THE WANDERING KNIGHT Mystery Cache

This cache has been archived.

The Seanachai: While we feel that Geocaching.com should hold the location for you for a reasonable amount of time, we cannot do so indefinitely. In light of the lack of communication regarding this cache it has been archived to free up the area for new placements. If you haven’t done so already, please pick up this cache or any remaining bits as soon as possible. Please note that geocaches archived by a reviewer or Geocaching HQ for lack of maintenance are not eligible for unarchival.

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Hidden : 8/19/2008
Difficulty:
3.5 out of 5
Terrain:
1.5 out of 5

Size: Size: micro (micro)

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Geocache Description:


Chess : an ancient board game that simulates war between rival kings. The chess board is an 8 x 8 grid with 64 squares. Each player has 16 game pieces and each has specific rules for moving. The knight is the most unique piece on the board in that it's the only one that can jump over other pieces. It does this by moving across a 2 x 3 oblong. Think of the move as "L" shaped - two squares either forward, backward, left, or right and then left or right one square. The knight's options are illustrated in Figure 1.

Figure 1: The knight's possible moves

In this puzzle the Wandering Knight starts at one corner of the cryptographic chess board shown in Figure 2. He follows a meandering path that takes him to each and every square exactly once. Along the way he collects the letters and numbers of a scrambled secret message. If he follows the correct path he can reconstruct this message, leading him to the hidden cache.
CRYPTOGRAM
Figure 2: Cryptographic message

To solve this cryptogram pick a corner on the board and move the Wandering Knight from square to square, according to the rules of the game. When you have solved the puzzle start at the coordinates listed above and use the solution to locate the hidden cache.

The Wandering Knight was once a common cipher, particularly among aristocrats of Mediterranean Europe in the 16th and 17th centuries. The main drawback is that the message is limited to 64 characters, or a multiple of 64. A message that does not fill the grid is padded at the end with null characters. X is a popular null, although any character can be used.

The Wandering Knight cipher is not well-suited to use in critical situations, such as communication between real generals in a time of war. It is highly susceptible to errors during both the encryption and the decryption procedures. This explains why its use was limited to the leisure classes.

Not sure how to rate the difficulty on this one. After several false starts things should begin to fall into place and the solution will come rather quickly. Let me know what you think.
Legion of Wandering Knights

Anyone can solve this cryptogram, from any location. It's not necessary to visit the beautiful village of White House, Tennessee (although you'll be glad you did!). Of course, you must come here and sign the log in order to claim your find but, if that is not practical, you can still earn glory and adoration by induction into the Legion of Wandering Knights. Simply send me your solution to the final geocache location. If it's correct I'll add your name to the Roll of Honor (below) to have your accomplishment recorded for posterity. Imagine the sense of pride and accomplishment you'll feel as you display this prestigious honor to your family and friends.
Legion of Wandering Knights
 Roll of Honor
Nom de Geocache Date of Solution Remarks
1.  redtj 08/25/08 First to Find!
2. HawMorFords 09/01/08 Second to Solve!
3. Maddie's Sherpa 11/20/08 From sunny California!
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LEGION OF WANDERING KNIGHTS

Additional Hints (Decrypt)

Svefg jbeq vf n pbzzba cercbfvgvba.

Decryption Key

A|B|C|D|E|F|G|H|I|J|K|L|M
-------------------------
N|O|P|Q|R|S|T|U|V|W|X|Y|Z

(letter above equals below, and vice versa)


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