Cryptic crossword No 1,414

Thanks chracol, some nice ideas in here and a fun solve despite a few rough edges. My favourites were 8d and 18d, which worked 'technically' with coherent surface readings; also enjoyed the wordplay in 7a, 24a, 3d, 4d (though making the state explicit would perhaps be fairer), 7d, 16d (though definition seems a little 'stretchy'), 19d & 20d ... but the surface readings in these are rather nonsensical, perhaps needing a little work to generate clearer imagery? Spoilers ...

Thanks chracol. Good fun and lots of imaginative ideas. Fez has given you plenty of technical feedback so I won’t, other than one minor quibble in the reply. I agree with him that working on meaningful surfaces is key to elevating your future puzzles. My favourites were 11a, 1d and 8d. Spoiler…