Clues & Culprits › Hints › Oct 18, 2026 Medium
Spoiler-Free Hints for Oct 18, 2026
Stuck on the Medium case, “The Woman with the Wristwatch”? Open one nudge at a time. Nothing below reveals a verdict unless you click a box marked spoiler.
Back to the case Rules refresher
About this case
The Ashcombe Museum's blockbuster 'Lost Masterpieces of the North' drew three hundred thousand visitors and glowing reviews. On its final day, a schoolboy pointed out that one 'seventeenth-century' portrait showed a woman wearing a wristwatch.
This Medium case seats 20 suspects on a 4×5 grid. 16 of them carry a clue; the other 4 only have something to say about themselves. 4 of the steps can only be proven by reading two or more clues together.
Nudge 1 — where to start
The case opens with Quinn the chemist (A5) already proven. Their statement is enough on its own to prove one more suspect straight away — read it word by word, especially the counting words (exactly, neighbors, between).
Nobody to the right of Joan is a criminal.— Quinn, chemist (A5)
Spoiler: who can I prove first?
Kurt (C3) is innocent, proven by Quinn’s statement.
Nudge 2 — the opening
Five suspects get proven in this stretch, in columns C and D. The statements doing the work are direction clues, neighbor counts and “connected” clues. One step here needs 2 statements read together. Tip: with direction clues, “above”, “below”, “left” and “right” cover the whole line in that direction, not just the next card.
Spoiler: whose statements to read
Kurt’s and Lena’s statements, read together.
Spoiler: which suspect does that settle?
Greta (C2) — innocent.
Nudge 3 — after about 5 proven suspects
Five suspects get proven in this stretch, across rows 2, 3 and 4, most of them in row 2. The statements doing the work are paired verdicts, neighbor counts and if–then clues. 2 steps here need 2 statements read together. Tip: with paired verdicts, chain the pairs: a link of “same” and “different” statements often runs across the board.
Spoiler: whose statements to read
Kurt’s and Suki’s statements, read together.
Spoiler: which suspect does that settle?
Hattie (D2) — innocent.
Nudge 4 — after about 10 proven suspects
Four suspects get proven in this stretch, in rows 1 and 5. The statements doing the work are neighbor counts, paired verdicts and row and column counts. One step here needs 2 statements read together. Tip: with neighbor counts, treat the number as a budget — once enough of the ring is proven, the rest is forced.
Spoiler: whose statements to read
Joan’s and Cora’s statements, read together.
Spoiler: which suspect does that settle?
Dina (D1) — innocent.
Nudge 5 — the endgame
Five suspects get proven in this stretch, in columns B and D. The statements doing the work are odd/even clues, paired verdicts and neighbor counts. Every step in this stretch needs just one statement. Tip: with odd/even clues, count the proven ones first; the parity of the rest follows.
Spoiler: whose statement to read
Dina’s statement.
Spoiler: which suspect does that settle?
Theo (D5) — a criminal.
The hardest step
The toughest moment needs 2 statements at once. If you’re stuck in the middle of the case, this is probably it.
Spoiler: the statements for the hardest step
Read Kurt’s and Lena’s statements together. They settle Greta.
Clue types in this case
row and column counts ×1, neighbor counts ×3, odd/even clues ×2, if–then clues ×1, “between” clues ×2, paired verdicts ×4, “connected” clues ×1 and direction clues ×2.
Questions
How many clues does this case have?
16 of the 20 suspects carry a clue. The rest only talk about themselves — you can hide those asides in Settings.
Where is the full solution?
The step-by-step walkthrough proves every verdict in order.