I think I'm done (semi-rant)
I just solved the family core cipher puzzle and I came to the conclusion that I need to find the watering can, fill it with still water and use it on the blank books in the library, so I filled the watering can in the fountain, went to the library and nothing. I looked up the solution and found out that I can fill it in the still in the trading post, and still doesn't mean 'not moving'. And I just can't be bothered anymore.
The game started out really fun when I had a simple goal in mind with finding room 46, which very openly showed me that there were further mysteries to solve, with the sanctums and the 8 realms puzzle. And by the time I got close to them it had become really obvious that there was something I had to do with the throne room as well. It was a really nice progression where one thing lead to another and hints were dropped in the appropriate places.
I got really shafted on the castling puzzle because I had basically no incentive to do the puzzle again to get a new power. I felt like I needed the armory because getting new rooms had been one of the main ways to progress in the game so far, and I had no way of knowing when I was done with it. When I eventually felt like I hadn't done any meaningful progress for a very long time I just felt like switching it up and went back, and it clicked instantly. When I eventually ascended the throne it didn't feel all that great, I just felt "uh, finally".
Then I looked through my notes and realised that I wasn't done. The following puzzles were some of the most mind numbing puzzles I've done in the game. The main issue here was that I hadn't been able to unlock the blue tents until after I had unlocked the aries court, by which time I had so little left to do that stumbling on new memos wasn't really happening. I had to actually look for the appropriate rooms in order to find clues to progress. So instead of just drafting every blueprint on the 8th rank I just looked up all the memos and got some meaningful progression on the family core cipher.
Then, after managing to solve the cipher, I had to draft the gallery and then either the vault or the coat check. And if I got the coat check I had to get the coat check and the vault after that. Then when I finally get the vault open I got a note that after a lot of deliberation and some hints I got no less than 25 new numeric cores to solve, which after some trial and error lead me to the conclusion that I need to find the watering can, fill it with still water and then draft the library to stain the pages on the blank books. The watering can has been really elusive for me and I think after reaching day 138 I've seen it a total of less than 10 times. So finding it wasn't all that easy, even with the help of the green scepter and the blue king power (to draft the library). When I finally find it I realise that still water doesn't mean water that isn't moving but rather water from the still in the trading post I'm so late into my rin that I don't manage to draft either the trading post or a coat check. At this point I just decide to look up the solution to the remainder of the puzzle because I just don't care anymore. From where I am I first need to find the watering can, trading post and library in the same run, and preferably the coat check as well. If not then I will need to find the water can again and draft the trading post and coat check. Then I will need to draft the shrine and get the blessing of the monk, followed by the secret passage, then draft the secret passage as an outer room and find the coat check with my watering can, and then I will get to the last major puzzle of the game.
I realise I am very close to the end (for now), but I just can't be bothered with so many pieces that are more or less out of my control coming together. Even when I know the solution to the puzzle I have to rely a lot on the RNG of the game to progress, and if I am unlucky I have to find this godawful watering can even more times.
If the odds of finding the watering can was higher and if the blue tents were easier to unlock I feel like I wouldn't have lost steam the way I did. Anyway, I think this is my goodbye ro Blue Prince for now.