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A friend of mine who I met online, who lives is Spain was talking to me on messenger and the topic got onto music.
He went ahead and sent this message.

R'n nfxs orpv Krmlxxsrl rh gl Tvkkvggl, mlg zh z hlm ml... gslfts nb nvzmrmt wlvh xlmgzrm zm l.
R xzm gvoo blf dsviv nb Tvkkvggl rh uiln... Zg gsv ullg lu gsv nlfmgzrm rh dsviv blf'oo urmw nv, gslfts wlm'g ulitvg hlnvgsrmt Pvb. R'n uiln zn hlfixv gszg'h olmt hrmxv wvzw, hvv.
Blf nzb yv gsrmprmt rg'h hlnvgsrmt gszg'h dilmt, R xzm gvoo blf uli hfiv gszg rg'h mlg... zsz

Gszg'h mlg nfxs lu z xofv gslfts rh rg?
R'oo trev blf lmv nliv, gslfts gsrh lmv rh qfhg gbkrxzo Oliv. Gsv Tvkkvggl rm jfvhgrlm rh uiln z ovzwvih yollwormv, dsl szh hrmxv ivhrtmvw, rg szkkvmvw rm gsv bvzi lfi Tvkkvggl dzh ylim... rg'h z hzw orggov gzov gszg nfxs R pmld, gslfts gszg'h dsvm lfi Tvkkvggl'h uznrob olhg rg'h xozrn gl gsv gsilmv.
Z 7 bvzi ivrtm, lmob z hvmzgli dlfow ivnzrm. Gslfts rm srh kozxv z gsriw dlfow gzpv srh kozxv zmw ivrtm.


Lfi Tvkkvggl dzh kilwfxvw yb hfxs z nzm, xzm blf yvorvev rg? Rg hvvnh, mvrgsvi xzm sv, uli Krmlxxsrl'h mlhv hvvnh gl szev tzrmvw z tvmvizgrlm rm hrav.

Give it a whack, I know you'll enjoy, finding the name of our personal woodcarver's toy... though you need to know who he is, first. ;) P.S - I'm no good at rhymes, sue me.

He had me do this in two stages, once I had solved that one, he sent me another message.

This one's pretty simple and I won't waste your time with too much of a problem in terms of a cipher... all you need to know is, what seat did our bloody old woodcarver's relative sit on, though more importantly, which number was he to sit on it? There you go, you have your answer! Go forth and solve the Cipher!
Qj? Aqw iqv vjcv enwg, jwj? Jqpguvna k'o uwtrtkugf... Kv'u pqv nkmg vjg enwg k icxg aqw ycu vqvcnna c ikxgcyca. Cccccccpaycau, vjku ku ftciikpi qp, kv'u cnoquv nkmg kv'u rtqeggfkpi kp c itcfwcn, uwdvng yca... Kv oca gxgp jcxg jctohwn ghhgevu qp aqwt uqnxkpi... Vjqwij kh aqw mpqy jqy vq wUG vjg Gpinkuj ncpiwcig, aqw'nn rtqdcdna uvknn igv vjg cpuygt.

K iwguu k ujqwnf oqxg qpvq vjg enwg pqy, jwj. Pcj, dghqtg vjcv K ycpv vq vcnm cdqwv Vgngxkukqp... Fq aqw ycvej kv cv cnn? K'o swkvg vjg hcp qh vjg nqvvgta oaugnh, vjqwij uqog vkog dcem kp 2015 K uvqrrgf ycvejkpi cu K ecwijv oaugnh ujqwvkpi 'Okgtfc!' cv vjg VX yjgp K nquv. Vjqwij vjga jcf pkeg owuke, K owuv cfokv.

Vjgtg ycu cpqvjgt vjkpi K nkmgf vq ycvej qp VX vjqwij, K'nn cfokv vq aqw k'o ucf vq uca aqw cntgcfa mpqy vqq owej cdqwv og. Vjku qpg yknn equv aqw oqtg vjcp K wuwcnna yqqf! Dwv yjcv yknn kv equv? Kv'nn equv aqw Uvtkrgu! Yqqfgp qpgu cv vjcv!

yckv... fq uvtkrgu gxgp qeewt qp yqqfu? yjq mpqyu, pqv og. Kh aqw ecp hqwpf qwv hqt og, Knn ikxg aqw vjg vkem qh crrtqxcn (Lwuv fq kv. Kv'u pqv vjcv jctf c vcum, k'o ukorna vqq ncba.)

