Magic Sort level guide
Magic Sort Level 398 Walkthrough
Magic Sort Level 398 is a three-tier, twelve-bottle release-and-route board with six tall red-capped corked gift boxes in the top and bottom rows (T1-T3 and B1-B3), a small narrow mystery bottle with a '?' cap parked at B4 pre-loaded with pink over purple, and a middle row built around the M3 four-color mixer (yellow-red-blue-pink) plus the M1, M2 wide empty buffers and the T4, M4 small near-empty flankers. Pop all six caps in one quick wave using the M3 peeled yellow, red, blue and pink tops first so the six revealed single-color bottles drop into the T1-T3 and B1-B3 slots, drain the B4 mystery bottle by peeling its pink top onto a matching pink destination and its purple base onto a matching purple destination, then route every revealed color through the three starting buffers (M1, M2 and T4) and top off the eight colors (red, yellow, blue, pink, purple, orange, green, cyan) so the board ends with eight full single-color lanes plus four leftover empties.
If the player asks you to sign in, open the video on YouTube instead.
How to Solve Magic Sort Level 398 — Full Solution
- Pour M3's yellow top onto M1 to start the yellow lane, pour M3's red top onto M2 to start the red lane, pour M3's blue top onto the freed T1 gift-box slot so the first cap pops and a revealed single-color bottle drops into T1, then pour M3's pink top onto the freed T2 gift-box slot so the second cap pops.
- Pop the third top-row cap by pouring any other clean top onto T3 so a third revealed single-color bottle drops into T3, then pop the three bottom-row caps B1, B2, B3 in the same quick wave using the freshly-revealed tops or any other clean top so the six gift-box slots now hold six revealed single-color bottles.
- Peel the B4 mystery bottle's pink top onto a matching pink destination (one of the freed gift-box slots or the parked pink from step 1) so the pink lane begins to bank, then peel the B4 purple base onto a matching purple destination so the mystery bottle collapses into a working empty.
- Drain the M3 mixer (now down to whatever base color remains) by pouring the exposed top onto a matching lane so M3 collapses into a working empty.
- Use the freed T4 and M4 small narrow buffers, the M1 and M2 wide buffers, and the now-empty T1, T2, T3, B1, B2, B3 gift-box slots as scratch buffers to split the remaining two-color segments that surface from the revealed gift-box bottles, keep every working buffer single-color, and never pour two different colors into the same buffer.
- Top off the eight colors (red, yellow, blue, pink, purple, orange, green, cyan) so the board ends with eight full single-color lanes plus four leftover empties, and make sure the last cleared empty is the slot that finishes empty.
Colors in this level:
Red, Yellow, Blue, Pink, Purple, Orange, Green, Cyan
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Pouring a non-matching color onto any of the six red caps, which still breaks the cap but strands the wrong color on top of the revealed bottle and costs an extra pour to clear before the bottle can join the sort.
- Adding any third color to the B4 mystery bottle, which is already pre-loaded with pink over purple and locks into an unusable three-color mix if a third color is added.
- Popping the caps one at a time instead of in one quick wave, which leaves the later caps behind revealed bottles that have no path for the next cap-pour.
Quick Tips for Magic Sort Level 398 (spoiler-free)
- Pop all six red caps in one quick wave using the M3 peeled yellow, red, blue and pink tops first so the six revealed single-color bottles all land in working slots before any non-matching top is poured.
- Drain the B4 mystery bottle by peeling its pink top onto a matching pink destination and its purple base onto a matching purple destination, since adding any third color to a pre-loaded pink-purple bottle strands the pour and locks the bottle.
- Keep every working buffer single-color — never pour two different colors into the same M1, M2 or T4 buffer or the cap-opening wave strands and the rest of the run stalls.
Board notes 5 details
- Layout
- A three-tier, four-column board (twelve bottle positions) whose headline feature is six tall red-capped corked gift boxes — three filling the top row T1, T2, T3 and three filling the bottom row B1, B2, B3. The fourth top-row slot T4 holds a small narrow near-empty flask with no starting color, the fourth bottom-row slot B4 holds a small narrow mystery bottle marked with a glowing '?' cap and pre-loaded with pink over purple. The middle row carries the bulk of the work: M1 is a wide black empty buffer flask, M2 is another wide black empty buffer flask, M3 is the tall four-color mixer (yellow over red over blue over pink, top to bottom), and M4 is a small narrow near-empty flask mirroring T4. There are three starting empty buffers (M1, M2 and T4, with M4 also near-empty and the B4 mystery bottle counted as a special tile rather than a true buffer), the six tall red gift boxes are the dominant special tile, the B4 mystery bottle is the second special tile, and there are no frozen, wooden-vault, lock or wrap tiles. The most visually dominant starter is the unbroken six-pack of tall red gift boxes (three across the top, three across the bottom), and the second most dominant starter is the B4 mystery bottle with its '?' cap parked at the bottom-right corner of the board.
