No 13028, Monday 31 Aug 2020, Incognito

HAPPY ONAM TO EVERYONE

Solution to 11A has been deliberately left unsolved and is to be answered only by a non-regular/novice commenter, with proper annotation. Those who have answered earlier in the week, please give others a chance.

ACROSS
8   Parts of journeys used by pedestrians (4) LEGS [DD]
9   Hot aquatic beings are contemptible creatures (5) HEELS {H}{EELS}
10 Pay for one third of yard (4) FOOT [DD]

11 Park Rolls Royce in fuel stockyard (6) ?O?R?L (Addendum - CORRAL {CO{RR}AL} - See comments)

12 Bears sots flying around physicist (8) STOMACHS {STO{MACH}S*}
13 Actor’s confused in the spa (8) THESPIAN*
15 Bend! Bend it and place under obligation (6) INDEBT*
17 Buries assortment of men and bots (7) ENTOMBS*
19 Make a priest give up his habit? (7) UNFROCK [CD]
22 Flee changing caps in Eastern Europe (6) ESCAPE {E{CAPS*}E}

24 Excel when cutlass gets broken after initial onslaught (8) OUTCLASS {CUTLASS}*<=>{On...t}

26 ............................. (8) SHOULDER (Based on crossings) The e-paper wants you to make your own clue!!! This despite an apology in the paper today regarding lack of enumerations on Saturday!!! See comments for the intended clue

28 Ötzi was an office manager? Well, not entirely (6) ICEMAN [T]

30 Turn towards strong champion (4) FACE {F}{ACE}
31 Leads main persons (5) HEADS [DD]
32 Sees each young elephant separately at first (4) EYES Acrostic

DOWN
1   Take away one Japanese plane (4) ZERO {1-1=0}

2   Type of coffee processed around beginning of night gets responses (8) ESPRESSO {RESPOnSES}*
3   It’s very hot! But sounds cold! (6) CHILLI (~chilly)
4   Farm labourer’s affable after the beginner leaves (7) PEASANT PlEASANT

5   Scotsman goes after stone thrown for one from Tallinn (8) ESTONIAN {IAN}<=>{STONE*}

6   Scared of air force attack (6) AFRAID {AF}{RAID}
7    Beat Sophocles badly after losing poles (4) COSH SOpHoCles*
14 Delivers sand mixture after end of March (5) HANDS {SAND}*<=>{m..cH}
16 Supports graduates encircling conservative knight (5) BACKS {BA{C}{K}S}

18 Wide ranges of respiration seen around onset of disorder and commencement of sickness (8) BREADTHS {BREA{Di...r}TH}{Si...s}

20 Gets rid of terribly evil seer (8) RELIEVES*
21 Gatekeeper abducted by tandoor manufacturers? (7) DOORMAN [T]
23 Sailor employed and mistreated (6) ABUSED {AB}{USED}
25 Enthusiasm requires water to satisfy it (6) THIRST [C&DD]
27 Trick Xhosa played after son left (4) HOAX XHOsA*
29 Cuts back sex after first abortion (4) AXES {SEX<=}<=>{Ab...n}

Reference List

Hot = H, Strong = F, Beginner = L, Conservative = C, Knight = K, Sailor = AB, Son = S

Dr RKEs TalePiece

Somewhere in the Ötztal Alps on 31st August 1991, two tourists, one a German and the other an ESTONIAN, happen to stumble upon a body ENTOMBed in the ice, on the slopes of the hill. They are AFRAID that they have found a recent murder victim and fighting their first urge to take to their HEELS,  they make bold to inform the local gendarme. The policeman, quietly sips his ESPRESSO, as he listens to them, showing ZERO interest in their find, dismissing it as a HOAX – a fanciful tale he has heard from many imaginative amateur hikers in the past. The duo are RELIEVED that the policeman finally calls his Superintendent. The more sensible Superintendent visits the site and confirms that it is not someone killed recently but a mummy from eons ago. The archaeologists organize a proper dig and carry the mummy and other objects found nearby to the University of Innsbruck. The ICEMAN is nicknamed Ötzi by the media.

We must be INDEBTed to carbon dating technology, which determines that Ötzi lived 4000 years ago! X-rays and CT scans of the iceman's LEGS and one FOOT show that he had walked the length and BREADTH of the mountains in the 45 odd years that he lived, probably a PEASANT, who had to  CORRAL sheep. 3D scanning reconstructs his bearded FACE, with sunken EYES and the HANDS calloused by the copper AXES he used. The tattoos on his BACK seem to have come from some needles used for something like acupuncture. Ötzi  had a bearskin cap on his HEAD and a bladder in which he carried water or drink to slake his THIRST. The STOMACH'S contents reveal that he had eaten ibex meat hours before dying.

Doubtlessly he has been COSHed on the rib cage but he appears to have been killed by an arrow that is plunged into his shoulder. Mushrooms discovered in his bag show that he ABUSED them for their hallucinogenic  effect. One cannot ESCAPE the conclusion that Ötzi, must have been OUTCLASSed by a fellow shepherd, who chose to strike him down when he was drowsy after a meal, possibly in a drugged torpor, may be to make away with Ötzi's sheep. That makes Ötzi the second shepherd to be murdered after Abel!