Problem Sleuth

**Problem Sleuth** is the third adventure hosted on MS Paint Adventures. It follows the story of a begrudging team of hardboiled detectives fighting tooth and nail to escape the offices in which they've accidentally been trapped.

## Characters

### Problem Sleuth

**Problem Sleuth** is the first playable character. He is introduced on page 1. He has a high pulchritude stat which makes him the leader of Team Sleuth .

His Animal Communion starts at 11/14. His maximum Elf Tears starts at 12.

His favorite candy is candy corn and his favored drink is whiskey.

During combat , Problem Sleuth has access to the commands Persuade and Mollify. His **Auto-Parry** is the Sleuth Roll . He rolls out of the way of danger. When he becomes a Candy Corn Vampire, his Auto-Parry changes to swiftly avoiding attacks with Vampire Speed .

#### Weapons

* Gun/Key  – Starter weapon. Eventually given to Ace Dick .
* (Imagination) Imaginary Gun  – Imagined by Problem Sleuth.
* Candy Corn Handgun  – Imagined by Pickle Inspector.
* Tommy Gun  – Given by Ace Dick.
* Tectrix of the Arbitor /Tectrixcalibur  – Given by the Weasel King after accepting the mission of making peace between the four kingdoms, then was likely returned. Later given again by Pickle Inspector to wield against Demonhead Mobster Kingpin's final phase. Attacks draw from the Ink of Squid Quo Pro .
* Death's Scythe  – Given by Death after using Armistyx.
* Smith Corona Blotspitter  – Given by the Demimonde Semigoddess. A tommygun that glitches into a typewriter.

#### Battle Techniques

* Sleuth Diplomacy  (Lv. 25 ) (1 Elf Tear ) – A barrage of gunfire . According to Andrew Hussie's GameFAQs:

 Required Character Rating
 Elf Tears
 Attack Power

Problem Sleuth uses a version of this attack alongside two Ace Dicks called Lv. 5 Sleuth Diplomacy: Impromptu Caucus .

He uses another version of this attack called Lv. 10 Sleuth Diplomacy: Ceasefire  where he lays his gun down and attacks unarmed.

* Compromise
* Pax
* Summon Henry Clay  (Lv. 2) – Summons Henry Clay to assist in battle. According to Andrew Hussie's GameFAQs:

 Required Character Rating
 Elf Tears
 Attack Power

* Unconditional Surrender  (Lv. 9 )

#### Combat Operandi

* Summon Weasel King  (3 Elf Tears, ? Weasel Snot) – Summons the Weasel King to flip the fuck out . If weasel snot cannot be provided, the Weasel Emissary will be summoned instead.
* Sepulchritude  – According to Andrew Hussie's GameFAQs:

 Required Character Rating
 Elf Tears
 Attack Power

This attack is Problem Sleuth's Final Rave , and requires a level 8 Impetus Comb  to use.

* Fair Shake  – A barrage of attacks from two weapons.
* Brass Tacks  (3000 Spondilucks) – Summons the ghosts of jazz legends  Blind Willie "Buttermilk" Stubbs, Father "Blind Pappy" Ramblin' Jackson, and Earl Stokes "Can't-see-a-damn" Molasses Fatts. They attack the enemy with on onslaught of horns .
* Armistyx  (? Hog Slop, ? Pie Filling, and 1 Elf Tear ) – Summons Death  to bargain. Problem Sleuth uses this to acquire Death's Scythe.

#### Clemency Owl

As Hysteric Dame is attacked, Problem Sleuth's Clemency Owl hoots more emphatically . This fills his *Parliament Uproar!* meter. When the Parliament Uproar! meter is maxed out, he can use Trusty Knives . He opens his coat revealing a collection of trusty knives. He throws them all at the enemy.

#### Gambit Schema

Problem Sleuth's Gambit Schema is Candy Corn Vampire . Candy Corn Vampire has maximum speed, okay offense, and okay defense.

#### Leveling Up

When leveling up , Problem Sleuth can learn to commune with more kinds of animals.

#### Other Abilities

Sometime after making peace between the four kingdoms, Problem Sleuth is shown having the ability to commune with them to request aid . Problem Sleuth also has the ability to summon Moe .

### Ace Dick

**Ace Dick** is the second playable character and Problem Sleuth's rival. He is introduced on page 64  and becomes playable on page 141 . The two have put aside their differences to help each other escape their offices. Ace Dick has superior vim and is the strongest man in the world , only behind Mobster Kingpin when his vim stat is highest .

His favored drink is brandy.

During combat , Ace Dick has access to the commands Perturb and Exacerbate. His **Auto-Parry** has him taking the hit directly in the gut .

