What does pooled mean?

With pooling on, every key in the room is counted together, so two players holding one key each can open a lock that needs two. With it off, somebody has to hold the whole set themselves, which turns every lock into a reason to trade. The difference matters most for a lock that needs two of the same key.

Does opening a lock use up the keys?

No. A lock is a condition on what is held, not a price, so a key can open two different locks and nothing disappears when a lock opens. That is also why a lock can be shut again without anything being refunded.

Can the players see what is behind a lock?

Only when it opens. The reveal text is typed in the Locks panel and shown nowhere else until the lock is open, so a host can set the whole thing up in front of the room as long as nobody reads over their shoulder. It never goes into a link.

Where do the keys come from?

A key exists because a lock asks for it. Name a key on a lock and it appears in the list under the locks, where the plus and minus buttons hand it out. There is no separate key editor, because a key nothing needs is not a key.

Does it remember the locks?

Yes. The locks, the reveals, who holds which keys and which locks are open are kept in this browser, so a game survives a refresh or a locked phone. Nothing is uploaded, and a share link carries only the pooling rule.

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Keys and locks

Locks need keys. Players earn keys, and when the set is complete the lock opens and reveals what you wrote.

Made by the PaperCarnival team · Updated 2026-09-22

0 of 0 open

Add names in the Players tab, then hand out keys. A lock opens when the keys it names are held.

Players

No players yet. Type a name and press Add.

Everybody carries their own keys, and the rule below decides whether they can be put together.

Names stay in this browser. They are never put in a link, and every tool with players reads the same list.

Opening a lock never spends a key, so one key can open two locks

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A door that is worth walking to

The oldest structure in adventure games is the locked door: you cannot go through it yet, you know roughly what it will take, and everything you do in the meantime is coloured by it. It works because the goal is specific. Collect three things is a chore; collect two iron keys because the cellar door needs two iron keys is a plan.

This is that door with the awkward part done for you. The lock lists what it needs, the screen counts what is held, and the moment the set is complete it opens and reads out what you wrote inside. Before that, the line under the lock says exactly how far off it is, which keeps a treasure hunt honest without a host having to referee every claim.

A lock reads what is held rather than taking it, so a key can open two doors and a lock can be shut again with nothing to refund. That is a deliberate difference from a resource game: if you want keys to be spent, the inventory tray is the page that moves things around and the crafting table is the one that consumes them.

Kept in this browser under pph.unlock.locks, pph.unlock.state, pph.unlock.muted and pph.players, and nowhere else. Accounts, printing, storage and what the page loads are answered on the FAQ.

Questions

What does pooled mean?: With pooling on, every key in the room is counted together, so two players holding one key each can open a lock that needs two. With it off, somebody has to hold the whole set themselves, which turns every lock into a reason to trade. The difference matters most for a lock that needs two of the same key.
Does opening a lock use up the keys?: No. A lock is a condition on what is held, not a price, so a key can open two different locks and nothing disappears when a lock opens. That is also why a lock can be shut again without anything being refunded.
Can the players see what is behind a lock?: Only when it opens. The reveal text is typed in the Locks panel and shown nowhere else until the lock is open, so a host can set the whole thing up in front of the room as long as nobody reads over their shoulder. It never goes into a link.
Where do the keys come from?: A key exists because a lock asks for it. Name a key on a lock and it appears in the list under the locks, where the plus and minus buttons hand it out. There is no separate key editor, because a key nothing needs is not a key.
Does it remember the locks?: Yes. The locks, the reveals, who holds which keys and which locks are open are kept in this browser, so a game survives a refresh or a locked phone. Nothing is uploaded, and a share link carries only the pooling rule.

Keys and locks

A door that is worth walking to

Questions

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