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Tunnel Entrance

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Hints are available below, if you need them.
Don’t forget to use all lower case and no spaces.

Hints

Hint 1
The local police has told you that all the gates look the same, so if you manage to open one of them, the solution will probably work on the others as well.

The gate is made up of:

  • Three columns of different sizes on each side.
  • Some text that sounds like instructions.
  • Some letters I and V in different groups, above the columns of text.
  • Snakes.
  • Some random looking letters, which are neatly organized into rows and columns.
Hint 2
Do the combinations of the letters I and V, above the columns of text, mean anything to you?
Hint 3
You are in front of an old Roman aqueduct. Could the letters I and V, above the columns of text, be Roman numerals?
Hint 4
The combinations of I and V represent:

  • IV = 4
  • II = 2
  • VI = 6

So 4, 2, 6.

Have you noticed that these numbers almost resemble the ratio between the sizes of columns on the right and left sides of the entrance?

Hint 5
Have you counted the number of columns the random letters are organized into?
Hint 6
The instruction says something about divide and conquer. Would it make sense to divide up the 12 columns with letters sections of different widths?
Hint 7
Try to divide it up into 3 sections. Can you think of what could the widths (number of columns) be in each sections?
Hint 8
The Roman numerals suggest IV (4), II (2) and VI (6). Have you tried to create sections with these sizes? Like this:

  • Columns 1-4 is the first group (width = 4)
  • Columns 5-6 is the second group (width = 2)
  • Columns 7-12 is the third group (width = 2)
Hint 9
You will probably have to read the text on each section separately from the others. The instruction says, that after ‘dividing and conquering’ you must ‘follow the snake’.

Can the slithering movement of the snakes help you read out anything on the first sections (4 leftmost columns)?

Hint 10
Notice how the snake moves downwards, starting from right to left, then left to right?
Hint 11
You must start on the top right letter of your section. For the first section this it the topmost letter in the 4th column from the left.

Then read on, from right to left (T-O-S-T).

When you reach the side of the column you must move down one line, then change your direction from left to right (A-R-T-J).

This already gives you two word! TO – START – J…

Hint 12

Following the snake across the three groups, you get the text:

  • Group 1 (columns 1 to 4)
    • TOSTARTJUSTROTATEONCETOTHERIGHTT
  • Group 2 (columns 5 to 6)
    • HENTWICETOTHELEF
  • Group 3 (columns 7 to 12)
    • TTHENPRESSITUPFIVETIMESANDONELESSTIMETHEOTHERWAY
Hint 13
If you read the full text in one go, you get:

TO START JUST ROTATE ONCE TO THE RIGHT THEN TWICE TO THE LEFT THEN PRESS IT UP FIVE TIMES AND ONE LESS TIME THE OTHER WAY.

Can you get get the sequence of numbers and letters showing what actions and directions you need to do?

Solution
Show Explanation

Notice the Roman numerals on the top of the gate: IV (4), II (2), VI (6)? These sum up to 12. This is the same as the number of columns in the matrix of letters below.

The text on the top talks about divide and conquer. You should divide up the matrix of letters into three sections:

  • First section with width of four columns of letters (columns 1 to 4).
  • Second section with width of two columns of letters (columns 5 to 6).
  • Third section with width of six columns of letters (columns 7 to 12).

Now you have three separate sections that need to be read.

The letters on the top also say that after dividing and conquering, you must follow the snake. For reading the sections, follow a snake-like movement, slithering down, always starting at the top right corner of the area.

The text will read: TO START JUST ROTATE ONCE TO THE RIGHT THEN TWICE TO THE LEFT THEN PRESS IT UP FIVE TIMES AND ONE LESS TIME THE OTHER WAY.

Show Answer

So the solution is: 1r2l5u4d or 1r2lu54d

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