- Goal
- Drain the M3 four-color mixer top-first to free the M1 and M2 wide empties and the T4, M4 small flankers as scratch space, then pop all six tall red gift boxes in one quick wave using the peeled tops so the released single-color bottles land in working slots. The chokepoint is the cap-opening wave — the six red caps have to be popped in one quick burst so the released single-color bottles land in working slots, and any cap opened onto a non-matching top strands the wrong color on top of the revealed bottle. The second chokepoint is the B4 mystery bottle: it starts pre-loaded with pink over purple (already a two-color mix), so it cannot be used as a flexible overflow and has to be drained by peeling its pink top onto a matching pink destination and its purple base onto a matching purple destination, or its content strands across the rest of the sort.
- Opening
- Start by peeling the M3 four-color mixer top-first: pour M3's yellow onto M1 to start the yellow lane, pour M3's red onto M2 to start the red lane, pour M3's blue onto the freed T1 gift-box slot so the first cap pops and a revealed single-color bottle drops into T1, and pour M3's pink onto the freed T2 gift-box slot so the second cap pops. Pop the third top-row cap by pouring any other clean top onto T3, then pop the three bottom-row caps B1, B2, B3 in the same quick wave using the freshly-revealed tops or any other clean top, so the six gift-box slots now hold six revealed single-color bottles.
- Danger Zone
- Pouring a non-matching color onto any of the six red caps still breaks the cap (the gift box pops on any pour) but strands the wrong color on top of the revealed bottle, which then needs an extra pour to clear before the bottle can join the sort. The B4 mystery bottle is already pre-loaded with pink over purple, so adding any third color to it strands the pour and locks the bottle with an unusable three-color mix. The M1 and M2 wide empty buffers are the only true wide empties in the middle row, and burning either on a mismatched cap-pour before a yellow or red lane exists at M1 or M2 strands the first home and the rest of the run stalls. The six caps also have to be popped in one wave — pop one or two caps first and the later caps at T2, T3, B1, B2 or B3 end up behind revealed bottles that have no path for the next cap-pour.
- Mechanics
- A three-tier, twelve-bottle release-and-route board whose only special tile types are the six tall red-capped corked gift boxes in the top and bottom rows (T1-T3 and B1-B3) and the small narrow mystery bottle with the '?' cap parked at B4. Each gift box is a tall, decorated four-segment red flask with a small red cap and a small bow on top, sealed until any color segment is poured onto the cap, at which point the gift box opens with confetti and a hidden single-color bottle drops into the slot. The chokepoint is cap-opening wave plus mystery-bottle discipline: pop all six caps in one quick wave using the M3 peeled yellow, red, blue and pink tops first, then drain the B4 mystery bottle's pink over purple by peeling pink onto a matching pink lane and purple onto a matching purple lane, then route every revealed color through the three starting buffers (M1, M2 and T4) and top off the eight colors (red, yellow, blue, pink, purple, orange, green, cyan) so the board ends with eight full single-color lanes plus four leftover empties.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the first pour in Magic Sort Level 398?
Pour M3's yellow top onto M1 to start the yellow lane, pour M3's red top onto M2 to start the red lane, pour M3's blue top onto the freed T1 gift-box slot so the first cap pops and a revealed single-color bottle drops into T1, then pour M3's pink top onto the freed T2 gift-box slot so the second cap pops. The M3 four-color mixer has to be peeled top-first, and each peeled top is the cleanest way to start the cap-popping wave since the gift boxes break on any color pour.
How does the small narrow mystery bottle at B4 work in Magic Sort Level 398?
The B4 small narrow mystery bottle is marked with a '?' cap and is pre-loaded with pink over purple, so it is already a two-color mix and cannot be used as a flexible overflow. Drain it by peeling its pink top onto a matching pink destination and its purple base onto a matching purple destination, because adding any third color to a pre-loaded pink-purple bottle strands the pour and locks the bottle with an unusable three-color mix.
Why pop all six red caps in one quick wave in Level 398?
The six red caps have to be popped in one quick wave using tops from the M3 peeled yellow, red, blue and pink plus any other clean top, so the six revealed single-color bottles all land in working slots before any non-matching top is poured. Popping the caps one at a time leaves the later caps behind revealed bottles that have no path for the next cap-pour, which strands the rest of the run.