On day 77 and stuck, need hints

[deadbeef]

I'm completely stuck. I've still got a bunch of different puzzles to solve but I'm totally clueless as to solving them. I'm on day 77 and there's no reason really for me to even continue doing runs as there's nothing I can accomplish during them that will help me to my knowledge, the only thing left for me is to figure out what I'm supposed to do. So I'm hoping that anybody on here can provide me some hints.

Here's the list of things I'm stuck on - my TODO list from my notepad. If anybody could provide some hints on any of these, I'd really appreciate it. Just hints please, don't give me the answers.

• Find the remaining red letters. I have the red letters from the Study, The Office, The Boudoir, and the Shelter. I can't figure out what to do with the safe in the Drafting Room (I'm thinking maybe I need to go open the safe in the study and the one in the drafting room will open in the same run, because it's a miniature of the study.) I also know there's a red letter in the underground, above the part with the gears, but I can't figure out what is the combination to that lock down there. And that's only 6 letters, I have no idea where the other two will be.
  
• I have six sanctum keys, I need to find the remaining two. I know that one of them is a room called "Throne Room", from accidentally glancing at things on the internet, but I have no idea how to get the blueprint for that room. The other one I'm missing is the one that is "Behind the last door of Eight".
  
• Solve the sigil puzzles in the basement behind the sanctum key doors that I've already opened. I've solved the two easy ones for Orinda Aries and Finn Aries, but haven't spent too much time on the rest. This is probably the thing where I could make the most progress if I spent some time on it.
  
• Figure out whatever the heck the book "A New Clue" is trying to say. It's obviously saying that I need to get the four books it mentions, find specific words on specific pages to make some kind of message, but I have no idea how to figure out which words on which pages I need to find.
  
• Find the remaining two network modules for the Blackbridge network.
  
• Find an admin key that grants Archive Access to the Blackbridge network. I saw the message that says that a new admin key (with a different format) was added on 07-25-87, so I need to figure out who was on the manor around that time that needed an admin key, but I haven't been able to figure out who that is (or what the different format for their name might be).
  
• Figure out what is the deal with the C__ A__ S__ T__ L__ E__ thing in the chess piece puzzle room in the underground. I found that on the wall behind the broken wall, but I can't figure out what it means at all or what I'm supposed to do with it.

And then just some other notes on my TODO list:

• I found a blueprint called Tunnel, which purports to be a "standard" rarity, but it has never ONCE showed up in my drafting options. I only just found this recently. I also found it at the end of that tunnel full of boxes - it seems like there might be something on the other side of those boxes, but after ~77 days on the manor I've found nothing.
  
• One thing I haven't been able to do yet is draft the Furnace near the Freezer to melt the stuff that's in there and read that letter. The rarities on those two rooms are so rare that it seems like it's nearly impossible to get that combo.
  
• Need to draft a Mechanarium when I've already got 7 other mechanical rooms on the estate, so that I can open every door in there and see if there are any clues.
  
• I've never connected the Boiler Room to the Laundry, so I don't know what that extra laundry machine does, but I don't expect that this will reveal anything new to me - it'll probably just be some really useful bonus for that run.
  
• Some references have been made to "Staff Contracts" throughout the game, and I saw a note that "The staff contracts are no longer kept on the highest rank", so it seems like finding the staff contracts is something that I should be able to do. But I have absolutely zero leads on this.

Thanks for reading my wall of text.

[Sir Waddles D. Waddlesworth III]

I'll try to give hints without spoiling the whole answer.

1) Remember the clue you got from the paintings puzzle. Can elaborate if you need more hints than that since this is intentionally vague. That clue will give you the answers you're looking for though.

2) The Throne Room blueprint is hidden behind a different puzzle. A New Clue helps with this. As for the second key think of where you've seen rooms with 8 doors. The obvious thing that comes to mind is the Sanctum, but it wouldn't make sense for the key to be there since you need a key to open the last door, so what other room has 8 doors?

3) These can take a minute, but you can find clues to these around the house. Think of what rooms cover the various kingdoms? Additionally, there's a book that tracks your progress in the library. You may notice when flipping through it that there is a collection of items in there that relates to the various kingdoms; perhaps it contains some clues?

4) This is a very tough puzzle. There is something in the book that relates to page numbers and words. There may also be a few more clues on that page as well.

Additionally, there are a few other puzzles in this book. Make sure to check every page, on both sides. Almost everything in this book is relevant somehow. Can again elaborate further if need be, though hard to do without giving away the whole puzzles.

