GridDay

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Rule of 45

Intermediate Places a digit Used in: Killer Sudoku

Rule of 45

Every row, column, and box totals 45. Add up the cages that cover a region and compare with 45: the difference must live in the one cell that spills in (an “innie”) or out (an “outie”) of the region. A powerful way to crack open a fresh Killer grid.

How to spot it

A region whose covering cages overshoot or undershoot the 45-per-unit total by one cell.

What you can conclude

The difference from 45 is the value of that single innie/outie cell.

Worked example

A box’s cages sum to 40, but the box totals 45, so the one unmatched cell is 45 − 40 = 5.

Related techniques

Cage Remainder · Single-Cell Cage · Cage Combination