Drizzo
Level: Master Delver

Rank Points: 179
Registered: 03-03-2004
IP: Logged

At least that's my best guess, since I'd heard this one before, but he only does the weird elevator behavior when it's not raining, and you don't care about his job, just his reasoning.
---------------
*sigh* I need to type faster


[Edited by Drizzo on 03-12-2004 at 10:13 AM GMT]

____________________________
"Disbelief in magic can force a poor soul into believing in government
and business." - Tom Robbins

Mattcrampy
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 2388
Registered: 05-29-2003
IP: Logged

You'll find I got you all a tricky one this time. There is a simple (and rather nice) rule, and every sentence in this post follows it. They're all pretty different, and range as far as it's possible to range. You might be thinking size right now, but it's not that cut and dried. It's not as hard as to be some arcane thing with the commas. And any guesses using the cliches are dead wrong. A jaded mind just won't catch my clues (but a fresh one might).

Can you work out what the rule is, and tell me while following the rule yourself?

Matt

____________________________
What do you call an elephant at the North Pole?

Mattcrampy
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 2388
Registered: 05-29-2003
IP: Logged

I'd like to announce, in addition, that this puzzle has been up for at least a few hours.

This is a new record for me. Yes, I will have an Oscar.

Matt

____________________________
What do you call an elephant at the North Pole?

Nillo
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 548
Registered: 01-04-2004
IP: Logged

Does "Someone stole my wit" follow the rule?

____________________________
“Folks say that if you listen real close at the height of the full moon, when the wind is blowin' off Nantucket Sound from the nor' east and the dogs are howlin' for no earthly reason, you can hear the awful screams of the crew of the 'Ellie May,' a sturdy whaler Captained by John McTavish; for it was on just such a night when the rum was flowin' and, Davey Jones be damned, big John brought his men on deck for the first of several screaming contests.”

Mattcrampy
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 2388
Registered: 05-29-2003
IP: Logged

No, no it does not.

That's my signature. For that matter, I guess I should say that my name doesn't count either.

Actually, I haven't followed the rules since that last close bold tag.

Matt

____________________________
What do you call an elephant at the North Pole?

The_Red_Hawk
Level: Smitemaster
Rank Points: 783
Registered: 09-02-2003
IP: Logged

Which parts should we concentrate on?

____________________________
Slashing, whirling, diving, twirling,
Snapping, turning, rising, swirling,
Screeching, flipping, gliding, sliding,
The red hawk's dance of death.

.....the king of the skies.....

Mattcrampy
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 2388
Registered: 05-29-2003
IP: Logged

All of the bold section follows the rule. I haven't followed the rule since.

Also, this is easily the longest puzzle I've had up. This rawks.

Matt

____________________________
What do you call an elephant at the North Pole?

The_Red_Hawk
Level: Smitemaster
Rank Points: 783
Registered: 09-02-2003
IP: Logged

I mean "what should we concentrate on to figure out the puzzle"?

Is the secret in the first letter of the word? In the number of letters?

____________________________
Slashing, whirling, diving, twirling,
Snapping, turning, rising, swirling,
Screeching, flipping, gliding, sliding,
The red hawk's dance of death.

.....the king of the skies.....

swann_88
Level: Delver

Rank Points: 87
Registered: 06-29-2003
IP: Logged

I just noticed this post for the first time
I thought I had an idea for an answer to this puzzle but it was wrong
then I went back and started reading from the beginning
I got through about 12 pages and now my brain is completely spinning in circles WHOA

I did notice one thing every sentence uses the verb to be in one of its forms. is this it?

[Edited by swann_88 on 03-15-2004 at 12:38 AM GMT]

Drizzo
Level: Master Delver

Rank Points: 179
Registered: 03-03-2004
IP: Logged

I may be just out of it, but I don't think the first sentence used the verb "to be" at all...



but here's my answer
They're all intended to misdirect us! Seriously!

even the question! because I can't follow the rule because my answer is not misdirecting, but is the only not misdirecting statement here! why the first one is misdirecting! The puzzle's NOT tricky but painfully obvious. And then there's all the oddly written sentences just to make us think there's something weird but nopenopenope, my answer is right and true. Lucky I saw right through your ploy Mr. Cramp, hohoho! and here's my puzzle:
What have I got in my pocket?




