04 / Follow the evidence
An open Telegram makes a direct statement. A sealed Cipher gives each eligible player a choice. Watch what becomes public at every step.
01 / CIPHER
Travel clockwise to the next player with space. Each recipient accepts or passes, once each. Decode lets that recipient inspect first. Full dossiers are skipped. If all pass, the sender receives if possible; otherwise discard face up.
Sherlock’s active cover inspects arriving Ciphers automatically. Wiggins’s active cover may send in either direction. The simulator below follows the normal clockwise route.
02 / TELEGRAM
Choose another player with an empty slot. Reveal and deliver the card. They must receive unless they spend Diversion, which sends it back to the sender. It cannot be diverted again.
If nobody else can receive, the sender receives if possible. If the sender has no space either, discard face up.
This exercise supplies each recipient with the matching response card. Decode spends a card to reveal the Cipher only to that recipient.
The public record
Sender, route, passed seats and final recipient form the case record. A passed Cipher remains sealed. On acceptance, the card is revealed and its colour becomes public.
Private Decode knowledge does not appear on everyone else’s table. Separate what you saw from what you were told.
Explore public and private knowledge →The table is waiting
Choose a detective name. Enter as a guest.