Return of Dr Sloth [Split 5]

[TDG]

Previous Thread

ATTENTION

!! Please make sure all your posts are coherent, and that you have spelled all words to the best of your ability. Also, please try to use correct grammar.
PLEASE keep all posts on topic. If you would like to speak to someone personally or off-topic, PM them.

=====COMICS=====
Chapter 1 (29th Jan)
Chapter 2 (1st Feb)
Chapter 3 (5th feb)

=====Helpful Links=====
Wondering about whether you’re ready to battle, if it comes to that? Check out the Weapon Advice & Recommendations thread!

If you're new to PPT forums, and are just joining for our comprehensive & helpful plot assistance, please remember to read The Rules!


=====PLOT ASSISTANCE=====
Step One - Maintenance Tunnels (30th Jan)

The plot begins! The Maintenance Tunnels appeared under the space station map. At the Maintenance Tunnels, if you click on the left hand tunnel, you get directed to this Game in which you must orientate the bubble/arrow things to get Gorix through the maze.

Using the arrows, you have to change the direction he will go when he reaches particular turns, and then press go. While Gorix is walking you cannot change anything. Conveniently, the direction of a particular arrow will change going clockwise each time Gorix walks across it.

Solutions
Blatantly stolen from Siouxper's post here and re-formatted by the lovely Alex.
(Note - these are not the only solutions, there are many combinations that will finish the level)

MAZE 1
Arrow points DOWN

MAZE 2
The four arrows in a straight line, point (left to right), LEFT, UP, DOWN, RIGHT.
The remaining arrow points RIGHT.

MAZE 3
Arrow by itself on the left points LEFT
Top arrows point (left to right) RIGHT, DOWN
Arrow by itself on the bottom points DOWN

MAZE 4
Arrows along the top point (left to right) UP, RIGHT, RIGHT
Two arrows in the middle row point LEFT, RIGHT
Leftmost arrow in the bottom row points UP (other two can be ignored)

MAZE 5
Top arrows point DOWN, LEFT, DOWN, LEFT
Bottom arrows point DOWN, DOWN, DOWN, DOWN
*Note, for this one, let the robots close the doors themselves - you don't have to do anything except wait.

Once you have completed the mazes, go back to the Maintenance Tunnels and you'll find a new door that has opened.


Step Two - Breaking Military Grade Encryptions (5th Feb)

!!!DON'T EVEN THINK ABOUT USING A DECODER PROGRAM OR POSTING LINKS TO ONE HERE!!!

1. Go here
2. Press "4"
3. Press "2"
4. Cry because the next part is super hard
5. Keep trying different mails till you find one with only one Modifier box. Start here.

Drag the different alien sentance fragments from the left into the modifier box. Keep trying until your "Result" matches your "Target". Its guess and check at this stage.

Once your result matches your target, the mail will be translated. Now repeat for all the single modifiers. Simple huh? Yeah - try doing it with more than one modifier.

Please note - you must do all the single modifiers before it is possible to do the double modifiers. The same for the triples in regards to the doubles

These two petpages are very helpful

http://www.neopets.com/~_Blue___Berry_ <--- for 2 mod encryptions
http://www.neopets.com/~charmander2058 <--- for 3 mod encryptions

(Better guide hopefully coming soon)

=====A BRIEF HISTORY OF TIME...ERRR, PLOT=====

Around 4 years ago, the "in things" were Neopets Trading Cards (exactly how "in" Trading Cards are is an entirely preferential opinion...). Neopets would put out booster packs, as so many card companies do, and one such pack was the Return of Dr Sloth TCG kit.

To accompany the release of the Return of Dr Sloth TCG, Neopets were intending on releasing a Return of Dr Sloth plot. However, time constraints and a certain annoying Usul's plot prevented them from being able to ever actually release it. After post phoning it a few times, they just decided to scrap it and focus on making the next plot - a Curse on Maraqua - better.