Zombie Ace Dick's zombified tissue is capable of taking many bullets at once without being damaged . He eventually unlocks the *Parrycraft* Overripe Produce , then Bruised Fruit - Half Price , then Grocer's Worst Nightmare .

#### Weapons

* Tommy Gun /Ring of Keys  – Starter weapon. Eventually given to Problem Sleuth .
* Shitty Gun  – Imagined by Ace Dick. Jams and explodes, killing him.
* (Imagination) Tootsie Roll Shotgun  – Imagined by Pickle Inspector. Dropped when imaginary Ace Dick was killed.
* Machine Gun/Ring of Keys  – Originally belonged to Pickle Inspector.
* (Female) Prussian Kürassier Helmet/Wig  – From Ace Dick's room inside Mobster Kingpin's dollhouse.
* (Female) Two-by-Four/Romance Novel  – From Ace Dick's room inside Mobster Kingpin's dollhouse.
* (Female) Hand Grenades /Box of Chocolates  – From Ace Dick's room inside Mobster Kingpin's dollhouse.
* Megaton Key  – Dropped by Mobster Kingpin. Ace Dick can carry it since he is the strongest man in the world .

#### Battle Techniques

* Torso Flail  (Lv. 2 ) (0 Elf Tears) – Ace Dick throws one or more torsos at the enemy.
* Truffle Shuffle  (Lv. 2) (0 Elf Tears) – A series of rapid-fire attacks that deal extremely low damage.

#### Combat Operandi

* Belly of the Whale  – A powerful inhalation move that sucks enemies into your stomach.
	+ The Lv. 99  version of this operandi is called Belly of the Whale: Blowhole Swansong. It is Ace Dick's most powerful *Stomachtech*.
* Check Yo'self Jonah  – Summons a giant whale .

#### Rapport Peacock

As Ace Dick is attacked, the other Ace Dicks' Rapport Peacocks squawk more shrilly . This fills their *Ostentation Drive!* meters. When the Ostentation Drive! meter maxes out, the two Ace Dicks use Double Truffle Shuffle Trouble  which is enough to wipe out most of Morthol Dryax's health .

#### Comb Rave

Ace Dick, Fiesta Ace Dick, and Zombie Ace Dick can use the level 3[CITATION NEEDED] Triple Comb Rave Triple Truffle Shuffle Scuffle . Ace Dick and Zombie Ace Dick attack with a whirlwind of barrages while an enormous Fiesta Ace Dick attacks with his stomach from both sides. The three Ace Dicks finally converge in one last attack, evoking the images of fractals and Chunk from *The Goonies*.

#### Gambit Schema

Zombie Ace Dick's Gambit Schema is Gummy Worm Zombie . Gummy Worm Zombie has maximum defense, okay offense, and okay speed.

#### Leveling Up

When leveling up , Ace Dick's stomach capacity increases. His Stomach Prowess level can also increase. Ace Dick loses imagination as he levels up.

#### Many Ace Dicks

Ace Dick is cloned many times throughout the comic. The following is a list of all his doubles.

* **Ace Dick** – The original Ace Dick.
* **Imagination Ace Dick** – Created in the imagination realm when Ace Dick uses his imagination.
* **Female Ace Dick** – Created retroactively after Ace Dick completed his quest for the pigs and accepted their boon. This Ace Dick was supposed to be a female counterpart to the real Ace Dick, but because his imagination is so shitty, Female Ace Dick is actually completely identical to normal Ace Dick, and is in fact not even female . Female Ace Dick is eventually slain  and ends up in the afterlife . By the time Pickle Inspector beats Death in Sudoku and wins their lives back , both the original Ace Dick and Small Ace Dick have been turned into Zombie Ace Dick  and Fiesta Ace Dick , letting Female Ace Dick take over as the "normal" Ace Dick.
* **Small Ace Dick** – Created after Problem Sleuth entered in the game code from the back of Ace Dick's pig poster. This splinter starts when Ace Dick originally entered the control room. Instead of continuing as normal, Small Ace Dick went out through his sideways window and into Hysteric Dame's music box mirror, resulting in his small size compared to the girls, hence his name. Eventually, Small Ace Dick becomes normal sized and rejoins with Ace Dick. After multiple scene changes, the distinction between these two characters is moot.
* Zombie Ace Dick  – One of the two Ace Dicks is turned into a zombie  by Hired Muscle that was turned undead by Morthol Dryax.
* Fiesta Ace Dick  – The other of the two Ace Dicks drinks the five-alarm hot sauce , maxing out his vim gauge. He is completely red, and is larger and beefier than the other Ace Dicks, as well as much stronger due to his vim.

On page 1499 , Ace Dick uses Belly of the Whale, inhaling Fiesta Ace Dick and Zombie Ace Dick and merging into one singular Ace Dick.

