TodayHint

Pips August 7, 2026: Hints & Answers

Constructed by Ian Livengood, Rodolfo Kurchan, Rodolfo Kurchan, edited by Ian Livengood.

Recap

The easy board requires strategic placement of 5 dominoes across 6 regions. The medium board involves 7 dominoes and 9 regions with various constraints. The hard board features 16 dominoes and 32 regions, demanding careful consideration of sum and empty constraints.

The three boards that day

The tray and each region's rule — board data, no solutions.

Easy board · 5 dominoes · 6 regions

2–36–32–20–56–1

  • two cells: exactly 8.
  • one cell: exactly 2.
  • two cells: exactly 1.
  • two cells: left uncovered.
  • two cells: all matching.
  • one cell: more than 2.

This board is relatively simple due to the small number of dominoes and regions.

Medium board · 7 dominoes · 9 regions

2–50–31–14–51–23–40–6

  • two cells: all matching.
  • 2 ×two cells: exactly 10.
  • one cell: more than 2.
  • 3 ×one cell: left uncovered.
  • two cells: exactly 7.
  • two cells: under 4.

This board has a moderate level of difficulty due to the number of dominoes and regions.

Hard board · 16 dominoes · 32 regions

0–10–20–30–40–51–21–31–41–52–32–42–53–43–54–53–6

  • 6 ×one cell: exactly 3.
  • 2 ×one cell: exactly 0.
  • 4 ×one cell: exactly 2.
  • 4 ×one cell: left uncovered.
  • 5 ×one cell: exactly 1.
  • 5 ×one cell: exactly 5.
  • 5 ×one cell: exactly 4.
  • one cell: more than 0.

This board is challenging due to the large number of dominoes and regions.

Pips hints, one rung at a time

Six rungs, easy board first. The recap above already named the walkthroughs, so this ladder is here for anyone replaying the boards fresh rather than as a spoiler shield.

  1. How the three boards compared

    Sizes and constraint mixes, counted off the boards.

    Easy board
    5 dominoes, 6 regions (3 sum, 1 empty, 1 equals, 1 greater)
    Medium board
    7 dominoes, 9 regions (3 empty, 3 sum, 1 equals, 1 greater, 1 less)
    Hard board
    16 dominoes, 32 regions (27 sum, 4 empty, 1 greater)
    Back to the board inventories
  2. Easy board: how to approach it

    Method only.

    Start by identifying regions with limited possibilities, such as those with sum constraints over a small number of cells.

  3. Easy board: where to start

    One region named by its constraint.

    Begin with the region that has a sum constraint over 2 cells.

  4. Medium board: approach and first region

    The same two steps, one difficulty up.

    Look for regions with multiple constraints that can help narrow down domino placements.

    Start with a region that has an equals constraint over 2 cells.

  5. Hard board: how to approach it

    Where the hard board differed in kind, not just size.

    Focus on regions with sum constraints over a single cell to limit domino possibilities.

  6. Hard board: where to start

    The last rung before the full walkthroughs.

    Begin with a region that has a sum constraint over 1 cell.

    Open the full walkthroughs

Every Pips walkthrough from that day

All three walkthroughs, folded: each one places every domino on its board, one after another.

  • Easy board · 5 dominoes

    Easy board walkthrough

    Place the 2/3 domino to satisfy the sum 8 constraint. Then, position the 6/3 domino to meet the sum 8 requirement. Next, place the 2/2 domino in the equals region. After that, position the 0/5 domino in the empty region. Finally, place the 6/1 domino to satisfy the greater 2 constraint.

  • Medium board · 7 dominoes

    Medium board walkthrough

    Begin by placing the 1/1 domino in the equals region. Then, position the 2/5 domino to satisfy the sum 10 constraint. Next, place the 0/3 domino in the empty region. After that, position the 4/5 domino to meet the sum 10 requirement. Continue by placing the 1/2 domino in the greater 2 region. Then, place the 3/4 domino to satisfy the sum 7 constraint. Finally, position the 0/6 domino in the empty region and the 3/4 domino to meet the less 4 constraint.

  • Hard board · 16 dominoes

    Hard board walkthrough

    Start by placing the 0/1 domino in a sum 0 region. Then, position the 0/2 domino in another sum 0 region. Continue by placing the 0/3, 0/4, and 0/5 dominoes in their respective sum regions. Next, place the 1/2 domino to satisfy a sum 3 constraint. Position the 1/3, 1/4, and 1/5 dominoes in their respective regions. After that, place the 2/3 domino in a sum 5 region. Then, position the 2/4 and 2/5 dominoes to meet their respective sum constraints. Continue with the 3/4 domino in a sum 7 region, and the 3/5 domino in another sum region. Place the 4/5 domino to satisfy a sum 9 constraint. Finally, position the remaining dominoes to meet the greater 0 and other constraints.

Those boards by the numbers

Date
Friday, August 7, 2026
Boards
3 — easy, medium, hard
Dominoes in play
28 across the three boards
Easy board
5 dominoes · 6 regions
Medium board
7 dominoes · 9 regions
Hard board
16 dominoes · 32 regions

More Pips

See the live Pips hints and answers page for the current boards, or browse every archived Pips date by month.

Try the other two puzzles