From Newsgroup: rec.puzzles
On 11/10/2025 13:30, James Dow Allen wrote:
HenHanna@NewsGrouper <user4055@newsgrouper.org.invalid> posted:
I like submitting puzzles, but not if they're stupidly difficult. >>>>> Anyone want a Knights-Knaves-Knarks puzzle which is fun and challenging? >>>>> It is NOT ridiculously hard: a friend solved it in a quarter-hour.
Cheers, James
Maybe you can preface them with easy ones.
* Natives are each in exactly one of three tribes (Knights, Knaves, or Knarks)
* Each native knows which tribe every other native is in.
* Knights utter only true statements and they utter them two at a time.
* Knaves utter only false statements, again two at a time.
* Knarks utter sentences only in pairs with one (the 1st or 2nd) True,
and the other sentence False.
Here's an easy example.
From their statements determine the tribes of Alice and Bob.
Alice:
"Bob is a Knark."
"I am a Knight."
Bob:
"Alice is a Knark."
"I am not a Knark."
- - - - - - - - - - - -
..........This isn't a spoiler; yes, it is.
..........This isn't a spoiler; yes, it is
..........This isn't a spoiler; yes, it i
..........This isn't a spoiler; yes, it
..........This isn't a spoiler; yes, it
..........This isn't a spoiler; yes, i
..........This isn't a spoiler; yes,
..........This isn't a spoiler; yes,
..........This isn't a spoiler; yes
..........This isn't a spoiler; ye
..........This isn't a spoiler; y
..........This isn't a spoiler;
..........This isn't a spoiler;
..........This isn't a spoiler
..........This isn't a spoile
..........This isn't a spoil
..........This isn't a spoi
..........This isn't a spo
..........This isn't a sp
..........This isn't a s
..........This isn't a
..........This isn't a
..........This isn't
..........This isn't
..........This isn'
..........This isn
..........This is
..........This i
..........This
..........This
..........Thi
..........Th
..........T
..........
.........
........
.......
......
.....
....
...
..
.
K(night)
(Kna)V(e)
(Kna)R(k)
Alice:
"Bob is a Knark."
"I am a Knight."
Bob:
"Alice is a Knark."
"I am not a Knark."
If A = K: A1=T => B1=F, B2=F =>B = R => A != K
If A = V: A1=F => B2=T, B1 = T => A != V (If Alice is a knave,
Bob is not a knark, so his second statement is true, so he's not
a knave, so all that's left for him is a knighthood, so Alice
can't be a knave.)
We have proved A!=K and A != V, => A=R.
A2=F, => A1=T, => B = R.
"Warrior for the side of right,
I avow that I'm a Knight;
On the cusp of light and dark,
Half a cur is Bob the Knark." - Alice.
--
Richard Heathfield
Email: rjh at cpax dot org dot uk
"Usenet is a strange place" - dmr 29 July 1999
Sig line 4 vacant - apply within
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