The alone clue: alone in the room

What the clue says

The person was the only one in their room. The clue names no room, so it does not place them anywhere by itself. It sets a count: their room holds exactly one person. When they are placed, every other cell of that room is closed to everybody else.

What it rules out

Any room that already holds someone, and any room that someone else must use. If Alma's clues put her in the Library, a person who was alone cannot be in the Library. It also rules out the victim's room, because the victim was with the killer, so that room holds two people. A person who was alone is never the killer.

Early in a case the clue removes little. As people are placed, whole rooms close for them, which is why it often settles the last move.

F

F

F

F

F

F

Plant

F

LibraryStudyConservatoryKitchen

Is there a negative form?

No. The game never says "not alone". The nearest clue is with another man or woman, which gives an exact count of one more person of a gender.

Common mistakes

• Reading it as alone in a row. It is about the room only.
• Placing someone in the same room later. Once the person is placed, cross out the rest of their room for everyone.
• Suspecting them. The killer shares the victim's room, so someone who was alone cannot be the killer.
• Expecting it to place them. It needs other clues or the board to point to a cell.

How it combines with other clues

Alone works through other people's clues. Every room clue or object clue that fixes someone in a room closes that room to the person who was alone. Combine it with the person's own position clues: "alone" plus "beside a plant" leaves only the plants in empty rooms. The technique room counting covers the counts in full.