Battle Quills... ready! Circulation: 195,436,079 Issue: 852 | 11th day of Sleeping, Y21
Home | Archives Articles | Editorial | Short Stories | Comics | New Series | Continued Series
 

The Puzzle Cube – a Guide to Solve the Unsolvable


by realidade

--------

    28th of Hidding, Y17, a strange object popped up in Neopia. "Its for one of the greatest challenges!", they said. Well, I don’t know where it came from, but I guess it was made by a very malefic mind – maybe some mad scientist who had nothing better to do with his time. The true is that when I saw that beautiful and colorful toy, I had to buy it. It seemed very fun, and my baby neopet Val always loved to solve puzzles. Spoiler alert: it was a terrible idea.

When Val yelled "It’s SO boring! I’ve already read six hundred and sixty-three books and I still didn’t figure out how to solve this thing! Why don’t you buy me better toys?" for the twentieth time, I knew that something had to be done. So, instead of calling her an ungrateful Neopet (which she definitely was!), I decided to write this article. If you, just like me, can’t hear your pets complaining about this cube anymore – or if you want to challenge yourself and try to solve it – this article is for you.

Solving the puzzle is a very simple task, actually: all you have to do is to rotate all the layers of the cube so each face has one and only one color on it. To do so, you will need a lot of patience and, sometimes, a little luck, because there are millions of possible combinations. If patience is not your better quality and luck is never on your side, here are some methods you can use to solve the cube. None of them was tested before, but you’ll never know if you never try, right?

    - Use a paint brush (or six)

This is the most obvious solution, don’t you think? If you don’t have the patience to put all the colors where they belong, you just need to use the paint brushes to paint all the faces of the cube. You will need six colors in total: blue, green, red, orange, yellow and white; just pick one side and start painting it! This is the most expensive way to solve the problem, maybe, but it’s also the one that will take you less time.

If your cube has been well painted, the difference will be so small that not even your smartest friend will ever suspect it was a trick. But be careful! Wait a day and make sure that the ink is completely dry before you show everyone the cube, otherwise you will not make a very good impression.

    - Break it and fix it again

It’s time to put your manual arts skills in action! If you can’t find a way to put every single piece of the cube in its right place by rotating the layers, you can break the toy and then put all the pieces together again (after all, it seems so much funnier than spending hours and hours trying to figure out the right solution). All you will need is a hammer and glue. Your poor cube will never be the same again, but you can always use it to decorate your neohome – and invite your friends to dinner so everyone can see how smart you are!

Once again, I warn you to be careful: both the hammer and the glue are potentially dangerous when incorrectly used. And you should wait before you touch the cube again, otherwise… well, not only the trick would become pretty obvious but also it would not be very fun to have an object stuck to your fingers. Thinking about it now, maybe it’s safer to take the cube to the Donny’s Toy Repair Shop, but where is the fun in that?

    - Play Cheeseroller with it

Yay! This is the least probable method but it is easy and by far the funniest way to solve the cube, but it’s totally luck-based so don’t expect it to go well at first try. Running down the hill and avoiding obstacles, the layers of the cube will rotate almost by themselves and, at the end, you can be surprised. "But I can move them with my own hands", you say. Of course you can, my dear, but it would not be the same! So come on, just convince that Techo to let you use your cube instead of a cheese, go to the top of the mountain, close your eyes and pray to Coltzan…

If you are on a lucky day, you can even get a new avatar or a shiny new trophy for your cabinet! But please don’t make this a habit, it’s not very nice to throw objects down the hill doesn’t matter how beautiful those objects are, especially if there are other pets on its way, right?

    - Beg the faeries

Everybody knows that all the Neopian faeries care about everyone’s happiness and well-being… I mean, almost all the Neopian faeries. That said, all you need to do is to find a faerie on a good day and ask her, pretty please, to make a spell to solve the cube once for all. Just convince her that it is for the greater good and not a total waste of her time and magical powers (by the way, you can also take this time to ask her other things you want, but have good manners and try not to abuse her good will).

However, don’t make the mistake of thinking that every faerie in Neopia will be nice to you if you ask them this kind of favor: Jhudora is NOT worth the pain and effort and the Fire Faerie, well, you are at your own risk – she can set the cube on fire and that wouldn’t even be the worst possible scenario, so you should take some precautions by wearing an armor and bringing a fire extinguisher with you, just in case. The other faeries may be friendlier, but keep in mind that some of them dedicate their time and powers to do more important things such as protecting us from evil creatures, so please don’t disturb them – you don’t want to be responsible for the end of Neopia!

    - Throw it in the Rainbow Fountain

The magic powers of the Rainbow Fountain are well known since a long time ago. The lucky ones who get access to those waters just need to pick a color, and voila! They get a new look! The question is: will it work with an object in the same way as with a Neopet? Well, this idea was not tested yet, but there’s always a first time for everything.