### Pickle Inspector

**Pickle Inspector** is the third playable character, being introduced on page 131  and becoming playable on page 230 . When exactly he got trapped in his office is unknown, but it is possible he's been trapped for much longer than even Problem Sleuth, judging by how much waste is stored in his office . He has very poor vim and pulchritude, but extraordinarily high imagination, making him an extremely powerful ally in the imagination realm.

His favorite drink is moonshine.

He has an unusually high Height characteristic . This is useful for many things.

During combat , Pickle Inspector has access to the commands Perplex and Confound. His **Auto-Parry** is Pickle Distraction . He avoids an attack by being distracted by something else.

Past-Future Pickle Inspector eventually cheats at Trouble and matures a *Guilt-Tech* Shame of a Thousand Bedwetting Children .

Pickle Inspector has a level 1 *Tickletech* called Feathermeddle . He attempts to use it but it fails due to an Auto-Fumble .

Pickle Inspector matures the ultimate *Steertech* called Chauffeur's Reckoning -> A Man. A Wheel. A Dream .

#### Weapons

* Machine Gun /Hairpin  – Starter weapon. Pickle Inspector is ineffective with this weapon considering its massive weight and PI's pitiful vim stat. This weapon was eventually lost and found by Ace Dick .
* Pez Uzi  – Imagined by Pickle Inspector. Dropped after imaginary Pickle Inspector entered the real world and died.
* Gun/Key  – Originally belonged to Problem Sleuth. Given by Ace Dick. A small enough weapon for Pickle Inspector to wield given his modest vim.
* Tectrix of the Arbitor  – Given by the Weasel King to aid in solving Death's sudoku puzzle. He stored it in his hat  after leaving the afterlife.
* Sniper Rifle /Captain's Sextant  – Found in the Owen Wilson bust room above Mobster Kingpin's office.

#### Combat Operandi

* Pickle Replicsimile  (Lv. 8) – Causes Imaginary Pickle Inspector to split into many copies of himself. When these copies die, Pickle Inspector is not shown to lose any imaginary lives.
* Abstracted Thought  – When used for the first time, Imaginary Pickle Inspector disappears  and Pickle Inspector gains the ability to function in the real world and the imaginary world at the same time .
* Temporal Replicsimile  – Causes Pickle Inspector to split into two . One of the Pickle Inspectors goes to the future and the other goes to the past.

#### Comb Rave

Pickle Inspector's Level 4 Comb Rave is Anchor's Away .

Pickle Inspector has two Level 7 Half Rave Maneuvers: Large Hadron Part-Pickle Acceleration  and Large Hadron Anti-Part-Pickle Acceleration . When used together, two imaginary Pickle Inspectors turn into part-pickles and accelerate towards each other. They collide, obliterating themselves  resulting in an enormous explosion .

#### Gambit Schema

Pickle Inspector's Gambit Schema is Tootsie Roll Frankenstein . Tootsie Roll Frankenstein has maximum attack, okay defense, and minimal speed.

#### Leveling Up

When leveling up , Pickle Inspector can learn to imagine new items. He can also learn new types of ogles . Pickle Inspector loses vim as he levels up, eventually leading to his vim meter disappearing .

#### Imaginative Abilities

In the imagination realm, Pickle Inspector has the ability to manifest objects that are much more powerful than imagined constructs made by other characters.

When under the powerful influence of candy corn liquor, Pickle Inspector's abilities reach extreme heights. He displays the following abilities:

* Flight
* Telekinesis
* Candy transmutation
* Ascension to godhood  – Godhead Pickle Inspector no longer responds to any command other than "GPI: Fondly regard creation."
* Transformation into a loathsome beast  – Monster Pickle Inspector is roughly 2.5 times the height of a standard imaginary beast and can easy defeat one in one move . Monster Pickle Inspector can only respond to the command "MPI: Succumb to unfathomable bloodlust".
* Conjuring a Candy Mecha  – The mecha is equipped with two machine guns that shoot bullets possibly made of sugar . It is eventually destroyed by Demonhead Mobster Kingpin .
* Conjure cake frosting  – Pickle Inspector can blow cake frosting from his mouth. This frosting is flame-retardant.

#### Time Travel

Imaginary Pickle Inspector uses Temporal Replicsimile to split into two on page 621 .

* Past Pickle Inspector solves the Rube Goldberg machine and dies from the resulting explosion .
* Future Pickle Inspector catches Nervous Broad from falling  after being pushed out through Mobster Kingpin's office door window  into the imagination realm. He then continues to help the heroes fight Demonhead Mobster Kingpin. He then splits again on page 1212 .
	+ Past-Future Pickle Inspector conjures frosting to put out the fires caused by Demonhead Mobster Kingpin .
	+ Future-Future Pickle Inspector appears to help Past-Future Pickle Inspector by using Large Hadron Anti-Part-Pickle Acceleration , killing the both of them.

