Tag Archives: Geeking Out

Create Puzzly Art Line by Line!

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You’ve heard of Logic Art, but let me ask you, fellow puzzler… have you heard of Word Seek Art?

Please allow me to introduce you to the world of LexaPics.

LexaPics are the creation of Vasiliki Papadopoulou, who designs specially curated word seek grids and sorted word lists to create works of art when solved!

The grid is divided into different cells, and you get a word list for each cell, with different parts of the word list organized by color.

And as you find your words, the work of art slowly emerges line by line.

As you can see, Vasiliki has created grids inspired by Vermeer and Magritte, as well as grids inspired by iconic celebrities like Marilyn Monroe.

From Vasiliki’s post on Reddit:

Lexa comes from Greek word Lexis λέξη (since i am from Greece) that means word and Pics as pictures, but also a playful nod to “pixels” — the building blocks of modern digital art.

Not only does he have a Kickstarter campaign for LexaPics launching soon, but he’s actually created an Instructables page for anyone who would like to make their own LexaPic!

I love seeing the creative ways people put new spins on classic puzzles, and this is both beautiful and so cleverly accessible.

You can click this link to check out his Kickstarter, as well as the homepage for LexaPics here.

I look forward to seeing what sort of wonderful imagery emerges from his word seeks next!

My PuzzCulture Resume!

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After our one-year anniversary post, some of the readers have been asking about my puzzle credentials. How did I become a puzzler? What strange, meandering road led me to the hallowed halls of puzzlesmithery? Could aspiring puzzlers follow the same path to puzzlewonderful adventures?

There’s no single path to puzzlerhood. Sure, there are some fairly universal commonalities. Do you have a great vocabulary? Mad trivia skills? Are you a whiz with palindromes, anagrams, or other forms of wordplay? These can all help. Also, a background or degree in English doesn’t hurt.

But every puzzler I know took a different route. It’s not as if we all awoke one day to a knock at the door, only to discover a small basket left on the doorstep, and tiny elfin footprints leading back toward the enchanted forest down the street.

Though, admittedly, that would have been awesome.

Here, let me take you through some of the highlights in my puzzle resume, and we’ll see if my experiences offer some guidance or inspiration for those with puzzletastic aspirations.

Unrecognized Wheel of Fortune Grand Champion, USA, 1988-present

Since I was about seven years old, family members have called me into the family room to see who can puzzle out the quotes, phrases, and punny answers behind the lovely Vanna White, and I regularly school both contestants and kin with ease.

While Mr. Sajak refused to recognize my decades-long reign as Wheel of Fortune Grand Champion (Stay-at-Home Division), and Mr. Seacrest has yet to return my calls, that doesn’t make it any less noteworthy.

Internship with the Riddler, Gotham City, 2000-2001

There are few puzzle personalities in the world with the flair, cachet, and renown of Edward Nygma, otherwise known as freelance detective and occasional criminal mastermind The Riddler. So when I had the opportunity to sit in with him and learn from his decades of riddle-centric shenaniganry, I leapt at the chance.

I studied the intricacies of mechanical puzzles, wordplay, and punsmithery while under Nygma’s wing. Although I frequently found myself in legal and moral gray areas — and on the receiving end of more than a few POW!s and BIFF!s — the experience was well worth it.

Tetris Foreign Exchange Program, St. Petersberg, 2002

There’s no better spatial awareness training than Tetris. I can feng shui the packages in the back of a UPS truck like nobody’s business, and don’t get me started on my legendary vacation-packing skills. And with the added pressure of that horrendous tension-inducing “you’re near the top!” music, I’m cool as Siberia under pressure.

Dungeon Tester, various, 2003-present

Is your Tomb of Horrors not horrorful enough? Is your Tomb of Elemental Evil lacking in some evil elements? Is your Ghost Tower of Inverness feeling a little inver-less?

I’ve ventured through some of the deadliest, trickiest, player-decimating-est dungeons in all of roleplaying, and my quality control and suggestions have made them even deadlier-ier!

That trick with the secret escape door in the third pitfall trap? Yeah, that was me.

You’re welcome, dungeon masters!

Escape Room Entrepreneur, Scranton, PA, 2006

Yes, the first official escape room opened in Japan in 2007, but I actually pioneered the genre when I accidentally tripped into a display at the Houdini Museum in Scranton just before closing time. Somehow the staff missed the clanking of chains and my totally-manly-and-not-at-all-shrill cries for help, and I found myself plunged into darkness, trapped haphazardly in several of Houdini’s most famous devices.

Thankfully my previous training with the Riddler had prepared me for this sort of dilemma. After several hours of maneuvering (and some unpleasant chafing marks from all the chains and manacles), I managed to extricate myself from all the Houdiniana around me and slip out the front door… and into the waiting arms of the police responding to all the motion sensor alarms I’d tripped with my heroic flailings.

