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Post by goldilocks on Dec 10, 2019 10:24:14 GMT -5
It's at 15:50, unless you enjoy people messing with mike settings! Pretty useful clarification of a word that is key Thanks Dave and Sangre. I appreciate the time stamp.
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Post by davebakedpotato on Dec 10, 2019 12:50:01 GMT -5
Useful to know that if you have the last clue, effectively the treasure is in your hands. 17 mins+
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Post by nixview on Dec 10, 2019 16:43:25 GMT -5
My question would be "Forrest, you have stated there are many places WWWH in the Rockies, are there many Homes of Brown or Home of Browns in the Rockies?
Just for the record, I believe the word that is "key" is alone or cold.
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Jeff
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Post by Jeff on Dec 11, 2019 10:26:54 GMT -5
Dave, thank you for creating this thread.
I don't recall having seen a similar question asked of Fenn:
Which other puzzles, games, and the like provided you inspiration or a model as you created The Thrill of the Chase?
He seems to do quite a bit of research. Has he discussed this before? Does anyone have a reference?
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Post by me9 on Dec 11, 2019 11:28:02 GMT -5
Dear Forrest, Had you read about other treasure hunts and their different methods used to hide treasure before deciding to write a poem? Is there a reason you chose to write a poem? ~j Thanks Jenny. I have read only about treasures that were hidden by pirates, and I wish I could find one of those. I wrote the poem in my book because I needed an avenue where I could present clues and start searchers on the chase. I worked on it for a long time and am pleased that it did its job so well. f mysteriouswritings.com/featured-question-with-forrest-pirates-and-treasures/
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Post by davebakedpotato on Dec 11, 2019 13:52:39 GMT -5
Dave, thank you for creating this thread.
I don't recall having seen a similar question asked of Fenn:
Which other puzzles, games, and the like provided you inspiration or a model as you created The Thrill of the Chase?
He seems to do quite a bit of research. Has he discussed this before? Does anyone have a reference? So if he says 'masquerade', how does that help unlock your solution?
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Jeff
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Post by Jeff on Dec 11, 2019 18:22:42 GMT -5
Thanks for the reference me9. I suppose that provides a partial answer to my proposed question, as that Featured Question was narrower in scope. Ok, Treasure Island. And The Gold Bug. And lots of derivatives. That answer makes sense in light of "Captain Kidd" in Gold and More. I guess I'll look for an "X" marks the spot.
Dave, I often wonder what type of puzzle Fenn has created. Would I receive a complete and unambiguous answer to my proposed question? No. It might be too revealing. An even more blatant request, but in the same vein: describe in detail the exact method(s) necessary to solve your puzzle. No chance there. Anagrams? The real life history of cowboy Billy Bob? The mating behavior of brown trout? Celestial navigation? Etymology? Word associations? Endlessly scrutinizing maps for Brown? Guessing? And I stress that last one: Guessing? While the method may not be identical to the other games he was aware of (i.e. drew from deliberately or not), it may share some general features of games that inspired it. This could at least provide some guidance on how to solve his game other than to "read [his] book in a normal manner. Then read the poem over and over and over, slowly – thinking. Then read [his] book again, this time looking for subtle hints that will help solve the clues" (Holly Johnson Interview 7/8/13). I'm not asking for the solution per se, but these questions are asking for quite a lot.
When I'm doing a cryptic crossword, I understand from having done other cryptics the general way the puzzle works. I recognize it as a cryptic and know generally what to do with it, even if it's from a paper/setter that's new to me. Jenny didn't label her puzzles in Armchair Treasure Hunts "book code" or "Morse code" but from experience I recognized them as such or at least in that general category of puzzle. The solution wasn't handed to me but the likely degrees of freedom in my attempt to arrive at the solution were markedly constrained. If you knew that games X, Y, and Z were inspirations for Fenn, it would at least be provide a starting point of understanding how to arrive at the solution. It would narrow the focus, would provide perhaps not a hard stop on the possibilities but at least put a relative constraint on the possibilities.
