Hook Pulley

To make a simple gravity-driven device, screw a hook into the ceiling and feed string through it.

The string on one side of the hook will be attached to an object that will be hanging off the hook. This object will either be out of reach or will be covering something important.

Extend one end of the string toward a fixed object in the room that it can be tied to. But don’t tie it directly to that object. Connect the string to the shackle of a padlock with a second string attached to the fixed object.

To solve the puzzle, the players must unlock the padlock and remove it from the strings. When they do, the hanging object will fall to the ground and reveal the next clue.

A doorknob on a closed door makes a good fixed object to tie the lock-end part of the string. Of course, the door needs to stay closed until all hook-pulley locks are removed. If opening this door is part of the escape room, you should make solving the puzzle to open the door dependent on clues revealed from these locks attached to it.

The hanging object that falls should be heavy enough to pull the string through any hooks. If the hanging object is very light, the friction of the string will keep it suspended. That said, don’t hang something too heavy. You could run the risk of pulling the hook off the ceiling, damaging something it falls on, or hurting a player. Also, to prevent hurting anyone, hang the object somewhere players are unlikely to be standing such as against a wall or over a table. To get the hanging object in the right place, you will often need two hooks, one where the object hangs and one by where the padlock is anchored, and the string is extended between these two hooks.

The falling object should provide the next clue to advance the game. You can be creative with the object that falls; make the action part of the plot of the room. For example, if the plot of your room includes a helicopter crash, hang a model helicopter with a clue inside. When the puzzle is solved, the helicopter dramatically falls. (You can make it out of something like Lego to have it dramatically break as well.)

When using strings, it’s good to remind players that unknotting the string is against the rules. That ruins the fun of solving the puzzle. Also, when hanging things from the ceiling, let players know not to attempt to pull items hanging from the ceiling. In addition to circumventing the puzzle, it can yank the hooks out of the ceiling.