Types of Bases in Logic Games

btownsquee

When I do logic games, I usually follow these steps:
1. Read the game. I try to understand the game and subconsciously connect it to the previous games I’ve done.
2. Figure out the setup. This is me thinking of what solid gameboard I can use for the type of game I am doing.
3. Read the rules and write them down, trying to link the rules and spotting any inferences (numerical distribution among other inferences)
4. Do the acceptable situation question
5. Come back to the setup and try to figure out inferences

I realized one thing I neglect to do is thinking about the structure of the base. This is a bad move on my part! Thinking about what kind of base we are dealing with helps clarify the game! Below I’ve detailed the 3 main types of bases in logic games.

1. Sequenced Bases

The only difference between the bases is the order in the sequence.

Example 1: PT01S2G3
The game is a pure sequencing game. It is telling us the order of the partners joining the law firm during the years 1961 through 1968. Therefore, our gameboard is going to be 8 slots, with each slot corresponding to each year.

Example 2: PT13S1G3
This game is a sequencing game with grouping elements. We have 2 lectures, one in the morning and one in the afternoon, on 3 days. Therefore our gameboard will have sequenced days (1, 2, and 3) with lecture spots for the morning and afternoon on each day. Each day is equal. It is the lectures that are different and have rules attached to them, which affect the days.

Example 3: PT01S2G1
This game is unusual at first glance, but after understanding the setup, we can see how it’s just another sequencing game. The trade reps are sitting around a circular table in sequenced chairs. This is just another sequencing game with the caveat that chairs 1 and 6 are next to each other, which the LSAT writers have explicitly mentioned! Each chair is the same as the chair next to it, except for its order in the circle.

2. Distinct bases

These bases are different from each other. They can show up in both grouping and sequencing games.

Example 1: PT14S1G1
This is an example of a grouping game with distinct sequenced bases. Our groups are the different positions of the employees: president, manager, and technician. The groups are sequenced because an employee must be supervised by a position that is different from the employee’s position.

Each group has a different characteristic. There is only one spot in the President group. The employees in the President and Manager groups have differing supervising rules. An inference is that the employees in the Technician group do not supervise anyone.

Example 2: PT09S3G2
All in/out games have distinct bases! One group is in and the other is out. Here, we have 7 people and exactly 4 can be in the in group. Therefore 3 must be in the out group. These requirements for the number of elements that must be in the two groups help us determine where the elements can go.

Example 3: PT14S1G4
This is a great example of a game where the differing requirements for the different bases are the key to splitting. Our bases are fall, winter, spring, and summer. Each of the bases are different because Nikki and Otto are limited to playing different sports in each season.

3. Interchangeable bases

In this category, the bases are independent and have no relation to each other.

Example 1: PT15S4G4
This is an in-out game and while the in and out groups obviously differ (with one being in and the other being out), the in group has interchangeable subgroups. Let’s focus on that part. All we know about the in group is that it is composed of 4 teams with two elements each. The four bases here are the four interchangeable teams with 2 elements each.

SPOILER WARNING: There aren’t too many examples of these in PTs 1-35. This is why I’m including PT 62 as Example 2.

Example 2: PT62S3G2
We are tasked with figuring out the colors for 3 stained glass windows. The three windows are our groups and they are totally interchangeable. From figuring this out, we can start placing elements in our groups. This is because the order in which the elements are placed doesn’t matter and we can focus on placing the elements down as is required by the rules of the game.

Please let me know if you have any questions or suggestions/corrections and thank you for reading!