Qj, tkijv... Iqqf nwem igvvkpi vjg cpuygt! ;)

My question to you Puzzle Fanatics is, Can you find out the name of our woodcarver's toy?


Creators note: My first puzzle, if you choose to downvote, please tell me what was wrong and how to improve for the future. Thankyou

Edit: I'd like to offer a formal apology, however I had forgotten to include the 'Music' tag.

I have a question (Leave a comment) Should I just remove the cipher now? It supposedly adds nothing to the puzzle aside from extra work, though honestly I don't know whether to change it or not.


Clues! (God, I thought this was easier to solve than it is.)

A puzzle? About Music? With references to Pinocchio? Classical.

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    $\begingroup$ Some feedback (no downvote): I solved both of these ciphers in about 10 seconds using Quipqiup. A cipher that simple doesn't really add anything to the puzzle; anyone with even basic cipher knowledge can solve it. It basically just adds busy-work that makes people less inclined to attempt the puzzle. I would have just posted the riddle itself, unobfuscated. $\endgroup$ Aug 30, 2016 at 16:20
  • $\begingroup$ Fair enough. I'll do that moving ahead. $\endgroup$ Aug 30, 2016 at 16:21
  • $\begingroup$ I must admit, I feel it's a little bit like a plague to use a website to solve these Ciphers. You say it took you 10 seconds with that website, of course it would be quick... I feel like it's a little fun for someone not using that to figure it out on their own, A simple brain exercise for those who're experienced. Though I accept what you're saying and will try to work it out moving forward. $\endgroup$ Aug 30, 2016 at 16:29
  • $\begingroup$ Maybe others have a different opinion from me, and enjoy solving these. For me, it would involve a few minutes of interesting work figuring out how they were enciphered, and then a whole lot of boring busy-work actually deciphering the whole thing. I think that for puzzles, ciphers generally work better for small bits of text (although that can make them very difficult to crack, unless the key is provided as part of the puzzle). $\endgroup$ Aug 30, 2016 at 17:31
  • $\begingroup$ I had originally planned to use Vigenere for the second paragraph, however due to my limited knowledge on that, I hadn't come up with any way to make it work as intended. $\endgroup$ Aug 30, 2016 at 17:33

3 Answers 3

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Partial answer (both ciphers decoded):

The first cipher is

the Atbash cipher. A goes to Z, B goes to Y, C goes to X...

Decoded, it's:

I'm much like Pinocchio is to Geppetto, not as a son no... though my meaning does contain an o.

I can tell you where my Geppetto is from... At the foot of the mountain is where you'll find me, though don't forget something Key.

I'm from am source that's long since dead, see. You may be thinking it's something that's wrong, I can tell you for sure that it's not... aha

That's not much of a clue though is it? I'll give you one more, though this one is just typical Lore.

The Geppetto in question is from a leaders bloodline, who has since resigned, it happened in the year our Geppetto was born...

it's a sad little tale that much I know, though that's when our Geppetto's family lost it's claim to the throne.

A 7 year reign, only a senator would remain. Though in his place a third would take his place and reign.

Our Geppetto was produced by such a man, can you believe it? It seems, neither can he, for Pinocchio's nose seems to have gained a generation in size.

(I've added spacing for clarity.)

The second cipher is

rot-2. A→C, B→D, C→E...

Decoded it's:

Oh? You got that clue, huh? Honestly i'm surprised... It's not like the clue i gave you was totally a giveaway. Aaaaaaanyways, this is dragging on, it's almost like it's proceeding in a gradual, subtle way... It may even have harmful effects on your solving... Though if you know how to uSE the English language, you'll probably still get the answer. I guess i should move onto the clue now, huh. Nah, before that I want to talk about Television... Do you watch it at all? I'm quite the fan of the lottery myself, though some time back in 2015 I stopped watching as I caught myself shouting 'Mierda!' at the TV when I lost. Though they had nice music, I must admit. There was another thing I liked to watch on TV though, I'll admit to you i'm sad to say you already know too much about me. This one will cost you more than I usually wood! But what will it cost? It'll cost you Stripes! Wooden ones at that! wait... do stripes even occur on woods? who knows, not me. If you can found out for me, Ill give you the tick of approval (Just do it. It's not that hard a task, i'm simply too lazy.) Oh, right... Good luck getting the answer! ;)

