ANSWERS: 4X Game (and FREE HINTS for "Section Six 2")

Before I get to the solvers and answers of "4X Game", I'd like to provide you guys with an update to my previous puzzle, "Section Six 2". I think I might've made that one a little too hard, since just six people so far have solved it. Since I want that number to rise, I've provided some alternate clues to what I believe are some of the harder clues in that puzzle. To find out what they are, just highlight the white space after each clue number! (Don't worry, I won't be taking any stars away if you do use these new clues)

RING 1
2) Dracula, for one
3) Walking stick
6) Fit together (Anagram of NY CUPS): 2 wds.

RING 2
* Clark Kent's alter-ego
* Shoestring
* Dancehall/Reggae subgenre with electronic instrumentation
* _____ and the Brain ('90s animated series)
* Rhyming pairs of lines

RING 3
* Current WWE champion John
* Radio buttons that are already tuned in to a station
* Green duck from Tiny Toon Adventures
* _____ Falls (waterfall that borders Ontario and New York)

RING 4
* Rough and scratchy, like old film
* Tight gathering
* Kind of nut used in pies

Now with all that out of the way, here are all of the people who have solved "4X Game"!

• Grant Fikes ****
• Paolo Pasco ****
• Adam Weaver ****
• Eric Maddy ****
• Tyler Hinman ****
• Mom ****
• Debbie Underwood ****
• Christian H.P. ****
• Sam Levitin ****
• Giovanni Pagano ****
• Lynn Sweeney **

Now just go below the break for the answers, along with solver comments, some pictures, and even a Tex Avery cartoon!

Here are the answers in text format:

X #1: GNATS, STAID, DIALS, SLANG
X #2: SALAD, DALEK, KELIS, SILAS
X #3: STARK, KRANG, GNAWS, SWATS
X #4: SELIG, GILDA, AD-LIB, BILES

The letters in the yellow squares unscramble to spell out either BAGS or GABS

Solver Grant Fikes had BAGS as his answer, and said that "Will those be paper or plastic?

Have I mentioned you're my favorite brony? I can't help but smile at how you can weave ponies (and griffins, apparently) into word puzzles full of other stuff, things like SALAD and DIALS which I actually know about."

...aaand these were the SPOILERS I was talking about in the main puzzle.

Another brony, solver Paolo Pasco, came up with a "Related clue for GILDA: [Griffon who seemed to be one of the only side characters not to appear in MLP:FiM's 100th episode]" [Well, she appeared in the 99th episode, so close enough!]

"Curse the day I ever met those miserable Turtles!"

Solver Tyler Hinman had "Ryan GABS about BAGS" as his subject line, and he also stated that he was "Thankful in a few cases that the fourth answer can be unambiguously derived from the other three in an X."

Solver Christian H.P. thought that this was a "Great puzzle!  I loved the fact that the solving process was so non-linear.  Each X had at least one clue that I initially couldn't answer (for example, my TMNT knowledge is sorely lacking), but using the other clues and moving back and forth between the X's, I was able to get them all - or at least all but two.  (I had to make a guess with DAL_K and K_LIS, so I went with the ol' trusty E...)"

Before her milkshake brought all the boys to the yard, she just wanted to "Get Along With You"...

Solver Giovanni Pagano said that this was a "Fairly easy puzzle, started off of DALEK, KRANG and ADLIB and went from there. Not too much difficulty for me; SILAS was the most unfamiliar."