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Pips hints — Wednesday, February 18, 2026

An archived puzzle. Pick your difficulty for a spoiler-safe nudge, then reveal the full board if you want it.

Wednesday, February 18, 2026Archived board

The Easy grid runs to 6 regions and 5 tiles, with greater-than, all-equal and target-sum rules in play. We give you a light nudge first — enough to get unstuck without spoiling the fun — and the full answer only when you ask for it.

Hint 1 — where to start

Easy
Ignore the open areas for now and go straight to the amber region, where one cell must be more than 5. Only 1 pip combination fits it at all, which is why it gives way first.

Hint 2

Easy
Lay the 6–3 across row 3, columns 1–2 — no guesswork needed. It is the only tile that works there, because amber must add up to more than 5. The 6 half sits in the amber region, which must be more than 5.
Reveal the full Easy answer

Easy solution — February 18, 2026

63
51
14
55
11

blue (>3): 4 | purple (=): 1 · 1 · 1 | green (=): 5 · 5 · 5 | amber (>5): 6 | orange: 3 | slate (=1): 1

Prefer to watch it worked out step by step? Try the Pips Solver.

What each region asks for

RegionRuleCells
Blue>3 — Be more than 31
Purple= — Show the same number on every cell3
Green= — Show the same number on every cell3
Amber>5 — Be more than 51
OrangeTake any value it likes1
Slate1 — Be exactly 11

The Medium grid runs to 8 regions and 6 tiles, with less-than, target-sum, greater-than and all-equal rules in play. We give you a light nudge first — enough to get unstuck without spoiling the fun — and the full answer only when you ask for it.

Hint 1 — where to start

Medium
Ignore the open areas for now and go straight to the green region, where one cell must be more than 4. Only 2 pip combinations fit it at all, which is why it gives way first.

Hint 2

Medium
Lay the 5–5 across row 1, columns 4–5 — no guesswork needed. It is the only tile that works there, because green must add up to more than 4. The 5 half sits in the purple region, which must add up to exactly 11.

Hint 3

Medium
Place the 2–2 domino across row 1, columns 1–2. It is the only tile that works there, because blue must add up to less than 3. The 2 half sits in the blue region, which must be less than 3.
Reveal the full Medium answer

Medium solution — February 18, 2026

01
55
43
15
22
61

blue (<3): 2 | purple (=11): 2 · 4 · 5 | green (>4): 5 | amber (=8): 3 · 5 | orange (>1): 6 | slate: 1 | teal (=): 1 · 1 | pink: 0

Prefer to watch it worked out step by step? Try the Pips Solver.

What each region asks for

RegionRuleCells
Blue<3 — Be less than 31
Purple11 — Add up to exactly 113
Green>4 — Be more than 41
Amber8 — Add up to exactly 82
Orange>1 — Be more than 11
SlateTake any value it likes1
Teal= — Show the same number on every cell2
PinkTake any value it likes1

The Hard grid runs to 17 regions and 16 tiles, with all-equal, target-sum, less-than and greater-than rules in play. We give you a light nudge first — enough to get unstuck without spoiling the fun — and the full answer only when you ask for it.

Hard is where most players get stuck.We break it into small, spoiler-safe nudges so you can stop the moment you’re unstuck.

Hint 1 — where to start

Hard
Ignore the open areas for now and go straight to the purple region, where one cell must be exactly 2. Only 1 pip combination fits it at all, which is why it gives way first.

Hint 2

Hard
Lay the 6–2 down column 5, rows 1–2 — no guesswork needed. It is the only tile that works there, because orange must add up to exactly 12.

Hint 3

Hard
Place the 2–1 domino across row 4, columns 6–7. It is the only tile that works there, because pink must add up to exactly 2. The 2 half sits in the pink region, which must be exactly 2.

Hint 4

Hard
The 5–1 belongs down column 7, rows 6–7. It is the only tile that works there, because purple must add up to exactly 5. The 5 half sits in the purple region, which must be exactly 5.
Reveal the full Hard answer

Hard solution — February 18, 2026

14
44
51
01
55
16
02
62
34
56
21
35
24
05
13
54

blue (=): 1 · 1 | purple (=2): 2 | green (=): 4 · 4 | amber (<2): 0 | orange (=12): 6 · 6 | slate (>2): 3 | teal (=2): 1 · 1 | pink (=2): 2 | lime (=5): 1 · 4 | brown (=): 5 · 5 · 5 · 5 · 5 | blue (<3): 0 | purple (=5): 5 | green (=): 3 · 3 | amber (=5): 2 · 2 · 1 | orange (=): 4 · 4 · 4 | slate (=5): 5 · 0 | teal (>5): 6

Prefer to watch it worked out step by step? Try the Pips Solver.

What each region asks for

RegionRuleCells
Blue= — Show the same number on every cell2
Purple2 — Be exactly 21
Green= — Show the same number on every cell2
Amber<2 — Be less than 21
Orange12 — Add up to exactly 122
Slate>2 — Be more than 21
Teal2 — Add up to exactly 22
Pink2 — Be exactly 21
Lime5 — Add up to exactly 52
Brown= — Show the same number on every cell5
Blue<3 — Be less than 31
Purple5 — Be exactly 51
Green= — Show the same number on every cell2
Amber5 — Add up to exactly 53
Orange= — Show the same number on every cell3
Slate5 — Add up to exactly 52
Teal>5 — Be more than 51
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