Level 17 · Birthday Cake

Birthday Cake is level 17 of Crumb Colony. The pixel picture has 728 blocks in 9 colors, the tray holds 39 ant boxes, and the difficulty is Advanced.

Difficulty

Advanced

Blocks

728

Colors

9

Ant boxes

39

Mechanics

2 chained pair(s) · Ice · Spider web (30 bites) · Mystery boxes

Like this pixel picture? BitBead can turn it into a printable fuse bead pattern.

Play level 17

About the dish

A two-tier birthday cake with pink icing, sprinkles and three lit candles, on a starry night background.

How the picture comes apart

From the frame to the center the picture is 13 layers deep. The outer ring is mostly purple and black, the middle band is mostly pink and black, and the core is mostly pink and deep pink. Ants can only reach the next layer once the one around it is gone, so the core colors are the last to become useful.

By block count the biggest colors are purple, pink and black.

The spider web covers 24 cells in the middle band of the picture and needs 30 bites from soldier ants.

12% of the blocks are frozen and take two bites each.

Reading the tray

The tray starts with 39 boxes in 4 columns. At the start 1 of the 4 front boxes can bite right away: pink (has to wait), purple (bites now), green (has to wait) and green (has to wait).

Chained pairs start in column 1–2, row 4 and column 1–2, row 5.

5 mystery box(es) only show their color when they reach the front.

3 soldier box(es) carry the bites for the web.

How the verified run plays out

The solution further down was played to the end in the real game, with ants walking and real timing. It takes 37 taps. The chart shows how many boxes were still parked in the 5 slots, waiting for their color, just before each tap.

Opening (taps 1–17): 36% of the blocks are eaten, with up to 2 of the 5 slots holding a box that is waiting.

Middle (taps 18–26): 31% of the blocks are eaten, with up to 4 of the 5 slots holding a box that is waiting.

Ending (taps 27–37): 33% of the blocks are eaten, with up to 2 of the 5 slots holding a box that is waiting.

The web breaks before tap 9. Chained pairs are taken at taps 18 and 19.

How hard is it?

Two test players attempted this level many times: a cautious one that only sends colors it can use right away cleared it 11% of the time, and a look-ahead one that tries each option before committing cleared it 53% of the time. Most of their failed attempts jammed in the opening.

Strategy

Check the colors of the first three boxes in each column and compare them with the colors exposed on the outer ring of the picture. Always keep one slot free to catch a color that can't be eaten yet.

Ice blocks take two bites, so one block uses two ants. Icy areas are eaten slowly and the matching boxes stay in their slots a little longer.

Nothing under the spider web can be eaten. Wait until the edge of the web is exposed before sending the soldier box (the leafy green one), or it just occupies a slot.

Chained boxes need both halves in the front row and two free slots. Take the boxes in front of them first and free two neighboring slots in advance.

Mystery boxes show their color only when they reach the front. When you see one coming, don't fill every slot; leave room for it.

Chained boxes · Ice blocks · Spider webs and soldier ants

Step-by-step solution

This order of taps is verified to clear the level. Columns are numbered 1–4 from the left; after each tap, wait until the ants are out before the next one. Two boxes shown together are a chained pair taken in one tap.

Level 17 questions