1.11.02a Balance Sheet Puzzle

Order

1.05.03

Status

::BUILD-READY::

Location Status

Foo

GC Point of Contact

Bar

Location Notes

Anywhere

Type

Optional Puzzle (INVESTOR)

Plot Setup

None required

Props

Two sheets of paper.

Plot Point to Convey

None

Short Description

An unusual financial balance sheet reveals instructions on how to raise money.

Detailed Description

Trenchwood Labs (or Chronos Labs) has run out of money. The game fairy (Chronos or When) asks the players to fix the errors in the lab's financial balance sheet, which doesn't seem to use the same rules as normal balance sheets. After fixing the errors, they can scrutinize the sheet to uncover hidden instructions on how to solve the lab's financial woes.

How To Give To Teams

Over the phone a lab assistant tells them words to the effect of,

We seem to have run into a little bump in the road on our way to rescuing Doctor When. It's not a technical problem. Rather (and this is so embarrassing) it seems we've run out of money.

If the puzzle is being given in the Role 1 slot, lab assistant then says

Please go to the Noisebridge Laboratory at 2169 Mission Street in San Francisco. As the lab assistant for the "Balance Sheet" research project. There is metered street parking nearby as well as the garage on Hoff Street between 16th and 17th, and the Mission Bartlett Garage at 3255 21st Street.

If the puzzle is being given in the Role 2 or 3 slot, lab assistant then says

Please go to the lab assistant at your current location and ask for the "Balance Sheet" research project.

If the puzzle is being given in the Role 4 slot, lab assistant then says

Please go to the steps of the California Academy of Sciences San Francisco's Golden Gate Park. As the lab assistant for the "Balance Sheet" research project. There is some street parking on John F. Kennedy Drive as well as the Golden Gate Park Garange, one entrance of which is at 800 10th Avenue.

SUPPLEMENTAL EMAIL ROLE 1

Research Project Title: Balance Sheet

Objective: Help Institute keep operating long enough to rescue Doctor When by avoiding bankruptcy

Location: Noisebridge, 2169 Mission Street in San Francisco; entrance is through a nondescript metal gate; there's a red graphic on black vinyl above the gate; the gate is just to the left of the Mi Ranchero produce market; walk up to the third floor

Upon Completion: Call the Institute and speak with any lab assistant

Parking: Metered street parking nearby as well as the garage on Hoff Street between 16th and 17th, and the Mission Bartlett Garage at 3255 21st Street

Bathrooms At Location: Yes

Food At Location: Numerous stores, restaurants, and cafes on Mission and Valencia Streets, as well as every side street

SUPPLEMENTAL EMAIL ROLES 2 OR 3

Research Project Title: Balance Sheet

Objective: Help Institute keep operating long enough to rescue Doctor When by avoiding bankruptcy

Location: current

Upon Completion: Call the Institute and speak with any lab assistant

SUPPLEMENTAL EMAIL ROLE 4

Research Project Title: Balance Sheet

Objective: Help Institute keep operating long enough to rescue Doctor When by avoiding bankruptcy

Location: Front steps of California Academy Of Sciences in San Francisco

Upon Completion: Call the Institute and speak with any lab assistant

Parking: Some street parking on John F. Kennedy Drive as well as the Golden Gate Park Garange, one entrance of which is at 800 10th Avenue

Bathrooms At Location: No

Food At Location: No

Lab assistant on site merely hands out the puzzle. The puzzle instructions say to call in the solution.

Puzzle Answer

INVEST ONE CENT IN PAST

Manager

Allen

Hints

(waiting for Wei-Hwa to upload Word document)

How Confused Players Describe Which Puzzle They’re Working On

“Consolidated Balance Sheet For Department Of Defense”

Typical Solve Process

1. Figure out the two missing numbers (Pitcairn Islands = 3, Phuket = 4) by realizing that the summations are done mod 24.
2. Realize from the mod 24 and the “Department Of Defense” references that the numbers can also be interpreted as “military time.”
3. Look up the UTC time zone offsets for each location referenced.
4. Convert each foreign time to its equivalent simultaneous time in San Mateo, i.e., “if it’s 12:00 in Easter Island, what time is it here?” (assume all times are standard).
5. Index the resulting numbers into the alphabet

Puzzle Data

Assets	As printed	UTC	Local time	Letter
Current
Cash (Pacific Standard Trust)	9	-8	9	I
Short-term investments, Easter Island head office	12	-6	14	N
Accounts receivable, Seoul Food Products	5	9	22	V
Inventory, Broome, AU janitorial supplies	13	-16	5	E
Notes receivable, Libyan Aviation	9	2	19	S
Pre-paid rent, Majuro Laboratory	0	12	20	T
Total Current	0
Long-Term Assets
Equipment, Pitcairn Islands facility	3	-8	5	C
Building, Pago Pago tachyon storage facility	8	-11	5	E
Long-Term Investments, Buenos Aires Bonds	9	-3	14	N
Ulaanbaator administrative yurts	4	8	20	T
Total Long-Term	0

Liabilities	As printed	UTC	Local time	Letter
Liabilities
Gravina Island Bridge Loan	10	-9	9	I
Accounts Payable, Vancouver Canucks	14	-8	14	N
Total Liabilities	0
Net worth
Contributed capital, Pyongyang People's Victory Fund	23	9	16	P
Reserved stock, Vanuatu Hedge Partners	6	11	1	A
Reserves, Phuket All-Services Bank	4	7	19	S
Retained earnings, Nuuk Savings & Loan	15	-3	20	T
Total Net Worth	0

Common Sticking Points

Sticking Point	Suggested Suggestion
Didn’t solve for two missing numbers first	“Have you found the two missing figures?”
Can’t figure out why totals add up to 0, i.e., that it’s mod 24.	“That is odd. What kind of strange arithmetic could possibly have both 24 and 48 equal to zero?”
Don’t make the intuitive leap to also think about the numbers as times.	“I wonder why he/she used an arithmetic that goes up to 24 and then starts back at zero?”

Response to Correct Answer

Lab assistant on phone says words to the effect of

Why of course! All we have to do is use the time machine to make an investment in the distant past. And then by the miracle of compound interest we'll be swimming in money today! We'll get right on that.

Since this is an optional puzzle, the next step can vary. Check the timing. It will most likely be the Income Statement puzzle, but could be just sending them to the next mandatory puzzle.

To Do

Find location, upload hints Word document into Hint section.