×Assume there is no way of freeing the upper platform without the adder following and killing you. The only option would be to put the one-square platform under the bottom right square, and force the adder down. The upper platform is then also brought down to the bottom right, and then the adder chases us down to the right character. As long as we didn't let the adder eat the water skipper first, we can survive this by stabbing the adder just after it eats the character, reducing it back to size 2. However, there is no way of forcing an adder of length 3 or less southwards to either of the other two chambers.

×The closest I can come is within one square of success. I can reach the trapdoor with the adders head off the platform; but its tail is always to the left, forcing the adder upwards.

I achieve this with Beethro at 3; adder head/tail at 1/2, on the last horizontal preference, and with Beethro/adder killing the waterskipper first.


The adder can then go up, up, right, down, down, down.

There cannot be a way of having the same two-up, three-down, three-up pattern while ending with the tail below the adder, only to the left as here. Thus the only way of saving an extra move is to start the adder in the lower left corner, and have it go three-up, three-down, three-up. But this is impossible as it would require 6 vertical preferences in a row.

×The left hand character appears useless, as if you can force the adder down to it, you could have forced it down the middle chamber in the first place. I get the feeling the waterskipper is meant to be left unkilled to allow adders of length 2/3 reach the bottom characters, but this is impossible.