Plain reduction solves all centers, then all edges, then starts the 3×3 stage from zero. Yau uses the same skills — centers, dedge pairing, parity — but reorders them so that when reduction ends, your cross is already done.
The five steps
- Two opposite centers — build the white and yellow centers first. White is your cross color.
- Three cross pairs — pair three of the four white-cross dedges and store them around the white center.
- Remaining four centers — hold the white center and its three cross dedges on the left, out of the way, and build the four side centers without disturbing them.
- Last cross pair + remaining edges — pair the fourth cross dedge, then the other eight, keeping the cross on the left the entire time.
- 3×3 stage — bring the cross to the bottom. It’s already solved — go straight to the white corners. Parity works exactly as before.
Why it wins
- The cross is free. In plain reduction you finish pairing, then hunt for cross pieces like everyone else. In Yau the cross was assembled as a side effect — the 3×3 stage starts one full step ahead.
- Fixed orientation. Steps 3 and 4 happen in a single grip, cross on the left. You always know where every center and dedge is without rotating to check — recognition and lookahead get dramatically better, and better lookahead is where big-cube speed lives.