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News Station Broadcast on Verces after Raid

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Note in Zarahya's Encyclopedia of Eldritch Happenings

The page is in a section on rituals. This specific page denotes the concept of a ritual for creating descendants of Yog-Sothoth, though it does not say how to do so. It notes Nug and Yeb as Yog-Sothoth’s direct children and the creation of their offspring as being “influenced by Yog-Sothoth.”

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Tabs' Information Channels

While in Jularaz's mountain camp on Vesk-3, Tabs collected sentimental items from some of the soldier's tents, took pictures, and sent them to her contacts, to gain information about the Vesk working here.

While in the caves, Tabs and Godeki came across a dead Skittermander. Tabs took a picture and sent it to her contacts.

Recently, Jularaz's cousin, Rishivon, was assassinated at the resort city on planet, Tiztiet, apparently mistaken for Jularaz, since he was in his suite and wearing his armor. After a conversation with the group, Tabs wonders how and why Rishivon was in this situation. She reaches out to her contacts for answers (offering a 1,000 credit incentive to be quick and thorough).

The following is the results of her information channels' findings:

Soldiers at the Camp

Of the 12 soldiers you were able to pull sentimental items for, every single one on has a perfectly clean record and no outstanding military deeds. No headlines, no mentions, and a mid- to non-existent social media presence (rarely post their locations and tend to repost rather than sharing about themselves. 2 of them have posted images of their families, most of them have family members as their friends/followers).

They are all related, though sometimes distantly, to mid- to high level officers of Vesk-8 command.

The most information comes about the following people:

Usdash “Catdragger” is a 24 year old male with a wife, Obatva “Skullshaker”, and 5-year old daughter, Obadash (photograph of the 3 of them found in his tent). The rest of Obadash’s clutch were submitted to the Veskarium Academies of Military Excellence.*

Asoti "Stormrider" is a middle-aged woman and pilot of little note, but the fact that she and two of her clutchmates, a brother (Yroti "Beastmangler") and sister (Asvava "Two-Barrels") all grew up training together and now work together in the same unit is somewhat unusual in the Veskarium military system. Their other clutchmates, and any subsequent clutches their parents had, were all submitted to the Veskarium Academies of Military Excellence.*

Drurdit "Softstepper" is the unremarkable grandchild of Abebi "Suddenstep," a Vesk-8 officer known for biding his time and making what appear to be sudden moves of violence and political undermining that heighten his standing. Until his retirement 3 years ago, he served as one of Jularaz's personal advisors. His iconic 'old-fashioned' pocketclock was given to his 16 year old grandchild, Drurdit, at that time (this is the pocketwatch Tabs found).

Brazna "The Fervent" & Zravin "Ghosttalker" are a thirty-something wife duo who are known for "asking the right questions and incentivizing answers." They have been working to gain clout and prestige, moving up through the ranks from Vesk-8 soldiers to high officers, and it is rumored they are attempting to achieve stations as High Inquisitors of the Veskarium Council.

*Veskarium Academies of Military Excellence (VAME): An elitist community of educational facilities for Vesk youth to be fully embedded in Vesk culture, including strong military and government training. Most Vesk send all or most of the children in their clutches to these academies, in the hopes of giving them a chance at prestige, as Vesk cannot sustain high-status through family ties alone. Based on their aptitudes, they are placed in certain sectors to train for given ranks and political positions.

You know that Vesk families considered “at-risk” of not achieving military and political prowess tend to be legally required to submit their very young children to VAME’s Child Protection and Devotion Program, “to reintegrate them into their ancestral culture and set them up for success.” Children taken through this program tend to be placed in one of the following schools in the VAME: School of Civil Affairs, School of Military Systems (Computers), Infantry Career Center, Center for Mechanic Mastery (Engineering and Vehicle Specialization)

Dead Skittermander

His name is Gurv-Ceissax and he was a scholar of Vesk-3 history, particularly of Skittermander culture across regions, as well as the influences between Skittermander and Vesk customs.

He’s best known for his ability to discern and translate all dialects and hand signals of Skittermanders across the different regions of the planet and throughout time. He recently had some public traction after translating an old book found underneath a house that burned down in Morandomandrana.

Rishivon, Jularaz's Cousin

Among certain circles, Rishivon is a known double for Jularaz during political events, often switching out right before Jularaz makes an entrance to the main event. They look very similar, though Rishivon typically has a softer demeanor and is less serious, but he plays the part when impersonating his cousin.

Jularaz's armor has become an iconic piece of his look and people expect to see him in it, especially at political and military events. This has made it easy to sub in his cousin, as they just trade armor when needed. Typically, the high despot is also on location; it is irregular for him to be far away doing something else.

Julakamitali, one of Jularaz's brothers and his second-in-command, has spoken out this morning in an official InfoConference on behalf of Vesk-8 and his brother: "Rest assured that Jularaz is in a safehouse until the assassin or assassins can be identified and officials are prepared to escort him at that time."

