The Past Unreal Passive
To discuss what would have been done if things had gone differently in your escape room, use the Past Unreal Passive. This expresses hypothetical, unrealized events in the past.
Place the Konjunktiv II form of sein (wäre or wären) in Position 2. At the end of the sentence, place the Past Participle of the main verb, followed immediately by the passive helper worden.
| Thanks to the teamwork, the first clue would have been found quickly. | Dank der Teamarbeit wäre der erste Hinweis schnell gefunden worden. |
To express by whom the action would have been done, use von + Dative. For an open question, place the conjugated wäre immediately after the question phrase.
| What kind of clue would have been discovered by you? | Was für ein Hinweis wäre von dir entdeckt worden? |
Negation and Plurals
A negative like nicht typically sits before the final verb cluster.
| This important clue would not have been overlooked. | Dieser wichtige Hinweis wäre nicht übersehen worden. |
Conjugate the helper verb to match the subject. Use wären for plural subjects.
| The red symbols on the wall would also not have been overlooked. | Die roten Symbole an der Wand wären auch nicht übersehen worden. |
Yes/No Questions
For a yes/no question, move the conjugated verb (wäre or wären) to Position 1. The two-part verb cluster stays exactly where it is at the end of the sentence.
| Would the code have been deciphered through our teamwork? | Wäre der Code durch unsere Teamarbeit entschlüsselt worden? |