[Edited by Drizzo on 03-15-2004 at 12:57 AM GMT: to be sillier]

____________________________
"Disbelief in magic can force a poor soul into believing in government
and business." - Tom Robbins

Nillo
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 548
Registered: 01-04-2004
IP: Logged

A hole?

____________________________
“Folks say that if you listen real close at the height of the full moon, when the wind is blowin' off Nantucket Sound from the nor' east and the dogs are howlin' for no earthly reason, you can hear the awful screams of the crew of the 'Ellie May,' a sturdy whaler Captained by John McTavish; for it was on just such a night when the rum was flowin' and, Davey Jones be damned, big John brought his men on deck for the first of several screaming contests.”

The_Red_Hawk
Level: Smitemaster
Rank Points: 783
Registered: 09-02-2003
IP: Logged

Handses, my precious!

____________________________
Slashing, whirling, diving, twirling,
Snapping, turning, rising, swirling,
Screeching, flipping, gliding, sliding,
The red hawk's dance of death.

.....the king of the skies.....

Mattcrampy
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 2388
Registered: 05-29-2003
IP: Logged

I'm enjoying my new hit, except I'm thinking maybe I should drop some hints. My resolve breaks up each day that clicks by - who knew that having a puzzle that lasted longer than an hour would be so stressful? So, okay, I'll drop some of them in this paragraph: I'm following the rule here, and you'll kick yourself when you find out.

Matt, and this sentence doesn't follow the rule, or my signature, smartaleck

____________________________
What do you call an elephant at the North Pole?

TripleM
Level: Smitemaster
Rank Points: 1379
Registered: 02-05-2003
IP: Logged

"I'm not 100% sure if I have this correct, but hopefully my answer agrees with yours. Its actually quite hard to make sentences which follow your rule..



Am I on the right track?"

Mattcrampy
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 2388
Registered: 05-29-2003
IP: Logged

No, that's not it. It's just how it worked out. For example, this sentence follows the rule: Pop bands are dull.

Matt, who'll give hints when the puzzle's been up for a week



____________________________
What do you call an elephant at the North Pole?

TripleM
Level: Smitemaster
Rank Points: 1379
Registered: 02-05-2003
IP: Logged

Its been over a week

Mattcrampy
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 2388
Registered: 05-29-2003
IP: Logged

Okay... man. I thought the geniuses here would have it in a snap.

Notice how awkward the sentences sometimes get. What other sort of puzzle tends to have awkward sentences?

Matt

____________________________
What do you call an elephant at the North Pole?

eytanz
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 2708
Registered: 02-05-2003
IP: Logged

Well, ones where there's a hidden rule, but we already knew that.

The rule isn't a missing letter - of if it is, it's a really bad one, because the only missing letters are 'q' and 'x'.

There doesn't seem a limit as to how many vowels can be in a word.

There doesn't seem to be a rule as to words sizes (which is stated by the puzzle).

The words don't seem to form meaningful acronyms.

The number of words doesn't seem to matter much.

So, basically, I'm out of ideas.

____________________________
I got my avatar back! Yay!

Mattcrampy
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 2388
Registered: 05-29-2003
IP: Logged

What puzzles apart from those ones where there's a hidden rule?

Maybe something else is hidden.

Matt

____________________________
What do you call an elephant at the North Pole?

DiMono
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 1181
Registered: 09-13-2003
IP: Logged

I can now hit each part of this post with the rule. Matt, you'll have to agree not to post one like this again, for it took quite a while for me to figure it out. The clues were racy, and I can tell you all that every sentence hides a colour.

I'll post up a new puzzle in a few hours, I need to sleep now

Edit: let's see how many I can find...
You'll find I got you all a tricky one this time. There is a simple (and rather nice) rule, and every sentence in this post follows it. They're all pretty different, and range as far as it's possible to range. You might be thinking size right now, but it's not that cut and dried. It's not as hard as to be some arcane thing with the commas. And any guesses using the cliches are dead wrong. A jaded mind just won't catch my clues (but a fresh one might).

Can you work out what the rule is, and tell me while following the rule yourself?


Did I find them all?

[Edited by DiMono on 03-20-2004 at 08:03 AM GMT]

____________________________
Deploy the... I think it's a yellow button... it's usually flashing... it makes the engines go... WHOOSH!

