{"format":"murdoku-puzzle/1","id":"carousel","version":1,"difficulty":"very-easy","level":1,"size":{"rows":5,"cols":5},"languages":["en","hu","de","fr","es","it","nl","pl","pt","ro","ca","cs","fi","vi","tr","el","ru","uk","ar","ko","ja","zh-Hans","zh-Hant"],"defaultLanguage":"en","title":"The Carousel","tagline":"A travelling fair on a village green · Whit Monday 1908 · the carousel never stopped","author":"mathace","concept":"Murdoku – Manuel Garand (murdoku.com); unofficial fan-made case","created":"2026-09-29","story":"A village green in the Welsh borders, Whit Monday 1908. The travelling fair had come: the steam organ played, the carousel horses went round and round the painted centre pole, and a popcorn cart – the latest novelty from America – drew a crowd of children. Vesta, the lady of the manor who owned the green, had announced that morning that the fair would never be allowed back. In the afternoon she was found dead at the sweet stall, beside the popcorn cart. Four people had been close to her, and each made one short statement – find the one who was alone with her.","rules":{"standard":["Every row and every column holds exactly one person. As soon as you place someone, cross out their whole row and column.","“Beside” = directly left, right, above or below, and in the same area. Squares with objects (the ticket counter, the tree, the centre pole, the popcorn cart and the flower bed) cannot be occupied; the carousel horses and the bench can.","The murderer was alone with the victim: nobody else was in that area."],"special":[]},"roleNames":{"visitor":"visitor","staff":"fair worker","victim":"victim"},"personGroups":[{"id":"visitors","name":"Visitors","persons":["A","B","V"]},{"id":"staff","name":"The fair people","persons":["C","D"]}],"map":{"groups":[],"gaps":[],"areas":[{"id":"Ticket Booth","cells":[[1,1],[1,2],[2,1]],"fill":"#eadfcb","pattern":"planks","labelAt":[2,1],"name":"Ticket Booth"},{"id":"Carousel","cells":[[2,2],[2,3],[2,4],[3,1],[3,2],[3,3],[4,2],[4,3],[4,4]],"fill":"#f3e0c9","pattern":"boards","labelAt":[3,2],"name":"Carousel"},{"id":"Lawn","cells":[[1,3],[1,4],[1,5],[2,5],[3,4],[3,5],[4,5],[5,4],[5,5]],"fill":"#e0edcc","pattern":"marble","labelAt":[3,4],"name":"Lawn"},{"id":"Sweet Stall","cells":[[4,1],[5,1],[5,2],[5,3]],"fill":"#f6dde6","pattern":"planks","labelAt":[5,2],"name":"Sweet Stall"}],"objectTypes":{"bench":{"occupiable":true,"name":"bench","icon":""},"rockinghorse":{"occupiable":true,"name":"carousel horse","icon":""},"counter":{"occupiable":false,"name":"ticket counter","icon":""},"flowers":{"occupiable":false,"name":"flower bed","icon":""},"pillar":{"occupiable":false,"name":"centre pole","icon":""},"popcorn":{"occupiable":false,"name":"popcorn cart","icon":""},"tree":{"occupiable":false,"name":"tree","icon":""}},"wallTypes":{},"objects":[{"cell":[1,1],"type":"counter"},{"cell":[1,5],"type":"tree"},{"cell":[2,2],"type":"rockinghorse"},{"cell":[2,4],"type":"rockinghorse"},{"cell":[3,3],"type":"pillar"},{"cell":[3,5],"type":"bench"},{"cell":[4,2],"type":"rockinghorse"},{"cell":[5,1],"type":"popcorn"},{"cell":[5,5],"type":"flowers"}],"wallFeatures":[],"extras":[],"cellSize":46},"persons":[{"id":"A","name":"Alaric","gender":"M","role":"visitor","color":"#c62828","avatar":{"bg":"#35607a","skin":"#f6d8c0","hair":"#5a3a22","style":"short","shirt":"#1b1b1b","glasses":true},"clue":"He was sitting on a carousel horse.","job":"the new curate of the parish","avatarSvg":"","solverRole":"visitor","constraints":[{"type":"on","obj":"rockinghorse"}]},{"id":"B","name":"Bettany","gender":"F","role":"visitor","color":"#2e7d32","avatar":{"bg":"#6a1b9a","skin":"#f3d3b5","hair":"#3a2a1c","style":"bun","shirt":"#2f3b4c","apron":true},"clue":"She was sitting on the bench.","job":"a lady's maid on her day off","avatarSvg":"","solverRole":"visitor","constraints":[{"type":"on","obj":"bench"}]},{"id":"C","name":"Caradoc","gender":"M","role":"staff","color":"#1565c0","avatar":{"bg":"#3f6a3a","skin":"#e4b998","hair":"#b7482c","style":"short","shirt":"#c62828","beard":true,"cap":true},"clue":"He was in the Ticket Booth. He was in the first row.","job":"the carousel's ticket seller","avatarSvg":"","solverRole":"staff","constraints":[{"type":"area","areas":["Ticket Booth"]},{"type":"row","rows":[1]}]},{"id":"D","name":"Drusilla","gender":"F","role":"staff","color":"#6a1b9a","avatar":{"bg":"#e65100","skin":"#f0cdb0","hair":"#1c1a1a","style":"curly","shirt":"#e26d8a","headband":"#f2a53a","earrings":true},"clue":"She was in the last row.","job":"the sweet-seller of the fair","avatarSvg":"","solverRole":"staff","constraints":[{"type":"row","rows":[5]}]},{"id":"V","name":"Vesta","gender":"F","role":"victim","color":"#1b1b1b","avatar":{"bg":"#5a2a2a","skin":"#f6d8c0","hair":"#d9d4cc","style":"bun","shirt":"#5b2c6f","necklace":true},"clue":"The victim. She was found in the Sweet Stall area, beside the popcorn cart – alone with the murderer.","job":"the lady of the manor who owned the green","avatarSvg":"","solverRole":"visitor","constraints":[{"type":"area","areas":["Sweet Stall"]},{"type":"beside","obj":"popcorn"}]}],"victim":"V","murderer":"D","solution":{"C":[1,2],"A":[2,4],"B":[3,5],"V":[4,1],"D":[5,3]},"walkthrough":[{"place":["B"],"cand":{"A":[[2,2],[2,4],[4,2]],"C":[[1,2]],"D":[[5,2],[5,3],[5,4]]},"text":"Bettany was sitting on the bench – and there is only one bench, at R3C5. Bettany is at R3C5: cross out row 3 and column 5."},{"place":["C","A"],"cand":{"D":[[5,3]]},"text":"Caradoc was in the Ticket Booth, in the first row. The Ticket Booth has only two squares in row 1, and R1C1 is the ticket counter: Caradoc is at R1C2. Alaric was sitting on a carousel horse. The horses are at R2C2, R2C4 and R4C2, and column 2 is Caradoc's: Alaric is at R2C4."},{"place":["D"],"cand":{},"text":"Drusilla was in the last row. R5C1 is the popcorn cart, R5C5 a flower bed, and columns 2 and 4 are taken: Drusilla is at R5C3."},{"final":true,"text":"Case closed: the last free square, R4C1, is the victim's – in the Sweet Stall area, beside the popcorn cart, just as her card says, although we never needed it. Vesta was alone there with the sweet-seller of the fair. Drusilla is the murderer!"}],"solver":{"rules":[],"occupiable":["bench","rockinghorse"]},"verification":{"tool":"tools/murdoku_solver.py","unique":true,"guessFree":true,"checked":"2026-09-29"}}