Puzzles by difficulty

Difficulty here is measured, not guessed: a sudoku is graded by the hardest technique it needs, a maze by how long its path is against how big it is, a word search by how many directions the words can run in.

• Easy

  For a hand that is still learning. Word searches run left to right and downwards only, with filler letters picked at random so the words stand out; sudoku fall to single candidates; mazes have many short dead ends and a way out that stays near.

  30 puzzles

• Medium

  The usual classroom sheet. Word searches add the diagonals and start blending the filler into the words; sudoku need pairs and locked candidates; the maze path is about three quarters of the longest route it could have taken.

  41 puzzles

• Hard

  For someone who does these on purpose. Words run in six directions including backwards, and three filler letters in four are drawn from the words themselves; sudoku need an X-wing or a Y-wing; mazes have few dead ends, but the ones they have run deep.

  20 puzzles

• Expert

  The one that takes a coffee. All eight directions, and the filler is almost entirely made of the letters the words use, so nothing catches the eye; sudoku in the low twenties for given numbers and more than one hard step; the maze walks you across most of the sheet.

  8 puzzles