Clues & Culprits › Hints › Oct 4, 2026 Medium
Spoiler-Free Hints for Oct 4, 2026
Stuck on the Medium case, “Lord Ashby's Treasure Hunt”? Open one nudge at a time. Nothing below reveals a verdict unless you click a box marked spoiler.
Back to the case Rules refresher
About this case
The late Lord Ashby left Wexcombe House to whichever guest solved his treasure hunt by Sunday noon. A wine merchant nobody had heard of solved it in four hours flat — clue after clue, as if he had read the answers before the envelopes were opened.
This Medium case seats 20 suspects on a 4×5 grid. 17 of them carry a clue; the other 3 only have something to say about themselves. 2 of the steps can only be proven by reading two or more clues together.
Nudge 1 — where to start
The case opens with Nico the painter (B4) already proven. Their statement is enough on its own to prove one more suspect straight away — read it word by word, especially the counting words (exactly, neighbors, between).
Exactly three of us four painters are innocent.— Nico, painter (B4)
Spoiler: who can I prove first?
Ezra (A2) is innocent, proven by Nico’s statement.
Nudge 2 — the opening
Five suspects get proven in this stretch, in columns A and C. The statements doing the work are role counts, direction clues and odd/even clues. One step here needs 2 statements read together. Tip: with role counts, find every suspect with that role (the nameplate badge helps) and count the proven ones.
Spoiler: whose statements to read
Iris’s and Kira’s statements, read together.
Spoiler: which suspect does that settle?
Mabel (A4) — a criminal.
Nudge 3 — after about 5 proven suspects
Five suspects get proven in this stretch, in columns B and D. The statements doing the work are paired verdicts, direction clues and role counts. One step here needs 2 statements read together. Tip: with paired verdicts, chain the pairs: a link of “same” and “different” statements often runs across the board.
Spoiler: whose statements to read
Ada’s and Mabel’s statements, read together.
Spoiler: which suspect does that settle?
Bea (B1) — innocent.
Nudge 4 — after about 10 proven suspects
Four suspects get proven in this stretch, in columns C and D. The statements doing the work are direction clues, neighbor counts and paired verdicts. Every step in this stretch needs just one statement. Tip: with direction clues, “above”, “below”, “left” and “right” cover the whole line in that direction, not just the next card.
Spoiler: whose statement to read
Ada’s statement.
Spoiler: which suspect does that settle?
Cal (C1) — innocent.
Nudge 5 — the endgame
Five suspects get proven in this stretch, in rows 4 and 5. The statements doing the work are neighbor counts and direction clues. Every step in this stretch needs just one statement. Tip: with neighbor counts, a corner has three neighbors, an edge five, the middle eight — compare the count with what is left.
Spoiler: whose statement to read
Lena’s statement.
Spoiler: which suspect does that settle?
Otto (C4) — innocent.
The hardest step
The toughest moment needs 2 statements at once. If you’re stuck in the middle of the case, this is probably it.
Spoiler: the statements for the hardest step
Read Iris’s and Kira’s statements together. They settle Mabel.
Clue types in this case
direction clues ×4, paired verdicts ×3, neighbor counts ×5, if–then clues ×1, odd/even clues ×1 and role counts ×3.
Questions
How many clues does this case have?
17 of the 20 suspects carry a clue. The rest only talk about themselves — you can hide those asides in Settings.
Where is the full solution?
The step-by-step walkthrough proves every verdict in order.