In the afterlife, all four dead Pickle Inspectors use Temporal Replicsimile ad infinitum  to become infinitely many part-pickles occupying every point in space and time, creating the universe. Godhead Pickle Inspector  regards His creation with fondness and sees that it is good.

### Hysteric Dame

**Hysteric Dame** is the fourth playable character. She is introduced on page 448 . She was created retroactively after Problem Sleuth completed his quest for the elves and accepted their boon.

Hysteric Dame has a hysteria gauge that increases as she performs hysteric actions , and decreases as she performs cathartic actions .

With Nervous Broad, she's able to use a *Dual Aggression* called Striptease .

She has a Lv. 99 *Cuddletech*, Tuck Her In Goodnight .

#### Weapons

* Knife/Teddy Bear  – Starter weapon. The teddy bear decreases her hysteria while wielding the knife increases it.
* Chainsaw/Lipstick  – Given by Small Ace Dick.
* Stun Gun /Paint Roller  – Found in the lobby area of the sleazy brothel.

#### Comb Rave

Hysteric Dame's level 6 Comb Rave is Rolling Thunder . It is a rapid-fire barrage of electric paint attacks  and chainsaw/lipstick attacks .

#### Empathy Magpie

As Problem Sleuth is attacked, Hysteric Dame's Empathy Magpie flaps harder . This can empower her if her empathy raises high enough. It also fills Hysteric Dame's *Charm Break!* meter. When the *Charm Break!* meter maxes out, Hysteric Dame can use Kiss of Death , a powerful barrage of attacks .

### Nervous Broad

**Nervous Broad** is the fifth playable character. She is introduced on page 487 . She was created retroactively after Pickle Inspector completed his quest for the weasels and accepted their boon.

Nervous Broad has a nerves gauge that increases as she gets nervous . Her nerves are calmed by her prized collection of fancy santas . When her nerves increase, she accumulates Worry Points . With enough Worry Points, she can add new Nervetechs to her arsenal.

Her **Auto-Parry** involves tightening and loosening her Aspect Corset .

With Hysteric Dame, she's able to use a *Dual Aggression* called Striptease .

#### Weapons

* Lipstick  – Starter weapon. Quickly picked up by Small Ace Dick and given to Hysteric Dame.
* Knife /Teddy Bear  – Originally belonged to Hysteric Dame. At some point obtained and used against Mobster Kingpin.
* Flame Thrower /Stripper  – Found in the lobby area of the sleazy brothel.

#### Comb Rave

Nervous Broad's level 6 Comb Rave is Highly Flammable Case of the Vapors . She becomes intoxicated from paint stripper fumes  and unleashes a flurry of attacks . She can chain this Comb Rave with Hysteric Dame's to initiate a *Dual Rave Maneuver,* Cauterize Sisters .

#### Affinity Crow

As Pickle Inspector is attacked, Hysteric Dame's Affinity Crow flaps more frantically . This fills her *Murder Flux!* meter. When the Murder Flux! meter maxes out, Nervous Broad can use Nervous Breakdown  which causes a great deal of damage to both enemies and allies . It leaves her with a nervetech, Lv. 8 Case of the Vapors.

### Mobster Kingpin

**Mobster Kingpin** is the final boss of Problem Sleuth. He is introduced on page 247 .

Mobster Kingpin has extraordinary defense making him immune to physical attacks . When he consumes sugar, his Blood Sugar increases, which lowers his defense and makes him temporarily vulnerable . If his blood sugar raises too high, he may enter diabetic shock .

When Mobster Kingpin's emotions increase, his maximum stats scale down  proportionately. After Mobster Kingpin becomes cured of diabetes, this is the only way to lower his defenses .

Mobster Kingpin's **Auto-Parry** causes incoming attacks to ricochet off of his massive head .

Mobster Kingpin becomes Fiesta Mobster Kingpin  after consuming Fiesta Ace Dick , then Dark Matter Mobster Kingpin  after using the Gravity Brassier to increase his density to the point of generating a gravitational field. After using the Gravity Brassier once again, he slips under his Schwarzchild radius and becomes a black hole called Black Hole Mobster Kingpin .

#### Weapons

* Brass Knuckles/Megaton Key  – Starter weapon. The Megaton Key unlocks the exit door.

