Ivy Cube

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Revision as of 14:52, 8 February 2022 by Reirto-RRNF (talk | contribs) (Undo revision 48483 by Sweetbutpsycho (talk))

The Ivy Cube is a simplified version of the classic Skewb puzzle. It's made up of 4 corners and 6 center pieces, and it can be solved within a maximum of 6 moves due to its simplicity.

Originally known as the Eye Skewb, the Ivy Cube was invented by Eitan Cher, a puzzle designer who was the driving force behind the invention and mass-production of other puzzles such as the Eitan's Twist and as well as the Eitan's Star. The puzzle is the precursor to the invention of the Super Ivy Cube (a.k.a the "Rex Cube"), which is a 3-layered version of the Ivy Cube, and all Ivy Cube-related puzzles are generally designed based off a Skewb/Pyraminx mechanism.

The Ivy Cube was later mass-produced by puzzle companies such as QiYi MoFangGe and FanXin, with Black, White and Stickerless plastic to be the primary base colours of the puzzle. Rather unique designs were also introduced to the market by companies like Z-Cube, featuring Carbon-Fibre versions of the Ivy Cube and even custom sticker mods. Recently, QiYi MoFangGe has also released the Jelly-Coloured version of the puzzle, And it's safe to say that the Ivy Cube will certainly prevail in terms of continuously evolving into newer versions of itself in the near future.

Apart from the regular flat-faced ivy cubes, slight modifications like the concave Ivy Cubes have also been released to the market by ShengShou, aiming to enhance the turning quality and stability of the puzzle during speedsolves. Interestingly, paper versions of the puzzle have also been created, with the first ever Paper Ivy Cube being made and shown publicly to the Internet by the owner of the YouTube Channel "Liobel"[1], and other showcases of the paper Ivy Cube have also been made by the owner of the YouTube Channel "Paper Cuber"[2].

SOLUTION

The solution to the Ivy Cube is rather simple and straightforward as well. As it can be solved in a maximum of 6 moves, solvers could theoretically one-look the solution with sufficient experience and skill.

The most common method to solve the Ivy Cube however, involves a solution that's relatively similar to that of a Skewb puzzle, with the following being a brief introduction of the method.

Step 1- Solve 1 face intuitively (This could be done in a maximum of 3 moves)

Step 2- Solve the opposite face intiuitively (This could also be done in a maximum of 3 moves)

Step 3- Solve the remaining case for the last 4/3 faces (Z-Perm/U-Perm/H-Perm)

       These cases can be solved using sledges and hedges, just like on a Skewb.

See Also