Codebreaking (metapuzzle)
We have a mole who has been passing encoded messages regarding TORTOISE's activities. If you can decipher them, we should be able to pinpoint another source of hidden messages that will help us take down TORTOISE.
Our mole is using a smaller version of the M-138-A cipher machine, formerly used by the US military. The cipher works as follows:
- The sender and recipient both have six 51-letter strips which each contain nearly two full repetitions of a scrambled alphabet.
- The central highlighted letter in each strip serves as an identifying label.
- Each puzzle page includes a 6-letter keyword used to order the strips for enciphering and deciphering.
- Once the correct order of the strips is determined, line them up so that the 6-letter ciphertext message is visible reading down a single column.
- To decrypt a message, find a different column that makes a word reading down.
Once you have deciphered the agents’ messages, enter them here.
Puzzle | Keyword | Answer | Deciphered answer | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Guess Who? | 31 | 6 | 28 | 14 | 24 | 3 | ||
Spy Glass | 26 | 10 | 30 | 9 | 13 | 11 | ||
You Are a Horrible Crane | 4 | 17 | 8 | 1 | 15 | 29 | ||
Rows and Call-'ems | 16 | 32 | 12 | 21 | 19 | 22 | ||
Clerical Errors | 35 | 27 | 34 | 33 | 36 | 2 | ||
Color Blocked | 23 | 18 | 20 | 5 | 7 | 25 |
And then:
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | ||
10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | ||
19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | “ | 25 | 26 | 27 | |
28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 | ” |
You have unlocked all of the metadata for this puzzle
Cipher strips:
B | D | T | F | L | J | V | X | C | Y | E | Z | P | H | G | N | S | K | R | M | O | U | Q | W | I | A | B | D | T | F | L | J | V | X | C | Y | E | Z | P | H | G | N | S | K | R | M | O | U | Q | W | I |
L | B | H | C | A | E | M | V | I | Q | O | K | P | N | X | T | Z | G | R | F | J | U | S | Y | W | D | L | B | H | C | A | E | M | V | I | Q | O | K | P | N | X | T | Z | G | R | F | J | U | S | Y | W |
L | D | K | Z | M | N | B | S | G | I | C | R | T | U | W | A | O | P | H | V | F | X | Y | Q | J | E | L | D | K | Z | M | N | B | S | G | I | C | R | T | U | W | A | O | P | H | V | F | X | Y | Q | J |
A | E | W | D | C | N | F | J | H | I | L | M | Q | R | O | V | G | K | Y | X | Z | U | S | T | B | P | A | E | W | D | C | N | F | J | H | I | L | M | Q | R | O | V | G | K | Y | X | Z | U | S | T | B |
S | L | D | U | G | A | B | F | V | C | P | W | H | T | K | Q | I | M | X | O | J | Y | N | Z | E | R | S | L | D | U | G | A | B | F | V | C | P | W | H | T | K | Q | I | M | X | O | J | Y | N | Z | E |
V | X | H | G | Q | I | Y | O | Z | W | P | K | R | M | T | L | F | N | C | A | E | U | J | B | D | S | V | X | H | G | Q | I | Y | O | Z | W | P | K | R | M | T | L | F | N | C | A | E | U | J | B | D |