#### Battle Techniques

* Running Numbers  – Scrambles Mobster Kingpin's stats.
	+ The Lv. 1000  version of this technique rolls loaded sugar cube dice. This cures Demonhead Mobster Kingpin of diabetes, making his defenses much harder to penetrate.
* Hit the Mattresses  – Similar to Running Numbers. Sets Pulchritude as the highest stat.
* Extortion  – Similar to Ace Dick's Belly of the Whale.
* Hooched-up Bootlegger  – Possibly sets Imagination as the highest stat.
* Vexatious Glower  – It's very distracting. Fires a very fast laser beam .

#### Combat Operandi

* Send in the Clowns  – Clowns stream in from a portal.

* Insulin Shot  – Mobster Kingpin is stuck all over with medical needles. His health is restored and his blood sugar decreases.

* Type 2 Diabeat-down  – A series of powerful blows.
* Cinder Ablockalypse  – The velocity of Demonhead Mobster Kingpin's defensive cinderblocks increases. The ring of bricks slams down on his enemies, damaging all foes.
* Clownstorm  – Summons the Clown Pontificate wielding his Hamper of the Jaded Fool's Ennui, attacking with a color beam of light and clowns .

#### Comb Rave

Demonhead Mobster Kingpin's level 4 Comb Rave is Fill 'em With Daylight . It creates a powerful explosion that can instantly kill whoever is too close, and ultimately causes the universe to be ripped in half .

#### Imaginative Abilities

In the imagination realm, when under the powerful influence of sugar free candy moonshine, Mobster Kingpin's abilities reach extreme heights. He displays the following abilities:

* Flight
* Telekinesis
* Des(asc)cension to demonhood  – Only  when the universe is upside down , Mobster Kingpin can descend into the sky and reach demonhood.
	+ Demonhead Mobster Kingpin has access to a class of special attacks called Thorncoddles.
		- Apeshit Bramblefuck  (Lv. 10)
		- Snugglebarb Pricklepoke  (Lv. 20)
		- Thornswoggle  (Lv. 99) – Deploys a Brier of Cruelty, a defensive mass of vines that protects Demonhead Mobster Kingpin. This mass can also be used offensively, draining the life force of those it grabs .
	+ He bleeds pang nectar  and vomits pie filling .
	+ When gravely injured, his Nether-regional Vulnerabulb  is exposed. Appears to be weak to contact  with candy .
	+ In his second phase , Demonhead Mobster Kingpin has two health bars. When one of the bars is completely depleted, he can no longer heal  beyond his first health bar.
	+ He learns a *Sorrowtech* called Dramaturgical Catharsis .
	+ In his third and final phase , he has three health bars. He is completely immune to blood sugar and emotion based defense drops, and regenerates any quantity of damage he suffers instantaneously. His only weakness is damage caused by righteous fires of charisma.
* Health restoration

## Game Mechanics

The Problem Sleuth campaign employs many game mechanics with varying levels of importance.

### Imagination

When a character enters a handmade fort, they enter the imagination realm as a copy of themselves while their real selves remain motionless in the real world. In this realm, characters can imagine some objects into existence.

#### Imaginary Lives

all  playable  characters  start with three imaginary lives. Each time an imaginary self dies, that character loses an imaginary life. Losing an imaginary life causes you to wake back up in the real world with a hangover.

If a character's imaginary projection enters the real world, it immediately melts , leaving only a skeleton and causing them to lose an imaginary life.

What happens when a character loses all of their imaginary lives is not known.

### Afterlife

**The Afterlife** is a realm located in an infinite fractal made up of flowers  fondly regarded by Godhead Pickle Inspector. When a non-imaginary dies (such as Ace Dick  or Pickle Inspector ), they are sent there .

There is an office door leading into the afterlife  which brings you back to life  if you leave through it.

### Stats

#### Imagination

Increases when drinking alcohol. Can be used inside forts to access the land of imagination. Imagination depletes while in the land of imagination. When it runs out, it becomes disabled for a short period of time while you become hung over.

Drinking coffee can cure a hangover, but it decreases your imagination as well.

#### Vim

Increases when drinking coffee.

Drinking hot sauce can cause you to become heated. In this state, your vim is increased until you cool down .

### Resources

#### Elf Tears, Weasel Snot, Pig Slop, and Pie Filling

Used to cast Battle Techniques and Combat Operandi.

##### Pie Filling

Demonhead Mobster Kingpin vomits pie filling . Pie filling is extremely volatile .

#### Spondulicks

Piles of coins and money dropped by mobsters. Can be used to hire Hired Muscle and is sometimes spent on Battle Techniques.

#### Meats

Cured Fiend Muttons  and Savory Brutesteaks . Dropped by mobsters. Cured fiend muttons are shown to restore vitality carats.

### Combat

#### Auto-Parry

When a character is attacked, there is a chance that they can Auto-Parry, avoiding or nullifying the attack entirely. Each character has a unique Auto-Parry. Using your Auto-Parry enough may allow you to unlock new Parrycrafts . The function of Parrycrafts is not known.