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Datapad from Dead Lashunta Woman

Her body found in a side chamber with several other bodies and bones; dead less than week, her armor chewed by ferrofluid oozes, this lashunta woman is familiar to Godeki and Corvis.

It's Shesryn, one of the woman from the alley of Morandomandra who was attacking Evakoyo, the information broker.

The group collected her datapad and was able to hack into it's basic functions. The following could be found:

Texts: In Castrovelian, but translated to Common by phone settings: Nothing of note between any of the text chains she has, except the first chain with Kosori (BELOW). There are some “decided to camp a little longer” type texts, but mostly what you would expect texts between family and friends to look like. Lots of emojis. You can take time to decipher them if you really want, but after the first one or two you would realize they are just too be excessively cute or they are silly nonsense.

Older messages between her and Kosori show a close friendship between them, including a casual and personal text chain that goes back over a decade and many photos sent back and forth, sometimes with the other person in them and other times alone or with others, or of “random” things. They appear to do some work together, as well, as some of their back and forths are more professional and about specific research or locations. 

She has several missed calls from Kosori and a few other people.

Photos:

Several pictures of her and Kosori, herself, and a few other friends and family.

Different buildings, areas, objects, art, and written works in several different styles and languages, many (but not all) of which are indiscernible to you. You know this is what happens when you try to read or interpret anything from the time of The Gap. 

Lots of maps of different biomes with markings designating spots she has visited or intends to visit

Some files regarding translations/decoding. One appears to be a quick reference of some kind and includes word translations for symbols, shapes, and word phrases.

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From the Desk of Jularaz

Blueprints and photocopies of very old maps, blueprints, and journal entries regarding a lost city in the mountains. Based on these, the lost city is just south of the entrance to the caves near Jularaz's camp.

There are also some accounting-like documents for Vesk 8 that appear to be unofficial money movement. As for who or what, there are just letters: S, W, I, O, R, E .

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Gazigaz's translation of the old letter Corvis found a photocopy of in Vesk-8 High Despot Jularez' command tent.

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Here you can review your character's knowledge about The Veskarium's planets and political structures.

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Gamblers of The Hunt

//The following is a list of names purchased from the bookie, Goroka, by El'Zarayah, on behalf of Corvis//

The document shows all the people who have placed bets with Goroka, regarding The Hunt. It is written mostly in a gel-y purple ink and set up like a table.

There are three columns. Each row lists a name, followed by two numbers. The first set of numbers range from one to three digits, the highest being 120. The second set are mostly all single digit, except for a few, the highest being 11.

The names have some differences among them in how they are written, such as in slightly bluer ink, cursive, or all caps. Some also have markings near them, like drawn ticks or oil spots.

This system will need to be decoded

-The first set of numbers represent how much they bet, to the thousands place (i.e. 1 = 1,000)

-The second set of numbers represents what they bet on. It's how many creatures they believe they can kill.

-The markings represent groupings. They are hunting groups who have either bet together or against each other. The direction a tick goes suggests if it's "with" or "against." - There are dots up the left side of the paper that seem to indicate another grouping. These may be the number of days they intend to hunt and keep the bet.

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Burn After Reading

Comparision

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One Scary Story to Read in the Dark

One cold, spring night, on the outskirts of Ewagadrovana, a woman birthed a clutch of seven whelps, each a different color. Shivering, the woman headed back toward her home deep in the city. The clutch mates laid upon each other for warmth, an array of livid gray, byzantium purple, electric blue, emerald green, golden yellow, squash orange, vermilion red, and snow white 

The next morning, fur glossy from dew, the whelps wandered away from each other, their second mouths rooting and biting among the nearby flora, sometimes finding a thick and juicy grozgril or beetle to sate their hunger. That is, all but one whelp. A blob of pure white had found an opening in the mountain rock and was wriggling his way into the crack, trying to push it wider with his second set of arms.

His yellow brethren came over and tried to pull him free from the crack. The fur on all six golden arms stood straight up, and all across his head and back, and he tried harder to pull the other away. After a struggle between them and the white whelp’s refusal of the yellow’s plant offering, the skittermander youths went back to their own doings. The yellow whelp felt sick in his stomach all day and chewed grasses with both mouths, watching the white whelp from the sides of his eyes, as the other creature scurried around trying to find a way into the mountain, never looking for food. Their six clutchmates wandered all about, eating up anything of interest and tumbling around together. The white whelp ate nothing and traveled far along the slope, looking for a way into the mountain. 

When night fell again, the clutch came together to sleep, plump from feasting. Except for the snowy sibling, who looked small and fuzzy beside his clutchmates. The yellow whelp slept far from him. 

When they awoke, the clutch was ravenous with hunger and razed the land quickly across the mountainside, traveling far as the sun progressed across the sky, filling their gaunt bodies with nutrient. All but the white whelp, who woke up round and shiny-eyed. He wandered with curiosity along the rocky wall in the opposite direction of the day before and quickly the rest of the whelps were far ahead of him, but that night, when they came together for warmth and sleep, he was among them. The yellow whelp laid far from him, just as he had the night before. He watched the white whelp for awhile, the brother fast asleep and breathing in sync with the rest of the sleeping clutch. 

