#201 · Thursday, 25 June 2026

Ladder answer

• INTRO 5 letters
• POINTER 7 letters — adds two letters to the rung below
• PRINCETON 9 letters — adds two letters to the rung below

INTRO sits inside POINTER, which sits inside PRINCETON — the two letters added at each rung are the whole puzzle. Scrambles shown that day: RNOIT · NTRIEOP · TERNNOICP.

LockCode answer: 9657

The clues and what each one tells you:

1. 5687: 2 in the right place, 1 in the wrong place — 3 of 5, 6, 8, 7 are in the code.
2. 8537: 1 in the right place, 1 in the wrong place — 2 of 8, 5, 3, 7 are in the code.
3. 3578: 0 in the right place, 2 in the wrong place — 2 of 3, 5, 7, 8 are in the code.
4. 6410: 0 in the right place, 1 in the wrong place — 1 of 6, 4, 1, 0 are in the code.
5. After all clues, 4 codes remain possible.

With 4 candidates left, a good second guess splits them by feedback so the third guess is forced. Read the LockCode strategy guide for the method.