MW Puzzle Fun #13 was more difficult than the previous puzzles. A clue from a cipher used in The Beacon Star armchair treasure hunt, was given to help searchers discover the solution to the puzzle. The puzzle utilized a Polybius Square to discover the correct answer.
A Polybius Square is a 5×5 grid filled with letters of the alphabet. The grid can be filled with all 26 by two letters sharing a space, or with only 25, leaving out a letter, say the Q or Z. It can also be filled in any arrangement.
The Rows and Columns are numbered 1 to 5, with each letter represented by the grid’s coordinates.
In the case for MW Puzzle Fun #13 the grid was filled in one of the most common ways. The I/J shared a space.
In order to use the Polybius Square, pairs of numbers, representing Row and Columns are applied. In armchair treasure hunts these elements are often hidden.
MW Puzzle Fun #13 hid them by Shape and Amount.
A searcher would read first the Shape to represent the Row. And next the Amount of that Shape to represent the column.
Ordering by the word ‘MYSTERIOUS’ within the Grid (hinted at the presentation of the puzzle), a searcher would get the following pairs/coordinates to apply to the Polybius Square.
1,1 1,4 5,1 1,5 3,3 4,4 4,5 4,2 1,5 4,3
This gives the solution and word: ADVENTURES.
Each Monday, a new MW Puzzle Fun is released on the MW Forum. Solutions are released soon after. Exercise the mind, gain some practice, and enjoy the puzzles.