Crack the Code

Overview

Why This Matters

Cryptograms show up everywhere in ARGs, puzzle games, and mystery hunts. Learn to crack them by hand and you'll become the person everyone turns to when they hit a wall.

A cryptogram swaps every letter for a different symbol. Each symbol = one letter. Spaces and punctuation stay put.

Your job? Figure out the mapping. Reveal the message.

No fancy tech. No math genius required. Just pattern-spotting and five repeatable steps. Messages that stump most people? You'll crack them.

What You'll Learn

Identify cipher types fast
Spot word patterns that unlock everything
Use frequency analysis like a detective
Sprint through partial solutions
Verify you cracked it right

Learn by Watching

Video Tutorial

Prefer to watch instead of read? This video covers all the techniques below.

Video coming soon!

Subscribe to @CLU-NQR on YouTube for updates

The Method

5 Steps to Crack Cryptograms

Follow these and watch the message unlock

01

ID the Cipher Type

First: what kind of cipher is this?

All numbers? Binary (1s and 0s), A1Z26 (A=1, B=2...Z=26), or another number code.
Shifted letters? Caesar cipher (letters shifted down the alphabet) or ROT13.
Keyword-based scramble? Vigenère cipher.
Symbols with spaces intact? Aristocrat substitution cipher. That's our focus.

Aristocrats keep spaces and punctuation. That's your advantage. Each letter maps to exactly one symbol. One symbol = one letter. If your message is 28+ characters, you can crack it.

02

Hunt Short Words

Short words unlock everything. Start here:

1-Letter Words

Only two choices: A or I. Formal text? Pick A. Personal text? Pick I.

2-Letter Words

OF, TO, IN, IT, IS, AS, AT, ON, BY, WE, US, HE, ME, MY

Try the top four first: OF, TO, IN, IT.

3-Letter Words

THE, AND, FOR, ARE, BUT, NOT, YOU, WHO, WAS, HAS, OUT

THE is king. See a 3-letter word repeated? Try THE.

Word Edges

Common starters: T-, A-, I-, S-, RE-, UN-, IN-, DIS-, PRE-, CON-/COM-
Common endings: -E, -S, -D, -T, -ED, -LY, -ING, -TION, -MENT, -NESS
Apostrophes: N'T (don't), 'S (it's), 'D (I'd), I'M, 'RE, 'VE, 'LL, O' (o'clock)

03

Count Symbols

English has patterns. Use them.

Single Letters

E shows up most. Then T, A, O, I, N, S, H, R.

Most-used symbol? Probably E. Short messages break the rule sometimes.

Bigrams (2-letter pairs)

TH, HE, IN, ER, AN, RE, ON, AT, EN, ND, ST, ES

TH wins. See two symbols stuck together? Try TH.

Trigrams (3-letter combos)

THE, AND, ING, ENT, ION, TIO, HER, HAT

Doubles

LL, EE, SS, OO, TT, FF, RR, NN

See a doubled symbol? Instant lock-in.

Pro move: Use GlyphGrid to count automatically. Let the computer crunch numbers. You spot patterns.

04

Sprint to the Finish

Partial map? Time to run. Educated guesses + pattern completion = solved puzzle.

Rules of the Road

Every word needs vowels. A, E, I, O, U (sometimes Y). All consonants? Wrong mapping.
H loves T, S, W, C. Hunt those combos.
Q demands U. Always.
Common endings: -ING, -ED, -LY, -TION, -MENT, -NESS
Common starters:
- TH-: THE, THAT, THIS, THEM, THEN, THERE, THESE, THEIR, THING
- WH-: WHAT, WHEN, WHERE, WHICH, WHILE, WHO
- IN-: IN, INTO, INSIDE

Red Flags

See these? Rethink your map:

Impossible combos: QQ, JJ, VV
Words with zero vowels
Rare letters (Q, X, Z) showing up everywhere

The move: Solve words with the most known letters first. Each solved letter spreads everywhere. Momentum builds. Try a letter. Doesn't work? Backtrack. That's the game.

05

Verify the Solve

Before you claim victory:

Final Checklist

Read the full message as normal English. Does it flow?
Check your key: one symbol = one letter. One letter = one symbol. No crossovers.
No unmapped symbols left behind.
Punctuation and apostrophes make sense.
Message is 28+ characters and reads clean? You cracked it.

Something feels off? Check for double-assignments (same letter used twice for different symbols). Make sure you didn't skip anything.

Your Arsenal

Tools That Help

Free resources to speed up the hunt

GlyphGrid

Cryptogram solver that counts symbols, tracks your key, and makes hand-solving way easier. No logins. No ads. Everything stays local.

Use GlyphGrid

One-Page Reference

Printable cheat sheet with word patterns, frequency charts, and solving strategies. Keep it next to you for instant lookups.

Download PDF

ARG Cipher Fonts

Free fonts for Gravity Falls ciphers and other ARG symbol sets. Practice with real cryptograms or make your own.

Get Fonts

Remember

Key Principles

Start Small

Short Words First

1, 2, 3-letter words unlock everything. Solve these and watch the rest fall.

Trust Patterns

English Has Rules

Letter frequency, bigrams, word patterns stay consistent. See TH or ING? Trust it.

Test & Adjust

Wrong Guesses Happen

Like sudoku. Try a letter. Doesn't fit? Backtrack. That's the game.

Practice

Speed Comes With Reps

First one takes 20 minutes. Tenth one takes 5. Pattern recognition becomes muscle memory.

Summary

What You've Learned

ID cipher types by looking at symbols, numbers, or letter patterns
Start with 1, 2, 3-letter words for quick wins
Count symbol frequency to find E, T, A and patterns like TH, THE, ING
Use word edges (prefixes, suffixes, apostrophes) to crack more letters
Sprint through partial solutions by tackling constrained words first
Verify the solve: reads clean, one-to-one mapping, no leftovers
Use GlyphGrid and reference sheets to work faster

Go Crack Something

ARG teams need codebreakers who crack puzzles everyone else hits a wall on. You've got the techniques. You can be that person.

Start practicing. Gravity Falls cryptograms. Puzzle newspapers. Your own creations. Each solve builds pattern recognition. Next one's faster.

Try GlyphGrid More Chapters