Researchers Crack Code of Vvaraak
By Dorius Del Davandi
SHARN — A Morgrave University team led by Antiquities Professor Casimir ir'Tannan announced on Wir that they've decoded the Code of Vvaraak, a puzzle that has fascinated cryptographers, linguists, and historians for decades.
The Code, created more than five thousand years ago by a dragon named Vvaraak, is found on inscriptions in ruins across Khorvaire.
"The characters and symbols in the code correspond to no known ancient language," ir'Tannan said. "But we thought we recognized some patterns in the syntax — the order in which the symbols were strung together."
The key to cracking the code, ir'Tannan said, was accumulating Khorvaire's largest collection of Vvaraak antiquities. Morgrave University used its own researchers, expeditions from the Wayfarer Foundation, and independent explorers to copy or acquire examples of Vvaraak's inscriptions.
"If you're going to decrypt something, it's important to get the largest sample you can," ir'Tannan said. Vvaraak's inscriptions can be found on ruins across Khorvaire, ir'Tannan said. The Lost City of Harad-Nui off the Qbarran coast, the ruined Mines of Blazegold in the Mror Holds, and the Seals of Aal'drash in the Shadow Marches have extensive examples of the Code of Vvaraak.
One remaining puzzle: Why the Code of Vvaraak resisted divination magic.
"We employed all sorts of divinations, but even efforts to commune or contact other plane didn't get us anywhere," ir'Tannan said. "In the end, it came down to a lot of brute-force cryptography and the extraordinary ingenuity of my team."
The team's findings, along with a complete lexicon for the Code of Vvaraak, will be published over the next several months, ir'Tannan said.
"Just as we're standing on the shoulders of great historians who came before us, I hope that our discoveries inspire the next generation of students," ir'Tannan said.
But reaction from the academic community was mixed. Athuran Happlestep, history professor emeritus at the University of Korranberg, called the effort to decrypt the Code of Vvaraak "typical Morgave irresponsibility."
"We know so little of Vvaraak, but we do know this: It trapped or killed a lot of strange monsters from far-off dimensions," he said. "Now that anyone can read Vvaraak's inscriptions, what's to keep tomb robbers from opening a bunch of mystic seals and unleashing horrors that the world hasn't seen for thousands of years?"
Sharn Guard Breaks Mysterious Cult; 18 Dead
SHARN—Four members of the Sharn Guard and fourteen suspected members of a cult are dead after a pitched battle in the Northedge district of Longstairs on Far.
A lead in an ongoing kidnapping investigation led authorities to an apartment tower on Ten Drums Street on Far morning, said watch sergeant Urdren Vannti. Upon entering the tower, the Watch was beset by human and dwarven cultists shouting nonsensical slogans and brandishing spears and daggers.
The Watch briefly retreated until three squads of reinforcements arrived, Vannti said, then reentered the tower and engaged the cultists. The cultists began to display signs of magical taint—purplish, veinal growths on their limbs as they fought. Some cultists immolated themselves and nearby combatants, exploding with a fire from within. “Once these guys started to explode, we got out of the tower in case it caught fire,” Vannti said. “We heard a series of booms—maybe more cultists exploding—then everything was quiet.”
Inside the tower were the badly burned bodies of the cult members. None survived and none attempted to flee the building, Vannti said.
Little is known about the cultists, Vannti said. “We’re searching the apartment tower, and until that’s done, we don’t have much to go on,” he said. “They didn’t identify themselves, at least not in a coherent way. Just a lot of shouting about Xoriat and Thoon, whatever that is.”
Identities of the slain Sharn Guard are withheld pending notification of family. Establishing the identities of the cult members is an ongoing process made difficult by the poor quality of the remains, Vannti said.
The Blackened Book branch of the Sharn Watch will likely lead the ongoing cult investigation starting tomorrow, Vannti said. The Sword Point garrison will retain a lead role in the kidnapping case that uncovered the cult in the first place, he said.
