Forgotten passcode

Hi

I've forgotten my passcode for my new iPad Air 2.

I've recently downloaded the latest iOS, but not connected to iTunes for a while (i'm connected to iCloud so back up from there). For a while I couldn't get past the 'you are not connected to the internet' message (although I was).

I've additionally removed the iPad from find my iPhone (in an attempt to clear it and restore factory defaults).

None of these fixes have worked.

Please help. I'm currently 9 hours in from when I first tried to recover my passcode and if anyone could keep a lookout for my will to live I'd appreciate it.