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How about a real puzzle cointest?

moscow32

By moscow32
in Trackables

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coreynjoey

+coreynjoey

Posted
Posted

Thanks again to moscow32 for the fun challenge! We're going to go caching to clear our heads now! It was really a group effort to solve, so we decided to auction the coins on ebay for someone in the forums. We'll work out the details later and post more info then!

 

A few people don't want the answer yet...maybe moscow32 will explain the answer later!

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GPX Navigators

+GPX Navigators

Posted
Posted

Thanks again to moscow32 for the fun challenge! We're going to go caching to clear our heads now! It was really a group effort to solve, so we decided to auction the coins on ebay for someone in the forums. We'll work out the details later and post more info then!

 

A few people don't want the answer yet...maybe moscow32 will explain the answer later!

 

Kudos to CnJ. Many smart folks worked on this - but not me - lol. Glad to chat a bit with some of you today.

Thanks moscow for the brain tease - keeps the ol' grey matter fresh.

 

And both moscow and CnJ - love the generosity! Thanks! Woo-hoo! :cool:

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moscow32

+moscow32

Posted
  • Author
Posted

As the group in chat figured out, this wasn't the first time I used this puzzle. I first posted it a few weeks ago on my other favorite site www.tweleve.org (the mispelling is intentional).

 

In case other people are still working through the puzzle, I won't post the answer here for a little bit, but I did just put up my solution over there. I think you have to register for an account to get to the answer, but its free and simple: Start Here: www.tweleve.org

 

Then once you're registered, you can click The Solution to go straight to my post there.

 

Thanks to all who played!

 

I'll post the solution here eventually, but if you want instant gratification, use the above links to get to Tweleve. It's a family friendly site.

 

Congrats again to Coreynjoey, and thanks to all who played along. It just as much fun for me as it was for you, except my brain didn't explode.

 

I suppose I'm not allowed to lurk anymore!?!?

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MommyFinder

+MommyFinder

Posted
Posted

Ugh! So close, and yet so far! I had the right cipher from the start, got the moscw, got the 32, played around with horizontal vs. vertical -- but just couldn't let go of the need for a keyword! Also noticed your t-shirt in your picture in your profile, and found the site! Just didn't find the contest over there. LOVE how the moth played into it all!

 

Thanks again for a fun and interesting puzzle (though I can't say I'm not glad it's over)!

 

Yes, Byrned, please wait a good 12 weeks for your puzzle!

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Trucker Lee

+Trucker Lee

Posted
Posted

Looks like we have a winner. congrats to coreynjoey!

 

Way to go Coreynjoey!!!

 

With the grandkids over, best I could do was pop in and out, and play at this a few moments at a time. I had worked with substitution and even converted to base 6 once to explore that. Even held it to a mirror and tried reading it and a couple of trial runs that way. This was a fun puzzle, raised the standard for a cointest certainly.

 

Kudos to Moscow32 for the puzzle.

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keewee

+keewee

Posted
Posted

Hmmm... CIA have taken an interest in this thread... They are asking why would geocachers be passing encrypted messages around... they think it's a plot. :)

 

Wow, that was al very interesting and had I had the time I might have started to get a handle on it, but not this time.

 

Well done CnJ - awesome job. And a big Good On You for wat you are doing with the prize!!

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coreynjoey

+coreynjoey

Posted
Posted
Ok all-

 

The prize has been placed up for auction on eBay. I will distribute the funds as CnJ has asked me to do.

 

thanks again to all who played!

 

Brady (moscow32)

 

 

They're live! No linky though, since only 1 of the coins is trackable, but you're all smart enough to know how to find them!

 

 

The four coins are as follows:

#1- moscow32 Delicious Cache Regular Edition: Black Nickel with orange and white hard imitation enamel. Trackable on gc.com, unactivated, unique icon. No longer available for sale.

#2- moscow32 Delicious Cache Limited Edition- Glitter: Black Nickel with Glitter. Not trackable. Serial # 007. Never available for sale. Only 50 made.

#3- moscow32 Delicious Cache Limited Edition- Glow: Black Nickel with Glow. Not trackable. Serial # 091. Only available in caches. Only 50 made.

#4- moscow32 Delicious Cache Limited Edition- Gold: Gold Plating with Transparent enamel. Not trackable. Serial # 121. Only available in caches. Only 50 made.

 

All coins are about 1" wide and about 1.5" long, 3mm thick.

 

To date, there is only one person, other than myself, who has a complete set of these coins. You could be the next!

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moscow32

+moscow32

Posted
  • Author
Posted

Here's the solve:

 

The cipher was a modified AFGVX cipher. The letters were, as was quickly guessed MOSCW. The grid was standard with no Q, like this:

 

   M  O  S  C  W
M  a  b  c  d  e
O  f  g  h  i  j
S  k  l  m  n  o
C  p  r  s  t  u
W  v  w  x  y  z

 

To make things a little more difficult, I did a small transposition. (Actually a standard AFGVX does the same transposition.) To get the letters in the right order, you should have put them into 32 rows of 4 letters.

 

MMOO
CCCS
OMMM
CMMW
OWOC
OCOM
CWCS
OSOO
MSMM
MWMM
CSCS
MCMC
OMOM
SWSW
CSSC
SSCC
OSMO
OWMC
MSSC
WWSC
CSMS
CCWW
COSC
CSCO
OMMM
SMMO
MCSO
WSSC
OMMC
CMWC
CMCC
OCCS

 

You should then read down the columns to get the cipher text in the correct order, which you can break into digraphs (using a method similar to a polybus square:

 

MC OC OO CO MM CM OS CS OO MW CC CC OS MW OC CO
MC MM WC WS SW SC MW SS SW SW SC OS MM CS MM MC
OC MM OO CO MM CM OS SC MM SS MW SC MM SS MW CC
OS MW CM SO MM SC MW CC OC CC SW CO MO OC CC CS

The digraphs decoded read:

 

DIGRAPHSGETTHEIRDAYXONEMOONHASADIGRAPHNAMENAMETHEPLANETITORBITS

 

or in plain text:

 

Digraphs get their day! X One moon has a digraph name. Name the planet it orbits.

 

The X, of course, is just there to make the cipher the right number of letters long.

 

The name of the moon is Io, which is the same type of moth in the background. (How's that for confirmation that you are right, and for the answer practically staring at you from the start!) The name of the planet it orbits is, of course, Jupiter, which was the answer.

 

The hints:

#1- Chapter 32 of Vanity Faire. That was to reinforce the vanity of the puzzle. The puzzle used both parts of my name to solve (Moscow = MOSCW and 32 rows)

 

#2- The key was Lex Parsimonaie. Sorry to make you anagram in Latin. I know, it sucks. Lex Parsimonaie, or Occam's Razor, reminds you to keep it simple. The grid required no keyword. No wacky columnar transposition was needed, etc.

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SCYoli

SCYoli

Posted
Posted

It was a cool puzzle and these are great coins. The ebay auctions ends today. The money goes to a good cause so let's all get in there and bid!

 

The coins were all mine, mine I say...up until the last 6 seconds when I was outbid. :D:cry::o

Well as long as its going to a good cause, it's okay. Congrats to the winner. I'll get mine one day! :(

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