Test of the Pathmaker

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The Test of the Pathmaker
(Test - Thought)
Level Required
Level 5
Demonstration
Demonstrated by kirie on June 11, 2018

Design a miniature landscape with Aqueduct towers. Challenge others to link the towers in a loop with pipes.

Different tower types have different linking rules.

Test Description

Design a miniature system of aqueduct towers, and challenge others to connect them in a loop. Living mossy towers (green) require the pipe to pass straight through, but turn adjacent. Dead (black) towers require the pipe to turn in place, but extend straight.

Principles

Principles of the Pathmaker will lead you through making one of each type of item needed to build a Pathmaker. Of course, you may trade for the materials, bypassing all of those steps.

• Dig a Cuttable Stone at a Hole
• Cut a Stone on a Rock Saw
• Cut a Hexas Plate Amethyst
• Cut a Looking Glass Jade
• Cut a Symmetry Turquoise
• Cut a Dragyn's Eye Citrine
• Mine a Huge Diamond
• Mine a Medium Topaz
• Mine Silver
• Build a Pathmaker
• Open your design for Judging
• Tear down your Pathmaker, OR do the following:
  • Have 7 Judges solve and rate your Pathmaker
  • Design rated Good by most judges
• All of the above, OR solve three recent winning Pathmakers

Additional Information

This is the first test in the disciple of Thought.

Passing the Principles

Principles of the Pathmaker will lead you through making one of each type of item needed to build a Pathmaker. You may instead trade for the materials, bypassing all of those steps. Once a Pathmaker has been built and opened for judging, all the tutorial steps — mining a huge diamond, cutting a Dragyn's Eye citrine, etc. — are immediately completed.

• Build a Pathmaker and tear it down
• Or have seven Judges solve and rate your puzzle.
• Or solve three recent winning Pathmakers

Solving a Puzzle

The test description isn't very clear about the rules. Here's some clarification.

A Pathmaker puzzle is played on a two-dimensional grid. Initially, each square either contains a red tower, blue tower, or is empty.

You may place pipe segments on a square, including squares containing a tower, by clicking on the square. Clicking on a square again cycles through the possible pipe options for that square:

• Straight pipe, top-to-bottom.
• Straight pipe, left-to-right.
• Pipe with a 90 degree bend (4 possible orientations).

The object of the puzzle is to join all towers into a single closed loop, while obeying these rules:

• All pipes must connect up correctly to adjacent squares
• You may only have one pipe segment per square, i.e. you cannot have a "cross" pipe.
• Pipes on a square with a blue tower must be straight.
• Pipes on a square with a red tower must be a 90 degree bend.
• One of the pipes connected immediately adjacent to a blue tower must be a 90 degree bend. (Note: the rules only require one of the two to be a bend, but both can be bends if you like).
• The two pipes connected immediately adjacent to a red tower must be straight.

The Pathmaker will not let you place pipes that violate these rules.

To start, click on the face of the large board.

Passing the Test

The 2 highest-rated puzzles each week will pass the Test.

Needed to Demonstrate the Principle

• 2 Hexas Plate Amethyst
• 2 Dragyn's Eye Citrine
• 2 Huge Diamond
• 10 Medium Topaz
• 100 Silver Wire

Test Passers

• 08/20/2018 Nissim (Swenett 1386, -1014)
• 07/02/2018 atom (Meroe Desert -167, -7027)
• 07/02/2018 KayGee (South Sinai 3360, 4767)
• 06/25/2018 Spatulus (South Sinai 3362, 4767)
• 06/25/2018 Gnarph (Meshwesh Delta 999, 7015)
• 06/18/2018 Tunnen (Asyut 1817, 2018)
• 06/18/2018 Freeportkid (Meshwesh Delta 1003, 7024)