#### Battle Menu

The Battle Menu opens during combat and lets characters select their combat moves. To the left, the menu displays Insulin Lvl., Animal Communion, and Elf Tears. To the right there is a list of available battle commands.

Each character has access to the following battle commands:

* Aggress  – A basic attack using your currently equipped weapon.
	+ When aggressing, there is a chance for a Brutal Affront to strike , resulting in much more damage than normal.
	+ There's an even smaller chance for a Savage Upbraid  which results in 100x damage.
* Battle Technique – Use one of your Battle Techniques.
* Combat Operandi – Use a Combat Operandi.
* Abscond – Escape from battle.

Each character also has access to two unique commands. See Problem Sleuth, Ace Dick, and Pickle Inspector for the names of these commands.

#### Birds of a Feather

Characters who are intrinsically linked to one another have access to metaphysical birds of a feather that will rile up when their partners take damage. This fills their bird meters, which, when maxed out, temporarily grant access to more powerful attacks .

Birds of a feather can also rouse characters from unconsciousness, as displayed multiple times .

#### NPC Battle Techniques & Combat Operandi

Battle Techniques

* Morthol Dryax uses Gnostic Taint  – Small skull projectiles shoot out of Morthol Dryax's skull hat, inflicting an undead curse.
* Monster Pickle Inspector uses Disconcerting Ogle  (Lv. 48) – Laser beams fire from Monster Pickle Inspector's eyes.
* Zombie Muscles uses Profane Adulteration  – Zombie Muscle infects a target, turning them into a zombie.
* Henry Clay uses Pacify  – Henry Clay bursts out from within a beasts chest.
* Small Candy Mechas use Self Saccharine-fice  – The infinite candy mechas fly into Mobster Kingpin's mouth. NOTE: Only the infinite number of candy mechas smaller than the original use this operandi. The first, original mecha remains intact and is seen again on page 873 . This shouldn't be possible.

Combat Operandi:

* A large imaginary beast uses Belly of the Beast  (Lv. 18) – Works the same as Ace Dick's Belly of the Beast.
* Death uses Two Lumps  – Death stirs two lumps of sugar into a cup of tea.
* Cultural Rainbow uses Mob Rule  – The mob swarms their target.
* Demonhead Mobster Kingpin uses Abstracted Thought  (Lv. 49) – Similar to Pickle Inspector's Abstracted Thought. Allows Mobster Kingpin to function in the real world while still controlling his imaginary self . However, this version of the ability does not cause Mobster Kingpin's imaginary self to disappear.

The follow moves are used, but whether they are Battle Techniques, Combat Operandi, or neither is unknown:

* Fluthlu uses Disquieting Leer  (Lv. 77) – A laser beam from its eye. The exact effects are unknown, but it brings the subjects of an ethnic diversity mural to life as undead creatures.
* Bespectacled Wench uses Community Outreach  – The gross witch dishes sick civic service with her hagpalm.

Many special techs are used that don't appear to be Battle Techniques *or* Compant Operandi:

* Mannerly Highbrow uses a *Hooptech* called DMMK Katamari Ball  (Lv. 4) – Using a hoop and stick, he rounds up debris into a katamari.
* Death and company use a *Hippotech* called The Hunger  (Lv. 3)

#### Gambit Schema

Leveling up can allow a character to perfect their Gambit Schema . Then, they can carve their Schema Pumpkin to use their Gambit Schemas . To do so, they must simply carve a Spook Schematic  into the pumpkin, causing *Gambit Aethers* to permeate their *Artifice Ambient* and transform them.

A character's Artifice Ambient has a **Ripeness** meter and a **Flicker** meter. Ripeness automatically decreases over time, and flicker decreases as characters take damage. When either stat reaches zero, the Gambit Schema expires .

For a brief moment at the stroke of midnight on Halloween, a Schema Pumpkin becomes available.

Spook Schematics for different characters can all be carved into the same Schema Pumpkin .

#### Victorious Moment

After winning a battle, the winning party experiences a Victorious Moment . This is when characters level up and gain new abilities. When leveling up, stats change; they can go up or down depending on the character's affinity for the stat. Characters with poor stat affinity can even have their gauges for certain stats disappear altogether. This is also when new Battle Techniques and Combat Operandi are accrued.

Artifacts are also be claimed from defeated enemies at this point.

### Cheat Codes

There are various game codes in Problem Sleuth can be inserted into the code machine in the control room to modify the game's state.

On page 458 , Ace Dick punches a game code into a code machine, loading a save state. This changes the following:

* Hysteric Dame's phone has been reassembled.
* The Rube Goldberg machine in the control room has been solved  by past Pickle Inspector .
* Pickle Inspector, having entered the Spiderhole of Disquisition , has finally finished falling.

