Mephisto 2760 by Don Manley – A Trojan Mystery

Author   dorsetjimboPosted on Categories Mephisto
Middle of the road Mephisto. I can’t parse 4D – all ideas welcomed!

Across
1 STIRRAH – STIR-RAH; cheer=RAH; a corruption of Sir and Sirrah in Stirling;
6 DAGGA – DAG-GA(ga); Aussie eccentric=DAG; African love-drug;
10 CATE – C(r)ATE; r from r(ing); dainty;
11 LAENDER – L(A)ENDER; are=A; library=LENDER; German units of Local Government;
13 HIGHSET – sounds like HI-SET;
14 URITE – U(nusual)-RITE;
15 VIOLONE – V-IO-LONE;
17 ONIRIC – paradoxical=IRONIC then move I-R back; of dreams;
18 SALIENTIANS – S(ALIEN)T-I(A-N)S; frogs;
20 PLAGIOSTOME – (pam let go)* surrounds OS=out-sized; fish;
25 AMOMUM – A-MO-MUM; chrysanth=MUM=short form of chrysanthemum; a plant;
27 ZAREEBA – ZA-(A-BEER reversed); South Africa=ZA; a camp;
29 TOGAD – TO-GAD; before=TO; Jewish tribe=GAD;
30 TSIGANE – (is a gent)*; gypsy;
31 MINERVA – (AIM reversed) surrounds NERV(e);
32 INCA – IN-C-A;
33 POWRE – PO(W)RE; hint of w(etness)=W; old form of pour;
34 ALNAGER – A-L(N)AGER; old cloth inspector;
 
Down
1 SCHUSS – S(CH)USS; awareness=SUSS; a fast ski on a straight slope;
2 TAIRA – TA-IRA; S American weasle;
3 IT-GIRL – I-T(G)IRL; turned up in Scotland=TIRL; Clara Bow;
4 RUSE,DE,GUERRE – I entered this from reference to Trojan Horse and checkers – don’t understand the clue;
5 ALEVIN – ALE-VIN; a fish;
6 DEMONISATION – DEMO(A-SIN reversed)*TION; nice clue;
7 ANTLIATE – ANT-L(I)ATE; having a sucking proboscis;
8 GEAN – (orange – or-2=gold tincture)*; a fruit;
9 ARRECT – ARRE(C)T; about=C; judgement=ARRET; alert;
12 DOORN – generous person=DONOR then move N to give DOORN; a thorn in S Africa;
16 VIAMETER – (item a rev)*;
19 GAZUMP – G(A-Z)AMP;
21 LORAN – L(OR)AN(d); short for Long Range Radio Navigation System;
22 OMASAL – (sago palm – gp)*; stomach;
23 OX-GANG – O-X-(G-NAG reversed); wrong=X; ploughed land;
24 ENDEAR – END-EAR;
26 RANCE – (f)RANCE; to bar in Berwick;
28 AGIO – AG-I-O(we);

6 comments on “Mephisto 2760 by Don Manley – A Trojan Mystery”

  1. Hi Jim

    re 4dn, it is *(USING CRUDE GREEK HORSE), less the letters of SHOCKING. One assumes the blank at the end of the clue is somehow intended to indicate the removal.. “Shocking blank” or something..

    1. Thanks Jerry. Well spotted! Can’t personally see that —- means delete. Surely a classic case of a clue that can only be reverse engineered from solution to cryptic – not what Mephisto is supposed to be all about?
  2. Surely the blank simply stands for the answer? The complete anagram “shocking ruse de guerre” is rather appropriate. Not a problem if one is familiar with this type of clue.
    1. Yes, it looks like a compound/composite anagram, popular with Azed clue-writing competitors. The answer is indicated in the clue usually by either blanks or the word “this”.

      Edited at 2013-07-30 12:22 pm (UTC)

  3. Would you believe I actually got RUSE DE GUERRE from the wordplay? I figured it was a composite anagram and took out the letters of SHOCKING, saw GUERRE and figured out the rest.

    On the other hand I invented BO(W)RE to make sure I was stuck in the bottom left a while.

    1. Late reply, but yes I would. Once you’ve got used to compound anagrams, you can learn to notice that the letters in one part of the clue are part of potential larger fodder in another part.

      Edited at 2013-08-08 11:14 am (UTC)

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