The Maze: Solve the World's Most Challenging Puzzle

[BeardyHat]

I'm picking 18/81, because I like the stick figure with the hat.

 

[Kaamos_Llama]

@Alm @Zloth @Frindis @Brian Boru @Colif @neogunhero @Kaamos_Llama @Pifanjr @Hveðrungr
@BeardyHat
@mjs warlord
All are welcome!

…an entirely different kind of place.

The group complained of feeling “all turned around,” as well they might.

Because no one wanted to stay here very long they missed the real sign while looking through the obvious. People in their situation, confronted with a challenge, tend to accept the terms of the challenge as a given, without examining it from all sides. How many sides does that problem have? They don’t know.

We passed down a long flight of stairs, through some sort of pantry, and on into…

If thats a Sphinx in the background painting its pointing towards the moon door, which is the wrong way.

This Way, What is your sign and STOP signs- Why is 'This Way' backwards and upside down instead of just backwards like the others?

'What is your siGn?' Weird. Is that actually a G?

Whats that below the painting of the Sphinx(?) pots and pans? Are there some kind of creatures in there?

Stick Man with the hat, a call back to the hat in the previous room? Jazz hands?

---

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I'll go with 18 because This Way mirrored and flipped still shows the sun door and the Sphinx would face it if mirrored.

I think.

 

[Alm]

I'm going to go with 18 too. It looks like a sun shape mirror on the door and I guess a mirror is the answer to the whole room.

 

[Zloth]

18 is where we just came from with the face fireplace.

Flipping through the book, you realize there is no room 81.

Oh no! Flipped through it? I'm cheating! What did I notice?

(note: going back to 18 might still be the best decision. Just letting you know something you would have quickly figured out if you actually had the book)

That's... interesting. OK, so we go back to 18 which just has two choices, so we'll need to go to 13 after that. (Brave heart Brian!)

 

[ZedClampet]

Oh no! Flipped through it? I'm cheating! What did I notice?

You noticed pictures of unusual, numbered rooms. Simply flipping through them was of no help.

 

[ZedClampet]

@Alm @Zloth @Frindis @Brian Boru @neogunhero @Kaamos_Llama @Pifanjr @Hveðrungr
@BeardyHat
@mjs warlord

You decide to return to room 18. From there, you choose the door to room 13.

They weren’t really comfortable here and I knew why.

“No, no,” they said. “We’re not all superstitious.”

“Only some of you, then?”

They were worried it might be Friday. Well it’s true that it was closer to the end of the week than they realized. It takes a great deal of experience, certainly more than they possessed, to understand how time works in the Maze. The clock thought it was six in the evening.

Quickly moving on we came to…

 

[Brian Boru]

18 is where we just came from

This might be a different 18, altho prob not.

You will see the same room numbers repeated sometimes. Can be helpful, or the opposite

Hmm, no 'Second'.
Movie/TV director setup with lighting on the sundial. Sundial, Sunday… maybe Sunday ids the end of the week here.

We have a choice between 5² and 3³… okay, 25 for me—we've messed with some 3 multiples without getting anywhere, so let's dive in five since director and sundial point that way

 

[ZedClampet]

When everyone is done with this room, I'm going to use it as an example of some types of logic in this game, which may help you in future rooms.

The official answers with clues and such have never been released. The site where I'm getting the pictures has pulled in answers from all over and people have contributed their own, but on this room, for example, I don't feel like anyone has gotten this correct. Same thing for a number of rooms I've looked at. For this room, though, I'm fairly confident, based on an interview of the author, that I've got the right logic.

In room 3, the text says there is a "real" and "obvious" sign. Taking it for its word, it must be the "This way" sign that points to door 18. This is further solidified by the theme of light versus dark, as door 18 has a picture of the sun on it, while door 33 has a picture of the moon.

Getting rid of @Hveðrungr 's "opposite day" (thanks Spongebob) logic is problematic. There are a number of ways to look at it, some more satisfying than others, but in the end we just have to follow the text and the sign.

Anyway, just trying to help everyone with the types of things, like light versus dark, reading the text, numbers, what-have-you, that sometimes lead to the correct door.

People don't post as much on the weekend, so we may let this room roll until Monday.

 

[Hveðrungr]

Let's all pick 18 again

This might be a different 18, altho prob not.

If I've understood the conceit correctly, this is like a Choose Your Own Adventure where you're just going to pre-numbered paragraphs / pages / images. So going back to the same number should always be the same.

 

[Alm]

I'm tempted to go room 18 because this room is about time and the clock says 6 o'clock. But I know that's the wrong answer. And my last room logic was off too.

 

[Hveðrungr]

I'm tempted to go room 18 because this room is about time and the clock says 6 o'clock.

