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 Forum index » Archive » Archive: The Art of the Heist » The Art of the Heist: Puzzles
[SOLVED] WordSearch {SD 4/My Games} [SPOILERS]
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ShadowRuleZ
Boot

Joined: 17 May 2005
Posts: 47

 		[SOLVED] WordSearch {SD 4/My Games} [SPOILERS]
Although not as intensive as the crossword, I still did it. No idea if it helps with anything or not. The extra letters, row by row are:
XWVYTU
T
XLEI
XQCCRO
XPOICF
LB
ZAFE

BG
IMJR
BI
NKK
R
TE
search.done.jpg
 Description   yay for mspaint!
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search.done.jpg

PostPosted: Thu May 26, 2005 11:49 am
Last edited by ShadowRuleZ on Fri May 27, 2005 10:55 am; edited 1 time in total
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SMG3er
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Joined: 20 Apr 2005
Posts: 134

 		Re: [PUZZLE] WordSearch {SD 4/My Games} [SPOILERS]
Well, the file name for the word search has "step1" in it. If you go to My Travel, there's the file named mydirectionsstep2.txt. So something from the word search is probably applied to that "step2" file.

PostPosted: Thu May 26, 2005 2:22 pm
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SMG3er
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Joined: 20 Apr 2005
Posts: 134

 		Re: [PUZZLE] WordSearch {SD 4/My Games} [SPOILERS]
Just wanted to check if you meant "BG" instead of the second "LB," before "IMJR."

And not sure if this is of any help, but it looks like there are the same amount of leftover letter as letters in mydirectionsstep2.txt:

Leftovers from left to right:
Code:

7/8 - Drive north on highway to next village, to Penner Inn.
      XWVYT UTXLE IX QCCROXP OI CFLB ZAFEBGI  MJ RBINKK RTE


Leftovers from top to bottom:
Code:

7/8 - Drive north on highway to next village, to Penner Inn.
      XXXXW LQEPI BM OZIABNI CL FJKC CBERVRT  YO FIETGK RUT


PostPosted: Fri May 27, 2005 3:17 am
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ShadowRuleZ
Boot

Joined: 17 May 2005
Posts: 47

 		Re: [PUZZLE] WordSearch {SD 4/My Games} [SPOILERS]
SMG3er wrote:
Just wanted to check if you meant "BG" instead of the second "LB," before "IMJR."


Guess so. Oops. Makes me go crosseyed trying to do this on a PC instead of printing it.

I wonder what happens if you substitute letters into the wordsearch. I don't see what it would accomplish though, you'd just end up with the words from the other file, I don't think you'd end up with any new words.

PostPosted: Fri May 27, 2005 10:56 am
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xnbomb
Unfettered


Joined: 13 Oct 2003
Posts: 660
Location: J302B S8JDC

 		Re: [PUZZLE] WordSearch {SD 4/My Games} [SPOILERS]
SMG3er wrote:
And not sure if this is of any help, but it looks like there are the same amount of leftover letter as letters in mydirectionsstep2.txt

It's a great observation, as it seems unlikely to be a coincidence. I think it suggests a two-stage process to find the enciphering method:

First, we can try to find a method that transforms the plaintext in mydirectionsstep2.txt to the remaining letters from the wordsearch in one of four orders (the two you've already posted, and their reverses). However, I think it is pretty likely that the remaining letters from the wordsearch are in no particular order.

In that case, we can try something else: We can try to find an enciphering method that, when applied to the plaintext in mydirectionsstep2.txt, produces the same distribution of letters that we find remaining in the wordsearch. Frequency analysis shows that if this is the required approach, it is not a simple substitution or Caesar shift, although it may use one of these schemes by operating them differently on alternating letters or words (suggested by 7/8?), or perhaps Vigenere.

If we guess that the result of this process is going to help provide a password for My Documents/step3.zip, likely candidates are either a Vigenere key for step 2, or some word encoded using the same method used to encode the plaintext from mydirectionsstep2.txt (perhaps camping, which seems to be the theme of the words in the wordsearch).

I know I haven't narrowed it down much here, but that's my line of thinking, and I'm fiddling with it ...
_________________
My location is a little tricky, but sooner or later, you'll get the knack.

{J302B S8JDC, 8996N M8L4W, 92D40 Q1JX5, 4PPRN R2B97, 8DC7C NZJNV, 8CH7V Q891H}

PostPosted: Fri May 27, 2005 11:16 am
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ShadowRuleZ
Boot

Joined: 17 May 2005
Posts: 47

 		Is there a link to a crash course in different ciphers? Sort of a community links page or anything?

PostPosted: Fri May 27, 2005 11:30 am
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xnbomb
Unfettered


Joined: 13 Oct 2003
Posts: 660
Location: J302B S8JDC

 		The Black Chamber
ShadowRuleZ wrote:
Is there a link to a crash course in different ciphers? Sort of a community links page or anything?

I'm fond of Simon Singh's Black Chamber, because it provides clearly worded descriptions/explanations, as well as tools for messing around with a lot of the ciphers we tend to run into here. Unfiction has a set of Online Tools, that provides links to all sorts of useful tools, including an encryption section with a few crypto applets.
_________________
My location is a little tricky, but sooner or later, you'll get the knack.

