Subject: Never won winnables!
Date: Sat Dec 19 04:07:00 2020
User: TNmountainman
Message:8x1-5 #10265. Now 1/9.
8x1-5 #29578. Now 1/5.
Both first try.
That last one completed a string of 5 - tied for 8th all-time, on the closely-watched (not) 8x1 board.
Date: Mon Dec 21 14:10:03 2020
User: Kaos
Message:Well, now we can include game ELO ratings on these. I'm not sure if this is hard or not but it made me proceed cautiously:
7x4 26444-7 1/2/50.00%
Elo: 1804
Elapsed: 3:18
Date: Mon Dec 21 14:11:39 2020
User: Kaos
Message:Whereas 8x1-5 #10265 Elo: 2020
Date: Tue Dec 22 05:51:39 2020
User: TitanicTony
Message:Not very difficult, imo!
You Win. ..... Game #: 11x1 19066-9;
Game stats: 3/1/33.33%; ..... Elapsed: 6:38;
Streak: 45; ..... Today: 3; ..... Moves: 52/192.
Date: Wed Dec 23 12:33:46 2020
User: Mastermind
Message:Very interesting game with ELO 2153.
#21236 6×4 5 56/1.
Spare time workout for WRAC.
Date: Wed Dec 23 18:02:57 2020
User: Kaos
Message:Hey Mastermind, second attempt here on #6x4 21236-5. Should have had it on the first try but wondered off in the wrong direction after a good set of opening moves. Not sure what prompted you to pursue this one because at first glance, it doesn't look winnable. Then, at second glance, and third glance, it still doesn't look winnable.
Link: current stats
Date: Wed Dec 23 20:04:28 2020
User: Kaos
Message:Here's a 9x1 from the just finished mini-pot:
Game: 9x1 7032-4
Plays: 32-1 /3.12%
Elo: 1500
Finished this after the bell but, of course, that's a risk you take starting 7 minutes late.
Date: Thu Dec 24 15:28:27 2020
User: JackStraw
Message:10x4
diff 6
#30259
0/1 0%
broke my 11 game streak never could get to black aces
so I switched to 5x8
and ran into #31104
diff.5
0/9 0%
gonna go finish Twisted by Cavanagh
Date: Thu Dec 24 16:30:49 2020
User: Kaos
Message:"broke my 11 game streak never could get to black aces"
From your history, it looks like you mean this game, which is definitely a challenge:
Game #: 4x10 32059
Game stats: 3/1/33.33%
Difficulty: 6
Elapsed: 6:04
Date: Fri Dec 25 22:01:36 2020
User: Mastermind
Message:Kaos, it's basically gut feeling followed then by patience, focus and, as mentioned by you in another thread,memory to avoid previous false moves.
I have knocked off quite a few unwon games (and lost several won games)in the last couple of days. Latest game is #31791 6×4 5 96/1.
Welcome to try it.
Date: Tue Dec 29 10:59:04 2020
User: TitanicTony
Message:Game #: 7x4 25841-7;...... Game stats: 3/1/33.33%.
Date: Tue Dec 29 16:33:09 2020
User: TitanicTony
Message:Game #: 7x2 7516-7;...... Game stats: 5/1/20.00%.
Date: Wed Dec 30 11:33:44 2020
User: Mastermind
Message:One of the nastiest games I have come across.
#210 6x5 5 30/1
As Kaos would put it, it doesn't seem winnable at first glance or any numberth glance.
Date: Wed Dec 30 21:16:59 2020
User: Kaos
Message:Yes, but unlike the 6x4, this one is not a Kaos-friendly game.
Date: Thu Dec 31 02:07:20 2020
User: ix
Message:WRAC, that last 10x1 is why i am so afraid to play that variant
Date: Thu Dec 31 03:51:37 2020
User: TNmountainman
Message:8x1-5 #738 First try.
Now 1/10.
Date: Thu Dec 31 10:38:21 2020
User: WRAC
Message:I hear ya, ix. It's a deceptive variant. Lots of games that are fairly easy, but you never know when you're going to encounter an absolutely brutal one...
Date: Thu Dec 31 10:53:36 2020
User: WRAC
Message:No sooner did I type the above, when I encountered this one. At first glance, I thought, oh no, here we go again. Thankfully, it turned out to be just a little tricky, not brutal.
