#199 · Tuesday, 23 June 2026

Ladder answer

• MEDIA 5 letters
• MEDICAL 7 letters — adds two letters to the rung below
• UNCLAIMED 9 letters — adds two letters to the rung below

MEDIA sits inside MEDICAL, which sits inside UNCLAIMED — the two letters added at each rung are the whole puzzle. Scrambles shown that day: AIDME · ACIEMDL · MLNIDEACU.

LockCode answer: 7054

The clues and what each one tells you:

1. 2054: 3 in the right place, 0 in the wrong place — 3 of 2, 0, 5, 4 are in the code.
2. 6739: 0 in the right place, 1 in the wrong place — 1 of 6, 7, 3, 9 are in the code.
3. 4825: 0 in the right place, 2 in the wrong place — 2 of 4, 8, 2, 5 are in the code.
4. 0563: 0 in the right place, 2 in the wrong place — 2 of 0, 5, 6, 3 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.