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Secrets of the Ark: A Broken Sword Game Hints
How can I solve the cross puzzle?
1 of 20: After getting a close-up of it, notice that you can click on the Roman numerals for 1, 2, and 3.
2 of 20: Doing so will turn the rotatable crosses along the middle row of the puzzle.
3 of 20: As with the statue puzzles under Topkapi, you'll need to find clues to a solution somewhere.
4 of 20: You used your manuscript page there, so try your "manuscript book" item now.
5 of 20: Right-click on it in inventory to get a close-up view of it, then look for something resembling the cross shapes on the puzzle.
6 of 20: There aren't any symbols that look exactly like the puzzle's cross shapes, but there are three cross pictures in the top-right corner of the manuscript.
7 of 20: And they do seem to be oriented differently. That must be the clue you're after!
8 of 20: The left cross on the manuscript is pointing straight up (which I'll call "north"), the middle cross is pointing "northwest," and the right cross is pointing "west."
9 of 20: However, if you set the three moveable crosses on the puzzle to those settings, nothing will happen.
10 of 20: Think about the fact that the puzzle has three rows, and each row has four slots, including a blank.
11 of 20: Notice the pattern that the blank slots make.
12 of 20: They match the pattern of the cross pictures on the manuscript book.
13 of 20: Imagine the cross settings from the manuscript being filled in on the blanks of the puzzle. Or draw a picture and fill them in yourself. Or check the graphic below.
14 of 20: Analyze the top and bottom rows to see how the crosses are rotating as you read each row in left-to-right order.
15 of 20: On the top row, the crosses are rotating to the left (ccw) by one move (or 45 degrees) each time.
16 of 20: On the bottom row, the crosses are rotating to the left (ccw) by three moves (or 45 X 3 = 135 degrees) each time.
17 of 20: So clearly the crosses on the middle row need to rotate to the left (ccw) by two moves (or 45 X 2 = 90 degrees) each time.
18 of 20: Use the one fixed cross on the middle row (the one "brought over" from the manuscript book) as your starting point.
19 of 20: It's pointing "northwest" (45 degrees ccw from upright), so the previous cross needs to be pointing "northeast." This is because taking that cross and applying the 90-degree ccw turn would give the orientation of the second cross.
20 of 20: The last two rotatable crosses can be figured out in the same way. Or you can just look at the solution graphic below.
