#279 · Friday, 11 September 2026

Ladder answer

• PANIC 5 letters
• PACKING 7 letters — adds two letters to the rung below
• PACKAGING 9 letters — adds two letters to the rung below

PANIC sits inside PACKING, which sits inside PACKAGING — the two letters added at each rung are the whole puzzle. Scrambles shown that day: PNCIA · NPCAIKG · KGNIGACAP.

LockCode answer: 9186

The clues and what each one tells you:

1. 9108: 2 in the right place, 1 in the wrong place — 3 of 9, 1, 0, 8 are in the code.
2. 2673: 0 in the right place, 1 in the wrong place — 1 of 2, 6, 7, 3 are in the code.
3. 8590: 0 in the right place, 2 in the wrong place — 2 of 8, 5, 9, 0 are in the code.
4. 9038: 1 in the right place, 1 in the wrong place — 2 of 9, 0, 3, 8 are in the code.
5. After all clues, 9 codes remain possible.

With 9 candidates left, a good second guess splits them by feedback so the third guess is forced. Read the LockCode strategy guide for the method.

Lumen answer: SHIP