Child’s Play? by Serpent

Puzzle explanation

Extra letters from the wordplay in down clues spelt “Snakes and Ladders”. Across answers were entered in the style of a game of Snakes and Ladders, in a progressive path from the bottom-left to top-left corner, made up of sequences of answers overlapping by one letter that ran back and forth along the rows, with a ladder (up) or snake (down) from the end of one sequence to the start of the next. The unclued sixth column contained SNAKES down and LADDERS up.

Clue explanations

Conventions: * = anagram, < = reversal

No Answer Explanation [extra letter]
Across
1 DENTAL (occlu)DENT AL(ignment)
2 LARDER L + (w)ARDER
3 RENTAL PARENTAL − PA
4 AVERTS AS around VERT
5 SMELLS SMALLS with E(liminate) for A
6 STRAWS 2 meanings
7 SCRAMS SMS around CAR *
8 STEREO (TE + RE) in SO
9 ANSWER (NEWS + A) * + R
10 RINGED RING + ED
11 NATION (NO + I + TAN) <
12 NAIADS AI in NADS
13 SALUTE (p)U(n)T in SALE
14 POLKAS (SALOP around K) <
15 SPIDER 2 meanings
16 REALTY REALITY − I
17 MANÈGE EG in MANE
18 PATENT PA TENT
19 TIN HAT THAT around IN
20 BEDPAN BEAN around D(ri)P
21 ASSESS ASS-ESS
22 SPOORS SOS with POOR for O
Down
a STAGES (cojon)ES in STAG’[S]
b REPENTER RE + N(u)[N] in PETER
c OTTOMAN OT + TO [A] MAN
d PILLOW PO around [K]ILL + W
e SHEAR SHE[E]R around A(lawite)
f EARS [S]EA + (Do)RS(et)
g STEP PE[A]TS <
h SADISM (kick)S A[N]D IS M(alevolent)
i TASSELED (SET SAD[D]LE) *
j CELESTA CELESTIA[L] − I
k DEVOID D(ips) + E(ntremets) + [A]VOID
l IMPALA (LAP + MAI[D]) *
m NATURE (NU[D]E ART) *
n SAINT IN in S[E]AT
o ANTE (assist)ANT [R]E(feree)
p NAAN ANNA’[S] *
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