#300 · Friday, 2 October 2026

Ladder answer

• ATLAS 5 letters
• COASTAL 7 letters — adds two letters to the rung below
• ESCALATOR 9 letters — adds two letters to the rung below

ATLAS sits inside COASTAL, which sits inside ESCALATOR — the two letters added at each rung are the whole puzzle. Scrambles shown that day: AALTS · OTASLCA · RASELACTO.

LockCode answer: 7239

The clues and what each one tells you:

1. 5234: 2 in the right place, 0 in the wrong place — 2 of 5, 2, 3, 4 are in the code.
2. 5628: 0 in the right place, 1 in the wrong place — 1 of 5, 6, 2, 8 are in the code.
3. 1095: 0 in the right place, 1 in the wrong place — 1 of 1, 0, 9, 5 are in the code.
4. 2743: 0 in the right place, 3 in the wrong place — 3 of 2, 7, 4, 3 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: SAILBOAT