Escape Academy What Lies Below Complete Walkthrough & Puzzle Solutions

What Lies Below is the final escape room in Escape Academy, pitting you against QUANTY, a villainous AI determined to automate education. With a 50-minute time limit and maximum difficulty rating, this level requires solving multiple interconnected puzzles while rescuing the kidnapped Headmaster.

Starting QUANTY’s Exam

When you enter the level, you’ll find the Headmaster restrained and unable to help. QUANTY forces you to take his standardized exam. Head up the stairs to the left to begin.

In the room with chairs, go right to find rows of lockers. Open all of them except Student 00, which is locked. Turn around to see three busts on display. Investigate the middle bust—the Headmaster’s statue—to receive the Headmaster’s Glasses. These glasses permanently reveal hidden purple messages throughout the level.

Look at the open lockers while wearing the glasses. The purple messages show the combination for Student 00’s locker:

0, Clockwise to 10, Anticlockwise to 25, Clockwise to 15

Open the locker to get the Testing Sheet and Headmaster’s Pin. The Testing Sheet records your answers for each puzzle room—get them right to progress.

For the first answer, look beyond the lockers at the screen reading “ONLY AN ACE MAY ENTER.” Input ACE into the Testing Machine next to the screen.

Dance Floor Puzzle

The next room features a colored dance floor similar to Lab Rat’s disco puzzle. Each terminal displays a color sequence you must follow by stepping on tiles in order.

The first sequence shows: Blue → Green → Red → Yellow

From your starting position, step right onto Blue, forward to Green, left to Red, then forward to Yellow to activate terminal A.

Continue with these sequences:

• Terminal B: Yellow → Red → Green → Purple → Yellow
• Terminal C: Yellow → Blue → Red → Green
• Terminal D: Green → Yellow → Blue → Red → Dark Blue (straight across)
• Terminal E: Dark Blue → Red → Purple → Red → Blue (requires doubling back)

After activating all terminals A through E, check each smoking machine. Note whether the circle beneath each letter is filled or empty. Only mark filled circles on your Testing Sheet.

The correct answer is B, C, D.

Electrical Grid Puzzle

This puzzle resembles BioShock’s pipe hacking minigame. Connect power from right to left using swappable tiles, routing through locked letter tiles A through E.

The key objective isn’t just connecting power—you must test which letter tiles emit green light when powered (versus white light). You have limited tiles, so test different routes through each letter one at a time.

Through experimentation, you’ll discover that tiles A, D, E turn green when powered.

Before submitting your answer, charge the dead battery. Find the power node to the left of the stairs leading to the puzzle screen and use the Battery (Dead) on it. This fully charges the battery for later use.

Input A, D, E into the Testing Machine.

Morse Code Column Puzzle

Enter the yellow room with five movable columns of different heights. The back wall displays letters A through E in Morse Code for reference:

• Dot = short blink
• Dash = longer blink

Watch the blinking lights on each column’s side—they spell out letters in Morse Code. Move each column to its corresponding letter tile (you may need to move columns out of the way first).

The solution:

• Shortest column: C
• Short column: B
• Medium column: A
• Tall column: E
• Tallest column: D

When correctly positioned, the column lids flip open, revealing filled or empty circles. Mark B, D on your Testing Sheet.

Chemical Mixing Puzzle

Pick up five canisters labeled A through E from the left side of the room. A screen lists possible chemicals:

• Yellow: Fluoride (F2)
• Blue: Cobalt Oxide (CoO)
• Red: Bromine (Br2)
• White: Water (H2O)

Behind the Testing Machine, another screen asks: “WHICH TANK(S) CONTAIN WATER?”

Check the mixing machine’s right side for reaction formulas:

• BR2 + CoO = Purple
• F2 + CoO = Green
• BR2 + BR2 = Red
• BR2 + H2O = Red

Experiment with tank combinations to deduce each tank’s contents:

• Tank A: Bromine
• Tank B: Fluoride
• Tank C: Cobalt Oxide
• Tank D: Water
• Tank E: Fluoride

Input D to complete the exam.