5) You can find hints to both of these in A New Clue. One also has a much clearer clue somewhere in the house but I can't remember where. They will both require specific items to obtain.

6) Can't help with this one since I haven't figured it out yet.

7) I believe this relates to 2 different puzzles, one of which I haven't solved yet. For the one I have solved, what does castling mean in Chess? What pieces does that maneuver involve?

From the To-Do list:

1) The tunnel is a bit underwhelming and to my knowledge not related to the tunnel you found it in. You are on the right track thinking there's something behind those boxes but you will need to solve something else on the previous list in order to do anything about it.

2) I don't actually know if it's possible to draft these together. That said maybe you don't need to melt the ice with the furnace. Certain items may help you through a wall of ice.

3) This is a pretty good idea.

4) I won't even bother putting this in spoiler tags. It's really underwhelming. It's just a different resource trade, which can be useful but doesn't really advance any sort of puzzle.

5) Huh. No idea. I forgot about those. I'm not completely done with the game so maybe this will show up?


Hope some of this helps!

[Gorlom[Swe]]

6. You're kind of on the wrong path on this one for that specific key, it is also in a new clue.

2. What you are trying to do would not acomplish what you think it does. You should examine the note in the lab a bit closer to see why.

3. You don't technically need 7 others. (it sould be 6 others with the mechanarium as the 7th for there to be 8 doors. But that is only if you draw it towards 3 other potential doorways. By drawing it towards blocked doorways those doors can't appear and you can reduce it down to 3 other mechanical rooms to get the 4 cornerdoors open.)

[Silyon]

Originally posted by deadbeef:

Find the remaining red letters. I have the red letters from the Study, The Office, The Boudoir, and the Shelter. I can't figure out what to do with the safe in the Drafting Room (I'm thinking maybe I need to go open the safe in the study and the one in the drafting room will open in the same run, because it's a miniature of the study.) I also know there's a red letter in the underground, above the part with the gears, but I can't figure out what is the combination to that lock down there. And that's only 6 letters, I have no idea where the other two will be.

Remember the message revealed from the paired Painting puzzle? It applies to all of the safes, even if you have to stretch the meaning a little bit. Bonus Hint: Every safe can be solved with only information contained within the safe's room, though there may be tidbits elsewhere that make the solve a bit easier.

Originally posted by deadbeef:

I have six sanctum keys, I need to find the remaining two. I know that one of them is a room called "Throne Room", from accidentally glancing at things on the internet, but I have no idea how to get the blueprint for that room. The other one I'm missing is the one that is "Behind the last door of Eight".

Don't worry too much about missing floorplans when there's still things you haven't searched under. Come back to it. As for the other one, where in the house have you seen a room with up to 8 doors?

Originally posted by deadbeef:

Solve the sigil puzzles in the basement behind the sanctum key doors that I've already opened. I've solved the two easy ones for Orinda Aries and Finn Aries, but haven't spent too much time on the rest. This is probably the thing where I could make the most progress if I spent some time on it.

True, the Sigils take research to complete. Fortunately, there's a guidebook for that. Shame the "easy" copy is in shambles, you'll have to find a replacement copy somewhere. And while your at it, brush up on your Geography and History!

Originally posted by deadbeef:

Figure out whatever the heck the book "A New Clue" is trying to say. It's obviously saying that I need to get the four books it mentions, find specific words on specific pages to make some kind of message, but I have no idea how to figure out which words on which pages I need to find.

"A New Clue" has at least four separate clues for four separate puzzles. It's jam-packed with usable information on every page, much of it hidden in plain sight. The one you mention is only one of the set.

Originally posted by deadbeef:

Find the remaining two network modules for the Blackbridge network.

Ironic, sounds like you need a new clue. Maybe try security again, there has to be some way to access old footage.

Originally posted by deadbeef:

Find an admin key that grants Archive Access to the Blackbridge network. I saw the message that says that a new admin key (with a different format) was added on 07-25-87, so I need to figure out who was on the manor around that time that needed an admin key, but I haven't been able to figure out who that is (or what the different format for their name might be).

I'd say start with a list of who you know worked on the Estate. The place had plenty of staff, stands to reason more than a few of them had to access the network from time to time. Start at the top and work your way down the ranks.

