Clues & Culprits › Hints › Oct 5, 2026 Hard
Spoiler-Free Hints for Oct 5, 2026
Stuck on the Hard case, “The Million on the Velvet Table”? 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
In one night of baccarat at the Silver Ace, two high rollers won £1 million without losing a single hand they bet big on. The cards were inspected, the shoe was X-rayed and the dealer was searched down to his socks. Everything was clean.
This Hard case seats 20 suspects on a 4×5 grid. 15 of them carry a clue; the other 5 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 Pia the dealer (D4) 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).
If Raj is innocent, then I'm a criminal.— Pia, dealer (D4)
Spoiler: who can I prove first?
Raj (B5) is a criminal, proven by Pia’s statement.
Nudge 2 — the opening
Five suspects get proven in this stretch, in columns A and B. The statements doing the work are neighbor counts, if–then clues and shared-neighbor counts. One step here needs 2 statements read together. Tip: with neighbor counts, a corner has three neighbors, an edge five, the middle eight — compare the count with what is left.
Spoiler: whose statements to read
Nico’s and Marco’s statements, read together.
Spoiler: which suspect does that settle?
Freya (B2) — innocent.
Nudge 3 — after about 5 proven suspects
Five suspects get proven in this stretch, across rows 2, 3 and 5, most of them in row 3. The statements doing the work are role counts, shared-neighbor counts and neighbor counts. 4 steps here need 3 statements read together. Tip: with role counts, find every suspect with that role (the nameplate badge helps) and count the proven ones.
Spoiler: whose statements to read
Nico’s, Freya’s and Hugo’s statements, read together.
Spoiler: which suspect does that settle?
Ivan (A3) — innocent.
Nudge 4 — after about 10 proven suspects
Four suspects get proven in this stretch, in rows 1 and 2. The statements doing the work are if–then clues, shared-neighbor counts and role counts. One step here needs 3 statements read together. Tip: with if–then clues, an if–then says nothing when its “if” part is false — don’t read it backwards.
Spoiler: whose statements to read
Kira’s, Hugo’s and Cora’s statements, read together.
Spoiler: which suspect does that settle?
Basil (B1) — a criminal.
Nudge 5 — the endgame
Five suspects get proven in this stretch, across rows 1, 2, 3 and 4, most of them in row 3. The statements doing the work are paired verdicts, row and column counts and shared-neighbor counts. Every step in this stretch needs just one statement. Tip: with paired verdicts, two suspects tied together share their fate — prove one and the other follows.
Spoiler: whose statement to read
Dexter’s statement.
Spoiler: which suspect does that settle?
Amir (A1) — a criminal.
The hardest step
The toughest moment needs 3 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 Nico’s, Freya’s and Hugo’s statements together. They settle Ivan.
Clue types in this case
direction clues ×1, corner and edge counts ×1, paired verdicts ×1, shared-neighbor counts ×4, row and column counts ×1, if–then clues ×2, role counts ×2, neighbor counts ×2 and odd/even clues ×1.
Questions
How many clues does this case have?
15 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.