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By Will Day, Ben Haytack, Chris Pringle, Julian West, and Ian Gallagher
Answer: IN A FORBIDDEN DESERT

The answers to the component puzzles for this meta are as follows (alphabetized):

  • CODEX RUNICUS
  • DIRTY MARTINI
  • HACIENDA
  • INTERCOASTAL EMPIRE
  • JONATHAN EDWARDS
  • KEYBOAD PLAYER
  • MASTER AT ARMS
  • MEDIAN
  • MEMORIAL
  • ONSIGHT
  • PANDORA
  • PINNACLES
  • POCKET MONEY
  • PORTMANTEAU
  • SLEEPER AGENT
  • SPOT THE BALL
  • ULTIMATE FRISBEE
  • VALIDATOR
  • WHOOPEE

Having entered the previous answer, the true meta for this island is revealed: The Robber, who seems to have hidden the core memory orb. Teams are presented with some additional instructions and 12 pentagons, containing short phrases. The phrases are Printer’s Devilry clues for a 4- or 5-letter word. The clues can be solved as follows:

Original clue Missing word Rearranged phrase
A scroll of genocide is still the best way to mass aches. RELIC A scroll of genocide is still the best way to massacRE LIChes.
Boggle players try to shatter sin to words. PELE Boggle players try to shaPE LEtters in to words.
Careful card play can mean points fort, ever tricks. AMINO Careful card play can mean points for teAM IN Overtricks.
In Twisting Leper, son moves with each spin. ERAS In twist ERA, Single person moves with each spin.
In Victorian times, bow as a popular rhyming game. CRAM In Victorian times, CRAMbo was a popular rhyming game.
Many popular games using boards also have lid editions. MITE Many popular games using boards also have liMITEd editions.
Playing Jump rises your heart rate and promotes dexterity. OPERA Playing jump rOPE RAises your heart rate and promotes dexterity.
Scenarios help players of small worlds palm seven-handedly. LITRE Scenarios help players of Smallworld spLIT REalm seven-handedly.
Scholars check map, sun wary players TETRA Scholar’s checkmaTE TRAps unwary players
Some mag I’m sad, done to attack Rolls. CITE Some magiC ITEms add one to attack rolls.
The latest version of Monopoly hay model penguin. SATIN THe latest version of Monopoly haS A TINy model penguin.
Your counter must stop aces marked with a snake. PONS Your counter must stoP ON Spaces marked with a snake.

Solvers can now arrange the hexagons and pentagons into a truncated icosahedron, such that the letters on the hexagons surrounding each pentagon spell out the answer word for that pentagon. The direction to read is indicated by whether the clue is written clockwise or counterclockwise. The 4-letter answers are bordered by the desert tile, which does not contain any letter.

Since some of the letters occur more than once, solvers must have some way of deciding which tiles to place where. The flavor text mentions that in “Australian rules Catan”, adjacent resources must be different. This allows a unique placement of the tiles:

Teams have now constructed something that looks similar to a globe. “Australian rules” and “extends across the world” suggest looking at antipodal points. Extracting the indexed letter from the antipodal hexagon in the same order as the first part of the meta gives the final answer: the Robber has hidden the core memory IN A FORBIDDEN DESERT.

Answer Antipode Index Extraction
HACIENDA MEDIAN 4 I
MEDIAN HACIENDA 6 N
ULTIMATE FRISBEE JONATHAN EDWARDS 7 A
JONATHAN EDWARDS ULTIMATE FRISBEE 9 F
MEMORIAL PANDORA 5 O
CODEX RUNICUS MASTER AT ARMS 10 R
VALIDATOR SPOT THE BALL 8 B
PORTMANTEAU DIRTY MARTINI 10 I
MASTER AT ARMS CODEX RUNICUS 3 D
SPOT THE BALL VALIDATOR 5 D
PANDORA MEMORIAL 2 E
SLEEPER AGENT ONSIGHT 2 N
PINNACLES KEYBOARD PLAYER 8 D
POCKET MONEY WHOOPEE 7 E
KEYBOARD PLAYER PINNACLES 9 S
ONSIGHT SLEEPER AGENT 4 E
DIRTY MARTINI PORTMANTEAU 3 R
WHOOPEE POCKET MONEY 6 T