Clues & Culprits › Archive › October 2026 › Oct 13, 2026 Hard
Oct 13, 2026 — Hard case
In the ninety-third minute of the derby, the referee awarded Ashgate a penalty for a foul that every replay shows never happened. In the same minute, bets on a late Ashgate penalty in one small overseas market jumped a hundredfold.
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. Every verdict you enter is checked against all the scenarios that still fit the statements on file, so a move only sticks when it is proven.
The opening statement
Petra the ball kid starts the case already proven innocent:
Mabel and Frank have no criminal neighbors in common.— Petra, ball kid (D4)
The lineup
Suspects stand in alphabetical order, left to right and top to bottom. Each belongs to one of Clues & Culprits’ twelve character classes — the badge on their nameplate. This case uses 6 of them, each cast as a role in the setting: ball kids, stewards, mascots, physios, referees, stadium cooks. Clues about a role (“exactly one of the ball kids”) count everyone in it.
| Seat | Suspect | Role in this case | Class |
|---|---|---|---|
| A1 | Arlo | ball kid | Courier |
| B1 | Bruno | steward | Enforcer |
| C1 | Cora | mascot | Artist |
| D1 | Dina | physio | Healer |
| A2 | Emil | referee | Official |
| B2 | Frank | steward | Enforcer |
| C2 | Gus | stadium cook | Cook |
| D2 | Hattie | physio | Healer |
| A3 | Iris | mascot | Artist |
| B3 | Juno | ball kid | Courier |
| C3 | Kira | mascot | Artist |
| D3 | Leo | ball kid | Courier |
| A4 | Mabel | stadium cook | Cook |
| B4 | Nora | steward | Enforcer |
| C4 | Omar | referee | Official |
| D4 | Petra | ball kid | Courier |
| A5 | Queenie | stadium cook | Cook |
| B5 | Ruby | steward | Enforcer |
| C5 | Suki | referee | Official |
| D5 | Tess | ball kid | Courier |
Stuck?
The in-game hint first points at the statement to re-read, then at the suspect you can prove, then shows the proof. For a gentler nudge, open the spoiler-free hints for Oct 13, 2026, or press Share to send a friend your exact board. New to the format? The deduction-puzzle guide covers the habits that unlock every step.
More cases
- Same day: Easy case · Medium case
- Previous Hard: Oct 12, 2026 — The Hacksaw Filed Under H
- Next Hard: Oct 14, 2026 — The Song Beside Cashpoint Seven
- Clue types in this case: Row and column clues · Corner and edge clues · Neighbor clues · Common-neighbor clues
- All October 2026 cases · More cases in football clubs · Meet the cast