Wednesday, May 8, 2013

Dragon's Maze Puzzle Answer

Here's the answer to last week's puzzle. If you want to remain unspoiled, don't click below!


First, solve the crossword clues:
  • Azorius: Hangman's need - NOOSE
  • Boros: Lowest point - NADIR
  • Dimir: Cost that can be paid while Sudden Shock is on the stack - MORPH
  • Golgari: Secret rulers of Mercadia - KYREN
  • Gruul: Type of bottle you get by combining two Bösium Strips - ELKIN
  • Izzet: It may be formal or fuzzy - LOGIC
  • Orzhov: "White & _____" (Weird Al single) - NERDY
  • Rakdos: Owl from Tidehollow - STRIX
  • Selesnya: Checkers' owner - NIXON
  • Simic: Like Hepburn's holiday - ROMAN
Each answer is a five-letter word. Five is also the number of colors in the game of Magic, so we look at the guilds sorted by color.

 White guilds:

 WU - NOOSE
WB - NERDY
WR - NADIR
WG - NIXON

 Blue guilds:

 WU - NOOSE
UB - MORPH
UR - LOGIC
UG - ROMAN

 Black guilds:

 WB - NERDY
UB - MORPH
BR - STRIX
BG - KYREN

Red guilds:

WR - NADIR
UR - LOGIC
BR - STRIX
RG - ELKIN

Green guilds:

WG - NIXON
UG - ROMAN
BG - KYREN
RG - ELKIN

As shown, two guilds have a common letter in the same position exactly when they share a color. What's more, the common letter depends on the common color, using the standard WUBRG ordering. Those common letters spell out NORIN. That's right, the winner of the Dragon's Maze is Norin the Wary. I guess he runs really fast?
Posted by HavelockV at 5:57 PM
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10 comments:

  1. JenesisMay 8, 2013 at 7:49 PM

    I missed the Selesnya and Simic clues. Doesn't help that there was a different film starring Katharine Hepburn titled "Holiday"!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. HavelockVMay 8, 2013 at 7:54 PM

      Whoa, that's an unfortunate coincidence!

      Delete
    2. JulesMay 8, 2013 at 8:05 PM

      Same thing tripped me up. Cool puzzle though!

      Delete
    3. metaghostMay 8, 2013 at 9:03 PM

      Also, I'm under the impression that technically the Phyrexians were the "secret" rulers of Mercadia.

      And I still have no idea what the "Checkers' Owner" clue is referring to.

      Delete
    4. HavelockVMay 8, 2013 at 9:09 PM

      "Checkers" was Richard Nixon's dog.

      Delete
    5. HavelockVMay 8, 2013 at 9:17 PM

      Ah, I didn't know Phyrexians were pulling the Kyren's strings. Bad clue on my part.

      Delete
    6. metaghostMay 8, 2013 at 9:21 PM

      I'm no flavor guru, I'm just regurgitating what a Google search seemed to indicate.

      And I see (about the dog).

      Delete
    7. WobblesMay 8, 2013 at 10:44 PM

      Huh. I figured out the crossword clues, (except I assumed phyrexia for the Gruul clue) but then I didn't have any idea what to do with them. I guess I also expected the answer to be one of the Maze Runners?

      Neat challenge though!

      Delete
    8. JenesisMay 9, 2013 at 2:13 AM

      I quite honestly expected the answer to be "NICOL BOLAS" because of the ten guilds and five-letter answers.

      Delete
  2. Nich GraysonMay 9, 2013 at 10:26 AM

    I thought the Answer to Fuzzy or Formal was COAT. I thought the Answer to Checker's Owner was WELLSPRING. Needless to say I never cracked this puzzle.

    ReplyDelete

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