In your example of Masquerade, a similar problem confronted the players. Consequently their approaches were all over the place, as engagingly described in The Quest for the Golden Hare. This book should be required reading for anyone involved in TTOTC, as it neatly recapitulates our collective behavior. It is uncanny in that regard. It's also a cautionary tale. Humans are so human! Our ability to instill meaning--even meaning that has some logic to it--to utter randomness has so many implications, implications that extend far beyond these diversions. It's a neat case study.
By the way, Dave, I don't have a solution. Nor do I have a lock to unlock. Sad!
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Post by zaphod73491 on Dec 11, 2019 19:44:02 GMT -5
Whether Forrest has read Williams's Masquerade or not, he has incorporated some of that puzzle's techniques into his poem and memoirs. IMO, he has put his own twist on them, but there are only so many ways you can conceal information in plain sight.
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Post by davebakedpotato on Dec 12, 2019 1:32:12 GMT -5
Whether Forrest has read Williams's Masquerade or not, he has incorporated some of that puzzle's techniques into his poem and memoirs. IMO, he has put his own twist on them, but there are only so many ways you can conceal information in plain sight. What would you ask him, given the chance?
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Post by davebakedpotato on Dec 12, 2019 1:40:42 GMT -5
The reason I started the thread is that someone reading this may get the opportunity to ask Forrest a question, and if there was consensus on a good one, they might be inclined to ask it. The keyword clarification is timely, and not a bad example of a useful question, although many of us assumed the useful word was in the poem (where else would it be?). A lot of the questions revolve around other questions already asked (so we're asking for clarification, rather than new information). Another question in this vein would be 'the little girl from India is now all grown up, does your answer change since you last spoke about her?' No-one asked where the chest is (It's in the mountains North of Santa Fe)
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Post by zaphod73491 on Dec 12, 2019 2:30:16 GMT -5
I haven't managed to think of a question to ask (that was directly relevant to the Chase) that Forrest would actually answer. For instance, I think someone else knew where he hid the treasure, but that person has long been dead. I'd be curious if it was his father, Eric, Donnie, or none of the above.
I used to be perplexed by his suggestion about leaving your "searching partner" in the car, especially when that would seem to run contrary to his many safety advisories. But I found an idea to explain that contradiction, and if it's right it's another case of a question of clarification that Forrest wouldn't answer.
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Post by davebakedpotato on Dec 12, 2019 4:55:59 GMT -5
I haven't managed to think of a question to ask (that was directly relevant to the Chase) that Forrest would actually answer. For instance, I think someone else knew where he hid the treasure, but that person has long been dead. I'd be curious if it was his father, Eric, Donnie, or none of the above. I used to be perplexed by his suggestion about leaving your "searching partner" in the car, especially when that would seem to run contrary to his many safety advisories. But I found an idea to explain that contradiction, and if it's right it's another case of a question of clarification that Forrest wouldn't answer. Does the former question help you find the chest? I don't think it would but I agree it's a fascinating question (I'm intrigued as to why the special place is so special). We could make some very dodgy assumptions about the latter advice: it's not far to walk to the treasure, it's in no way dangerous, possibly you are not allowed to park where you need to park to gain access to the walking route...
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Post by goldilocks on Dec 12, 2019 11:48:10 GMT -5
I would like to rephrase “Rascal” Becky’s question on MW. Her question was, “Can the blaze be pre-determined by the poem or can it only be determined at the search area? -Becky”. I think the questions with the most substance are those Forrest takes a pass on. My question would be, “If I am sitting in my living room and all I have is a copy of your poem, can I determine the blaze from just the poem?”
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Post by davebakedpotato on Dec 12, 2019 12:23:17 GMT -5
I would like to rephrase “Rascal” Becky’s question on MW. Her question was, “Can the blaze be pre-determined by the poem or can it only be determined at the search area? -Becky”. I think the questions with the most substance are those Forrest takes a pass on. My question would be, “If I am sitting in my living room and all I have is a copy of your poem, can I determine the blaze from just the poem?” You must have a well developed potential solution to be asking questions like that...
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Post by astree on Dec 12, 2019 13:00:12 GMT -5
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