Pips Answer for Monday, October 13, 2025
Complete NYT Pips puzzle solution with interactive board and expert analysis.
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Nyt Pips easy answer for 2025-10-13
Answer for 2025-10-13
I started today's Pips session by diving into the Easy puzzle, which was constructed by Rodolfo Kurchan. My strategy is always to look for the most restrictive clues first. The 'greater than 4' at (4,0) was the obvious starting point. Looking at the available dominoes—[0,3], [2,2], [1,1], [5,3], [0,2], [0,4]—there was only one value higher than 4: the 5 from the [5,3] domino.
This meant (4,0) had to be 5, which forced (3,0) to be 3. Next, I tackled the sum clue where (0,3) and (1,3) needed to equal 2. I had [1,1] and [0,2] as candidates, but I held off until I saw the 'equals' clue at (2,1) and (2,2). Since I had a [2,2] double, that felt like a perfect fit for an equals region.
Nyt Pips medium answer for 2025-10-13
Answer for 2025-10-13
For the Medium puzzle, Heidi Erwin gave us a real workout with those 'sum to 15' rows. Row 1 and Row 3 both needed to hit 15 across three cells.
Since the highest dominoes were [3,6] and [2,6], I knew I needed to pack those rows with 5s and 6s. I placed the [2,6] and [3,6] dominoes vertically to contribute their 6s to those sum rows. The 'equals' clue at (4,1) and (4,2) was the final piece of the puzzle, letting me slide the [2,3] and [3,5] dominoes into place to balance the remaining sums.
Nyt Pips hard answer for 2025-10-13
Answer for 2025-10-13
Finally, the Hard puzzle required some serious mental gymnastics. The sum of 10 at (1,1) and (2,1) was the bottleneck. With dominoes like [5,6] and [4,1], I had to figure out which combo could reach 10.
I realized (1,1) had to be 4 and (2,1) had to be 6. The 'equals' chain at (1,3), (2,2), and (2,3) was the trickiest part; I had to use the [1,2] and [0,5] dominoes in a way that their shared values lined up with the empty spots at (0,3) and (3,1). It took a bit of trial and error, but once the 6s were locked in, the rest of the board fell into place.
What I Learned
Today's puzzles really highlighted how important the 'empty' cells are. In the Hard puzzle, those empty squares at (0,3), (3,1), and (3,4) act as natural barriers that limit where your dominoes can pivot.
I also learned that when you see a sum of 15 in a 3-cell region, you are almost guaranteed to be using a 6 and a 5, or two 6s and a 3. It narrows down the search space significantly. Another cool trick I picked up was using doubles to satisfy 'equals' clues across different dominoes; it's a great way to clear out the doubles from your tray early on.