Whoops! -- A Few Observations on The Dragonfiend Pact's Code
Posted: Sat Apr 02, 2011 1:34 pm
A mere seven years after it's publication, I've stumbled onto some confusion in the code of the clergy of Crypticus, as presented in DCC 11, The Dragonfiend Pact.
If you suppose you're going to find yourself playing in this module, READ NO FURTHER.
SPOILERS
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The code is said to feature a substitution scheme (one letter standing in for another) with a 10 letter shift. The key to this is the date on the note (May 10). It also gives the example in Area 1-4 where the code is introduced that A is represented by K, Y by an I, and so forth.
To wit:
However...
Comparing the de-coded message on page 7 with the coded version on page 16, you'll find the month of May represented by the letters DRP. If the example from the body of the text were true, 'May' would be coded as 'WKI'. It appears that the entire coded message given in the handouts has not been done according to the guide shown in the text of the module. If A is coded into K, then when you code a message you're using the letter 10 letters *after* the real letter. The system used to create the coded message from the Handouts would have each letter in the message represented by the letter *9* letters before it in the alphabet, so that R represents A. The text and the handout are moving in opposite directions, and not the same number of shifts.
Now, as it turns out, the system used 'wrongly' for the handout makes breaking the code easier -- your players may prefer this. De-coding "DRP" into "MAY" just means counting forward through the alphabet to arrive at the correct letter. The problem is that the 'clue' provided -- using the date of the 10th to show how many steps to go, is wrong. Ten steps forward from D is N.
So, you can stick with the coded message as-is, but change the date to the 9th. Or count the letter you're coming from as part of the run (which gets you back to a span of 10, so to speak). Or you could re-code the message using the system from the text in Area 1-4. Personally, I'll be using the 9th as the date.
•• But there is some other strangeness I'd like to see if anyone else can figure out...
At the bottom of the handout is a 'word' that appears to perhaps be part of the coded message. My best deciphering of what it says is this (it is in a harder-to-read script font not used in the rest of the message):
DJRKJNSTONESHAPER
You may notice a rather clear use of the words "stone" and "shaper" there. The dwarves hired for the work mentioned in the coded message are named as The Stoneshaper Masons. But the first six letters of that 'word' defy decoding by either the method from the text and by the 'wrong' method used for the handout. Assuming I have read the letters correctly you get either NTBUTX or MSATAW.
Now look, I've done all this work to point out the corrections needed to run this coded message as intended. Can someone else figure out what DJRKJN means and why it's on there in the first place?
Note: Having thought about it further in creating this post, is the mystery word meant to be the signature of the dwarven boss who signed the contract, and his name is 'Djrkjn'...?
If you suppose you're going to find yourself playing in this module, READ NO FURTHER.
SPOILERS
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
The code is said to feature a substitution scheme (one letter standing in for another) with a 10 letter shift. The key to this is the date on the note (May 10). It also gives the example in Area 1-4 where the code is introduced that A is represented by K, Y by an I, and so forth.
To wit:
Code: Select all
• •
A B C D E F G H I J K
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
(A ten letter shift from A to get K for the coded message)Comparing the de-coded message on page 7 with the coded version on page 16, you'll find the month of May represented by the letters DRP. If the example from the body of the text were true, 'May' would be coded as 'WKI'. It appears that the entire coded message given in the handouts has not been done according to the guide shown in the text of the module. If A is coded into K, then when you code a message you're using the letter 10 letters *after* the real letter. The system used to create the coded message from the Handouts would have each letter in the message represented by the letter *9* letters before it in the alphabet, so that R represents A. The text and the handout are moving in opposite directions, and not the same number of shifts.
Code: Select all
• •
R S T U V W X Y Z A
9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
(A nine letter shift from R to get A for the de-coded message)So, you can stick with the coded message as-is, but change the date to the 9th. Or count the letter you're coming from as part of the run (which gets you back to a span of 10, so to speak). Or you could re-code the message using the system from the text in Area 1-4. Personally, I'll be using the 9th as the date.
•• But there is some other strangeness I'd like to see if anyone else can figure out...
At the bottom of the handout is a 'word' that appears to perhaps be part of the coded message. My best deciphering of what it says is this (it is in a harder-to-read script font not used in the rest of the message):
DJRKJNSTONESHAPER
You may notice a rather clear use of the words "stone" and "shaper" there. The dwarves hired for the work mentioned in the coded message are named as The Stoneshaper Masons. But the first six letters of that 'word' defy decoding by either the method from the text and by the 'wrong' method used for the handout. Assuming I have read the letters correctly you get either NTBUTX or MSATAW.
Now look, I've done all this work to point out the corrections needed to run this coded message as intended. Can someone else figure out what DJRKJN means and why it's on there in the first place?
Note: Having thought about it further in creating this post, is the mystery word meant to be the signature of the dwarven boss who signed the contract, and his name is 'Djrkjn'...?
