Blue Prince Castle Cipher Puzzle Solution – Step-by-Step Walkthrough for the Chess Room

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If you’ve been exploring the halls of Mt. Holly in Blue Prince, the Chess Room may have left you scratching your head. The Castle Cipher Puzzle is one of the estate’s most notorious brain-twisters—an intricate challenge that spans multiple rooms, requires understanding hidden mechanics, and ultimately unlocks one of the game’s major late-game areas.

Updated for 2025, this guide takes you step by step, from the first chess move to decoding the cipher and solving the final clock puzzle. By the end, you’ll have the Key of Aries and permanent access to this critical endgame content.

๐Ÿงฉ Understanding the Two-Part Puzzle

The Chess Room contains two linked challenges:

  1. The Castling Puzzle: Perform a special chess move using the game’s power-up system to reveal a secret passage.

  2. The Castle Cipher Puzzle: A cipher grid hidden behind a breakable wall, decoded using clues found throughout the estate.

Tip: Solve the Castling Puzzle first. The decoded Castle Cipher then provides instructions for the final clock puzzle later.

♟️ Step 1: Performing the "Castle" Move (Castling Puzzle)

Blue Prince, Castle Cipher Puzzle Solution

You cannot play a normal chess game here. Castling is achieved via the power-up system.

  1. Solve the Chessboard Puzzle: Complete the standard chessboard puzzle in the Precipice (Chess Room). You’ll be offered a choice of chess piece powers: Knight, Bishop, Rook, Queen, King, Pawn.

  2. Choose the Right Powers: To castle, obtain both the King’s power (Banner of the King) and the Rook’s power (Resilience of the Rook).

  3. Multiple Runs Required: Only one power can be chosen per day/run. Solve the chess puzzle on two separate runs, choosing King on one day and Rook on the other.

  4. The Reveal: With both powers, a secret passage opens at the Bishop statue alcove in the Chess Room, leading downward.

Clue Locations:

  • Office memo: "The King can castle by swapping with another piece."

  • Treasure Trove blue memo: "The power must shift to perform the ritual of castling."

๐Ÿ•ต️ Step 2: Finding and Solving the Castle Cipher

Behind a cracked wall in the Chess Room (breakable with the Power Hammer), you’ll find the cipher grid:

C _ _
A _ _
S _ _
T _ _
L _ _
E _ _

Your goal: collect letter clues from across the estate to complete this 3x6 grid.

๐Ÿ” Cipher Clue Locations

Room / Location            Clue Description                                        Letters Contributed
KennelPicture of a cat with cubesCAT
Secret PassageEngraving on the back of the doorDOOR
VaultFalse passport in deposit boxID
Locker RoomTorn math exercise sheetSIX OR O
CloisterEngraving on center statueC X E T
Classroom (Grade 7)Tic-tac-toe grids on chalkboardX X O O
Blackbridge GrottoServer note (requires Laboratory puzzle)I I O O
New Clue ManuscriptGrid on brick tile within the bookSOOT

✅ Completed Cipher & Interpretation

Aligning spatial letter positions produces:

C I X
A D D
S I X
T O R
L O R
E T T

Meaning:

  • CIX: Roman numeral 109

  • ADD SIX: Add 6 minutes

  • TOR LOR ETT: Context from Grade 4 classroom map: "TOR" reversed as "ROT," translates to "rotate counter-clockwise to the east"

๐Ÿ”ฎ Step 3: Path to the Final Clock Puzzle

The castling passage leads to the Aries Court Puzzle, a series of Mora Jai color box challenges that produce a poem.

Riddle excerpt:

In Aries Court where the king now lays
On the Sacred Hour that timeworn phase
Will a youth approach with empty arms
Without gifts nor gold nor mannered charms
And in the sky above a brilliant sign
A sullen cross as five stars align...

๐ŸŽฏ Preparing for the Sacred Hour

  • Empty Arms: Enter with a completely empty inventory (no items, gold, gems, keys).

  • Sullen Cross: Time your entry on a day when the Southern Cross constellation is active (star count remainders: 5, 9, 13, 16, or 25).

  • Sacred Hour: Be inside the crypt chamber before 1:30 PM in-game.

⏰ Step 4: Solving the Final Clock Puzzle

At 1:30 PM, a tomb rises, revealing the clock mechanism. Input the Castle Cipher instructions:

  1. CIX (109): Rotate hands to 01:09 → Press button

  2. ADD SIX: Move minute hand six steps clockwise → 01:15 → Press button

  3. TOR LOR ETT: Rotate counter-clockwise until the minute hand points to EAST → 12:26 → Press final button

๐Ÿ—️ Your Reward: The Key of Aries

Successfully completing this sequence unlocks the Key of Aries, a crucial item for end-game progression. Once solved, this area remains permanently accessible for future runs.

๐Ÿ”— Community Support Links

๐Ÿง  Final Thoughts

The Castle Cipher Puzzle in Blue Prince is one of those challenges that makes you feel like a genius when you finally crack it. It’s layered, smart, and full of “aha!” moments — especially when you combine clues from all over the mansion. ๐Ÿ•ต️‍♀️

So don’t be discouraged if it takes a while. Take notes, check your rooms, and remember: the community’s got your back if you need help.

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