Mashuk's Shadow — The Poet's Final Duel
Uncover the truth behind Mikhail Lermontov's fatal 1841 duel on Mount Mashuk. Was it honor, jealousy, or conspiracy? Decipher coded letters and conflicting testimonies to expose what really happened that tragic dawn.
📱 1 to 10 phones · 1 team per phone · Independent codes
On July 27, 1841, Russia's greatest Romantic poet, Mikhail Lermontov, fell mortally wounded on the northwestern slope of Mount Mashuk in Pyatigorsk
Mashuk's Shadow — The Poet's Final Duel
You are a clandestine investigator in Pyatigorsk, July 1841, tasked with uncovering the truth behind a poet's untimely demise.
On July 27, 1
Lermontov — The Fatal Duel of the Caucasus Poet
« Perhaps a woman's beauty is merely the pretext for a duel! »— Mikhail Lermontov, A Hero of Our Time
The Poet's Exile and Tragic Destiny
Mikhail Lermontov, born in 1814, is one of the most important poets and writers of the Golden Age of Russian literature, often compared to Pushkin. His work is characterized by dark romanticism, social critique, and a deep fascination with the Caucasus. After Pushkin's death in a duel in 1837, Lermontov wrote the poem 'Death of the Poet,' denouncing the hypocrisy of the court. This poem earned him his first exile to the Caucasus, a region that would profoundly influence his work, notably his most famous novel, 'A Hero of Our Time' (1840).
In July 1841, while again serving militarily in Pyatigorsk, Lermontov publicly quarreled with Nikolai Martynov, a former classmate from the Junkers school. The two men challenged each other to a duel, a practice then forbidden but common in high society. On July 27 (July 15 old style), at the foot of Mount Mashuk, Lermontov was mortally wounded. His death at just 26 years old is seen as a symbol of the tragic fate of romantic and rebellious souls, making him a mythical figure of Russian literature and Pyatigorsk a place of literary pilgrimage.
A game, a guided tour and a heritage guide — all in one
You're not just buying an escape game. You're carrying a living guide — historical anecdotes, forgotten legends, key monuments, hidden architecture — unfolding as you go.
At each stop, places ordinary guides miss — secret façades, sculpted crests, alleys steeped in history.
Every riddle is rooted in a real historical fact or local legend. You leave with dozens of stories to tell.
Learn to read buildings — flamboyant Gothic, Baroque, Art Deco — like a real art historian, while having fun.
Walk through the city like a novel's character — every alley becomes a stage, every square a theatre.
A voice walks with you at every step, tells the story of each place, reads clues, adds a cinematic feel.
Keep access to the guide & game for 1 year. Come back any time, share it with friends.
« You will not leave this city the way you entered it. »
How does it work?
Explore the city on foot solving puzzles based on real historical facts. No locked room — the city is your playground.
No app to download. Play directly from your browser. Guided step by step, at your own pace.
One purchase per phone is enough. Play with family, friends or as a couple — everyone participates.
Point your phone at the façade: a historical character appears and speaks to you in your language. Golden letters magically write themselves on the wall to reveal the puzzle answer.
Stuck? Progressive personalised hints. The character repeats the puzzle on demand — at your own pace.
French, English, German, Spanish, Italian + 27 other languages auto-translated by AI.
The game downloads to your phone on start. Once the "✓ Downloaded" indicator appears, everything works without data — narration, AR, GPS and puzzles. Perfect abroad without a data plan.
Want to go deeper?
Places tied to your adventure — optional entries, totally up to you · per person
The Route
8 stages through the city
The gameplay: AR, camera, hidden clues
At each stop, open your phone camera: an augmented reality character appears on the façade and speaks your language. Hunt the clue — it materializes as golden letters on the real wall or floats in front of you. When you find it, the phone vibrates, an AR chest opens and reveals your answer fragment. 8 stops, 8 clues to find with the camera, 1 final code.
The stops on your route are a surprise. You'll discover them one by one, guided by your phone, starting from the meeting point.
How does it work with a group?
One phone = one team. Pick the number at checkout (1 to 10).
Solo, or a group sharing the screen. One team, one code.
Family, couple, or 2-3 teams competing. Each phone has its own code and its own score.
Friends, bachelor/bachelorette, small office outing — each their own code, each plays at their own pace. Tiered pricing then €6 flat per phone from the 6th.
- ✓All codes are independent — play at the same time OR separately, each team advances at its own pace.
- ✓Leaderboard between your teams + global game leaderboard — each score appears in the public ranking.
- ✓More than 10 phones or need a personalized quest? Discover custom tours.
Ready to live this adventure?
Get my code · 12€No calendar booking. Code sent immediately by email.
🔒 Secure payment · Code in 5 min · Free cancellation
Practical info
Why this route?
Forgotten manuscript
Reconstruct fragments of a manuscript that will unmask the true reasons for the duel.
Historical investigation
Immerse yourself in 19th-century Pyatigorsk to solve a tragedy.
Romantic drama
Dive into the heart of the passions and rivalries that shaped Lermontov's destiny.
The past is never dead. It's not even past.
William Faulkner
9 features nobody else has
OddballTrip combines gamified play, augmented reality and AI. All our competitors deliver 1 or 2 of these angles. We deliver all 5.
AR treasure chest
A golden chest floats in front of the monument. Tap → opening animation → reveals a secret message.
AR narrator character
Point your phone at the façade: a knight, witch, monk, sailor, detective or ghost appears full-screen and speaks to you in your language with their dedicated ElevenLabs voice (each character has their own unique voice) — your living guide.
Magic golden letters
At the puzzle climax, golden letters magically write themselves on the real wall — that's the puzzle answer. An unforgettable visual effect.
Written + audio narration
Every puzzle available as text AND voice-over: read at your own pace or listen eyes-free while walking. Great in groups and for accessibility.
360° radar + vibration
A mini-radar shows the target even behind you, and the phone vibrates when you aim in the right direction.
Heritage storytelling
Every puzzle weaves in real historical facts (architecture, era, anecdotes). You learn by playing — like a gamified audioguide.
Progressive AI hints
3 levels of AI-generated help: vibe → where to look → answer format. You're never stuck.
AR selfie memento
At the end of the game, capture a selfie with OddballTrip banner + mascot, shareable on Instagram, TikTok.
Zero app to install
PWA technology: open the link, it plays in your browser. Same quality as an app, no App Store hassle.
Frequently asked questions
Q01Do I need an app or a paper guide?
Neither. Everything plays in your browser (Safari, Chrome) after you tap your activation link. No PDF to print, no download. The trail lives in your phone, that's it.
Q02How many stops are in Mashuk's Shadow — The Poet's Final Duel?
Eight stops total. At each stop you find a camera clue, solve the puzzle, collect a fragment of the final code. With all eight, you've got the answer.
Q03Can we do Mashuk's Shadow — The Poet's Final Duel as a family with kids?
Yes, from age 6 with an adult reading puzzles aloud, and from age 12 on their own. Kids love the "find the camera clue" part — it's very visual, gets them genuinely involved.
Q04Do we need 4G data to play?
Intermittent 4G is plenty. Maps are cached at startup. Narration and clues load per stop, so a so-so signal between stops is fine. GPS itself uses no data.
Avis des aventuriers
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Your turn to play
Ready to delve into the mysteries of Pyatigorsk and uncover the truth behind the death of the most famous Russian romantic poet after Pushkin? Embark on this thrilling investigation!
1 purchase = 1 phone. Play several on the same device.
No calendar booking. Code sent immediately by email.
🔒Secure payment · Code in 5 min · Free cancellation
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