Image
How to solve the Snake Puzzle
DoctrZombie's guide to the Snake Tunnel Mirror reflection puzzle in Lo's version (Summer) of the Antique Mirror, modified by fellow snake runners.
Step 1: Buff Perception
The best known reward requires getting past the 25th stage (which also ends the puzzle, the first time per day this happens). In each stage, you see the snake start moving, then you make your decision, then snake makes its actual move (which may or may not be the same as what you saw, but we'll get to that later).
In early stages, you'll see one direction that it looks like the snake is going:
You glance behind your reflection. The serpent seems to be heading <left>.
Later, depending on your Perception, you'll start to have trouble getting a good look, and see two possible directions:
The serpent's close now. It's hard to tell where it might be going with it so close to your reflection, but you see the serpent is slithering mostly <up> and to the <right>.
Later still, your Perception could fail you entirely:
The serpent's too close to your reflection to pick out where it might be going.
| Your buffed Perception | # of one-direction stages | # of two-direction stages | # of no idea stages | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| <100 | You can get some rewards, but winning the whole thing is not feasible. | |||
| 100–120 | 11 followed by ––> | 10 followed by ––> | 4 | |
| 121–143 | 12 | 11 | 2 | |
| 144–168 | 13 | 12 | 0 | |
| … | ||||
| 576+ | Guessing is for chumps. | |||
| n | 1+√(buffed Perception) | √(buffed Perception) | 25 minus the previous two columns | |
While nothing else comes close to mattering as much as Perception, it's possible that stealth defense or melee defense reduces the damage from the snake biting or catching you. (This needs more testing). The snake will always kill you if you run the same direction as it, or if it nips you for a second time, but buffing these stats (or the lower of your Strength or Will to increase hit points) could be useful if the first poisonous nip kills you.
Step 2: Understanding Snake Movements
As described above, you will usually get hints at which direction the snake will move. These hints can be true or false, but for a given player, they are always true or false on the same "stage" and by the same degree! For example, let's say you run into the tunnels and immediately (stage 1) see "The serpent seems to be heading left." You make a move, then discover that "The serpent heads left but sways at the last moment and heads up instead." This means that on stage 1 of your personal puzzle, the snake will always end up moving one direction clockwise compared to the first hint.
There are four possibilities for each stage. You can use any terminology you like, but this guide will use the following:| -1 | Snake will turn one direction counterclockwise (left->down, down->right, etc.) |
|---|---|
| 0 | Snake will keep moving the hinted direction. |
| +1 | Snake will turn one direction clockwise. (left->up, up->right, etc.) |
| 2 | Snake will reverse direction completely (right<->left, up<->down) |
If you move the same direction compared to the snake, it beats you to hell and the puzzle is over. (Your next attempt will start at the beginning again).
If you move one direction counterclockwise compared to the snake, it nips you for some damage and 5 duration of Serpent Venom. If you already have Serpent Venom when this happens, you get beaten to hell instead.
If you move the opposite direction or one direction clockwise compared to the snake, you're safe.
Note that the "rest" options in the other mirror choice encounters can remove Serpent Venom.
Step 3: Tracking Snake Movements
Open up Excel or another spreadsheet program. If you want to be successful at beating the first stage Snake puzzle, you will need to run it several times and record the results each time. Every step you succeed at will grow your key a little more. This is how it works.
Leave the top row blank. This is where you'll record the snake's "truthiness" for each stage: -1, 0, +1, or 2.
Start your key in Cell 1 of row 2. Write the direction the snake claims to be going, and the direction you will be going. After you click the direction button, record the direction the snake actually went. Here's an example:
| 0 |
|---|
| dud |
This represents "down, up, down", as in "The snake said it was going down, I went up, and the snake went down." The 0 in the first row shows that the snake did not lie ("lied by 0"). This number will not change.
If, on the other hand, the snake did lie, check which direction he said he was going and compare it to the direction he actually went. If the direction is 1 counterclockwise, put a -1 at the top of the column. If it was clockwise 1, put +1. If it was completely opposite, put a 2. Note that even if the hint gives two directions, you'll find out which way it really went once you choose a direction (For example, it may say "the snake could go up or down," but then you'll see "The snake sways down, but heads left instead.")
Continue until you die. It may be helpful to color the cells where you make a mistake red. Here's an example of a key after one run:| 0 | -1 | 0 |
|---|---|---|
| dud | rud | uuu |
| 0 | -1 | 0 | -1 | 0 | +1 | 2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| dud | rud | uuu | ||||
| udu | rud | lrl | dlr | ddd | ||
| rlr | dlr | uru | rdu | rlr | llu | rdl |
| rlr | url | lul | rdu | udu | drl | lrr |
There's one more complication, which not all people will see:
The serpent lunges left, coiling through the tunnels at a reckless speed.
The mirror shakes like a Metros train is passing right beneath your feet.
On the bright side, it whizzes right past your reflection. Score!
When you see this message, the snake has moved through 2 stages at once. In addition to recording the direction it just went, skip the next cell in the row (or write "Score!"). This can only happen when two stages in a row have a truthiness of 0, so you can go ahead and enter 0 in the first row of that column.
Step 4: Using Your Key for Recorded Stages
For a stage with one-direction hints:
*Predict where the snake will actually move, then move either opposite that direction or clockwise from it. If your spreadsheet program has predictive cell-filling, you can just type the snake's direction, and the program will suggest the next move for you. (But be cautious if the cells above it include mistakes.)
Stages with two-direction hints come in two types:
- Orthogonal directions (down/right ; down/left ; up/left ; up/right): Use your key to predict the two possibilities. Choose the direction opposite one possibility and clockwise from the other.
- Opposite directions (up/down ; right/left): Even with the key, no one has yet found a way to guarantee success on these. Work out the two possibilities. If you do not have any Serpent Venom, choose a direction that's not one of them. If you do have Serpent Venom, all four directions have a 50/50 chance of failure.
For example, if the snake claims to be moving Down and Left, and you know from experience that the snake is shifting by +1, then the snake is actually moving either Left or Up (Down + 1 = Left, Left + 1 = Up). If you keep yourself either opposite or ahead (clockwise) of the snake, you will not get bitten. In this instance, the only safe cell is RIGHT. If the snake goes left, you're on the opposite side. If the snake goes Up, you're +1 ahead of it (clockwise 1 direction)
Step 5: Predicting Stages You Haven't Seen Before
Once you have enough data, look for patterns in the "truthiness" row. Divide these into two types:
- Straight (S): 0 or 2.
- Turn (T): -1 or +2.
Write your truthiness row on a separate line or a sheet of paper, recording only S or T instead of the exact value. Known patterns include:
- SST SST SST SST …
- ST ST ST ST …
Use the pattern you find to extend your truthiness row through all 25 stages (or further), narrowing each cell down to one of two possibilities (either 0/2 or -1/+1).
NOTE: The following method matches the two recorded puzzle patterns. If it doesn't match yours, post your puzzle data on the discussion thread to this page.
Now focus on just the T values ("-1/+1") and rewrite each cell as either -1 or +1, following this pattern:
- -1 -1 -1 -1 +1 -1 -1 -1 -1 +1 -1 -1 -1 -1 +1
Now count to every 5th cell (stages 5, 10, 15, etc.). If it's an S value ("0/2"), turn it into a 2.
Finally, go through the whole row and turn all remaining "0/2" cells into 0.