Puzzle Resources

Here are a couple online resources that may help you if you get stuck:

• INTEGIRLS put together a Guide to Puzzle Solving and Puzzle 101 Seminar that contains generally helpful solving advice.
• The Internet: Some of our puzzles will be impossible to solve without the use of the Internet, and the Internet will be helpful on nearly every puzzle.
• Nutrimatic: Nutrimatic can be helpful when puzzles reveal their answer letter-by-letter, allowing you to shortcut some of the letters. It also has more powerful advanced functionalities.
• dCode: Cipher-solving websites like dCode can automate the process of solving ciphers.

Here are a couple common methods for "extracting" a final answer for the puzzle:

• Indexing: Given a word and a number, you take the letter in the number's position in the word. For example, indexing 5 into INTEGIRLS gives G.
• Alphanumeric Substitution: Given a number between 1 and 26, you substitute the letter between A and Z that corresponds to that number's position between 1 and 26. Also known as A1Z26 because 1 corresponds to A and 26 corresponds to Z.
• Cluephrases: Occasionally, a puzzle will give a crossword clue-like description of the answer instead of the answer itself. For example, the cluephrase NUMBER AFTER ONE would correspond to an answer of TWO.

Finally, here are some general strategies we've found helpful when stuck on puzzles:

• Teamwork: Sometimes, one of your teammates will know exactly what to do on something you never could have gotten in a million years. They may have know things you don't know, have skills you don't have, or come with a fresh perspective that makes all the difference. Rely on your teammates -- they can be extremely helpful.
• Rubber ducking: Named after a practice for debugging computer code, if you're stuck on a puzzle, consider describing everything you have tried by talking to a friend, writing it down, or even talking to a rubber duck. Sometimes, the process of structuring your thoughts can reveal something you hadn't noticed before.
• Take a break: If you can't make progress on a puzzle, don't force yourself to keep looking at it. Try looking at a different puzzle or stepping away from the puzzles entirely to rest your brain. Solving puzzles can be hard work!