Diplomatic Cryptic

by Gary Kennedy

It's fill in the squares time! Here's a British-style cryptic crossword whose answers are all relevant to Diplomacy (in some cases, to the PBEM version). If you're unfamiliar with cryptic crosswords, here's a brief explanation. A Cryptic Crossword looks like a regular crossword puzzle, but the clues are not the same as a regular crossword. Each clue in a cryptic crossword puzzle actually contains two clues -- a definition for the real answer, and a "cryptic" definition, that usually involves some form of wordplay. The most common types of cryptic clues are anagrams, hidden words, charades, double definitions, reversals, and sound-alikes. For help getting started, check out the (non-Pouch) page "The Anatomy of a Cryptic Crossword," where you'll find some further explanation, an example puzzle (at the top of the page), and hints on the bottom.

1 2   3
   
4         5       6     7
         
8   9   10        
  11 12            
        13   14
15                   16        
           
17           18 19            
         
20   21             22   23      
           
24       25     26         27   28
             
    29             30        
       
31       32       33    
      34          
       
35                    
 

Across
 1. An ogre you press anonymously. (4)
 4. You can't lose with a musty husband! (9)
 6. Thrust a blade. (4)
10. Bag a zine? (5)
11. Aim near the Russo-Turkish corridor. (7)
13. English city, Baltic region, Swedish actress, or Roman numeral? (3)
15. As I hurry, a gaunt empire vanishes. (7-7)
17. Steer it erratically toward the Adriatic coast. (7)
19. Home of a Puccinian, or home of the Boii? (7)
20. See Proust putting out a disruption. (7,7)
24. Pairs us with a junker state. (7)
26. Spenders stop the messages. (8)
29. It's more than a hamlet. (7)
30. Below the Alps it lay, and it still does! (5)
31. Instant for embracing the evil half, or just a phase? (8)
34. Bridge is falling down. (6)
35. College degree for young pitcher who loves the game. (9)
Down
 2. An invasion from here would pee off eastern Germany. (6)
 3. Why are there 2 turns? (4)
 5. I munch a German city. (6)
 6. Try the pulp scene; you'll want eighteen! (6,6)
 7. Stab here! (4)
 8. Tilt a can in the ocean. (8)
 9. Don't give up, sister! (6)
12. Tree tar going backwards. (7)
14. Chromatic aberration, or perhaps the square of standard deviation. (8)
16. Is it a lump or a short watery arm? (3)
18. Angled island. (7)
21. Strut if you feel secure. (5)
22. A point on the Med. (8)
23. Move, hold, support, convoy, or derange. (5)
25. Sing? No. Join a game? Yes. (6)
27. I feel I'm in a terrific position to get rid of a foe. (9)
28. Loud and soft bounce. (8)
32. Man with a letter. (4)
33. He's a friend, y'all! (4)

Gary Kennedy
(kennedy@math.ohio-state.edu)

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