{J302B S8JDC, 8996N M8L4W, 92D40 Q1JX5, 4PPRN R2B97, 8DC7C NZJNV, 8CH7V Q891H}

PostPosted: Fri May 27, 2005 11:52 am
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rose
...and then Magic happens


Joined: 26 Nov 2003
Posts: 4117

 		my work
the wordsearch posted didn't have all the words circled so here is mine.
wordsearchsd4 (3).jpg
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wordsearchsd4 (3).jpg
_________________
I love this site for being free, in every sense of the word~Spacebass

Mankind was my business, the common good was my business.~ Dickens

PostPosted: Fri May 27, 2005 11:55 am
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ShadowRuleZ
Boot

Joined: 17 May 2005
Posts: 47

 		Re: my work
rose wrote:
the wordsearch posted didn't have all the words circled so here is mine.


I think you're missing tent. Unless you circled a different one that what I did, but I don't see it in your puzzle.

PostPosted: Fri May 27, 2005 12:03 pm
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SMG3er
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Joined: 20 Apr 2005
Posts: 134

 		There's also the option of looking at the letters that overlap between found words.

PostPosted: Fri May 27, 2005 1:51 pm
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nivra
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Joined: 11 Apr 2005
Posts: 103

 		Re: [PUZZLE] WordSearch {SD 4/My Games} [SPOILERS]
xnbomb wrote:

First, we can try to find a method that transforms the plaintext in mydirectionsstep2.txt to the remaining letters from the wordsearch in one of four orders (the two you've already posted, and their reverses). However, I think it is pretty likely that the remaining letters from the wordsearch are in no particular order.

In that case, we can try something else: We can try to find an enciphering method that, when applied to the plaintext in mydirectionsstep2.txt, produces the same distribution of letters that we find remaining in the wordsearch. Frequency analysis shows that if this is the required approach, it is not a simple substitution or Caesar shift, although it may use one of these schemes by operating them differently on alternating letters or words (suggested by 7/8?), or perhaps Vigenere.


Apologies for just posting suggestions and not jumping in. Been too busy.

This is easily do-able via Vigenere. If I had an hour to spare, I'd do it. Maybe on Tuesday, if no one gets to it. You can find the sharkysoft vigenere cipher using the UF online tools, and then you just play with the vigi key until all the letters match up. It gets really easy once you're used to it. I'd hope that it's not a unique vigi key with the exact same number of characters as the string is long. If it is, that would mean this is prolly the wrong path. If it's a shorter vigi key, and it still enciphers correctly, I think you've hit paydirt.

Is there a set of encrypted text you can apply the vigi key to once it's finished?

PostPosted: Fri May 27, 2005 2:28 pm
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nhansard
Decorated

Joined: 07 Apr 2005
Posts: 159

 		Re: [PUZZLE] WordSearch {SD 4/My Games} [SPOILERS]
nivra wrote:
This is easily do-able via Vigenere. I'd hope that it's not a unique vigi key with the exact same number of characters as the string is long. If it is, that would mean this is prolly the wrong path. If it's a shorter vigi key, and it still enciphers correctly, I think you've hit paydirt.

Is there a set of encrypted text you can apply the vigi key to once it's finished?


a 14 char key would be used 3 times for the length of the text.

It is possible that the key itself would be the password to step3.zip.

I'll play with it and see what i come up with.

PostPosted: Fri May 27, 2005 2:48 pm
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nhansard
Decorated

Joined: 07 Apr 2005
Posts: 159

 		Plain text:
drivenorthonhighwaytonextvillagetopennerinn
Key:
ufndphfgsxukjuwksxrvupboiesutbaetvcxvagtjgr
output:
xwvytutxleixqccroxpoicflbzafebgimjrbinkkrte

No luck on that one, i'll try the next output string.

PostPosted: Fri May 27, 2005 3:26 pm
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nhansard
Decorated

Joined: 07 Apr 2005
Posts: 159

 		Plain text:
drivenorthonhighwaytonextvillagetopennerinn
Key:
ugpcsycnwbnzhrctfnkjxsfnjhttgvlpfaqergctjhg
output:
xxxxwlqepibmoziabniclfjkccbervrtyofietgkrut

No go on that key as a password either.

PostPosted: Fri May 27, 2005 3:57 pm
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jlandgr
Boot

Joined: 27 May 2005
Posts: 67
Location: Münster, Germany

 		I, some progress on this one, but I'm not sure if it is the solution yet, at least it doesn't fit as a password on step3.zip:
Spoiler (Rollover to View):
I noticed the phrase "drive north", which I interpreted as "read from the bottom, from south to north".
The phrase then is (slightly different from the one posted above, I really always went from bottom to top):
XXXXQLWBIPEMZONBAIKJFLCIREBCCTRVEIFOYRKGTTU
The first three X are in a block, so that I thought: a three letter vigenere key, and I tried, and tried ...
And suddenly I tried "XXX" itself as the key, which decodes to:
unityfmbjwlkyxfhgcizfobyzzqosbfclvohdqqr

I don't think that is a coincidence ...
But neither the string above, nor simply unity, work as a password.
I also tried to combine it with "Vagabond Inn", as "Penner" is German for Vagabond and there is a hotel chain named "Vagabond Inn", but so far no luck. I also tried adding Vagabond Inn to the key (XXXXXXVAGABONDINN, or XXXXXXPENNERINN), the XXX has to be doubled to preserve "unity", but no luck.

Or is the password a place, the "next village" where there is a "Vagabond Inn" hotel?
Hmmm ...
As you see, one part of the solution, probably, but as long as somebody can't use it to open a file, there is probably more work to be done. I was also thinking if the rest of the output string was encrypted differently and the strings then pasted together? Hmmmm ...


PostPosted: Mon May 30, 2005 1:55 pm
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