Shengshou Void Tower

ShengShou Void Tower

ShengShou Void Tower (also known as Void Pyraminx or Void Magic Tower) is the void version of the Jing Pyraminx puzzle. It has the shape of a classic pyraminx, but without centers: there is a hole going all the way through the middle of each face. This makes it look great on a shelf, and you can thread a string through the hole to attach the puzzle to your backpack, for example. The body is black, and the faces have stickers in four colors.

How it differs from a regular pyraminx

It looks almost like a regular pyraminx, but the mechanism works differently. The Jing Pyraminx, which the Void Tower is based on, turns by faces, not by corners. This leads to two differences that users notice right away:

• each face has only 3 pieces apart from the corners (a classic pyraminx has 6),
• there are no tips, so the corners can't be turned individually.

These differences largely balance each other out. According to user reviews, the difficulty is similar to a regular pyraminx or slightly lower. However, pyraminx methods don't carry over one to one, so even if you know the pyraminx, you will have to learn this mechanism from scratch.

How it turns

As with most void puzzles, the mechanism isn't suitable for speedsolving. It's meant more for relaxed solving. Users don't report any popping issues, but lockups can happen when the layers aren't precisely aligned. Turning with a gentle touch, rather than aggressive turning, helps.

Who is it for?

The Void Tower is intuitive, so it works well as a first non-cube puzzle, including for kids. An experienced cuber will solve it fairly quickly, so for them the Void Tower is more of an interesting addition to a collection, next to the Jing Pyraminx and other pyraminx modifications. This puzzle is not an official WCA event.

Specifications

• Type: pyraminx-shaped puzzle, void version of the Jing Pyraminx (no centers)
• Manufacturer: ShengShou
• Body color: black, stickers in 4 colors
• Size: approx. 84 mm
• Weight: approx. 70 g
• Release year: 2019
• Official WCA event: no
• In the box: puzzle, solving instructions