Ed Caspersen

Studies and Levels

Every concept holds six studies. Each one changes a single thing, so you can feel what made it harder. The levers are: field size (7, 19, or 37 lenses), how far a touch reaches (Orbit only: one ring or two), how varied the goal is, and scramble depth (how far from solved it starts). When the field widens, the other levers pull back deliberately, so a bigger board is never also a harder move on the same day.

The ladders below trace Orbit, where every concept is introduced. Pressure and Tide follow the same field and goal progression at their own depths: Pressure’s moves are potent, so its scramble numbers are much lower, and Tide’s single move touches every lens on the board.

Single Influence

The field widens at studies 3 and 5. Within each size you gather the light into the core, then into the rim. A touch reaches one ring throughout.

Study Field Goal
1 7 Gather into the core
2 7 Gather into the rim
3 19 Core
4 19 Rim
5 37 Core
6 37 Rim

Multiple Influence

Two rings turn for the whole concept, so each touch reaches further. The field is 19 lenses through study 2 and 37 from study 3 on, with the goal alternating between the core and the rim.

Gradients

Study Field Rings per touch Ramp directions
1 19 1 Radial only
2 19 2 Radial, rows
3 19 2 Rows, both diagonals
4 37 1 Fine linear, both diagonals
5 37 2 Fine linear, both diagonals
6 37 2 All five

Study 4 is the turn to watch: the field doubles, but a touch pulls back to one ring so the larger board stays fair.

Reflection

Study Field Rings per touch Mirror axis
1 19 1 Vertical
2 19 2 Vertical or horizontal
3 19 2 Diagonal
4 37 1 Vertical or horizontal
5 37 2 Diagonal
6 37 2 Any of the three

The diagonal is the hardest axis to read, so it is introduced deliberately.

Regions

Study Field Rings per touch Layout and rule
1 19 1 Core and shell, values named for you
2 19 2 Core and shell, uniform
3 19 2 Bands or wedges, uniform
4 19 2 Bands or wedges, stepping by a fixed interval
5 37 1 Bands or wedges, uniform
6 37 2 Ring agreement (second and third, or second and fourth)

How to Solve Each Kind

  • Gather. Only the named zone is judged, so the rest of the board is workspace. Copies of the target elsewhere are what you are ferrying in.
  • Ramp. Every lens is constrained at once. Work the extremes first (the lowest and highest bands accept only one value each) and let the middle settle last.
  • Mirror. Think in pairs, never single lenses. Close is not equal: a 5 facing a 6 is a mismatch, so read values rather than colours. Any symmetric arrangement wins, so you can meet in the middle instead of restoring one exact picture.
  • Regions. Where you touch matters as much as what moves. A move near a boundary carries value across it; one wholly inside a region only rearranges that region. Settle the region with the fewest strays first.

The same ladders live inside the app under Settings > Guide > Studies, where they are generated from the game’s own data, so they always match the version you are playing.

Need Help?

Still stuck? Email nospam@edcaspersen.com.