On page 516 , Problem Sleuth punches in a game code. This creates a duplicate of Ace Dick from before he entered the Pigs' Wallow .

Problem Sleuth also eventually prints out a cheat code  from GameFAQs to help him bypass diplomacy with the four kingdoms. It prints out from the dot matrix printer in the alchemy room. Pickle Inspector enters the code on page 626 , which skips to after Problem Sleuth has made peace between the four kingdoms.

### Fractal Prospectus

The **Fractal Prospectus** measures how much dimensional instability has been caused by creating spatial fractals. The bar keeps track of accretion rate (the size of each the next fractal duplication compared to the last) and the current *Hazard Mark*. The known Hazard Marks are "contained" (green) and "danger" (yellow).

A histogram graphs out the size of fractal duplicates relative to one another. Keeping the accretion rate in check is important, as a 1:1 duplication can result in a volatile explosion .

Infinite Summation Honeybee Professor

When the accretion rate starts to increase, the **Infinite Summation Honeybee Professor** will appear and attempt to guide the players with tips on avoiding unsafe fractal practices. The professor reacts negatively to protips being disabled  and to infinite spatial anomalies .

The Infinite Summation Honeybee Professor is the chief architect of the Tecton Hive.

### Aegis

When wearing candy armor, characters are protected by a **Treacle Aegis** that decreases when taking damage but protects from all harm. When a piece of armor's aegis runs out, it disintegrates .

Fiesta Ace Dick is protected by an enormous Frijole Aegis  filled with beans that empties as he takes damage. The sheer size of this aegis makes Fiesta Ace Dick nearly indestructible.

### Comb Raves

Each playable character is associated with a **Suckle Receptacle**. When their receptacle is filled, their *Comb Rave* meter can be maxed out, allowing them to use an ultimate attack called a *Comb Rave*.

Each character has unique Comb Raves , and one Comb Rave for each power level depending on what impetus combs are filled in the Tecton Hive.

Some characters may use their Comb Raves together, such as Ace Dick, Fiesta Ace Dick, and Zombie Ace Dick's shared Triple Comb Rave .

Some characters may use their Comb Raves one after another, such as Hysteric Dame and Nervous Broad's Cauterize Sisters. This is called a Dual Rave Maneuver .

Some comb raves can be used at half power, such as Pickle Inspector's Large Hadron Part-Pickle Acceleration , only requiring half of a suckle receptacle of jocose honey. This is called a Half Rave Maneuver .

#### Tecton Hive

Demonhead Mobster Kingpin bleeds pang nectar . This nectar is collected by worker bees  who take it to the *Impetus Comb* to store it in *Sierpinski Cells*. It is then transmuted into *Jocose Honey*.

When an impetus comb is complete with ripened jocose honey, it is brought to the *Tecton Hive* and stored in the correctly sized slot. The first complete impetus comb is the smallest, and will be stored in the first slot. Each comb (up to the last, eighth comb) is bigger than the last.

Comb Raves are strengthened by bigger impetus combs. A character's 8th level Comb Rave is called their Final Rave .

#### Lazy Susan of Endowment

All of the characters' Suckle Receptacles are stored in the **Lazy Susan of Endowment**. The receptacles stored in the lazy susan are the Suckle Flagon , Suckle Cruet , Suckle Decanter , Suckle Amphora , Suckle Chalice , Suckle Carafe , Suckle Ramekins , Suckle Ewer , and Suckle Porringer .

The Lazy Susan of Endowment is physically located inside Madame Murel's dollhouse . A character's Suckle Receptacle can be removed from the lazy susan , making their Comb Raves inaccessible . New suckle receptacles can also be placed on the lazy susan .

### Corsets

**Corsets** refer to equipable items (the Aspect Corset  and Scale Bodice ) that let characters change their size and body proportions. These corsets are connected to the Gutterpipe Projects , and characters wearing corsets  can be pushed all the way through them , spitting them out at the Projects .

Tightening or loosening  the corset or turning the crank on the corset's valve  causes the corset to change size. The size of whoever is wearing the corset changes as well.

Becoming more stout appears to increase one's vim, as Nervous Broad is able to lift a heavy plug  by doing so.

Putting on a corset makes your legs stick out the corset's respective exit valve  at the Gutterpipe Projects. The corsets also seem to create a duplicate of your legs that stick out of the corsets' bottoms, allowing you to walk around while wearing them despite the tops of them being portals. Characters can feel things from both of their pairs of legs, like water from the ocean  on the other side of the vales. These legs disappear if the character takes the corset off or is pushed all the way through .

Being smaller allows you to carry proportionately heavier things .