The third day passed much the same, except that the white whelp was not among them when they woke and did not return when night came again. As the clutch huddled together to sleep, a high keening sound fell upon them from higher up the mountain. All of their fur lifted from resting on their bodies and pointed straight up. The clutch writhed and squawked, the sensation unfamiliar and unsettling on their skin. They bit at each other and scratched at their skin, a few drawing a small amount of blood. Not much, but enough to change the smell of the air. When all of their fur had finally settled, so did their bodies, but the atmosphere was still agitated. They fell fitfully into sleep.

The yellow whelp did not remember closing his eyes, but now he was waking. In a sleep daze, he noticed that the air felt hot and the ground wet, and though this young whelp did not know what those things were or what they meant, he felt and noticed them all the same. As he became to wake up more fully, the darkness seemed to deepen, rather than his eyes adjusting to the limited light. 

Curious, he sat up more fully. Before him stood a creature so tall and large that the clutchmates below sat beneath its four thick legs without brushing the abdomen. It was sleek, with short fur that laid flat to its body, except the face, where fur tufts circled the head like a mane. All four of its arms were holding a thing tightly in place against its chest. Just below that wriggled a thick tendril coming out of its abdomen. It seemed to also be attached to the thing on its chest. Another long moment passed and then the creature dropped the thing to ground beneath his feet and the yellow whelp saw for the first time that is one of his clutchmates. Indeed, all of the clutchmates below the creature looked the same, limp and emaciated. They did not move at all as the creature bent down and picked up the green whelp, still sleeping beside her yellow brother. The tendril attached itself to her back and the giant being pulled her toward its chest. 

In a quick moment, many things happened. The yellow whelp jumped up and bit down hard on the tendril. The monster snarled and dropped the green whelp, in the same motion grabbing the yellow whelp, slashing at him and stomping upon him as he continued to bite. He felt some flesh rip away, heavy in his mouth, and the bloodied yellow whelp fell to the ground, under the hateful paws of the monster. He felt the bite of the tendril and his weakness grew. One last time he looked up at the creature, From here, without the creature blocking the moonlight, he could see that its fur was pure white. 

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Excerpt from "The Tourist's Guide to Vesk-3"

While hunting Strovion is very common in the north end of Aberanderen, as it is where the creatures are most often located, the area is also well trafficked by visitors who simply wish to see the mountain sights. See the next chapter for more information on the overall area. Still, the most popular reason to visit the northern country and the city of Ewagadrovona is the underground cavern world of Gadraveech. 

There are several lodges near Ewagadrovona that visitors and locals with interest in Gadraveech regularly use. Some provide historical tours, most provide hunting tours, and the smallest ones simply provide a shelter for multi-day hunters to be able to rest Topside. 

Please see Appendix G for a full list of available lodgings, including hotels and campgrounds across Vesk-3. While there are several hunting lodges, the three we mention here in this book are our highest recommendations, due to their officiality, reputable business practices, and low incident ratings.

Gadraveech Tours is the oldest and largest commercial hunting lodge. It was the first of its kind and has grown in size and reputation for the last 70+ years. Regularly sold out of rooms weeks in advance, the company still accepts hunter registrations and provides tour guides for any hunting group, including non-guests.

Gadraveech Rim is a recent, but well-known spot closeby, about a ½ day from the city of Ewagadravona. This lodge opened up in 330AG after Magnitude 6 Earthquakes opened a new fissure that descends down into Gadraveech. As of the writing of this book (340AG), there have been no confirmed connecting caverns between the previously-known Gadraveech and the caverns discovered within the fissure. Still, many people visit the location to see the phenomenon and tour the caverns. More adventurous sorts have begun to map the area and explore deeper, hoping to discover new connections. 

Cave Encounters is a casual lodge, largely trafficked by Veskarium-official hunters and cartographers, as well as adventurous off-worlders who seek to find and destroy the great monsters that live beneath Vesk-3. There are no official tour guides. There are emergency services on demand. 

Each of these lodges has something to offer, depending on what kind of trip you are looking for: from high-end luxury to bivouacking. Unofficially, highly skilled and courageous hunters have been known to camp independently. This is not generally recommended and typically requires a Veskarium-Grade Class F license within 80kilometers of Gadraveech. 

Many believe that Strovion only exist in the caverns below the planet, but more and more sightings have been reported on the mountains, as well as in the nearby forests. Tour group or not, camp with care and keep any meat stores high in trees away from where you sleep. 

Ewagadrovona and the surrounding area, truly the entirety of Vesk-3, has much to offer the curious traveler. In the next chapter, we will take a look at some scenic areas to visit and the wildlife you can expect. In a later chapter, you will also get an introduction to the culture and history of the planet’s natives, the Skittermander.