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The Vault 2: Treasure & Faries has been released!!! $1000 in cash prizes – and lots of other treasures to claim! Now available on Amazon! Join the adventures! (for those who enjoyed VAULT 1 – there is also a solution section for Vault 1 inside Vault 2)
The Vault is a collection of original puzzle hunts crafted by a talented group of creators, each bringing their own imagination, logic, and storytelling style to the chase. Every hunt is self-contained, with its own clues, and hidden solution. Some may seem straightforward; others will send you spiraling through layers of codes, patterns, and meaning. But all share one thing in common—a genuine love for puzzles that challenge how you think and invite you to see the world a little differently.
Today, we’re taking a look inside The Vault 2 with Maureen – who is one of the clever puzzle creators! The Fifth in this Six Questions Series (Other Six Q’s here)
Six Questions with Maureen Conners:
- Q1) What first sparked your interest in puzzles or treasure hunts?
My Dad. He took our family on a puzzle/treasure hunt when I was a kid. It was an adventure. And we had a shared interest in puzzles, mysteries, codes, and things like that.
- Q2) What advice would you give someone who is first getting into the hobby of puzzle hunts?
Keep an open mind. Think both logically and creatively. Be equally able to go down a rabbit hole as to climb back out. Be able to step back and look at the big picture.
- Q3) What do you enjoy most in the treasure hunting hobby?
The sense of community. The joy in researching and learning new things. Seeing things with new eyes. The mental challenge and definitely the teamwork.
- Q4) When you start designing a new puzzle, where do you begin—story, solution, or structure? How do you balance making a puzzle challenging yet fair?
The inspiration comes from the concept of what I would like to share with others. If there is a person, place, or history that I think is fascinating, then it is fun to build a puzzle around it to help others discover it, too.
I try to balance how challenging it is by keeping in mind that people may make it more complicated all on their own. If someone is working on the puzzle, learning something, enjoying it, that is my hope.
- Q5) Please share a quick peek into your particular puzzle in THE VAULT 2! How would you describe it?
The puzzle is Shuffle off to Buffalo. The city has a lot of interesting culture, history, and people. I’ve probably barely scratched the surface, but I wanted to introduce people to some of the things that make it special. I designed the puzzle so that it could be experienced virtually or in person and be a bit of an adventure either way. Some things will change over time, but they may still be found online.
- Q6) What do you hope solvers take away from your puzzle beyond just the answer? Do you have other puzzles or a social channel to follow?
I hope solvers are able to experience the excitement of discovering a new place and being able to see it in more than three dimensions as it is now. When you can look at a place, not just as it is, but through time or through the eyes of other people, it can enrich your understanding of it.
I have a puzzle in the first Vault book that I made with Lindsay Outten (who is awesome by the way). She has a puzzle in this book as well. Cheers!
