Thanks

[Cribbage]

Thank you Harry and the rest of the team for a wonderful Cipher Challenge competition again this year. Our school finished early on Thursday, but around 60 students stayed in school to tackle the final round (and there may have been others doing it at home …). I always enjoy the buzz that the competition creates, the steady increase in excitement over the 10 weeks and, of course, the challenges themselves along with the unfolding story.

Sponsors: thank you for contributing to this wonderful competition. If you ever want to see what this competition means to young people, then you are welcome to come to my school!

Next year is its 25th year – I cannot wait! [HARRY: you may want to block the rest]
[Edited by Harry]

Thanks Cribbage, that is very kind. Couldn’t possibly comment on the edited part of your message, except to say, it was there in the story! Harry

[cipher_breaker]

I have never done cryptography before, and this cipher challenge being my first introduction to this community has been a great experience, I have had a lot of fun in the cipher cracking and problem solving. 10B is proving difficult though, but thanks anyway Harry!!! (thanks to the other ELFs too!)

[dsse]

Thank you so so much to our the sponsors and especially Harry and Jodie! This was our second year participating and we really enjoyed it and can’t wait to join again next year! We really enjoyed solving challenge 10 and following along with the story!

Until next time!!!!

[decrypting_donkey]

Thank you to Harry, Jodie, and all the elves for this difficult challenge this year. It’s given me the right mix of pride and desire for therapy. But I guess, that was the goal! I will be returning next year hopefully with more preparation!

Glad you liked it! Harry

[BBM92]

Dear Jodie, Harry, Elves and all those who made this competition possible,

Thank you so much for an incredible competition! It was thoroughly enjoyable, challenging and brain-straining throughout, and I’ve gained so much through it. I only wish there were another competition like it as well! I’ve finally finished 10B, through much staring, brain-racking and exploration, and I’ll now watch the New Year fireworks with much satisfaction and smugness, and will finally be able to resume normal life in the new year (and find time for an eye test, inevitably resulting in even thicker glasses!).

Wishing everybody a very happy new year, and look forward to taking part next year, albeit as a non-competitor! Thanks again!

Wishing you a very Happy New Year too! Harry

[Crackerjack_404]

Happy New Year!

Once again, it has been an absolute joy and privilege to take part in the Cipher Challenge.

As we’re nearing towards the end, I just wanted to say thank you to everyone for posting interesting discussions/challenges/problems and helpful resources on the forum. Reading (and occasionally contributing to) those threads has been a huge part of the fun, and I know I’m really going to miss that.

A massive thank you to Harry and Jodie, the Elves, and the sponsors for running the competition. Over the holidays especially, this has been escapism in the best sense for me. There’s something deeply comforting about knowing that no matter what else is going on, there’s always a cipher waiting to be cracked, and a community engaged in doing the same. This challenge has brought joy and fulfilment and frustration in equal measure… and honestly, what more could one possibly want out of life?

Sadly too old for prizes now, so I will very much be looking forward to participating again next year and the alumni leaderboard!

Until next season- when we do it all again, with more ideas, better techniques, and (one can only hope) a lot more sleep!

[AspiringPenguin]

Thanks to everyone who has made this possible – Harry, Jodie, the elves and the sponsors. The design of challenge 10B this year was really clever and enjoyable to work through.

Also thanks to Madness for your book and unofficial archive – they are great resources.

Thank you, we really appreciate that. Glad you enjoyed it. Harry

[Combination-Harvester]

Thank you to everyone for making these challenges (even if 10B made me question my life choices at times!) – have a very happy 2026!

[Wh1sper]

Thank you Harry, Jodie and all the elves for a brilliant experience for my first time taking part in the challenge. I’m looking forward to whatever you have planned for the 25th anniversary!

[bridges]

“your user name is so apropos this year.” (@_madness_ to @AES_of_spades, 3 October 2025)
How did Madness know that this year’s challenge would involve cards?

[Author]

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