A-Maze-ing Challenge Phase 2

Phase02

Final runOne runnerOne shotNo second chances

It's time for Phase 2 of the A-Maze-ing Challenge. Phase 1 was practice. This one counts.

• 1runner
• 1shot
• 48hour window
• ~35concurrent runners

Grand prizeA ticket to SAINTCON

Timeline

1. ~4:00p MDT This message is posted. CHECK!
2. ~5:00p MDT, Tuesday Runners are allowed to start.
3. 4:59p MDT, Thursday The challenge ends.
4. After that We certify and announce the results once that process is complete.

Rules

• One solid opportunity1 SortieYou get a single run at the maze.
• A single runner1 Runner OnlyOne runner per player. That is it.
• Blackout runsScoreboardThe scoreboard shows player cards and current progress only.
• Register for an access tokenRequiredYou cannot run the maze without one.
• Start to finish, no disconnectsStabilityA winning run is unbroken. Have a stable connection and turn off sleep settings.
• No cheatingEnforced"I know it when I see it. —Jup1t3r" will be applied. To avoid the inevitable accusation, denial, drama, discussion and proof cycle: just don't cheat.
• Finish inside the window48 hoursA successful runner completes the challenge within the open 48 hour window.

How to play

1. Obtain a token. See registration below.
2. SSH to the Phase 2 server. ezama.saintcon.org
3. Use your token as your registered handle in the game.

How to register

In the #pre-con-chall-chat channel on the SAINTCON Discord, run the /register command to receive a one-time token. The token arrives by DM from @MortiBot.

Limiters

• ~35 concurrent runners. You may have to wait for another runner to finish before you can start. We reserve the right to adjust this value at any time.
• The system has been upgraded significantly to avoid the performance issues seen in Phase 1.
• The Reaper timeout is now 5 seconds, up from 2.
• Advantaged IP blocks are blocked. That includes all of AWS, their direct-hop BGP neighbors, and other major cloud providers.
• New Discord members cannot play. Anyone who joined the server less than 6 days before the start is out.

Spirit of the challenge

This challenge is meant to be fun, interactive, and a way to learn. It is also meant to be a way for you to learn how to use AI to solve a simple problem, and then go down the rabbit hole of making it as efficient and as fast as possible.

If you have learned to use agentic AI better than you knew before, you have already fulfilled the intent of this challenge.

It is also meant to let you stretch the hacker in you, to find advantages and ways to game the system, like what we saw in Phase 1 with people spinning up AWS hosts with 2ms latency, reading comments in the .js files, and the rest of it. We are a hacker con after all.

Prizes