Dagon Files

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Welcome, Seeker of Forbidden Knowledge, to Tuesday's puzzle, week 18 of the year 2026. (Simpler puzzle) and (Harder puzzle)

The Case Of The Pair Of Circular Burns.

You have stumbled upon The Dagon Files, a cryptic corner of the web where reality frays and reason falters. Here, beneath shifting sigils and whispering images, ancient puzzles lie in wait—twisting enigmas born from the depths of forgotten tomes and cosmic dread. Each riddle you solve draws you deeper into a truth not meant for mortal minds.

But beware: not all doors should be opened. And some answers… change you.

Begin, if you dare…

Suspects/Weapons/Locations/Motives

Director

grid [D]

Dr. Theodore Blackwood

height: 5' 8"

brown eyes

right handed

azatoth cultist

Nurse

grid [N]

Evelyn Marsh

height: 5' 7"

gray eyes

right handed

deep-ones cultist

Chaplain

grid [F]

Malachai Grady

height: 5' 10"

blue eyes

left handed

nyarlathotep cultist

Librarian

grid [G]

Miriam Vale

height: 5' 5"

gray eyes

left handed

necronomicon cultist

Detective

grid [I]

Elias Crane

height: 6' 1"

blue eyes

right handed

yog-sothoth cultist

Electroshock Machine

grid [E]

The voltage seems to be set to an imaginary number.

Sometimes leaves a trace of a pair of circular burns.

Lobotomy Pick

grid [L]

Classic asylum tool; missing from the locked surgical suite.

Sometimes leaves a trace of a calm feeling.

Bone Stylus

grid [B]

Multi-use, first as a puncture weapon, then for carving runes on the victim's body

Sometimes leaves a trace of a set of incised runes.

Graven Scalpel

grid [G]

Ordinary medical scalpel, but engraved with glyphs which shimmer as if moonlit.

Sometimes leaves a trace of a row of transverse incisions.

Restraint Strap

grid [R]

Frayed leather strap from a patient bed. The right length for strangulation.

Sometimes leaves a trace of a set of constriction bruises.

Greenhouse

grid [G]

A greenhouse with hanging vines which seem to cling as they touch you. Some rows of unearthly plants grow in the farther corners.

It has been described as a graveyard of misguided, botanical experiments.

Indoors

Area has been blessed or warded by some cult.

Electroshock Theater

grid [E]

Leather-strapped chairs with cables snaking to control panels mounted on yellowed, ceramic walls.

It has been described as a smell of ozone.

Indoors

Area has been blessed or warded by some cult.

Unnatural Cavern

grid [C]

An ancient, natural cavern beneath the asylum said to have influenced the choice of the site. The stones still thirst.

It has been described as an echo of ancient ritual.

Indoors

Area has been blessed or warded by some cult.

Hydrotherapy Chamber

grid [H]

A plain white, tiled room with a row of metal baths; each equipped with manacles.

It has been described as a sound of gurgling screams.

Indoors

Area has been blessed or warded by some cult.

Underground Archive

grid [U]

Forbidden section beneath the main building. Fire-damaged, moldy. Holds secret patient records, and banned books, from Miskatonic U.

It has been described as a maze of filing cabinets.

Indoors

No warding found here.

Suspects/Weapons/Locations/Motives

Director

grid [D]

Dr. Theodore Blackwood

height: 5' 8"

brown eyes

right handed

azatoth cultist

Nurse

grid [N]

Evelyn Marsh

height: 5' 7"

gray eyes

right handed

deep-ones cultist

Chaplain

grid [F]

Malachai Grady

height: 5' 10"

blue eyes

left handed

nyarlathotep cultist

Librarian

grid [G]

Miriam Vale

height: 5' 5"

gray eyes

left handed

necronomicon cultist

Detective

grid [I]

Elias Crane

height: 6' 1"

blue eyes

right handed

yog-sothoth cultist

Electroshock Machine

grid [E]

The voltage seems to be set to an imaginary number.

Sometimes leaves a trace of a pair of circular burns.

Lobotomy Pick

grid [L]

Classic asylum tool; missing from the locked surgical suite.

Sometimes leaves a trace of a calm feeling.

Bone Stylus

grid [B]

Multi-use, first as a puncture weapon, then for carving runes on the victim's body

Sometimes leaves a trace of a set of incised runes.

Graven Scalpel

grid [G]

Ordinary medical scalpel, but engraved with glyphs which shimmer as if moonlit.

Sometimes leaves a trace of a row of transverse incisions.

Restraint Strap

grid [R]

Frayed leather strap from a patient bed. The right length for strangulation.

Sometimes leaves a trace of a set of constriction bruises.

Greenhouse

grid [G]

A greenhouse with hanging vines which seem to cling as they touch you. Some rows of unearthly plants grow in the farther corners.

It has been described as a graveyard of misguided, botanical experiments.

Indoors

Area has been blessed or warded by some cult.

Electroshock Theater

grid [E]

Leather-strapped chairs with cables snaking to control panels mounted on yellowed, ceramic walls.

It has been described as a smell of ozone.

Indoors

Area has been blessed or warded by some cult.

Unnatural Cavern

grid [C]

An ancient, natural cavern beneath the asylum said to have influenced the choice of the site. The stones still thirst.

It has been described as an echo of ancient ritual.

Indoors

Area has been blessed or warded by some cult.

Hydrotherapy Chamber

grid [H]

A plain white, tiled room with a row of metal baths; each equipped with manacles.

It has been described as a sound of gurgling screams.

Indoors

Area has been blessed or warded by some cult.

Underground Archive

grid [U]

Forbidden section beneath the main building. Fire-damaged, moldy. Holds secret patient records, and banned books, from Miskatonic U.

It has been described as a maze of filing cabinets.

Indoors

No warding found here.

Rules

A restriction you will need to rely on is that every weapon, location and motive in the puzzle will be attributed to exactly one suspect.

So you can make a deduction like this, if the dagger was at the campanile, and the professor was at the campanile, then the professor had the dagger. This must be true since only one suspect can be at each location, possess each weapon, have each motive.

Similarly, negative deductions can be made, if the dagger was at the campanile, and the professor did not have the dagger, then the professor was not at the campanile. This is because only one weapon can be at a given location, and the professor's weapon is not the dagger.

These rules will help to fill in blanks which remain after all the clues have been accounted for.

Clues

  1. You receive an anonymous telegram with the cryptic message 'HTE IRCROTED VENRE ITDIVES TEH AHRYHRDOYETP HECRBMA.'. (decodeThe Director never visited the hydrotherapy chamber. [anagrammed])
  2. This (fingerprint) was found on the skin-writing stylus carved from an unidentifiable bone.
  3. The Nurse had never possessed a pair of circular burns.
  4. A pair of circular burns was found, but not at the electro-shock facility.
  5. The Detective was seen at the electro-shock facility.
  6. A powerful looking, electro-shock machine was found, but not at the rows of shelves containing patient dossiers.
  7. A row of transverse incisions was found at the unnatural cavern beneath the asylum.
  8. The Director never visited the rows of shelves containing patient dossiers.
  9. The shortest suspect threatened with the set of constriction bruises.
  10. A pair of circular burns was found near the body.

Accusation