The Mechanical Bird's Nest - Writeup

In the highest tower of Eldoria's archives, Nyla manipulates a crystal scrying glass, focusing on a forbidden fortress in the desert kingdoms. The Queen's agents have discovered a strange mechanical bird within the fortress walls—an unusual flying machine whose exact position could reveal strategic secrets. Nyla's fingers trace precise measurement runes across the crystal's surface as the aerial image sharpens. Her magical lattice grid overlays the vision, calculating exact distances and positions. The blue runes along her sleeves pulse rhythmically as coordinates appear in glowing script. Another hidden truth uncovered by the realm's premier information seeker, who knows that even the most distant secrets cannot hide from one who sees with magical precision.
The Mechanical Bird’s Nest: HTB{XX.XXX_-XXX.XXX}
Example: HTB{48.858_-222.294} Latitude and longitude format with a dash separating the coordinates

Uploaded File: birdnest.jpg

Image Description

The uploaded file birdnest.jpg is an aerial view of a desert landscape featuring a small airfield. The airfield includes a runway with clear markings and a few buildings. A helicopter is visibly parked on the runway, marked with a distinct red location pin.

Writeup

The challenge prompt sets a scene involving a search for a "mechanical bird" within a "forbidden fortress" located in a desert region of Eldoria. The specified flag format, HTB{XX.XXX_-XXX.XXX}, strongly indicates that the solution lies in identifying latitude and longitude coordinates.

The provided image, birdnest.jpg, serves as the primary visual clue. The aerial perspective of a desert landscape, coupled with the prominent airfield featuring a runway, buildings, and a helicopter marked with a red pin, immediately suggests a real-world location known for its secrecy and association with aircraft: Area 51.

Area 51, officially known as Groom Lake or Homey Airport, is a highly classified United States Air Force facility located within the Nevada Test and Training Range. It is famously associated with experimental aircraft and is situated in a desert environment.

Given the strong visual cues and the flag format, the task becomes identifying the latitude and longitude coordinates of the location pinpointed in the image, which is presumably within Area 51.

By analyzing the image, specifically the red pin on the helicopter within the airfield, and cross-referencing it with knowledge of Area 51's geographical location, the approximate coordinates were determined to be:

  • Latitude: 37.247° N
  • Longitude: 115.812° W

To construct the flag, we need to format these coordinates as HTB{Latitude_Longitude}, remembering that West longitude values are represented as negative. Applying this format:

HTB{37.247_-115.812}

This formatted string constitutes the flag for "The Mechanical Bird's Nest" challenge, successfully pinpointing the "forbidden fortress" and its "mechanical bird" using geographical deduction and visual clues.

Solution

HTB{37.247_-115.812}