#101 · Tuesday, 17 March 2026

Ladder answer

• BRAIN 5 letters
• VIBRANT 7 letters — adds two letters to the rung below
• VIBRATING 9 letters — adds two letters to the rung below

BRAIN sits inside VIBRANT, which sits inside VIBRATING — the two letters added at each rung are the whole puzzle. Scrambles shown that day: IABNR · NARTBIV · VTGIRABIN.

LockCode answer: 5123

The clues and what each one tells you:

1. 5026: 2 in the right place, 0 in the wrong place — 2 of 5, 0, 2, 6 are in the code.
2. 8690 scored nothing, so 8, 6, 9, 0 are all out.
3. 3542: 0 in the right place, 3 in the wrong place — 3 of 3, 5, 4, 2 are in the code.
4. 8941: 0 in the right place, 1 in the wrong place — 1 of 8, 9, 4, 1 are in the code.
5. After all clues, 3 codes remain possible.

With 3 candidates left, a good second guess splits them by feedback so the third guess is forced. Read the LockCode strategy guide for the method.