So, all you have to do is to find a good way to distract the Fountain Faerie before you throw your cube in the water, quickly grab it again - hopefully it will be solved by that time! - and then get out of that place as fast as you can. I’m pretty sure she will not find it funny at all, but it’s certainly worth trying. (And, please, try not to hit the poor faerie, I know it can be sad when everyone gets a FFQ except you, but she’s not that evil.)

    - Make friends with a mutant Hissi

To solve this cube, as well as any other puzzle, you will have to use your brain. It is sad that you have only one head, because I have always heard that two heads think better than one. But wait! I’m not suggesting you to put yourself under the laboratory ray, who do you think I am? On the contrary, this method is completely safe… I mean, almost completely safe, but if you’re brave and adventurous and you don’t run away from a mutant Neopet, that’s fine, you will have so much fun! (Also, it’s not very nice to judge a Neopet by the way he looks, just saying.)

This is the idea: you need to befriend a mutant Hissi and ask him to help you solving the cube – since he has two heads, three heads should have no problem with this puzzle (if you do, maybe you should start reading some books) – but first make sure that your new friend is able to hold the cube with those big claws and keep it intact…. But if it’s too late and he already broke it into a thousand pieces, follow the second method of this article, after all, half the work has already been done!

Warning: there are other creatures with more than one head around Neopia, like Luperus and Scordrax, but I suggest you to stay away from them. Just. Stay. Away.

    - Go visit the Castle of Eliv Thade

Wow, this article is becoming so much spooky! (And it’s not over yet *evil laugh*). Well, I can’t blame you if this thought has crossed your mind – after all, who in their right mind would like to go walk around that haunted place? Not everyone, that’s for sure, but if you want your cube to be solved you may need to make some sacrifices. So, let’s hope you’re lucky (lucky?!) enough to find the spectre of Eliv Thade in front of the door, and ask him to solve the puzzle.

As you may already know, Eliv Thade is a brilliant (yet not so nice) Kacheek who loves to solve any kind of puzzles; that’s why the Puzzle Cube wouldn’t probably be a challenge for him. However, some people say he becomes INSANE when he can’t solve a puzzle so, if this happens, just run away from here and never come back! But calm down, it’s unlikely that he won’t be able to solve it, and you will probably return home safely with a solved cube in your hands to always remind you that you were not smart enough to solve it yourself, but at least you were brave and that is even more impressive. Just avoid using this method on Halloween night, and you’ll be fine!

    - Invoke the spirit of Xandra

Do you remember Xandra? She was a very smart librarian who studied a lot with the faeries. Sadly, she used all her knowledge to do some evil things; but don’t worry, she was turned to stone and Fyora is making sure she doesn’t come back to life anytime soon (that’s why you shouldn’t bother the Faerie Queen). In a certain way, it is a shame because Xandra could solve this puzzle in no time. But all is not lost.

This last method is the most dangerous one and I don’t recommend it – if you care about the Neopian World, don’t even think about doing this! However, if you really really want the cube to be solved and you’re sure you can defeat Xandra if things don’t go as expected, go ahead and invoke her spirit. You can use a mirror or any other magic object, and if you find her on a good mood, maybe she helps you with your problem… or maybe she puts you in really big trouble! Do you still want to give it a try? Alright, but I’m not responsible for any consequences. *flies away*

    ***

    I hope this article helps you solving the Puzzle Cube. Neopia is a world full of magic and surprises and, as you can see, every problem has a lot of solutions; you just need to pick the one that suits you better or grants you more fun. I’m sure that if you use your imagination and creativity you can solve not only this puzzle but also any other challenges that may appear in your path!

It’s worth emphasizing that, in spite of the tittle of this article, the Puzzle Cube is NOT an unsolvable problem! Yes, it takes time, practice, good memory and a lot of patience, but it is also a good way for you to train your logical and thinking capacities. I could teach you how to solve it the right way but, well, that is a story for another article.

So, if one day a Puzzle Cube suddenly appears in front of you, don’t run away from it, but smile instead. I promise you it will not be a waste of time – on the contrary, it will probably grant you a hilarious adventure and maybe some new friends, who knows? Good luck! ;)

 
Search the Neopian Times




Great stories!


---------

Welcome to Marmalady
Over the road leading into the town was a sign bearing the legend: Welcome to Marmalady - Live Sensationally. The first time Mads saw that sign, he knew this was the town for him.

by racoon188

---------

Cheeseroller
but how

by franzgirl

---------

A Baker’s Dozen, A Musician’s Dream
A chill wind blew through the thicket of the Haunted Woods, causing Fablar, a Royalboy Cybunny, to shiver and clutch a small written note closer to his chest.

Also by breakeven and detection

by k3l26


---------

Bo-haviour
Based on a not-so-true story

by _fletser_



Submit your stories, articles, and comics using the new submission form.