#105 · Saturday, 21 March 2026

Ladder answer

• RIGID 5 letters
• DRIVING 7 letters — adds two letters to the rung below
• DEPRIVING 9 letters — adds two letters to the rung below

RIGID sits inside DRIVING, which sits inside DEPRIVING — the two letters added at each rung are the whole puzzle. Scrambles shown that day: RDIIG · RDIGNIV · NIEDRPIVG.

LockCode answer: 6308

The clues and what each one tells you:

1. 6298: 2 in the right place, 0 in the wrong place — 2 of 6, 2, 9, 8 are in the code.
2. 7452 scored nothing, so 7, 4, 5, 2 are all out.
3. 8547: 0 in the right place, 1 in the wrong place — 1 of 8, 5, 4, 7 are in the code.
4. 2873: 0 in the right place, 2 in the wrong place — 2 of 2, 8, 7, 3 are in the code.
5. After all clues, 8 codes remain possible.

With 8 candidates left, a good second guess splits them by feedback so the third guess is forced. Read the LockCode strategy guide for the method.