#### Gravity Brassier

The **Gravity Brassier** is a corset located in Madame Murel's dollhouse. It is not connected to the Gutterpipe Projects, but is instead connected to Mount Saint Lardass . When Mobster Kingpin is pushed through the corset, Mount Saint Lardass erupts . Even though corsets are supposedly only supposed to work on sexy female figures , Mobster Kingpin is shown to be able to use the Gravity Brassier .

This corset's Mass Drawstrings  can be tightened to increase the mass of the person wearing it. Alternatively, the Volume Drawstrings  can be tightened to reduce the volume of the person wearing it.

Increasing mass while simultaneously decreasing volume can make one dense enough to generate a gravitational field .

### Obscure Mechanics

Many (all) of Problem Sleuth's game mechanics are needlessly complex or poorly explained. The following are some of the worst offenders.

#### Allegiance

##### Allegiance Menu

Characters can use the **Allegiance Menu** to set their allegiance between two opposing forces. Setting this allegiance is not permanent and can be changed at any time.

##### Allegiance Mesh

The **Allegiance Mesh** is an extremely complex mesh that allows one to mediate four opposing sides.

#### Etiquette Monstrance

The **Etiquette Monstrance** holds *mannercite shards*. Somehow used for employing civil tactics. Pickle Inspector taps into his mannercite shards to accept a boon from the weasel emissary  (entering the Spiderhole of Disquisition).

#### Pluck Reliquary

The **Pluck Reliquary** holds *vitality carats*. Problem Sleuth loses vitality carats as he gets attacked by thugs. They can be restored by eating cured fiend muttons .

#### Grit Ciborium

The **Grit Ciborium** holds *gumption wafers*. Mobster Kingpin spends gumption wafers on Combat Operandi -> Send in the Clowns. Other uses are unknown.

Mobster Kingpin loses all of his gumption wafers when Ace Dick detonates two grenades in his gut .

#### Mettle Samovar

The **Mettle Samovar** holds *spark ash*.

#### Punch Card Alchemy

Inside the alchemy room  is a dot matrix printer, a punch card machine, and a computer. Activating the punch card machine causes it to spit out a punch card . Inserting the punch card into the computer causes the dot matrix printer to print out an alchemical formula .

This system is the basis for alchemy in Homestuck.

#### Nautical Prowess

**Nautical Prowess** may be used to maneuver ships .

When Problem Sleuth, Ace Dick, and/or Pickle Inspector turn their hats inside-out, the hats resemble seafaring hats. This increases their Nautical Prowess by a factor of 10 . Respectively, if the hats are turned back to normal, the Nautical Prowess decreases by a factor of 10 .

#### DMK's Three Wise Men's Gifts

Demonhead Mobster Kingpin is protected by **Salubrity Frankincense**, **Spunk Myrrh**, and **Pep Gold**. These stocks run out as Demonhead Mobster Kingpin takes damage. Major damage can wipe out entire supplies at once, but lesser attacks can still leave some remaining .

#### Score

Problem Sleuth, Ace Dick, and Pickle Inspector's scores are revealed on page 497 .

## Discrepancies

### Elf Elevator Door

Pickle Inspector's office door (from the outside) and the elf elevator door (from the inside) both open into Pickle Inspector's office interior. The same goes for the control room door (from the pentagram room) while the elf elevator is on that floor. How this is possible is unknown.

### The Candy Mecha's Pilot

Since the candy mecha entered Mobster Kingpin's dollhouse , which exists in the real world, the imaginary Pickle Inspector piloting the mecha must have melted and died.

Since the mecha continues to move and function beyond this point, the mecha must have some sort of AI driving it. On page 887 , the mecha is referred to as a "brainless war machine", supporting this claim. The legs of the mecha then continue to act on their own apart from the main hull , implying the legs may have their own AI.

### Candy Mechas All the Way Down

On page 693 , the candy mecha with the dollhouse on its head enters the mirror portal into Nervous Broad's room. This means there is an infinite number of Candy Mechas and small dollhouses inside an infinite number of dollhouses.

However, when the Candy Mecha leaves through the portal , an infinite number of Candy Mechas exit the portal. This should not be possible, as the "infinite candy mechas" are not separate entities and cannot all leave out the same one portal.

914: go back to when Pickle Inspector got revived and track his inventory. Does he have a starting inventory that he just comes back with, or did he take all his items with him into the afterlife? Or did he pick them back up somewhere?

### Nervous Broad Doubly Elongated

Nervous broad goes through the tall performer's window on page 1015 . She eventually falls through her corset  and is sent to the Gutterpipe Projects. Then, she goes from the projects back to the brothel , and goes out the tall performer's window a second time . This should warp her to make her doubly elongated.

This must mean that, in order to return to normal proportions, she must wear the corset loosened.