#302 · Sunday, 4 October 2026

Ladder answer

• ORGAN 5 letters
• PARAGON 7 letters — adds two letters to the rung below
• PATRONAGE 9 letters — adds two letters to the rung below

ORGAN sits inside PARAGON, which sits inside PATRONAGE — the two letters added at each rung are the whole puzzle. Scrambles shown that day: RAGNO · AANOGPR · ARGOPATEN.

LockCode answer: 6782

The clues and what each one tells you:

1. 9862: 1 in the right place, 2 in the wrong place — 3 of 9, 8, 6, 2 are in the code.
2. 7869: 0 in the right place, 3 in the wrong place — 3 of 7, 8, 6, 9 are in the code.
3. 2014: 0 in the right place, 1 in the wrong place — 1 of 2, 0, 1, 4 are in the code.
4. 7965: 0 in the right place, 2 in the wrong place — 2 of 7, 9, 6, 5 are in the code.
5. After all clues, 12 codes remain possible.

With 12 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: UMBRELLA