#117 · Thursday, 2 April 2026

Ladder answer

• SPEED 5 letters
• EPISODE 7 letters — adds two letters to the rung below
• DEPOSITED 9 letters — adds two letters to the rung below

SPEED sits inside EPISODE, which sits inside DEPOSITED — the two letters added at each rung are the whole puzzle. Scrambles shown that day: PEESD · DEPISEO · DOEPSTDIE.

LockCode answer: 9581

The clues and what each one tells you:

1. 9520: 2 in the right place, 0 in the wrong place — 2 of 9, 5, 2, 0 are in the code.
2. 7083: 1 in the right place, 0 in the wrong place — 1 of 7, 0, 8, 3 are in the code.
3. 4738: 0 in the right place, 1 in the wrong place — 1 of 4, 7, 3, 8 are in the code.
4. 3615: 0 in the right place, 2 in the wrong place — 2 of 3, 6, 1, 5 are in the code.
5. After all clues, 5 codes remain possible.

With 5 candidates left, a good second guess splits them by feedback so the third guess is forced. Read the LockCode strategy guide for the method.