Seems to have about the right frequencies for a language but that seems ridiculous without a built in clue ... which I assume may be associated with the post colon letters but ... argh!
If anyone has '8 repeated symbols of length 315' you might not have the right 8 symbols, there's a few different ways to end up there, with different letters.
I don't actually believe you... there can surely only be one way of getting 315 characters from an alphabet of 8, and @Inwie already mentioned what those 8 are on page 2.
I never bothered to translate what inwie wrote. Lucky, because if it's saying that they have those symbols, They Are Wrong. It would have led me down the wrong path for even longer then it already took me.
Am I seriously supposed to believe that there are at least two ways to turn C into a string of letters containing only 8 different letters, that can be interpreted as 100 pairs of 5 different “symbols”?
There is a slightly different interpretation of the cipher which results in the 315 letters being translated to 200 symbols in Group 1A. But that doesn't seem to change my analysis of the "100" because you still have to turn pairs of symbols into single letters and it can be done in the same way as before, which results in nonsense, or using a different translation, which also results in nonsense.
I've been sitting on something similar for the past hour or so, running out of things to try and unscramble it. I'm thinking it might have something to do with upper and lower case but no luck yet. (or I'm stuck down a rabbit hole ¯\_(ツ)_/¯, again)
It does, and that's the source of my other translation (but it's similar to my original, modulo a monoalphabetic substitution, and I've already failed to find a monoalphabetic substitution that makes sense of it). But it does raise some questions, such as: 0-4 or 1-5 or 4-0 or 5-1`? LSB or MSB? A=0? Or maybe each pair isn't actually a base-5 number.
Love it, even the tricky bits at the end. Have to admit - I stayed on C and had difficulties with A for way longer than I should have, and really appreciate the nudges away from all the red herrings I went after. Lovely puzzle, and I appreciated the way there were some distinct things to let you know you were on the right track, or some more obvious things to say you are going the wrong way.
Finally find 8 letters (5 chemical elements) of 315 letters, and after defending into 100 letters that don't know should be in and see AR but not in the last 2 letters
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Seems to have about the right frequencies for a language but that seems ridiculous without a built in clue ... which I assume may be associated with the post colon letters but ... argh!
post colons are herrings.
If anyone has '8 repeated symbols of length 315' you might not have the right 8 symbols, there's a few different ways to end up there, with different letters.
Ok, now you’re scaring me ... any hints to help identify if you have the wrong 8 characters?
Well it clearly isn't going to improve mine, given I'm still stuck at 100 characters.
I don't actually believe you... there can surely only be one way of getting 315 characters from an alphabet of 8, and @Inwie already mentioned what those 8 are on page 2.
Well, I'm pretty much stuck at the start. No idea what to do with A and B.
Any hint to start, stuck in the C formula and dont know where to get those 100 characthers
Do not get bogged down in C - start with A. It is my belief that the upper and lower case in the text of A is a red herring.
I never bothered to translate what inwie wrote. Lucky, because if it's saying that they have those symbols, They Are Wrong. It would have led me down the wrong path for even longer then it already took me.
The correct symbols make sense, given the theme.
I may have gotten C, although my school didn't offer chemistry, so I'm at a loss of what to do with A or B.
I found a utility that analyzed it against 25 known ciphers, but it couldn't identify it. Not sure how to get to 100 or 8, not making any sense to me.
Am I seriously supposed to believe that there are at least two ways to turn C into a string of letters containing only 8 different letters, that can be interpreted as 100 pairs of 5 different “symbols”?
O man ... there is
There is a slightly different interpretation of the cipher which results in the 315 letters being translated to 200 symbols in Group 1A. But that doesn't seem to change my analysis of the "100" because you still have to turn pairs of symbols into single letters and it can be done in the same way as before, which results in nonsense, or using a different translation, which also results in nonsense.
Ok now I got something really weird that kind of ends in a scrambled “one three a r”
But it gives you a natural order you didn’t have before
I've been sitting on something similar for the past hour or so, running out of things to try and unscramble it. I'm thinking it might have something to do with upper and lower case but no luck yet. (or I'm stuck down a rabbit hole ¯\_(ツ)_/¯, again)
Thanks! Finally decoded A.
Actually to decode A you have to start with C.
It does, and that's the source of my other translation (but it's similar to my original, modulo a monoalphabetic substitution, and I've already failed to find a monoalphabetic substitution that makes sense of it). But it does raise some questions, such as: 0-4 or 1-5 or 4-0 or 5-1`? LSB or MSB? A=0? Or maybe each pair isn't actually a base-5 number.
True. But you must not go down any rabbit-holes while looking at C.
Challenge your assumptions... You seem to have a lot of information, from forums / other sources, that you are taking as truth there.
Codes are rarely straight nonsense.
I have prefix , suffix , a 24 letter keyword (???) and the catalyst back ... absolutely beautiful ... except this mess of a keyword
Yeah, that part was truly painful. it's another new keyword as far as I know.
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Got that first few words of A decoded but simply reusing C or the "intermediate" with the same method doesn't seem to take me further.
Are we breaking down A and B until reaching 100 letters or instead making the key longer to decode the entire string?
Ok is this code case sensitive because I absolutely must have it
Edit: I was going to compliment the designer on a near perfect code but then they decided to be evil at the end :-(
Edit 2: got it at last ...
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You are probably really on the right track on solving A. Try experimenting with different options/settings in the method you are using.
200 and 100 steps only apply to B. I hope that helps!
Love it, even the tricky bits at the end. Have to admit - I stayed on C and had difficulties with A for way longer than I should have, and really appreciate the nudges away from all the red herrings I went after. Lovely puzzle, and I appreciated the way there were some distinct things to let you know you were on the right track, or some more obvious things to say you are going the wrong way.
@feistyzag deleted my post but you need to edit yours too ... that said, I still can’t figure out the keyword
Finally find 8 letters (5 chemical elements) of 315 letters, and after defending into 100 letters that don't know should be in and see AR but not in the last 2 letters
Is the 100 letters it will be reduced again?
edit: finally saw 13AR