(06-14-2016, 06:57 PM)btp Wrote: »It's been about a full day. I will provide a compliant post. Pick it apart; put it back. You'll have to construct a post.

I have considered further hints beyond.

God bless the Post Making Contest.

(06-14-2016, 07:21 PM)Ixcaliber Wrote: »The Post Making Contest's good. I like this contest quite a lot really. I'm having a lot of fun in this thread actually. A shame it will soon be finished forever.

(06-14-2016, 07:27 PM)qwerx3 Wrote: »abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvxyz

(06-14-2016, 07:59 PM)CrimsonMage Wrote: »I think we can do this. We may have a bad feeling about this, but really, it's do or do not. There is no try. If we just hang in there, we'll be able to do this. I know it. May the force be with us, and may the force be with the Post Making Contest.

(06-14-2016, 08:01 PM)qwerx3 Wrote: »abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxy!

(06-14-2016, 08:24 PM)qwerx3 Wrote: »Well, looks like my hypothesis
for rule one isn't right
Oh well, I think I'll
just try to keep puzzling
To stay quite confused, vexed

(06-14-2016, 08:52 PM)qwerx3 Wrote: »Anyway, I want to give thanks to the Post Making Contest. It was the catalyst for registering on this site, albeit lurking.

(06-14-2016, 08:52 PM)qwerx3 Wrote: »Potentially there is an implicit component that posts must be long. That might prevent cheesing a win with posting an alphabetical substring. Especially since we know those usually pass the other four rules. Truly, I haven't totally gotten the gist of all the rules. But I really thought my hunch was promising enough to unlurk. Anyway, I want to give thanks to the Post Making Contest. It was the catalyst for registering on this site, albeit lurking. I saw this forum upon looking at various MSPAFA's pretty recently. However I'm still a little hesitant at participating at those things. Although, just then I saw the games forum, which is familiar. When I saw that they were puzzly, it was quite exciting.

(06-14-2016, 09:06 PM)Sruixan Wrote: »

(06-14-2016, 08:52 PM)qwerx3 Wrote: »Anyway, I want to give thanks to the Post Making Contest. It was the catalyst for registering on this site, albeit lurking.

On behalf of all of us, I am so sorry.

(06-14-2016, 09:21 PM)qwerx3 Wrote: »Anyway I guess I'll stop trying to pass rule 1 (...and the other rules...). I thought it had to do with posting a post containing every letter except one, determined by post number modulo 26. Akumu "conveniently" posted at 26 mod 26 and 17 mod 26 (Z and Q). Not using the letter D made that last post significantly more stilted.

Since that hunch (probably) is wrong, feel free to have this probably wrong intel.

(06-14-2016, 09:22 PM)Dragon Fogel Wrote: »My fellow posters, we stand at an impasse. We have two posts that pass Rule 1; yet, it seems, they cannot be readily quoted or deconstructed to pass it again.

But we must not lose hope in these trying times. We must not forget that we have worked out the conditions for rules 2 and 5. Surely, with our best efforts, we can determine rules 3 and 4, and better prepare ourselves for the struggle to find rule 1.

We should consider what else we know - that rules 2 and 5 can be passed by a blank post, but 3 and 4 cannot. And yet! And yet, even a single letter will pass rules 3 and 4, regardless of its identity. From these humble clues, surely we can build the foundations of a new posting theory.

Persevere, posters of the Post Making Contest. With our combined efforts, surely we can pass all the rules. God bless you, and God bless the Post Baking Concert.

(06-14-2016, 09:21 PM)qwerx3 Wrote: »Anyway I guess I'll stop trying to pass rule 1 (...and the other rules...). I thought it had to do with posting a post containing every letter except one, determined by post number modulo 26. Akumu "conveniently" posted at 26 mod 26 and 17 mod 26 (Z and Q). Not using the letter D made that last post significantly more stilted.

Since that hunch (probably) is wrong, feel free to have this probably wrong intel.

(06-14-2016, 10:01 PM)Dragon Fogel Wrote: »

(06-14-2016, 09:21 PM)qwerx3 Wrote: »Anyway I guess I'll stop trying to pass rule 1 (...and the other rules...). I thought it had to do with posting a post containing every letter except one, determined by post number modulo 26. Akumu "conveniently" posted at 26 mod 26 and 17 mod 26 (Z and Q). Not using the letter D made that last post significantly more stilted.

Since that hunch (probably) is wrong, feel free to have this probably wrong intel.

I think this is at least vaguely on the right track; it's easy to write a post without a Q, X, Z or some other uncommon letters, so it's odd that Akumu went out of his way to include those. The coincidence of the post number mod 26 makes it especially unusual.

However, an important point to add to this observation: the first Rule 1 post didn't use X, in addition to not using Z But I double-checked the second, and it definitely only excludes Q.

If this is on the right track, then there must be some secondary condition, and it so happens that the second post hit Q for both conditions - or met some requirement that made the other excluded letter irrelevant.

For reference: first Rule 1 post is 5720, second is 5893.

(06-14-2016, 10:16 PM)Dragon Fogel Wrote: »Second sentence in 5720 has 24 words. First sentence in 5893 has 17 words.

If there's a condition for excluding a second letter, well, this is a slim possibility.

It's also possible that the letters are there to break rule 3 or 4 (or both). Note that qwerx3's attempt to exclude D broke those rules as well.

(06-14-2016, 10:16 PM)Dragon Fogel Wrote: »On behalf of all of us, I am so sorry.

(06-14-2016, 10:17 PM)Dragon Fogel Wrote: »Anyway, I want to give thanks to the Post Making Contest. It was the catalyst for registering on this site, albeit lurking.

(06-14-2016, 10:23 PM)Dragon Fogel Wrote: »abcdefghijklmnpqrstuvwxyz

(06-14-2016, 10:27 PM)qwerx3 Wrote: »a b c d 3
f g h i j
k l m n o
p r s t u
v w x y z

(06-14-2016, 10:27 PM)Dragon Fogel Wrote: »Well, looks like my hypothesis
for rule one isn't right
Oh well, I think I'll
just try to keep puzzling