Level 95 · Shanxi Knife-Cut Noodles

Shanxi Knife-Cut Noodles is level 95 of Crumb Colony. The pixel picture has 572 blocks in 10 colors, the tray holds 37 ant boxes, and the difficulty is Hard.

Difficulty

Hard

Pacing

Hard opening

Blocks

572

Colors

10

Ant boxes

37

Mechanics

4 chained pair(s) · 1 golden key(s) · Ice · Mystery boxes · 3 noodle(s)

Play level 95

About the dish

Shanxi knife-cut noodles: the cook shaves ribbons of dough straight from a block into the boiling pot.

How the picture comes apart

From the frame to the center the picture is 12 layers deep. The outer ring is mostly navy and light blue, the middle band is mostly dark brown and black, and the core is mostly black and yellow. Ants can only reach the next layer once the one around it is gone, so the core colors are the last to become useful.

By block count the biggest colors are black, dark brown and navy.

The 1 golden key(s) are buried in the outer ring of the picture, so the locks they open come into play early.

13% of the blocks are frozen and take two bites each.

3 noodle(s) run through the picture, 45 cells in all. They can only be slurped from their ends, so they act as walls until an end is free and as tunnels after that.

Reading the tray

The tray starts with 37 boxes in 4 columns. At the start 4 of the 4 front boxes can bite right away: light blue (bites now), light blue (bites now), grey (bites now) and dark brown (bites now).

Chained pairs start in column 1–2, row 2, column 1–2, row 4, column 3–4, row 2 and column 3–4, row 4.

Locked boxes start in column 3, row 5.

4 mystery box(es) only show their color when they reach the front.

How the verified run plays out

The solution further down was played to the end in the real game, with ants walking and real timing. It takes 33 taps. The chart shows how many boxes were still parked in the 5 slots, waiting for their color, just before each tap.

Opening (taps 1–11): 35% of the blocks are eaten, with up to 3 of the 5 slots holding a box that is waiting.

Middle (taps 12–21): 32% of the blocks are eaten, with up to 4 of the 5 slots holding a box that is waiting.

Ending (taps 22–33): 33% of the blocks are eaten, with up to 1 of the 5 slots holding a box that is waiting.

A key comes out before tap 6. Chained pairs are taken at taps 3, 6, 14 and 17.

How hard is it?

Two test players attempted this level many times: a cautious one that only sends colors it can use right away cleared it 16% of the time, and a look-ahead one that tries each option before committing cleared it 65% of the time. Most of their failed attempts jammed in the opening.

Strategy

Check the colors of the first three boxes in each column and compare them with the colors exposed on the outer ring of the picture. Always keep one slot free to catch a color that can't be eaten yet.

The opening is the hardest part here: the outer ring needs several colors at once and the front rows are scrambled. Only send colors that can bite right away during the first taps, even if it feels slow.

Keys are buried in the picture and must be dug out to open the locks in the tray. Prioritize colors that eat around the keys so locked boxes don't block the front row for long.

Ice blocks take two bites, so one block uses two ants. Icy areas are eaten slowly and the matching boxes stay in their slots a little longer.

Chained boxes need both halves in the front row and two free slots. Take the boxes in front of them first and free two neighboring slots in advance.

Mystery boxes show their color only when they reach the front. When you see one coming, don't fill every slot; leave room for it.

Noodles are eaten only from an end with a white dot, never from the middle. Look for ends that are already free or about to be: slurping one opens a tunnel straight into the picture and can uncover inner colours early. A noodle with both ends buried is a wall until you dig to one of its ends.

Strategy guide: reading the tray and keeping the nest clear · Chained boxes · Locks and golden keys · Ice blocks · Noodles · Difficulty curves

Step-by-step solution

This order of taps is verified to clear the level. Columns are numbered 1–4 from the left; after each tap, wait until the ants are out before the next one. Two boxes shown together are a chained pair taken in one tap.

Level 95 questions