Originally posted by deadbeef:

Figure out what is the deal with the C__ A__ S__ T__ L__ E__ thing in the chess piece puzzle room in the underground. I found that on the wall behind the broken wall, but I can't figure out what it means at all or what I'm supposed to do with it.

This is part of one of the most intuitive puzzles in the game, don't feel bad. Think of the message as a jigsaw with missing pieces, then go out and find those pieces. Figuring out what to do with it is a whole other thing.

[SentientBot]

It looks like you aren't nearly as stuck as it feels! Likely if you manage to tip just one or two of these dominoes, the other parts may start to fall into place. You've already been given excellent subtle hints on the main questions and I wouldn't want to offer more until knowing if they worked for you or not.

I also maintained a "To-Do" list separate from my puzzle solving... not sure why I am using past tense, I still have two dozen items on the list. Let me see if I can offer some hints on those. They sound like good things to follow-up on.

Tunnel: I still have some follow-up ones on this hallprint myself. It appears that it can only run North / South which, depending on how and when you are drafting, may impact its ability to show up. A serpentine path will have half of its drafts ineligible for instance. It does have some unique properties near the borders of the house.

Furnace: One of the Drafting Strategy books ( might be the Dormitory one? ) gives advice on how to influence Furnace ( and some other ) rooms for appearing in your draft. It is a worthwhile experiment. The only follow-up to your experiment is that the Furnace is not the only way to impact frozen items.

Mechanarium: Try drafting it more often in different situations anyway. The 'ah ha' moment on this room came for me when I was forced to put it late somewhere I didn't want. It may have features you aren't aware of yet. If you really want the 'maximum' number of gear rooms in the estate, it likely would require Aquarium upgrades and shenanigans or pool manipulation with the Chamber of Mirrors.

Laundry: A healthy allowance and a powered Laundry is a super strong way to work on late game puzzles. If you are not getting them connected, you are likely missing some key advice from Drafting Strategies around powered rooms.

Contracts: I am stuck in the same place as most of the community ( I reject the hypothesis that there is not another puzzle solution and discovery still hidden ) but have not seen Staff Contracts. That may be a flavor aspect of the Revane history... or perhaps a secret as of yet to be revealed.

[deadbeef]

Thanks! I've made a ton of progress just today from all the hints you've all given me. This has been a big help!!

Originally posted by Sir Waddles D. Waddlesworth III:

I'll try to give hints without spoiling the whole answer.

3) These can take a minute, but you can find clues to these around the house. Think of what rooms cover the various kingdoms? Additionally, there's a book that tracks your progress in the library. You may notice when flipping through it that there is a collection of items in there that relates to the various kingdoms; perhaps it contains some clues?

This one, I have a follow-up question on. I'm pretty sure I know what you're talking about, but that page is just completely blank for me. Is there something I'm supposed to do to make stuff show up on that page?

https://i.imgur.com/2dQlqON.png

[rainbowtrout07]

Originally posted by deadbeef:

Thanks! I've made a ton of progress just today from all the hints you've all given me. This has been a big help!!

Originally posted by Sir Waddles D. Waddlesworth III:

I'll try to give hints without spoiling the whole answer.

3) These can take a minute, but you can find clues to these around the house. Think of what rooms cover the various kingdoms? Additionally, there's a book that tracks your progress in the library. You may notice when flipping through it that there is a collection of items in there that relates to the various kingdoms; perhaps it contains some clues?

This one, I have a follow-up question on. I'm pretty sure I know what you're talking about, but that page is just completely blank for me. Is there something I'm supposed to do to make stuff show up on that page?

https://i.imgur.com/2dQlqON.png

Copies of certain things show up there if examined elsewhere with the magnifying glass

More specific spoiler: take a closer look at envelopes you come across

Explicit spoiler: they're stamps

[SentientBot]

Originally posted by deadbeef:

Thanks! I've made a ton of progress just today from all the hints you've all given me. This has been a big help!!

This one, I have a follow-up question on. I'm pretty sure I know what you're talking about, but that page is just completely blank for me. Is there something I'm supposed to do to make stuff show up on that page?

https://i.imgur.com/2dQlqON.png

Glad you are rolling again!

Your instinct is 100% correct on that page and its relevance. I am trying to think what might be the most subtle way to hint it...
Unsurprisingly, the magnifying glass is involved. In so much clue collection, it is. Have you looked at the letter in the entrance hall and the letter from your Dad with it thoroughly and completely? If so, that page will no longer be blank and the next step will feel more self-obvious.