• 6pm is 18:00.
• The hour hand is pointing downwards saying we should go back the way we came to 18.
• There are 9 time units on the list, and at the top there are 2 halves of an hour glass showing we double it to get 18.
• On the sundial there is 1 lighted portion on the gnomon and 8 lighted portions on the dial, 1 and 8 i.e. 18.
• There are 3 doorways and 6 ball-topped pillars, 3 x 6 = 18.
• The two objects show a long stick (lampstand) and a circle (lamp) higher than another circle (horn): a stick with a circle higher than another circle is obviously 18.

All the signs are saying to go to 18, guys!

 

[Brian Boru]

All the signs are saying to go to 18

Very nicely constructed

going back to the same number should always be the same

Not acc to what Zed said, which I quoted in post #57.

 

[Zloth]

Interesting that the light isn't on. The light is actually coming from directly above, like high noon... well, high 1pm now that we have daylight savings time <harrumph>.

Closer to the end of the week... Saturday. Sat... and there is a chair. A director's chair, which sounds a little like direction. I think we should go toward 27, because that's the direction of the chair. (It's facing the opposite direction, but there's no door that way, so I'll take the sundail+chair to be an arrow.)

 

[ZedClampet]

Very nicely constructed



Not acc to what Zed said, which I quoted in post #57.

Sorry, I wasn't clear enough. It can sometimes be helpful to go backward. That's not always an option. But there is only one of every room.

If you stooges pick 18 again, I'm flipping a coin between the other two doors.

 

[ZedClampet]

• 6pm is 18:00.
• The hour hand is pointing downwards saying we should go back the way we came to 18.
• There are 9 time units on the list, and at the top there are 2 halves of an hour glass showing we double it to get 18.
• On the sundial there is 1 lighted portion on the gnomon and 8 lighted portions on the dial, 1 and 8 i.e. 18.
• There are 3 doorways and 6 ball-topped pillars, 3 x 6 = 18.
• The two objects show a long stick (lampstand) and a circle (lamp) higher than another circle (horn): a stick with a circle higher than another circle is obviously 18.

All the signs are saying to go to 18, guys!

Sometimes the clues work to eliminate doors. If only you could find numerical references to one of the other doors, you could pick the door not referenced.

This is what I was going to tell everyone after a door was picked. If this were in color, and you had green, blue and yellow doors, and green and blue flowers, you would pick the yellow door.

The book is being cheeky here. After a room with a sign pointing to room 18, here we have another room where all signs seem to point to 18.

 

[Zloth]

If you stooges pick 18 again, I'm flipping a coin between the other two doors.

I don't think it matters if you flip the coin between the doors or in front of them. Woop wooo wooo wooo wooo wooop.

 

[ZedClampet]

It was, after all, the end of the week, and everyone was too tired to select a door and forge ahead. Brian chose the sundial as a seat, but despite the weather's sunny disposition and his "always prepared" attire, his pants became deeply watermarked.

Spoiler: Resting

We'll stay on this room until Monday.

 

[Brian Boru]

Ah here… this is cruel but usual punishment

 

[ZedClampet]

We'll see if people come back on Monday. If not, I'll post a link to a website where anyone interested can continue the game on their own.

 

[ZedClampet]

@Alm @Zloth @Frindis @Brian Boru @neogunhero @Kaamos_Llama @Pifanjr @Hveðrungr
@BeardyHat
@mjs warlord

Canceling game due to lack of participation. Anyone who is interested in continuing the game on their own can go to this site, which has an interview with the author and some best guess answers to the puzzles of each room.

Thanks to everyone for playing. I didn't figure it would last more than a room or two. I had fun doing it

 

[Brian Boru]

Thanks for trying, it was nicely different

I have zero interest in the game itself, but the interaction here was fun while it lasted.

 

[Pifanjr]

@Alm @Zloth @Frindis @Brian Boru @neogunhero @Kaamos_Llama @Pifanjr @Hveðrungr
@BeardyHat
@mjs warlord

Canceling game due to lack of participation. Anyone who is interested in continuing the game on their own can go to this site, which has an interview with the author and some best guess answers to the puzzles of each room.

Thanks to everyone for playing. I didn't figure it would last more than a room or two. I had fun doing it

I was planning on catching up, but hadn't gotten around go it yet. I've been having difficulties doing anything that requires any kind of mental effort.

 

[ZedClampet]

I was planning on catching up, but hadn't gotten around go it yet. I've been having difficulties doing anything that requires any kind of mental effort.

I definitely understand that feeling.

 

[Zloth]

Thanks to everyone for playing. I didn't figure it would last more than a room or two. I had fun doing it

I played on the website but gave up after getting stuck in a loop. There's a way back to room 1, but it's easier to just start over.

Got to the big room with stary ceiling, but followed the black cat, which was a very bad idea. D'oh.

 

[ZedClampet]

I played on the website but gave up after getting stuck in a loop. There's a way back to room 1, but it's easier to just start over.

Got to the big room with stary ceiling, but followed the black cat, which was a very bad idea. D'oh.

IMO that's the hardest room in the game. I must have stared at that thing for at least an hour.

Yeah, I'm a try-hard.