Sabotaging QUANTY’s Terminals

Return to the green area you passed earlier. Use the Headmaster’s Pin on the grate and crawl through to find three terminals.

Terminal 1 (right side): Has a 5V limit. Use your charged 12V battery to overload and destroy it.

Terminal 2: Displays a 5×5 grid. Pin your Testing Sheet and copy the marked positions exactly onto the grid. This spells SELF DESTRUCT, which QUANTY executes on this console.

Terminal 3: Shows a warning: “NO WATER (OR OTHER LIQUIDS).” Pour Tank D (water) on it to short-circuit the final console.

Reaching the Upper Level

Return to the Morse Code room. Stand in the center, turn around, and look up—purple paint arrows point to a high grate.

Stack the columns as a staircase against the wall where the track meets it. Start with the tallest column, then work down in descending order. Walk up the column staircase to reach the grate’s ledge.

Proceed forward to find a ladder that drops down, creating a shortcut to the console room.

Final Word Puzzles to Defeat QUANTY

QUANTY displays multiple red-text screens with word puzzles. Solve them all to permanently deactivate the AI.

Puzzle 1: “PARA(M180O)OUNT (I)S STUDENT COM(P)LIANC(E)”

Four-letter solution. M rotated 180° becomes W. Answer: WIPE

Puzzle 2: “TOTAL CONTROL IS JUST THE (STARTOPPOSITE)”

Find a four-letter opposite of START. Answer: STOP

Puzzle 3: “(F3)RIENDS(H7)IP I(S6) A WASTE OF R(E2,5)SOU(R1, 4)CES”

Seven-letter solution. Follow the numbers in order to extract letters. Answer: REFRESH

Puzzle 4: “FUN I(S+2) A FOR(M+1) O(F-2) INEFFICIE(N+1)CY”

Four-letter solution. Move each letter along the alphabet by the indicated number:

• S+2 = U
• M+1 = N
• F-2 = D
• N+1 = O

Answer: UNDO

After solving these four puzzles, interact with the central screen to initiate the Prime Directive. This presents the final puzzle:

Final Puzzle: “(CREAT(E3) THE BES(T+15) ESCA(P2,6)ISTS, (N4)O MATTER THE C(O1)ST.)OPPOSITE”

This combines all previous puzzle mechanics. First, extract the letters using the established patterns to get OPEN UP. However, the entire clue is in brackets with “OPPOSITE” at the end, meaning you need the opposite answer.

The solution: SHUT DOWN

Enter this to defeat QUANTY and complete Escape Academy’s main campaign.

Tips for Success

The 50-minute time limit is tight but manageable if you work efficiently. Take note of the Headmaster’s purple messages early—they provide crucial hints throughout.

The Testing Sheet puzzles follow logical patterns once you understand each room’s mechanics. Don’t rush the chemical mixing puzzle; systematic testing reveals the tank contents quickly.

When stacking columns for the upper level, ensure each column is fully against the wall before adding the next. An improperly aligned stack prevents climbing.

The final word puzzles build on each other’s logic. If stuck, remember that QUANTY values control and efficiency—his puzzles reflect his mechanical thinking.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does What Lies Below take to complete? The level has a 50-minute time limit, making it one of Escape Academy’s longest rooms.

Can you fail QUANTY’s exam? If you input wrong answers on the Testing Sheet, you won’t progress. You can retry as many times as needed within the time limit.

What happens if you run out of time? Running out of time requires restarting the entire level from the beginning.

Do you need the Headmaster’s Glasses for everything? The glasses are essential for seeing hidden clues. Some puzzles cannot be solved without reading the purple messages they reveal.

Is What Lies Below harder in co-op? The puzzles remain the same difficulty, but coordinating movements on the dance floor and dividing tasks can make co-op either easier or more chaotic depending on communication.