Clues & Culprits › Hints › Oct 7, 2026 Medium
Spoiler-Free Hints for Oct 7, 2026
Stuck on the Medium case, “The Moon Rock Swap”? 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
Mission control's prize exhibit, a fist-sized moon rock lent by the national museum, has been the star of three thousand school trips. On Monday a geologist on one of those trips noticed that it was a lump of Cornish granite, painted grey.
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. 3 of the steps can only be proven by reading two or more clues together.
Nudge 1 — where to start
The case opens with Nora the security chief (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).
The person between Amir and Ivan is innocent.— Nora, security chief (B4)
Spoiler: who can I prove first?
Esme (A2) is innocent, proven by Nora’s statement.
Nudge 2 — the opening
Five suspects get proven in this stretch, in rows 1 and 2. The statements doing the work are “between” clues, shared-neighbor counts and odd/even clues. Every step in this stretch needs just one statement. Tip: with “between” clues, two suspects side by side have nobody between them, so watch for empty stretches.
Spoiler: whose statement to read
Nora’s statement.
Spoiler: which suspect does that settle?
Esme (A2) — innocent.
Nudge 3 — after about 5 proven suspects
Five suspects get proven in this stretch, in rows 2 and 3. The statements doing the work are neighbor counts, “connected” clues and “between” clues. 3 steps here need 2 statements read together. Tip: with neighbor counts, treat the number as a budget — once enough of the ring is proven, the rest is forced.
Spoiler: whose statements to read
Gemma’s and Hugo’s statements, read together.
Spoiler: which suspect does that settle?
Jasper (B3) — 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 neighbor counts and paired verdicts. Every step in this stretch needs just one statement. Tip: with paired verdicts, chain the pairs: a link of “same” and “different” statements often runs across the board.
Spoiler: whose statement to read
Gemma’s statement.
Spoiler: which suspect does that settle?
Lionel (D3) — a criminal.
Nudge 5 — the endgame
Five suspects get proven in this stretch, across rows 1, 4 and 5, most of them in row 5. The statements doing the work are direction clues, odd/even clues and shared-neighbor counts. 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
Lionel’s statement.
Spoiler: which suspect does that settle?
Theo (D5) — 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 Gemma’s and Hugo’s statements together. They settle Jasper.
Clue types in this case
neighbor counts ×5, odd/even clues ×2, “between” clues ×3, shared-neighbor counts ×2, “connected” clues ×2, direction clues ×2 and paired verdicts ×1.
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.