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    $\begingroup$ These are both correct, however the spacing you have provided, may just be your downfall. Two of the 'clues' you have spaced apart, are somewhat of the same origin. Hope this helps ;) Another answer may just contain that which you seek $\endgroup$ Aug 30, 2016 at 16:47
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As a partial answer, the first part is a

Substitution cipher, a cipher which replaces each letter of the alphabet with another. In this case the alphabet was replaced with the alphabet... backwards. Resulting in:

I'm much like Pinocchio is to Geppetto, not as a son no... though my meaning does contain an o. I can tell you where my Geppetto is from... At the foot of the mountain is where you'll find me, though don't forget something Key. I'm from am source that's long since dead, see. You may be thinking it's something that's wrong, I can tell you for sure that it's not... aha

That's not much of a clue though is it? I'll give you one more, though this one is just typical Lore. The Geppetto in question is from a leaders bloodline, who has since resigned, it happened in the year our Geppetto was born... it's a sad little tale that much I know, though that's when our Geppetto's family lost it's claim to the throne.

A 7 year reign, only a senator would remain. Though in his place a third would take his place and reign.

Our Geppetto was produced by such a man, can you believe it? It seems, neither can he, for Pinocchio's nose seems to have gained a generation in size.

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  • $\begingroup$ The name of the 'substitution' Cipher you're referring to is Atbash ;) $\endgroup$ Sep 1, 2016 at 1:26
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Cipher Decoded 1st Part :

i'm much like pinocchio is to geppetto, not as a son no... though my meaning does contain an o. i can tell you where my geppetto is from... at the foot of the mountain is where you'll find me, though don't forget something key. i'm from am source that's long since dead, see. you may be thinking it's something that's wrong, i can tell you for sure that it's not... aha that's not much of a clue though is it? i'll give you one more, though this one is just typical lore. the geppetto in question is from a leaders bloodline, who has since resigned, it happened in the year our geppetto was born... it's a sad little tale that much i know, though that's when our geppetto's family lost it's claim to the throne. a 7 year reign, only a senator would remain. though in his place a third would take his place and reign. our geppetto was produced by such a man, can you believe it? it seems, neither can he, for pinocchio's nose seems to have gained a generation in size.

Cipher Decoded 2nd Part :

oh? you got that clue, huh? honestly i'm surprised... it's not like the clue i gave you was totally a giveaway. aaaaaaanyways, this is dragging on, it's almost like it's proceeding in a gradual, subtle way... it may even have harmful effects on your solving... though if you know how to use the english language, you'll probably still get the answer.
i guess i should move onto the clue now, huh. nah, before that i want to talk about television... do you watch it at all? i'm quite the fan of the lottery myself, though some time back in 2015 i stopped watching as i caught myself shouting 'mierda!' at the tv when i lost. though they had nice music, i must admit.
there was another thing i liked to watch on tv though, i'll admit to you i'm sad to say you already know too much about me. this one will cost you more than i usually wood! but what will it cost? it'll cost you stripes! wooden ones at that!
wait... do stripes even occur on woods? who knows, not me. if you can found out for me, ill give you the tick of approval (just do it. it's not that hard a task, i'm simply too lazy.) oh, right... good luck getting the answer!

The answer is

Tiger Woods??

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  • $\begingroup$ I've added spoiler tags to hide your answer. The first part is missing some paragraphs. Also, can you maybe add some explanation about your idea for the answer? $\endgroup$
    – elias
    Aug 30, 2016 at 18:19
  • $\begingroup$ @elias I am not sure if it is correct, if it is I will add the explanation $\endgroup$
    – user29591
    Aug 30, 2016 at 18:21
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    $\begingroup$ I'd also like to see where the whole logic for it being Tiger Woods comes from. That is one of the many clues riddled within, however it is definitely not the answer I desire (Tiger woods has nothing to do with music, as far as I am aware) I thought i'd make it clearer for you. Tiger Woods is definitely a clue... though, think about how the paragraphs are laid out in the question. I don't want to give too much info, as that would be spoiling. $\endgroup$ Aug 30, 2016 at 18:22

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