by evilkeen » Tue Nov 06, 2012 10:50 am
Thanks for the PM Tom - I have replied, but thought I would post the answer here too for general consumption:
I think you may be confusing the password checker with the box to guess the password.
Under 'Collect your Reward' there is a box to enter the password that you have deduced, and this is the equivalent of presenting a password in person to the guardian of a real pyramid, as it unlocks the prize straight away, and no-one else can then get it, just like collecting the gold coin from a real pyramid. This 'enter the password' box does therefore not, of course, occur for a real pyramid, just the virtual ones. There is no cost to enter your password in this box, just as there is no cost to present a password in person for a real pyramid, but there is a 30 day lockout if the guess is wrong.
The password checker (which comes up when you view the clue), on the other hand, is available for all pyramids, both real and virtual, as was originally provided as a means of avoiding a long trip to a real pyramid only to find that the password was wrong (on the basis that the cost of a password credit is less than the petrol cost for most people). For the virtual pyramids, it provides a means of avoiding the 30 day lockout if the password guess is wrong. Remember though, that if the password checker tells you that the password is correct, that doesn't in itself get you the prize, that is achieved by entering the password in 'Collect you reward' password box (virtual pyramids) or visiting the pyramid and presenting the password to the guardian (real pyramids).
You can think of the password checker as useful, but not essential, extra facility - you don't have to use it for either real or virtual pyramids.
I hope that makes things clearer!