Solution · October 21, 2026
Solution: The Footsteps at the First Frost at the Manor House
Where everyone stood, who did it, and the order of deductions that gets there without a guess. If you have not tried the case yet, the board is on the case page. Play this case.
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The solved board: Medium 6×6
The murderer: The killer: Bruno.
- Dario: row 3, column 4 (Terrace)
- Irene: row 6, column 2 (Ballroom)
- Hugo: row 2, column 1 (Chapel)
- Bruno: row 4, column 5 (Conservatory)
- Theo: row 1, column 3 (Study)
- Felix: row 5, column 6 (Conservatory)
The clues
- DarioThe jazz musician.
He was on a stool. He was not beside a piano.
- IreneThe architect restoring the east wing.
She was in the Ballroom.
- HugoThe retired colonel.
- BrunoThe cook who tastes everything.
He was in the Conservatory with another man. He was in the fifth column from the left.
- TheoThe paperboy.
He was in the Study.
- Felix · VictimThe student who never sleeps.
The victim. He was alone with the killer. He was in the fifth row.
Step by step
The order our solver finds. Each step uses only the clues and what the steps before it proved, and its heading links to the technique.
- Pinned suspects Felix can only be in the fifth row, so nobody else can be there. Placed: Dario: row 3, column 4 (Terrace); Irene: row 6, column 2 (Ballroom); Bruno: row 4, column 5 (Conservatory).
- Room counting The victim, Felix, cannot be in the highlighted cells: his room there could not hold exactly one other person. The cells meant: row 5, column 1.
- The only one who fits Only Hugo can still reach the left column, so he must be there.
- Room counting Bruno was in the Conservatory with exactly one other man. Only Felix can still get there. Placed: Felix: row 5, column 6 (Conservatory); Theo: row 1, column 3 (Study); Hugo: row 2, column 1 (Chapel).
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