Game #: 10x1 267
Game stats: 79/11/13.92%
Difficulty: 7
Elapsed: 3:25
Streak: 25
Phew!
The high number of plays indicates it was in a tournament (or 2), which probably deflated the winning percentage.
The good news (for me) is it gave me enough points to pass joey (for the moment), which is good because MrFixit is watching. :-)
Date: Thu Dec 31 13:49:01 2020
User: Gulbis
Message:Just won this one:
Game: 10x1 20293-6
Plays: 11
Wins: 1
Percentage: 9.09
Elo: 1816
I think I stared at it about 20 minutes but couldn't figure out how to free up one column. Then I took a pause, then came back and stared 3-5 minutes more before I got the light bulb moment. From then on it was pretty quick.
Link: https://www.freecell.net/f/c/view_one_game.html?;20293,6,10x1
Date: Thu Dec 31 14:51:18 2020
User: joeygray
Message:WRAC: he’s watching me for now. But I don’t feel as if I’m really in the same league as you and the other folks around me. I’m over-raided!
Date: Thu Dec 31 15:07:37 2020
User: Kaos
Message:Someone has cracked the WRAC 10x1-7 30663. Now 63-1.
In the meantime, I did get the Gulbis 10x1 first try. I'm very impressed to read Gulbis plotted moves out to clear a column because it takes a lot of moves to get to that point. I thought I had a way to clear column 10 but it turned out I was using the same card as a parking spot twice. So it didn't work out as planned. But, there was a viable plan B from there.
Game #: 10x1 20293
Game stats: 12/2/16.67%
Difficulty: 6
Elapsed: 5:28
Date: Thu Dec 31 17:27:05 2020
User: WRAC
Message:Having been - unwillingly - the source of this current battle with 10x1-7 30663, I felt compelled to stick with it (temporarily ignoring my pressing concern of staying ahead of joey), until I finally solved it. Which took 19 more attempts.
As often happens, my first (well, second, in this case) approach was the correct one. I just didn't follow it carefully enough. After at last breaking through, I thought, okay, WRAC, time to hand in your freecell license. But I still intend to soldier on unlicensed.
I wonder who solved it first?
joey, actually, I feel like I'm the one who doesn't belong in the top 10. Too much sloppy play at times. And 20 attempts at this game doesn't exactly inspire confidence.
By the way, after timing out on this game, I clicked replay (or was it play?) and got a different 10x1 deal. I ALMOST quit immediately... and then remembered, oops, that would be a rating killer. Too close for comfort.
Date: Thu Dec 31 19:21:54 2020
User: WRAC
Message:Another nasty 10x1!
Game #: 22194
Game stats: 60/0/0.00%
Difficulty: 5
Elapsed: 7:28
Streak was: 7
Elo: 1995
Date: Thu Dec 31 22:10:25 2020
User: Mastermind
Message:16 attempts to make it 76/1.
Date: Thu Dec 31 22:38:34 2020
User: TNmountainman
Message:With dogged determination like you guys have, you all should be working cold cases for law enforcement. Or maybe you already are.
Date: Fri Jan 1 12:27:44 2021
User: TNmountainman
Message:7x2-5 #22066.
First try. Now 1/14.
Date: Sat Jan 2 02:42:57 2021
User: ix
Message:my best streak in 10w1 is 48, may i just take a moment to say how astonishing hop is in this variant, with a best of 588. rub eyes with squeaky sound, yes, 588. didn't know where to post this, i guess here is fine. WRAC has a 90, Cubic has a 130, wasjun has a 247. dude.
Date: Sat Jan 2 02:58:53 2021
User: Uberman
Message:Boggles my mind every time I see that stat, but I don't know if we should be more surprised that he actually lost a game once.
Date: Sat Jan 2 03:12:44 2021
User: ix
Message:a strategy to pass the Turing test?
Date: Sat Jan 2 03:39:49 2021
User: Uberman
Message:Ha, quite possibly! Although I certainly wouldn't be surprised if free's/cellmate's solver was actually Hop all along.