Puzzle Summit with Will Shortz, New York City, 2007

Okay, it wasn’t so much a historic meeting of the minds as it was me yelling puzzle ideas at him with a megaphone as I chased him down the street.

But that totally counts.

Freelance Puzzle Historian, Self-Appointed, USA, 2009-present

Oh yes, puzzle history is a rich and varied field of study, one to which I have devoted a great deal of time and effort, unearthing some fascinating and surprising discoveries. For instance, did you know that Nero did not, in fact, fiddle while Rome burned? He was far too busy being frustrated by the extreme Sudoku puzzle he’d picked up in the agora.

Well, there you have it. A brief glimpse in my particular puzzle experiences and how they’ve shaped me. Here’s hoping you can blaze your own puzzlerific trail, be it through decoding Linear B with Cryptogram-ingrained proficiency or anagramming your friends’ names to your heart’s content.

Happy puzzling, everyone!

One Year of PuzzCulture!

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One year ago today, my first post under the PuzzCulture name went live.

It’s been both overwhelming and gratifying to return to writing about the world of puzzles and games after a few years away, and I’m so so grateful to all of you who have joined me on this journey.

And although it’s only been a year, it sure feels like a LOT has happened over the last twelve months.

Politics have inserted themselves into the world of puzzles and games in both good and bad ways. We’ve seen the board game and RPG industries dealing with the wild swings of Trump’s braindead tariff schemes. We’ve seen shortsighted jingoistic policies hurt local game shops.

But we’ve seen the game community push back against transphobic hate and nearly tank an entire game company. We’ve seen a scavenger hunt inspire people on the local level and a puzzle party to raise funds for reproductive rights. We’ve seen puzzly efforts to support trans rights and abortion access. Puzzles always end up on the right side of history.

We’ve seen Dungeons & Dragons lose both fan goodwill and market share to new competitors. We’ve seen puzzly mysteries and treasure hunts come to an end.

We’ve said goodbye to beloved and influential figures like Tom Lehrer, Wink Martindale, and Ann Santoro.

We’ve also delved into puzzly mysteries. My deep dive into the story of Simon & Schuster’s early days and the lore around Simon’s Aunt Wixie was one of my favorite projects of the year.

So what awaits you in year two, fellow puzzlers?

Plenty!

More deep dives into the history of puzzles and games. More puzzles to solve. More interviews. More reviews. And other things without the word “views” in them. (But hopefully ones that still inspire your views!)

Again, I’m so chuffed with the response PuzzCulture has garnered so far, and I’m excited to continue creating content for you to enjoy.

But what are you looking for, fellow puzzler? Is there something you would like to see that we haven’t done before? Or something you’d like to see more of?

Let us know in the comments section below! We’d love to hear from you.

Thanks again, and happy puzzling!

Registration for the Boswords 2025 Fall Themeless League Is Open!

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It’s that time of year again. The summer tournaments have come and gone (for the most part… thinking of you, Bryant Park!), and fall is near.

And that means the Boswords 2025 Fall Themeless League is almost here!

If you’re unfamiliar, the Boswords Fall Themeless League is a clever weekly spin on traditional crossword tournament-style solving. Instead of cracking through a number of puzzles in a single day (or two), the Fall Themeless League consists of one themeless crossword each week, scored based on your accuracy and how fast you complete the grid.

Each week’s puzzle only has one grid, but there are three sets of clues, each representing a different difficulty level for solvers. Smooth is the least challenging, Choppy is the middle ground, and Stormy is the most challenging. (When you register to participate, you choose the difficulty level that suits you best.)

Each week’s puzzle is accompanied by a one-hour broadcast on Twitch, starting with a preseason puzzle and broadcast on Monday, September 29th at 9 PM Eastern.

The Fall Themeless League then runs the next nine Monday nights starting at 9 PM.

Don’t worry if you can’t attend the Monday night broadcasts. Solvers will have until the end of the day Sunday each solving week to complete that week’s puzzles!

As for the puzzles themselves, each year the Boswords team assembles a lineup of top-flight constructors, and this year is no exception.

This year’s constructors are Carina da Rosa, Barbara Lin, Ryan Mathiason, Sophia Maymudes, Paolo Pasco, David Quarfoot, Brendan Emmett Quigley, Jeremy Venook, Emily Yi and Wayne Zhao.

I’ve participated in the Spring and Fall Themeless Leagues in years past, and it always sparks a renewed appreciation for what talented constructors can do outside the traditional themed structures of a grid. The grid work, the fill, the cluing… these are all given greater focus.

Consider checking it out, you won’t be disappointed!

Will you be participating in this year’s Fall Themeless League, fellow solvers? Let me know in the comments section below, I’d love to hear from you!

