14
$\begingroup$

ACROSS

1. Go away
4. Planned major port on the Pacific coast
6. Overreactive
9. 1940s escape routes from Europe
10. NEXT, for example
11. Olympiad champion
12. Vow
14. A Scottish Monday
16. Pinnacle
19. Someone from Dallas, for example
22. Something worth reporting
24. Canton legislatures
26. Out of perfectly thin air
29. Matt Hawk
30. A psychological manipulation
31. King with donkey ears
32. An antelope
33. Fibers

DOWN

1. 1950s sex symbol
2. 1940s-'50s British politico
3. Extensions from the body
4. Taking land elsewhere: Br.
5. Middle-aged or older
6. Modem instructions
7. Raffle
8. Despondent
13. Teddy bear, for example
15. Milled
17. Fools
18. A Swiss theologian
20. Someone at a conference, for example
21. A device for holding a flask
23. A fluke, for example
25. Japanese drinks
27. More recent
28. Teacakes


Apology and clarification:

I realized only now (meaning at this writing, which is some time after posting the puzzle) that the answer to 1 down is spelled wrong. You should probably ignore 1 down when solving the puzzle (though you should be able to fill it in with its spelling mistake at some point in your solving). I apologize.


Hints, added after the original puzzle posting:

As hints, I present easier (some of them much easier) versions of some of the clues above. Each is hidden separately so that your solving the puzzle need not be spoiled more than you wish it to be.

1 across

Go away!

4 across

Planned major port on the Pacific coast of Mexico

10 across

NEXIS or NEXT, for example

12 across

To vow

14 across

A Scottish Monday in January

24 across

Some cantons' legislatures

30 across

An attempt to win people over by alarming them

1 down

Actress, a 1950s sex symbol

4 down

Taking and populating a distant land: British English

6 down

Hayes modem instructions

7 down

A raffle

15 down

Milled an old-fashioned way

17 down

Fools or dolts

18 down

A 20th-century Swiss theologian

21 down

A device for holding a flask or beaker

23 down

A parasitic fluke, for example

25 down

Some Japanese drinks

28 down

Some teacakes


More hints, added even later:

Here's the grid with twenty answer letters added here and there:

$\endgroup$

1 Answer 1

10
$\begingroup$

COMPLETED GRID!

Complete

Many thanks to jafe and Stiv for their contributions...a true team effort! The trick is:

Some letters have been replaced by numeric/symbolic equivalents. So for example, "1" is used in place of "one", "|" in place of "bar", "@" in place of "at", "&" in place of "and", etc.

ACROSS

1A - BEAT IT
4A - COLONET
6A - ATOPIC (h/t Stiv)
9A - RATLINES (h/t jafe)
10A - ION ENGINE (thanks OP)
11A - MEDALIST
12A - SWEAR
14A - HANDSEL (h/t jafe)
16A - NE PLUS ULTRA
19A - LONE STAR STATER
22A - NEWS EVENT (h/t Stiv)
24A - LANDRATS
26A - EX NIHILO
29A - TWO-GUN KID
30A - SCARE TACTIC
31A - MIDAS
32A - ELAND
33A - STRANDS

DOWN

1D - BARDOT
2D - ATTLEE
3D - TENTACLES
4D - COLONISATION
5D - THIRTY PLUS
6D - AT COMMANDS (h/t jafe and tip from OP)
7D - PRIZE DRAW (h/t Stiv)
8D - CHEERLESS
13D - PLUSHY
15D - STONEGROUND
17D - LUNKHEADS (h/t Stiv)
18D - BARTH
20D - ATTENDEE
21D - RING STAND
23D - FLATWORM
25D - SAKES (fixed per OP)
27D - LATER
28D - SCONES

$\endgroup$
9
  • 1
    $\begingroup$ Nice! rot13(9n: e@yvarf, 14n: u&fry, 6q: ngqgf) $\endgroup$
    – Jafe
    Jan 18, 2021 at 15:18
  • 1
    $\begingroup$ Ah, no way! @msh210 I was genuinely working on creating a crossword with this exact mechanic for the novelty crosswords FTC but didn't get it finished to my satisfaction in time :) Can't believe I didn't spot this at play here...! $\endgroup$
    – Stiv
    Jan 18, 2021 at 15:34
  • $\begingroup$ Nicely found, Jeremy Dover. Everything here is correct except 6 down, which needs generalization (you're looking at a too-specific type of instruction). $\endgroup$
    – msh210
    Jan 18, 2021 at 15:56
  • $\begingroup$ Thanks @msh210...I was not convinced by that either. Will keep working/compiling...shoot I see it...6d is bloody brilliant! $\endgroup$ Jan 18, 2021 at 15:56
  • $\begingroup$ I think your 22A should be rot13(NEW7T) so that 17D can be something like rot13(YHAXURNQF) and 7D can end in rot13(QENJ) $\endgroup$
    – Stiv
    Jan 18, 2021 at 16:25

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