TodayHint

Pips October 8, 2026: Hints & Answers

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

Recap

The easy board requires strategic placement of 5 dominoes to meet various conditions. The medium board involves 8 dominoes with a focus on sum targets. The hard board challenges solvers with 16 dominoes and 32 regions, each with specific sum constraints.

The three boards that day

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

Easy board · 5 dominoes · 7 regions

5–50–61–50–13–3

  • one cell: more than 4.
  • 2 ×one cell: exactly 0.
  • 3 ×two cells: all matching.
  • one cell: more than 5.

Easy due to few dominoes and simple constraints.

Medium board · 8 dominoes · 7 regions

3–15–61–12–23–52–14–25–0

  • three cells: exactly 2.
  • one cell: left uncovered.
  • two cells: exactly 7.
  • two cells: exactly 9.
  • two cells: all matching.
  • four cells: exactly 8.
  • two cells: exactly 6.

Medium difficulty due to more dominoes and complex constraints.

Hard board · 16 dominoes · 32 regions

0–53–40–04–53–34–03–14–26–30–24–41–06–40–31–43–2

  • 3 ×one cell: exactly 2.
  • 8 ×one cell: exactly 4.
  • 3 ×one cell: exactly 1.
  • 2 ×one cell: exactly 6.
  • 7 ×one cell: exactly 3.
  • 7 ×one cell: exactly 0.
  • 2 ×one cell: exactly 5.

Hard due to many dominoes and complex, restrictive sum constraints.

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

    Method only.

    Start by identifying regions with the most constraints and look for dominoes that can satisfy multiple conditions.

  3. Easy board: where to start

    One region named by its constraint.

    Begin with the region that has a sum of 0 over 1 cell.

  4. Medium board: approach and first region

    The same two steps, one difficulty up.

    Focus on regions with specific sum targets and try to match dominoes to these conditions.

    Start with the region that must sum to 2 over 3 cells.

  5. Hard board: how to approach it

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

    Look for regions with fixed sum targets and try to combine dominoes to meet these conditions, focusing on the most restrictive regions first.

  6. Hard board: where to start

    The last rung before the full walkthroughs.

    Begin with a region that has a sum of 0 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 3/3 domino to satisfy the sum 0 condition. Then, use the 5/5 domino to fulfill the greater 4 condition. Next, place the 0/1 domino to satisfy the equals condition. The 1/5 domino can then be placed to meet the greater 5 condition. Finally, position the 0/6 domino to complete the puzzle.

  • Medium board · 8 dominoes

    Medium board walkthrough

    Begin by placing the 1/1 domino to help satisfy the sum 2 condition. Then, use the 2/2 domino to contribute to the sum 7 condition. The 3/5 domino can be placed to help meet the sum 9 condition. Continue by positioning the 5/6 domino to satisfy another sum condition. Place the 3/1 domino to help with the sum 8 condition, and then the 4/2 domino to assist with the sum 6 condition. Finally, position the 2/1 and 5/0 dominoes to complete the puzzle.

  • Hard board · 16 dominoes

    Hard board walkthrough

    Start by placing the 0/0 domino to satisfy the sum 0 condition. Then, position the 4/0 and 0/5 dominoes to meet other sum 0 conditions. Use the 3/3 domino to fulfill a sum 6 condition. Continue by placing the 4/5 and 3/4 dominoes to satisfy sum conditions. The 4/2 and 2/4 dominoes can be used to meet other sum targets. Place the 6/3 domino to help with a sum 9 condition. Then, position the 1/0 domino to satisfy a sum 1 condition. The 6/4 domino can be placed to help meet a sum 10 condition. Continue this process, using the 0/2, 0/3, 1/4, and 3/2 dominoes to fulfill the remaining sum conditions. Ensure that each domino placement satisfies the constraints of the region it is placed in.

Those boards by the numbers

Date
Thursday, October 8, 2026
Boards
3 — easy, medium, hard
Dominoes in play
29 across the three boards
Easy board
5 dominoes · 7 regions
Medium board
8 dominoes · 7 regions
Hard board
16 dominoes · 32 regions

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