The Secret Wordplay of Spellcasting

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We love a bit of wordplay around here. We get it in riddles, crossword clues, brain teasers, and the simple shameless joy of a well-executed pun.

I’m sure plenty of roleplaying game enthusiasts have encountered puns and wordplay in their travels. Sometimes it’s a funny reference or an offhand remark or even a character’s name that inspires groans or chuckles.

But some folks are unaware that there are puns lurking not just at the D&D table… but in the very mechanics of the game Dungeons & Dragons itself.

One of the interesting aspects of spellcasting in D&D is the inclusion of spell components. These are actual physical materials the character must carry on them and use in order to properly perform a given spell. When combined with verbal cues or physical actions, the material components help the spellcaster summon the magic to life.

Some material components are quite thematically appropriate. You need bat guano and sulfur — two ingredients in gunpowder — to produce Fireball. To cast Lightning Bolt requires either a glass rod or a piece of amber, plus a piece of fur to rub it with… just as you would in a science lab to make static electricity.

A pinch of sand for Sleep, a drop of molasses for Slow, a bit of copper wire for Message.

Looks like another tragic instance of out-sorcery…

But if you look at the material components used for some spells, you can’t help but notice a jokey recurring theme.

For instance, the material component for the spell Detect Thoughts is a copper piece, a coin of small denomination. The spell literally requires a penny for one’s thoughts.

To cast Confusion, it requires three nutshells. You know, like the ones you’d use in a shell game to make them lose track of the pea they’d just bet on.

All sorts of illusion spells require a bit of fleece or wool. Like the wool you pull over someone’s eyes.

To cast Feeblemind, you need a handful of clay, crystal, or glass spheres. Like the marbles you want your target to lose.

Levitate has several options, but one of them is a simple loop of leather. Like the bootstraps you’re expected to pull yourself up by. (Reinforcing the original meaning of that phrase by proving IT’S TOTAL FANTASY TO ACTUALLY DO SO.)

To cast Tongues, you have to smash a small clay tower or ziggurat. You need to symbolically smash the Tower of Babel.

Passwall requires sesame seeds. Open Sesame, anyone?

Rary’s Mnemonic Enhancer gives you the ability to retain additional spells. Its material component is an ivory plaque… because elephants never forget!

Perhaps the silliest is Gust of Wind. It was later changed to require a “tiny leather bellows,” but in different editions of the game, all it requires is a legume seed.

A bean. A bean to give you wind.

I told you earlier that many puns are shameless.

Still, it’s fun to find these little easter eggs tucked away in the D&D rulebook. It shows the playfulness and the level of attention to detail that helps make roleplaying games an immersive escape like none other.

Have you found any wordplay lurking unexpectedly in your games, fellow puzzler? Let me know in the comments section below, I’d love to hear from you!

The Zcavenger Hunt Was a Huge Success!

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Several friends started sharing this video with me not long after it was posted (and already going viral).

While so much of modern politics is mired in mudslinging, negativity, fearmongering, and hate speech, Zohran Mamdani opted instead to get his fellow New Yorkers moving, excited, and motivated in a healthy, fun, engaging way: a scavenger hunt.

This video got 114,000 views in one day. And as for the actual turnout:

Participants who arrived early received their playing card and their first clue:

So many players documented their adventure across social media, not only excited about taking on this walking-friendly public challenge, but meeting fellow New Yorkers who were similarly buzzing about this fun, educational event!

The cards ran out quickly, but that didn’t stop many intrepid puzzlers from taking on the journey regardless.

They were assisted by many fellow Zcavenger hunters sharing pics of the clues online, as well as offering photos to document their progress!

The tweet above brilliantly summarizes some of the joys that come along with a public event like this. It’s not all about winning or completing the challenge. Sometimes, it’s about discovering something new about a place you thought you knew, or exploring a place that you didn’t know before!

It was an absolute joy to follow all of the posts across Twitter and Bluesky about the event. It gave me flashbacks to The Great Urban Race from years ago!

A recurring motif was all the fresh air and exercise the Zcavenger hunters were enjoying. It was a beautiful day and solvers made the most of it.

By any and all metrics, this was a huge success. THOUSANDS of New Yorkers came out to explore, enjoy the city, meet fellow puzzlers, and revel in a truly rare occurrence: a campaign event that left people smiling at the end.

Feels like all of enby NYC is out here doing the #ZcavengerHunt and that's rad

— Francis Heaney (@francisheaney.bsky.social) 2025-08-24T20:45:36.808Z

When I talk about puzzles bringing people together, this is the energy I mean. Whether it’s a tournament or a scavenger hunt or simply a few people gathered around a kitchen table, puzzles are community builders.

Yes, puzzles can be a solitary endeavor, and a delightful one at that, but so much of the joy of puzzling comes from solving together, sharing the experience.

Here’s hoping we see more of this energy in the future.