CRYPTOGRAMS
Saturday January 5
by Catspaws
...And there was much rejoicing across the galaxy because the famed kitty of Federation was back!... (And I awoke from my dream...)
Sorry about that, I was just having a daydream. It's a new year, and the kitty is back from her stay at the vet clinic. (I KNOW Djentsch is responsible!) And, with the kitty's return, Cryptograms returns as well.
We had four players for our first game of 2008, including an old player, the reigning champion, a staffer, and a new player. Sadly, the new player only lasted through one puzzle.
The first puzzle was relatively simple - ranks. You do know if you type 'RANKS' while in the game, it will give a list of all the ranks, as well as what you need to do for promotion, right?
Cloudbase seemed determined to ensure Fancy didn't have a perfect game, and succeeded by solving this puzzle first, followed by Fancy and Phedre. Merlin solved three of them, then had to leave.
Ranks in Fed (Must Be In Order):
VLQQCFPXG
EXFEYFXXG
VCUMCYF
QCEFCMX
EGLWFPRLE
MXVRFLVGCM
Ranks are dependant upon each other, and as a planet owner, I am always grateful for the presence of merchants. They help our exchanges run smoothly. Hence the second puzzle was dedicated to these wandering merchants. Fancy beat out Cloudbase this time, with Phedre bringing up the rear.
Names of Merchants in Fed:
DSHJIFY
SHHJPPG
HPFKI
EPDFQBIEDPF
PSMGPEI
JLSEYIFF
Where would we be without commands? Sitting at the meeting point as groundhogs, twiddling our thumbs and wishing we had something to do. Fancy, Phedre and Cloudbase solved this list of commands starting with the letter 's'.
Commands Starting with the Letter S:
TLSAAHR
TKFAA
TKFKST
TKQDR
TBNHR
TRFDJL
Factories are also important to planet owners. They fill our deficits and provide work for our populations, thus avoiding lots of nasty complications. Hence the fourth puzzle dealt with common factory inputs. Fancy, Phedre and Cloudbase solved this list.
Common Factory Inputs (Commodities):
FMFCV
VZFPNV
THCJTV
XCFCV
VSXJV
YHZVPMBV
Also important are slithies, as they allow us to purchase lots of little extras like catnip (oh wait, that's free). The final list dealt with things you can buy with slithies, which Fancy, Cloudbase and Phedre solved.
Things to Buy With Slithies:
QJZVSHEAV DVZBOG
RJMYHBD YHBDEGVZ
BJZZOJCV FOYVRYV
ASOD ZVCOAGZL
ZVBHGV AVZMOYV
GVRIZJRV XVLZORC
When the scores were totalled, Fancy came in first, with Cloudbase beating out Phedre by two points.
Join me each Saturday at 4.00pm eastern for Cryptograms, and you can hone your skills by solving the puzzles in back issues of the Star.
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