Solution - To Serve and Protect

by Craig Kasper and Joseph DeVincentis

Answer: Click here to reveal

The puzzle presented is a Sheep-and-Wolves fences puzzle, a variant which has been on the US Puzzle Championships recently. (I believe the variant was invented by Dave Tuller.) This type of Fences puzzle is solved like a regular Fences puzzle, with the additional restriction that the fence must keep wolves out, and sheep in. Solving this puzzle with the restriction that all sheep must be inside the fence results in the set of fences depicted in the diagram below. Reading the letters outside of the grid yields MATTHEW SEVEN FIFTEEN.

Matthew 7:15 is a verse from the Sermon on the Mount; it instructs the reader to beware of wolves in sheep's clothing. Solving the puzzle again, but with the sheep replaced by wolves yields the set of fences depicted in the diagram below. Taking only the letters which are inside both sets of fences (the squares outside the fence in the all-sheep version have been highlighted in gray) produces the letters highlighted in yellow, which instruct the solver to LOCATE GRAIL.

When solvers contacted HQ, they were informed they needed to bring us a grail which must have a stem and hold liquid. When they did so, they received the answer, ASBOLITE.