Expedition #10

2026-10-14 · five prompts, fully revealed. Prefer no spoilers? Use the hints pages instead.

Prompt 1 of 5

Pin a country that has landed a spacecraft safely on the Moon

Ruling note: Soviet landings count for every country that was part of the Soviet Union, Russia and the 14 others. A crash does not count, so Israel misses, and nor does a rover lost on another country’s lander.

Gem note: Japan became the fifth, in January 2024. Its lander came down on its nose and still sent pictures home.

19 accepted answers
Country	Tier	Pick share
United States	Common	69.4%
Russia	Uncommon	17.3%
China	Rare	6.9%
India	Elusive	1.7%
Kazakhstan	Elusive	0.7%
Japan	Farflung	0.6%
Ukraine	Elusive	0.6%
Armenia	Elusive	0.2%
Azerbaijan	Elusive	0.2%
Belarus	Elusive	0.2%
Estonia	Elusive	0.2%
Georgia	Elusive	0.2%
Kyrgyzstan	Elusive	0.2%
Lithuania	Elusive	0.2%
Latvia	Elusive	0.2%
Moldova	Elusive	0.2%
Tajikistan	Elusive	0.2%
Turkmenistan	Elusive	0.2%
Uzbekistan	Elusive	0.2%

Prompt 2 of 5

Pin a country in BRICS

Ruling note: Saudi Arabia counts: BRICS lists it as a member, though it has never confirmed. Partners such as Nigeria and Malaysia do not.

Gem note: Ethiopia joined in 2024, in the group’s first big expansion. It is the only member with no coastline.

11 accepted answers
Country	Tier	Pick share
Brazil	Common	36.8%
China	Uncommon	17.2%
Russia	Uncommon	17.2%
India	Rare	8%
South Africa	Rare	8%
Iran	Rare	3.7%
Egypt	Rare	3.1%
United Arab Emirates	Elusive	1.8%
Indonesia	Elusive	1.8%
Saudi Arabia	Elusive	1.8%
Ethiopia	Farflung	0.6%

Prompt 3 of 5

Pin a country whose name has a double letter (the same letter twice in a row)

Ruling note: The country’s English name, as the map labels it or as its official name, so Brunei Darussalam counts for Brunei and the Swiss Confederation for Switzerland. Letters either side of a space or hyphen count too, so Antigua and Barbuda and the Co-operative Republic of Guyana do. A part’s name, like Greenland’s, does not count for its country. Japan is on the list only because the card didn’t say English, so pins on it for Nippon keep their points.

Gem note: Kit was an old short form of Christopher, so St Christopher’s Island became Saint Kitts, double T and all.

20 accepted answers
Country	Tier	Pick share
Russia	Common	35.8%
Greece	Uncommon	16.7%
Philippines	Uncommon	14.3%
Morocco	Rare	7.2%
Cameroon	Rare	6%
Sierra Leone	Rare	4.8%
Andorra	Rare	3.6%
Guinea-Bissau	Elusive	1.8%
Seychelles	Elusive	1.8%
Marshall Islands	Elusive	1.4%
Bosnia and Herzegovina	Elusive	1.2%
Japan	Elusive	1.2%
Australia	Elusive	1%
Switzerland	Elusive	0.7%
Antigua and Barbuda	Elusive	0.6%
Brunei	Elusive	0.6%
Saint Kitts and Nevis	Farflung	0.6%
Bahamas	Elusive	0.4%
Dominica	Elusive	0.4%
Guyana	Elusive	0.2%

Prompt 4 of 5

Pin a country a player has won the World Chess Championship for

Ruling note: The country a champion played for. Soviet champions count for Russia, and Tigran Petrosian for Armenia and Mikhail Tal for Latvia too. Georgia counts as an exception, for the Soviet Georgian women's world champions Nona Gaprindashvili and Maia Chiburdanidze. The blitz title is a separate event.

Gem note: From 1993 to 2006 the title was split in two. Rustam Kasimdzhanov won FIDE’s championship in 2004, ahead of far bigger names.

16 accepted answers
Country	Tier	Pick share
Russia	Common	42.6%
Norway	Uncommon	14.9%
United States	Uncommon	12.8%
India	Rare	7.5%
China	Rare	5.3%
Cuba	Rare	3.2%
Germany	Rare	3.2%
Netherlands	Rare	2.7%
Austria	Elusive	1.3%
Bulgaria	Elusive	1.3%
France	Elusive	1.3%
Ukraine	Elusive	1.3%
Georgia	Elusive	0.9%
Latvia	Elusive	0.9%
Armenia	Elusive	0.5%
Uzbekistan	Farflung	0.5%

Prompt 5 of 5

Pin a country with one of the world’s ten tallest buildings

Ruling note: Finished buildings, measured to the top of the structure. Taipei 101 is now eleventh. Towers such as Tokyo Skytree are not buildings.

Gem note: Lotte World Tower in Seoul, finished in 2017, is the sixth tallest building in the world, ahead of the tallest in New York.

6 accepted answers
Country	Tier	Pick share
United States	Common	59.5%
China	Uncommon	17.9%
United Arab Emirates	Uncommon	14.3%
Malaysia	Rare	6%
Saudi Arabia	Elusive	1.8%
South Korea	Farflung	0.6%