Mattcrampy
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 2388
Registered: 05-29-2003
IP: Logged

You're up!

That went well, really well.

I'm enjoying my new hit, except I'm thinking maybe I should drop some hints. My resolve breaks up each day that clicks by - who knew that having a puzzle that lasted longer than an hour would be so stressful? So, okay, I'll drop some of them in this paragraph: I'm following the rule here, and you'll kick yourself when you find out.

Pop bands are dull.

I can now hit each part of this post with the rule. Matt, you'll have to agree not to post one like this again, for it took quite a while for me to figure it out. The clues were racy, and I can tell you all that every sentence hides a colour.

Matt

[Edited by Mattcrampy on 03-20-2004 at 10:54 AM GMT: Changed the i's to u's.]

____________________________
What do you call an elephant at the North Pole?

Nillo
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 548
Registered: 01-04-2004
IP: Logged

I was about to guess It's all written in bold

____________________________
“Folks say that if you listen real close at the height of the full moon, when the wind is blowin' off Nantucket Sound from the nor' east and the dogs are howlin' for no earthly reason, you can hear the awful screams of the crew of the 'Ellie May,' a sturdy whaler Captained by John McTavish; for it was on just such a night when the rum was flowin' and, Davey Jones be damned, big John brought his men on deck for the first of several screaming contests.”

Skylancer64
Level: Delver
Rank Points: 62
Registered: 10-25-2003
IP: Logged

Nillo wrote:
I was about to guess It's all written in bold

Lol. I'd never think to guess that!

____________________________
Complexity is the source of Life.

DiMono
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 1181
Registered: 09-13-2003
IP: Logged

Alright everyone, I'm designing my puzzle right now. It will take a bit of time for me to finish creating it, but it will be quite the brain teaser when it's ready, so please just bear with me.

Oh, what the heck, I'll come up with that one later. Here's a haiku for you to solve. It's not as difficult as the puzzle I was coming up with, but I don't feel like making you all wait on me. Tell me what's special about this haiku:

A haiku: three lines
in seventeen syllables
of five, seven, five

____________________________
Deploy the... I think it's a yellow button... it's usually flashing... it makes the engines go... WHOOSH!

Drizzo
Level: Master Delver

Rank Points: 179
Registered: 03-03-2004
IP: Logged

Do you mean aside from that it's self-referential and perfectly self-descriptive?

____________________________
"Disbelief in magic can force a poor soul into believing in government
and business." - Tom Robbins

DiMono
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 1181
Registered: 09-13-2003
IP: Logged

Yes, aside from that. Though that is part of the answer.

____________________________
Deploy the... I think it's a yellow button... it's usually flashing... it makes the engines go... WHOOSH!

eytanz
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 2708
Registered: 02-05-2003
IP: Logged

I have no idea what the answer is, but the haiku above inspired me to write a response haiku:

Another haiku.
Same syllable amount in
Same number of lines.


____________________________
I got my avatar back! Yay!

Drizzo
Level: Master Delver

Rank Points: 179
Registered: 03-03-2004
IP: Logged

O, Haiku Haiku
Why do we use such strict form,
When the chinese don't?

____________________________
"Disbelief in magic can force a poor soul into believing in government
and business." - Tom Robbins

masonjason
Level: Smiter

Rank Points: 349
Registered: 12-29-2003
IP: Logged

Haiku Blah Blah Blah
Blah Blah Haiku Haiku Blah
Blah Blah Blah Haiku

____________________________
Eighty people came to the bazaar.

Nillo
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 548
Registered: 01-04-2004
IP: Logged

This inspired me to a Soul Calibur 2 Haiku:

-You're quite the rude one!
Says Raphael the Swordsman
He's gonna own you

If you pronounce Raphael "Rafajel" it works.

*slaps self with offtopic sign*

____________________________
“Folks say that if you listen real close at the height of the full moon, when the wind is blowin' off Nantucket Sound from the nor' east and the dogs are howlin' for no earthly reason, you can hear the awful screams of the crew of the 'Ellie May,' a sturdy whaler Captained by John McTavish; for it was on just such a night when the rum was flowin' and, Davey Jones be damned, big John brought his men on deck for the first of several screaming contests.”