Clues & Culprits › Archive › October 2026 › Oct 25, 2026 Hard
Oct 25, 2026 — Hard case
For a month the Sunday Herald has printed the private notes of a famous footballer recovering on Ward 6 of St. Ursula's: his blood pressure, his diet, his secret fondness for jelly. Only the staff on Ward 6 can read his chart.
This Hard case seats 20 suspects on a 4×5 grid. 15 of them carry a clue; the other 5 only have something to say about themselves. 7 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
Felix the visitor starts the case already proven a criminal:
None of the receptionists is a criminal.— Felix, visitor (B2)
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: visitors, receptionists, art therapists, nurses, orderlies, interns. Clues about a role (“exactly one of the visitors”) count everyone in it.
| Seat | Suspect | Role in this case | Class |
|---|---|---|---|
| A1 | Amir | visitor | Rogue |
| B1 | Bea | receptionist | Servant |
| C1 | Cora | art therapist | Artist |
| D1 | Dina | nurse | Healer |
| A2 | Ezra | art therapist | Artist |
| B2 | Felix | visitor | Rogue |
| C2 | Gemma | receptionist | Servant |
| D2 | Hattie | nurse | Healer |
| A3 | Ivan | orderly | Laborer |
| B3 | Juno | intern | Courier |
| C3 | Kurt | visitor | Rogue |
| D3 | Leo | intern | Courier |
| A4 | Mila | art therapist | Artist |
| B4 | Nico | art therapist | Artist |
| C4 | Otto | orderly | Laborer |
| D4 | Pia | visitor | Rogue |
| A5 | Quentin | receptionist | Servant |
| B5 | Rufus | orderly | Laborer |
| C5 | Silas | intern | Courier |
| D5 | Tess | intern | Courier |
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 25, 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 · Medium case · Evil case
- Previous Hard: Oct 24, 2026 — The Favourite Who Took a Nap
- Next Hard: Oct 26, 2026 — Three Hours of Fog in Bright Sunshine
- Clue types in this case: Connected clues · Same-verdict and exactly-one clues · Corner and edge clues · Common-neighbor clues
- All October 2026 cases · More cases in hospitals · Meet the cast