Believing they'd never do the Return of Dr Sloth plot, TNT began (creating and) releasing the games they had set to tie in with the plot - IE: The Return of the Return of Dr Sloth, Escape to Kreludor and Moon Rock Rampage - but what to do about those awesome characters (and their escapades) that featured in the TCG expansion pack and in the games?

Simple - throw together some articles in the Gallery of Heroes that detail what the plot was going to be like, release some cool looking items and pretend like the events actually happened in Neopia, but not in the Neopets.com realm of users, plots, events etc.

Now, TNT (in an awesome move) have decided to revisit the Return of Dr Sloth plot in all its chicken-headed glory. Unfortunately, as they didn't want their characters and games to go to waste, the plot's rough outline is already detailed throughout the site. Long story short? There are articles, games and cards that explain what the expected plot will be. Short story long? Anything by DickensKoL ftw

Chapter three of the comic has revealed freakishly tall anthropomorphic Ixis, cool BING-ing retinal scanners, awesome golden statues of Sloth that should be immediately restored to their glorious previous positions and the fact that the Space Faerie's help is out of the question. What does this mean for our Heroes? Why are the maintenance tunnels so painfully designed? Will I be right in my assumptions about the Mysterious Cloaked Lupe? I don't know, but discuss it here!

[cybertrini]

(Better guide hopefully coming soon, i'm guessing it won't be long until a program is written in which you can enter the key, the result and modifiers and it'll tell you which one to use.)

Might be a good idea to post a note saying that those who use the generator will be frozen, as per TNT's statement on the Resistance HQ page

[Siniri]

Here's a suggestion for TNT: allow people who used the program to voluntarily admit at which point they used it and get their puzzles reset to that stage (or just reset all the 3-modifier ones, leaving the 1's and 2's alone -- although this would make me have to redo 3 of 3-modifier ones). They could regenerate the 3-modifier ones so that we can't just use the same codes as before (not that I'd remember, though I guess I do have screenies). That seems more fair than freezing those who used it assuming it was okay given the past history of plot helps!

[Matrinka]

*sigh*

I actually solved all my puzzles by myself in my free time today... but dude. I was curious about the calculator when I first read the thread and clicked on the link to see what it was all about. I don't look down on ANYONE who used it - I just had extra time to sit and puzzle which is why I took the hard route. Scared the bejeezus out of me when I went back to the tunnels and saw this: Please note that using any kind of external helper program or cheat program to solve this puzzle is against the rules and will likely get you FROZEN! So do the right thing and solve the puzzle yourself! (Discussions with friends and the use of reference charts is perfectly okay.)

-- The Neopets Team on the page. I didn't cheat - but I *did* visit all the links posted here. Grrr. I hope they don't freeze anyone over this. It is bad enough about the double standard (ie: Altador Plot) -- but they can't assume someone was cheating JUST BECAUSE they visited a link. Well, they can... but it wouldn't be fair.

[Arka]

Well, my elimination process did work, but it is extremely tedious, and I have only managed to solve one 3-modifier puzzle in almost 3 hours.

I picked the last symbol and tried to match it.

I put #1 in the first position, #2 in the second and put any of the remaining modifiers in whose last symbol gave me the last symbol on the result.

Then I put #3 in the second position and tried in turn in the third position any of the modifiers whose last symbol gave me the last symbol of the result.

Then #4 in second position. and so forth.

Then #2 in the first postion. I went ahead and put #1 in the second position, just in case, although it had already been done, unless I missed it by some chance, but anyway. #2 in first position, #3 in second, and then any of the remaining modifiers whose last symbol gave me the last symbol on the result.

Very tedious. And if I really understood the math solutions, I'd have tried them. I hope someone comes up with an easier solution.

[schlough]

The logic of inconsistency escapes me... But perhaps they are trying to make the plots a little less "cheatable" because they are as sick as we are of everyone earning the top trophy/prizes and the prizes becoming worthless because of it. It would be nice to see the top ranks with only of the few most dedicated plotters. That said, without the cheat I won't be one of them because I don't have the time to devote. But some here would probably qualify.

