I’ve always loved jigsaw puzzles since I was a young kid. I first learned about Stave’s wooden jigsaw puzzles in 2004 by reading about Stave in a United’s Hemispheres magazine. Immediately the concept hooked me, when I landed, I checked the website and fell over looking at the price. I eventually got over the price thanks to a generous gift of my first Stave puzzle from my brother. That led me to realize just how fun a jigsaw puzzle targeted for adults could be. What with pieces that go together in all different ways… Some going in more than one place…

Fast forward to 2009 and Palace of Pranks became one of the first trick puzzles I would attempt. A trick puzzle is a puzzle where some pieces fit in multiple locations.

Let’s take a look at the catalog picture, you get a small sense of what it is in store:

Those “black” looking pieces are actually blue, see-through plastic that make a moat at the base of the castle. Because they are see-through, it is next to impossible to tell which side is up vs. down. Further you might notice that things like the worms are in the way of where the moat needs to be. Uh oh… That is a hint to the first trick.

When you get a Stave trick puzzle they come with a “biscuit”, or tableau, that explains the objective:

Spoilers Ahead

Note beyond this point I have “spoilers” about how to solve the puzzle. If you are planning to buy the puzzle and want it to be a surprise, stop reading now.

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