Clues & Culprits › Archive › October 2026 › Oct 16, 2026 Medium
Oct 16, 2026 — Medium case
On the last night of every voyage, the SS Aurora holds a charity auction for an orphanage in Valletta, and passengers bid generously after dinner. Last month a journalist went looking for the orphanage. It is a car park.
This Medium case seats 20 suspects on a 4×5 grid. 18 of them carry a clue; the other 2 only have something to say about themselves. 1 of the steps can only be proven by reading two or more clues together. Every verdict you enter is checked against all the scenarios that still fit the statements on file, so a move only sticks when it is proven.
The opening statement
Joan the navigator starts the case already proven innocent:
The person between me and Basil is innocent.— Joan, navigator (B3)
The lineup
Suspects stand in alphabetical order, left to right and top to bottom. Each belongs to one of Clues & Culprits’ twelve character classes — the badge on their nameplate. This case uses 6 of them, each cast as a role in the setting: card sharks, captains, pursers, entertainers, galley cooks, navigators. Clues about a role (“exactly one of the navigators”) count everyone in it.
| Seat | Suspect | Role in this case | Class |
|---|---|---|---|
| A1 | Amir | card shark | Rogue |
| B1 | Basil | captain | Official |
| C1 | Cal | purser | Merchant |
| D1 | Dev | purser | Merchant |
| A2 | Ezra | entertainer | Artist |
| B2 | Felix | card shark | Rogue |
| C2 | Gus | galley cook | Cook |
| D2 | Hana | galley cook | Cook |
| A3 | Iris | entertainer | Artist |
| B3 | Joan | navigator | Scholar |
| C3 | Kira | entertainer | Artist |
| D3 | Lena | navigator | Scholar |
| A4 | Mabel | galley cook | Cook |
| B4 | Nico | entertainer | Artist |
| C4 | Omar | captain | Official |
| D4 | Pia | card shark | Rogue |
| A5 | Quinn | navigator | Scholar |
| B5 | Raj | navigator | Scholar |
| C5 | Suki | captain | Official |
| D5 | Tariq | purser | Merchant |
Stuck?
The in-game hint first points at the statement to re-read, then at the suspect you can prove, then shows the proof. For a gentler nudge, open the spoiler-free hints for Oct 16, 2026, or press Share to send a friend your exact board. New to the format? The deduction-puzzle guide covers the habits that unlock every step.
More cases
- Same day: Easy case · Hard case
- Previous Medium: Oct 15, 2026 — The Postman's Screenplay
- Next Medium: Oct 17, 2026 — Eleven Small Words
- Clue types in this case: Corner and edge clues · Above, below, left and right · Neighbor clues · Same-verdict and exactly-one clues
- All October 2026 cases · More cases in cruise ships · Meet the cast