Is there a chart yet that includes the circle symbols? I'm going to hack away a little longer...

[Pickles]

Is there a chart yet that includes the circle symbols? I'm going to hack away a little longer...

Unfortunately, there isn't, at least not that any of us know of yet.

[Siniri]

Arka, you can try using charmander's petpage in the first post, which has the key for most of the 3-mods (except with the additional symbol). It's the same key for all the 3-mods, so they should get a little easier from here on out until you get to the last 5. And TNT has said it's okay to look at that petpage!

[Pickles]

Arka, you can try using charmander's petpage in the first post, which has the key for most of the 3-mods (except with the additional symbol). It's the same key for all the 3-mods, so they should get a little easier from here on out until you get to the last 5. And TNT has said it's okay to look at that petpage!

Actually, you can't (at least, I think you can't). The ones with 7 variables (that have the O symbol) are different than the ones with only 6. At least, that's what I've experienced with it. Maybe I just had bad luck with it last night?

[cybertrini]

New Features is out. No mention of the whole debate we have been having, so I guess the notice on the Resistance HQ page is gonna be the final word

[Matrinka]

When it came to the 3-modifier puzzles I noticed that I had to do them in descending order to make them work. I tried to do #8 before hitting up #7. I couldn't make it work. Went back and tried #7, got it... then #8 solved easily... and I coulda SWORN I tried the same combo of symbols the first time around. It might be coincidence from the melted brain though.

*Still worrying about getting frozen for looking at that site AND my message's code*

[Pickles]

New Features is out. No mention of the whole debate we have been having, so I guess the notice on the Resistance HQ page is gonna be the final word

I'm not knockin' it, though - that's more clear cut that most of what they've said.
Maybe we'll get some explanation in the editorial still.

[Wind]

*snort* Well, I for once would love to find out how TNT will decide if someone has "cheated" or not. The only thing you needed to do was look at the number in the corner of the window (which was handily displayed for all the world to see), and then enter it on an external, totally Neopets-unrelated site. I highly doubt that "freezing everyone who has completed the plot step in under X minutes" is a viable solution.

I used that website and IMed the link to a friend who was stuck. I finished the 1-mod and 2-mod parts easily enough once I worked out how it was, but it's way too time-consuming to complete 10 3-mod puzzles with just pencil and paper. And those ginromous charts don't look appealing.
I don't see why using external sites would be forbidden now. Anyway, TNT has rarely made any sense. If I get frozen over this, it just means it's time to quit Neopets for good.

[bgryph]

As I said on the last thread, what I don't get is that this whole thing was completely forseeable and completely avoidable. When I went to bed last night I was certainly expecting there to be a solver program online by morning and based on comments here and on other Neopets forums, I know I'm far from being the only one who thought so.

Surely TNT must have realized that someone was going to write a calculator? Everyone else was expecting it, why weren't they? They could easily have avoided this whole mess by posting their warning on the puzzle page last night.

[TDG]

A quick note regarding the Modifier Calculator:

Yes, in the past, people have been permitted to use starmappers to find their constellations - and walkthroughs to complete the plot. However, there is no ground to legitimately claim it should be alright to use a calculator this time around. Neopets rules specifically state time and time again that using any external program to further your achievements on Neopets is disallowed. Its one of the most blatant rules on the site.

TNT may not be being consistent in their choice to disallow Modifier Calculators, but they have every right to freeze anybody who uses one (though, 99.999% chance they won't retroactively freeze those who have used it) regardless of whether or not they have a giant red message on the page.

The subject is moot now anyway, as Neopets have made it blatantly clear not to use a Calculator. As a result, nobody is to post a link to any online solvers anywhere in the forum. Doing so will result in punishment from the PPT staff and possibly punishment from Neopets as they have been known to read through these threads.