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Into The Deep :
The crypt Trunk - Hints
Commonly asked questions and their answers will be added below as more Witches and Wizards tempt their fates.
If you have questions about The Crypt Trunk escape quest, please email us at owlery@trunkofrequirements.com!
The first stage of The Crypt Trunk is to identify the Keyword. Use a Book Cipher tactic.
Based on your findings you can use the Keyword you decode to then use it to decipher the journal.
A book cipher that uses a three-number code typically follows the format of (page number, line number, word number) to represent each word or letter in a hidden message. To decode a keyword encrypted in this format, you must have access to the exact book or text agreed upon by the sender and receiver. Using the three numbers, you would first turn to the specified page, then count down to the indicated line, and finally locate the word in that line corresponding to the third number. Repeating this process for each three-number group will gradually reveal the full keyword or message.
For example, if the code is (45, 10, 3), you would turn to page 45 of the book, find the 10th line on that page, and then select the 3rd word in that line. That word would represent part of the message — often a letter or an entire word, depending on the cipher’s design. Decoding a full message involves interpreting each group in sequence. Precision is critical: even small differences in book editions (such as page formatting or punctuation) can alter word positions and make the code unreadable or incorrect.
A keyword cipher is a type of substitution cipher where the alphabet is shifted based on a secret keyword. To decode a paragraph encrypted with a keyword cipher, you first need to reconstruct the cipher alphabet. Start by writing down the keyword, omitting any repeated letters. After the keyword, continue with the remaining unused letters of the standard alphabet in order. This forms the cipher alphabet, which replaces the regular alphabet during encoding. Once you have the cipher alphabet mapped against the standard alphabet, you can begin decoding by reversing the substitution — matching each letter from the coded paragraph back to the original letter.
For example, if the keyword is "SECRET", the cipher alphabet would begin S, E, C, R, T, followed by the rest of the alphabet (A, B, D, F, G, H, etc.) excluding any letters already used. When decoding, you look at each letter in the encrypted paragraph and find its position in the cipher alphabet; then replace it with the corresponding letter from the standard alphabet. By methodically working through the text and paying attention to common words and patterns (like "the" or "and"), you can accurately reconstruct the original paragraph. Consistency and careful checking are important, especially since a single misalignment can throw off the entire decoding.