+Hawkins2.5 Posted August 7, 2011 Posted August 7, 2011 I have been caching for a few months and like the idea of the many puzzle caches out there as I've always enjoyed solving puzzles. I know one tip is to check the source code for the cache page and I'm not too bad with the ones that are codes because I know what I'm starting from and know what the degrees part should roughly be. My question is about the puzzle caches which seem to have no point to start from, no obvious code or other sets of numbers/letters/symbols. I have come across a few which I have no clue where to even begin and I was just wondering what other tips people have for how to start. Also, do people email cache owners for a little hint when first starting out? I feel frustrated to have to ask for help as I like working things out for myself but I guess if I ask on a few then this may help me with others in the future. Are COs happy to be asked for a point in the right direction? Sorry to ask what has probably been asked before but some of these starting to drive me insane! Quote
+mwellman Posted August 7, 2011 Posted August 7, 2011 Welcome to Geocaching Hawkins2! Below is an explanation by nirad to a recent puzzle help query: Posted 23 June 2011 - 10:13 AM The mystery/puzzle type is the catch-all type, so it includes caches that don't fit in the other types. For example, challenge caches are listed as mystery/puzzle caches. They are usually at the published coordinates, but you aren't allowed to log them until you complete whatever geocaching-related challenge the cache has (e.g., find a cache that begins with each letter of the alphabet, or find a cache every day for 365 days). As another example, bonus caches are listed as mystery/puzzle caches. There isn't really a puzzle to solve though: You just find the other caches in the series, combining information from those caches somehow to get the coordinates of the bonus cache. But most mystery/puzzle caches have a puzzle somewhere. Most have a puzzle on the cache page, and once you solve it, you have the coordinates for the cache. Others are more involved, and can include on-site puzzles of various kinds. Anyway, here is some general advice for solving puzzles: A while back, The Rat offered a puzzle-solving class as an event cache. His slides are available here: http://thegba.net/re...information.php Among the tips he offered: Identify the theme. Check the cache title, the hint, the HTML source, the graphics (including names/URLs), any links (including URLs), whatever is at the posted coordinates, etc. If you can figure out the theme, then you should look for numbering systems that are associated with that theme (zip codes, area codes, telephone keypads, episode numbers, etc.). Around here, coordinates will have 15 digits, and will look like "N 37° xx.xxx W 122° xx.xxx". So when I'm solving a nearby puzzle, I look for a group of 15 things, and then I look for ways to get the digits 37xxxxx122xxxxx from them. In general, I look for ways to get the number 37 (or the digits 3 and 7) from something near the beginning of the puzzle, and the number 122 (or the digits 1, 2, and 2) from something near the middle of the puzzle. (Of course, you'll need to adjust this for the coordinates near you.) Other useful resources include: Puzzle Solving 101 Series (bookmark list) Puzzle Shortcuts Series (bookmark list) Solving Puzzle Caches (online article) How Do I Solve All These $@! Puzzle Caches? (tutorial-style puzzle cache) Puzzle FUNdamentals (archived event cache) and the Puzzle FUNdamentals resources on the GeocacheAlaska! education page The GBA's Puzzle Cache FAQ (for puzzle designers, but useful for understanding how puzzle caches work) Quote
+niraD Posted August 7, 2011 Posted August 7, 2011 Here's a version with the links intact: A while back, The Rat offered a puzzle-solving class as an event cache. His slides are available here: http://thegba.net/resources/general_information.php Among the tips he offered: Identify the theme. Check the cache title, the hint, the HTML source, the graphics (including names/URLs), any links (including URLs), whatever is at the posted coordinates, etc. If you can figure out the theme, then you should look for numbering systems that are associated with that theme (zip codes, area codes, telephone keypads, episode numbers, etc.). Around here, coordinates will have 15 digits, and will look like "N 37° xx.xxx W 122° xx.xxx". So when I'm solving a nearby puzzle, I look for a group of 15 things, and then I look for ways to get the digits 37xxxxx122xxxxx from them. In general, I look for ways to get the number 37 (or the digits 3 and 7) from something near the beginning of the puzzle, and the number 122 (or the digits 1, 2, and 2) from something near the middle of the puzzle. (Of course, you'll need to adjust this for the coordinates near you.) Other useful resources include: Puzzle Solving 101 Series (bookmark list) Puzzle Shortcuts Series (bookmark list) Solving Puzzle Caches (online article) How Do I Solve All These $@! Puzzle Caches? (tutorial-style puzzle cache) Puzzle FUNdamentals (archived event cache) and the Puzzle FUNdamentals resources on the GeocacheAlaska! education page The GBA's Puzzle Cache FAQ (for puzzle designers, but useful for understanding how puzzle caches work) Quote
+Hawkins2.5 Posted August 7, 2011 Author Posted August 7, 2011 Thanks to both of you - that all looks really helpful. I'll take some time to look through it all properly but I think it will definitely help with a couple I've been looking at. For some I still need to work out which part of the page is the actual puzzle though! Quote
+Fianccetto Posted August 7, 2011 Posted August 7, 2011 Thanks to both of you - that all looks really helpful. I'll take some time to look through it all properly but I think it will definitely help with a couple I've been looking at. For some I still need to work out which part of the page is the actual puzzle though! Same here. I'm thinking of getting out a magnifying glass and looking for microdots (but then again, with my eyesight - no chance!) Quote
+popokiiti Posted August 8, 2011 Posted August 8, 2011 If all else fails, print the cache page...that's how I "solved" my first! That was after half an hour of trying to solve the darn thing - eventually saw the coords when I held the left click down and was moving the cursor around in frustration. Had I printed the cache page first, I would have saved the angst - no other puzzle has worked that way though... Quote
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