Clues & Culprits › Hints › Oct 1, 2026 Hard
Spoiler-Free Hints for Oct 1, 2026
Stuck on the Hard case, “The Patient Who Never Was”? Open one nudge at a time. Nothing below reveals a verdict unless you click a box marked spoiler.
Back to the case Rules refresher
About this case
For six weeks, Room 9 of St. Brannoc's private wing has housed a very ill, very wealthy patient: meals delivered, drugs dispensed, insurer billed £400,000. This morning a new night nurse opened the door. The bed had never been slept in.
This Hard case seats 20 suspects on a 4×5 grid. 16 of them carry a clue; the other 4 only have something to say about themselves. 6 of the steps can only be proven by reading two or more clues together.
Nudge 1 — where to start
The case opens with Tariq the pharmacist (D5) already proven. Their statement is enough on its own to prove one more suspect straight away — read it word by word, especially the counting words (exactly, neighbors, between).
The person to the right of Kofi is a criminal.— Tariq, pharmacist (D5)
Spoiler: who can I prove first?
Lionel (D3) is a criminal, proven by Tariq’s statement.
Nudge 2 — the opening
Five suspects get proven in this stretch, across rows 1, 2, 3 and 4, most of them in row 2. The statements doing the work are direction clues, shared-neighbor counts and “between” clues. Every step in this stretch needs just one statement. Tip: with direction clues, the speaker is never included, and nor is anyone in a different row or column.
Spoiler: whose statement to read
Tariq’s statement.
Spoiler: which suspect does that settle?
Lionel (D3) — a criminal.
Nudge 3 — after about 5 proven suspects
Five suspects get proven in this stretch, across rows 2, 3, 4 and 5, most of them in row 4. The statements doing the work are shared-neighbor counts, direction clues and row and column counts. 2 steps here need 2 statements read together. Tip: with shared-neighbor counts, only the two to four cards touching both suspects count.
Spoiler: whose statements to read
Frank’s and Hattie’s statements, read together.
Spoiler: which suspect does that settle?
Idris (A3) — innocent.
Nudge 4 — after about 10 proven suspects
Four suspects get proven in this stretch, in columns A and C. The statements doing the work are role counts, neighbor counts and shared-neighbor counts. 4 steps here need 4 statements read together. Tip: with role counts, roles count everyone in the role wherever they stand, so check the whole board.
Spoiler: whose statements to read
Frank’s, Marco’s, Ada’s and Esme’s statements, read together.
Spoiler: which suspect does that settle?
Cal (C1) — innocent.
Nudge 5 — the endgame
Five suspects get proven in this stretch, across rows 1, 3, 4 and 5, most of them in row 5. The statements doing the work are shared-neighbor counts, “between” clues and neighbor counts. Every step in this stretch needs just one statement. Tip: with “between” clues, only the cards strictly between the two named suspects count.
Spoiler: whose statement to read
Frank’s statement.
Spoiler: which suspect does that settle?
Joan (B3) — innocent.
The hardest step
The toughest moment needs 4 statements at once. If you’re stuck in the middle of the case, this is probably it.
Spoiler: the statements for the hardest step
Read Frank’s, Marco’s, Ada’s and Esme’s statements together. They settle Cal.
Clue types in this case
corner and edge counts ×1, paired verdicts ×1, shared-neighbor counts ×3, role counts ×2, “between” clues ×2, row and column counts ×2, direction clues ×3, neighbor counts ×1 and if–then clues ×1.
Questions
How many clues does this case have?
16 of the 20 suspects carry a clue. The rest only talk about themselves — you can hide those asides in Settings.
Where is the full solution?
The step-by-step walkthrough proves every verdict in order.