Thanks+for+the+feedback+Christoph.+%0a%0aWhile+I+see+your+point%2c+I+think+there+is+some+gap+here+about+the+stated+goals.+It+might+be+my+own+insufficient+communication.+%0a%0aWhat+I+am+trying+to+achieve+here%2c+is+admittedly+many+things+at+once%2c+but+none+of+it+is+just+%22simpler+puzzles+to+promote+to+new+solvers%22.+%0a%0aMy+main+goal%2c+in+any+kind+of+thinking+and+re-thinking+of+these+series%2c+is+to+give+a+platform+for+Indian+solvers+to+improve+towards+the+larger+competitions%2c+and+I'm+honest+about+that+being+the+primary+goal.+Now%2c+how+to+do+that+is+up+for+debate.+%0a%0aSo+my+different+goals+are+%0aA)+the+top+Indian+solvers+should+have+a+good+challenge+and+variety.+If+they+finish+6+out+of+6+rounds+or+even+come+close+to+that%2c+unfortunately+that+is+not+a+fair+reflection+of+our+general+WPC+performance.+So+for+our+top+solvers%2c+I+want+them+to+improve+their+choices+and+be+challenged%2c+and+struggle+to+finish+most+of+the+puzzles%2c+as+they+would+in+the+WPC.+Some+rounds+can+be+sprint+rounds+like+round+1+where+they+do+get+closer+to+finishing%2c+again+consistent+with+a+WPC.+%0aB)+I+want+there+to+be+enough+easy+puzzles+to+*occupy*+newer+and+casual+solvers.+That+is+the+key+word.+I+have+been+getting+2+or+3+solvers+into+things+for+the+first+time+this+year%2c+and+I+mainly+have+been+seeing+%22can+I+tell+them+to+focus+on+two+or+three+low+pointer+sections+to+grab+their+attention%3f%22.+These+aren't+competitive+solvers+(yet)+so+I+mainly+just+don't+want+them+spending+20+or+30+minutes+thinking+%22ok+I'm+done+with+whatever+I+can+solve+now%2c+this+other+time+is+just+a+waste%22+because+more+than+3+types+can+be+beyond+their+focus.+I+also+know+that+when+getting+into+a+hobby%2c+90+minutes+may+be+a+bigger+time+sink+than+the+simple+math+of+an+hour.%0a%0aSo+the+change+to+60+minutes+fit+both+these+goals.+Where+we+may+be+falling+short+is+that+the+1+and+2+pointers+aren't+as+easy+as+I'd+like%2c+and+I+try+to+work+on+that.+%0a%0aI+am+yet+to+fully+analyze+whether+these+changes+are+working%2c+I+will+definitely+rethink+things+again+at+the+end+of+the+season+and+feedback+like+this+definitely+helps+towards+that+(though+as+I+always+do+I+encourage+newer+solvers+to+have+a+voice+and+come+forward+with+their+thoughts+too).+

It+is+also+probably+important+to+note+that+for+the+Indian+top+solvers%2c+puzz.link+isn't+a+frequented+place+for+solving.+In+fact+this+category+idea+came+from+there+being+some+puzz.link+genres+in+IPC+and+them+being+completely+new+to+the+solvers+in+our+top+3+besides+me.+So+the+goal+of+this+particular+round+is+to+leave+it+up+to+them+whether+they+want+to+go+for+some+higher+point+familiar+stuff+or+newer+stuff+and+hope+that+they+go+back+and+solve+whatever+they+missed+post+contest+%3a)+

Pretty tough set. When even the low pointers are hard, it takes the fun out of solving.
Puzzle quality was good, nonetheless.
Favourites:
20 Kakuro Kropki
13 Shimaguni
21 Shimaguni O/E
Thanks Nityant!

Very hard puzzles . Would have better suited a 90 min contest. I madly guessed in many puzzles due to time constraints and don't remember much now.

Thanks for putting together this round Nityant.

Wooohhh. What a Luck at the end. Somehow managed to click the submit button at the end for Doppelblock high pointer. Very hard puzzles but enjoyed. I knew Number placement (specially Kakuro :) ) would be my last resort in this contest and I was right . Somehow managed Kakuro (Kropki) though.Thanks Nityant for this contest :)