Date: Sat Jan 2 03:45:22 2021
User: Kumquat-of-Conciliation
Message:"They say" both have never been seen in the same place at the same time.
Date: Sun Jan 3 02:57:15 2021
User: Mastermind
Message:#31819 6×4 5 89/1.
Good teaser.
Date: Sun Jan 3 17:11:06 2021
User: d164280a
Message:22934-8 10x1 1/9 5 tries.
Date: Fri Jan 8 15:17:10 2021
User: jamesblackburn-lynch
Message:1/8 15:14 10x1 24095-10 Winnable 19:42 Won 8.3% 2228 1 12
I thought I had blown an easy one by not paying attention. But nope...didn’t blow it and it wasn’t easy.
James
Date: Fri Jan 15 13:58:56 2021
User: Oded789
Message:DAB just won a mini by solving 6x3 15159-1 (now 1/21).
Well done, I wasn't even close.
Wonder if the big guns will solve it first try.
Date: Tue Jan 19 18:57:55 2021
User: Oded789
Message:9x2 3617-8
Now 1/6, 2nd try, seconds after the bell. Thankfully, I didn't need it.
I'd say it's moderate.
Date: Tue Jan 19 23:01:32 2021
User: Oded789
Message:BTW, the aforementioned 6x3 is now 1/90!
It was really impressive of DAB to solve it in a quick tourney.
Date: Wed Jan 20 04:55:36 2021
User: TitanicTony
Message:I got the WWC off to a good start today with this one:
Game #: 6x5 18354-8;..... Game stats: 14/1/7.14%;..... Streak: 34;..... Today: 1.
Date: Wed Jan 20 10:49:58 2021
User: TitanicTony
Message:Gee, I would like to have a new dealer; my 5th game was even harder than my 1st game (just above)!
Game #: 6x5 283-8;..... Game stats: 13/1/7.69%;..... Streak: 38;..... Today: 5.
Date: Sat Jan 23 10:51:15 2021
User: TNmountainman
Message:8x1 20231-5. Now 1/9. First try, and I would have been quite surprised if it had been won before. Fun game.
Date: Sat Jan 23 22:25:03 2021
User: Oded789
Message:It turns out 7x3 22726-5 was 0/35 until now.
I didn't feel it was in the top 3 I've had thus far. Several 30%ers weren't any easier for me.
Date: Tue Jan 26 13:39:12 2021
User: jamesblackburn-lynch
Message:This ELO thing has revealed what a good player act is to me. They won this one today:
1/26 12:38 7x4 1116-10 Streak 7:37 Won 1.9% 2317 1 54
That is 1 win out of 54. So, yep, I am posting that here for them.
James
Date: Wed Jan 27 11:20:36 2021
User: WRAC
Message:10x1-6 10658 took me 16 attempts - now 1/26. Maybe I was just being dense, but it seemed extremely hard.
I respectfully suggest its Elo rating of 1943 is a bit low. :-)
Link: 10x1 10658-6
Date: Wed Jan 27 15:11:44 2021
User: TitanicTony
Message:This game wasn't played a lot, but it is definitely difficult, imo!
Game #: 10x1 14721-6; ..... Game stats: 3/1/33.33%.
Date: Wed Jan 27 19:23:08 2021
User: Kaos
Message:WRAC - I vote for hard over dense. I'm not seeing any openings after half-a-dozen attempts.
TT - maybe it just doesn't fit your eye:
Game #: 10x1 14721-6
Game stats: 4/2/50.00%
Elapsed: 4:03
Date: Wed Jan 27 21:47:44 2021
User: WRAC
Message:Wow, I see 10658 is now 1/53. I feel a little better about my struggles with it.
Date: Wed Jan 27 23:02:40 2021
User: Mastermind
Message:Clear column 4 send Hearts cards upto 3 home, tackle column 3,and send Hearts 4 home.
Column 4 will become free and a string under black king can be built. Thereafter the game solves itself.
Date: Fri Jan 29 11:38:45 2021
User: Gulbis
Message:I found this one to be super difficult, I mean super difficult to see the correct beginning. Once I did it was not that bad. But I was almost convinced it was unwinnable before I saw it.
Game #: 7x4 11055
Game stats: 10/1/10.00%
Difficulty: 12
Elapsed: 25:15
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