgumituh and jmsr525 of The Rackenfracker for their critical eye and help improving this puzzle. If there's anything left in here that seems off, they likely noticed it first! Please let me know if you solve (joeadultman on Twitch   and Twitter ) , and thank you! [ fullscreen ]