First Cryptic World-ladder

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• SamuRai 8:08 · 2024-07-06T03:47:28.324Z

  Even with one letter changes I think I got 3 correct on my first try and one of those was a pure guess. I don’t think this old brain can be rewired to solve cryptics. Still this is a fun way to try. I’d love to try more.

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  • The Noah costruttore · 2024-07-06T04:54:12.474Z

    Jamaxi makes really good easy cryptics. Better place to start than mine maybe

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    • SamuRai 8:08 · 2024-07-06T12:34:44.196Z

      

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• Aaron Riccio 🤓8:56 · 2024-07-08T01:49:33.320Z

  The word ladder format is nice in theory because once you have a foothold, each entry above and below it is 3/4 checked. As for the clues:

  • 1A: [temps] doesn't seem like an accurate definition for COLD. If it was [temperature], singular, I think this would be fine, but that doesn't make surface sense.
  • 5A: I like the idea of this surface, but I'm not sure [begins] is a fair indicator for the first three letters of [lobbying].
  • 6A: What's the parse on this one? I see BALD hidden in reverse in had lab, but I don't know what [work] is doing, and I don't understand AE as a definition.
  • 7A: The definition would fly in a straight crossword, but I don't think I've ever seen a cryptic do that, at least not without a ?.
  • 8A: I know it's a phrase, but I don't know what a [flower bank] is to say that the roots are different enough, but I do like the surface.
  • 9A: I think these two are distinct enough? The surface is absurdly evocative, so I like it.
  • 10A: It's fine, I just personally don't like anagrams of random names.

  Cheers!

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  • The Noah costruttore · 2024-07-08T14:06:56.705Z

    Thanks so much for all the feedback. Maybe one day I’ll make a Cryptic that is actually good

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    • Aaron Riccio 🤓8:56 · 2024-07-08T17:03:18.434Z

      Noah, this is not a bad cryptic! I just approach every clue based on what I know about the standards (and standard responses) I've gotten from publications and editors w/r/t cryptics. To your follow-ups:

      • 7A: Take it just as a crossword clue: [Aid leader] would generally get a question mark to indicate it's not a straight definition.
      • 5A: This is the difficulty of writing cryptic clues. Very often, we'll find things we want to do and then have to be like "WHAT is the fair way to indicate that?" I can't think of a great way to indicate "take the first three letters" and so I'd probably have done this as a reverse hidden, except you already did that in 6A, and best to vary your wordplay: [Able to take risks, Finland lobbied to retreat internally (4)].
      • 1A: I agree that "cold" can represent a "range of temperatures"—that's your 1:1 right there. That said, "elderly temps" still sounds a bit odd; I can stretch it to say you're talking about the temperatures of some older folk, but the end goal should be for as smooth a surface as possible. Never got locked into your first choices of definitions, play around with things like [Ancient cup is first to cool].
      • 8A: [Flower] is a good deceptive word, but you have it as [Flowers], which doesn't match the singular "River" bank you're describing.
      • 6A: At best, this is a two-step clue. You have to translate AE to American Eagle, then American Eagle to our "bald" breed. I think [American Eagle brand] is certainly fairer, but "brand" still isn't quite right to pinpoint a species, even with the ? Look for other ways to tie into the store, if that's your bent: [Type of American Eagle brand label that's returning its inventory?].

      Don't mistake my suggestions as better or final clues; they're just brainstorming suggestions on how else you might come at a word/surface.

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      • The Noah costruttore · 2024-07-08T19:32:42.061Z

        Thank you for the alternative ideas and feedback!

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  • The Noah costruttore · 2024-07-08T14:04:52.264Z

    7A. Thanks for the feedback. I didn’t know grammar and capitalization were meaningful in Cryptic crosswords, but you’re not the first to make that claim, so I will have to adjust to that.

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  • The Noah costruttore · 2024-07-08T13:59:47.613Z

    5A: What would be a fair indicator for the first three letters of lobbying other than “first three”? I’m new to this

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  • The Noah costruttore · 2024-07-08T13:58:18.071Z

    My thought for 1A is “cold” describes a range of temperatures. You wouldn’t say temperatures are “multiple colds”. Maybe it’s also a noun-adjective issue and I could’ve done “One hundred elderly temps ranging from low to middling”

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  • The Noah costruttore · 2024-07-08T14:06:02.303Z

    8A. I was going for river bank // money bank. A river flows so it’s a flow-er. Money Banks have a safe.

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  • The Noah costruttore · 2024-07-08T14:03:34.739Z

    6A: There’s a US clothing store called American Eagle, AE.com. I am just now recognizing that abbreviating this was unfair to solvers internationally and different classes who haven’t heard of it. Sorry. I could’ve made it “American Eagle brand had labs return in store” as is “bald” is a brand of american eagle so to speak.

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