Solved step by step / October 30, 2026

The sheep, solved in 16 steps

This is the 7x7 puzzle from October 30, 2026, solved one line at a time. Press Next step and the page tells you which technique makes each move.

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Step 0

The highlighted line is the one being used. New boxes are colored and new crosses are shaded.

In our words

Techniques used

The solver was allowed nine named rules and used 4 of them on this puzzle, 2 full sweeps of rows and columns. Each link goes to the lesson.

The first moves in words

Nothing is known at the start, so the first moves can only use the clues themselves.

  1. Row 2 (clue 5): the clue needs 5 of 7 squares, so the slack is 2. A run of 5 is longer than the slack, so part of it is covered wherever it sits. Fill squares 3 to 5. (Technique: simple boxes.)
  2. Row 3 (clue 7) totals 7 boxes, 0 are placed and only 7 squares are open, so none of the open squares can be spared. Fill squares 1 to 7. (Technique: completing a line.)
  3. Row 4 (clue 7) totals 7 boxes, 0 are placed and only 7 squares are open, so none of the open squares can be spared. Fill squares 1 to 7. (Technique: completing a line.)

Every step, written out

Show the full written solve (16 steps)
  1. Row 2 (clue 5): the clue needs 5 of 7 squares, so the slack is 2. A run of 5 is longer than the slack, so part of it is covered wherever it sits. Fill squares 3 to 5. (Technique: simple boxes.)
  2. Row 3 (clue 7) totals 7 boxes, 0 are placed and only 7 squares are open, so none of the open squares can be spared. Fill squares 1 to 7. (Technique: completing a line.)
  3. Row 4 (clue 7) totals 7 boxes, 0 are placed and only 7 squares are open, so none of the open squares can be spared. Fill squares 1 to 7. (Technique: completing a line.)
  4. Row 5 (clue 5): the clue needs 5 of 7 squares, so the slack is 2. A run of 5 is longer than the slack, so part of it is covered wherever it sits. Fill squares 3 to 5. (Technique: simple boxes.)
  5. Column 1 (clue 2) totals 2 boxes and all are already placed, so the line is complete. Cross out squares 1, 2 and 5 to 7. (Technique: completing a line.)
  6. Column 2 (clue 4): once finished runs are set aside only the 4 is left, and it must cover squares 3 and 4. It can begin no earlier than square 1 and end no later than square 6, so it can only occupy squares 1 to 6. The squares outside that are out of reach. Cross out square 7. (Technique: simple spaces.)
  7. Column 3 (clue 7) totals 7 boxes, 4 are placed and only 3 squares are open, so none of the open squares can be spared. Fill squares 1, 6 and 7. (Technique: completing a line.)
  8. Column 4 (clue 5): once finished runs are set aside only the 5 is left, and it must cover squares 2 to 5. It can begin no earlier than square 1 and end no later than square 6, so it can only occupy squares 1 to 6. The squares outside that are out of reach. Cross out square 7. (Technique: simple spaces.)
  9. Column 5 (clue 7) totals 7 boxes, 4 are placed and only 3 squares are open, so none of the open squares can be spared. Fill squares 1, 6 and 7. (Technique: completing a line.)
  10. Column 6 (clue 4): once finished runs are set aside only the 4 is left, and it must cover squares 3 and 4. It can begin no earlier than square 1 and end no later than square 6, so it can only occupy squares 1 to 6. The squares outside that are out of reach. Cross out square 7. (Technique: simple spaces.)
  11. Column 7 (clue 2) totals 2 boxes and all are already placed, so the line is complete. Cross out squares 1, 2 and 5 to 7. (Technique: completing a line.)
  12. Row 1 (clue 3): once finished runs are set aside only the 3 is left, and it must cover squares 3 to 5. It can begin no earlier than square 3 and end no later than square 5, so it can only occupy squares 3 to 5. The squares outside that are out of reach. Cross out squares 2 and 6. (Technique: simple spaces.)
  13. Row 1 (clue 3): the first box is on square 3, right against the cross on square 2. That is closer than the first clue (3) is long, so that run has to include the box. Pushed against the start it reaches square 5, so everything from the box to there is filled. Fill square 4. (Technique: glue.)
  14. Row 2 (clue 5) totals 5 boxes, 3 are placed and only 2 squares are open, so none of the open squares can be spared. Fill squares 2 and 6. (Technique: completing a line.)
  15. Row 5 (clue 5) totals 5 boxes, 3 are placed and only 2 squares are open, so none of the open squares can be spared. Fill squares 2 and 6. (Technique: completing a line.)
  16. Row 6 (clue 1 1) totals 2 boxes and all are already placed, so the line is complete. Cross out squares 2, 4 and 6. (Technique: completing a line.)
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Questions

Which puzzle is this?

The daily GRIDS puzzle for October 30, 2026, a 7x7 picture of a sheep. It is already in the archive, so working through it will not give away a puzzle that is still live.

Is every step logic, or did the solver guess?

Every one of the 16 steps is a line deduction that follows from the clue and the squares already known. Nothing is guessed or tried and then undone.

Why does the same technique appear so many times?

Because a puzzle has many lines. Here completing a line accounts for 9 of 16 moves, mostly because it is the quickest way to finish a line.