Dagon Files

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Welcome, Seeker of Forbidden Knowledge, to Saturday's puzzle, week 11 of the year 2026. (Simpler puzzle) and (Harder puzzle)

The Case Of The Sneezing Dust.

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

Inspector

grid [I]

Thaddeus Vane

height: 6' 0"

gray eyes

right handed

yog-sothoth cultist

Sheikh

grid [S]

Omar al-Hariri

height: 5' 9"

brown eyes

right handed

nyarlathotep cultist

Intelligence Officer

grid [O]

Reginald Pike

height: 5' 11"

gray eyes

right handed

dagon cultist

Archaeologist

grid [A]

Evelyn DeWitt

height: 5' 6"

brown eyes

left handed

necronomicon cultist

Mystic

grid [M]

Brother Hadad

height: 5' 8"

brown eyes

left handed

deep-ones cultist

Ziggurat Keystone

grid [Z]

The final stone in an arch, or a life.

Sometimes leaves a trace of a sense of stability.

Scorpion Jar

grid [S]

One is annoying, but one hundred are deadly.

Sometimes leaves a trace of a hissing and clacking.

Poisoned Wine

grid [P]

A very good year... to die.

Sometimes leaves a trace of a sickly sweetness.

Webley Revolver

grid [W]

The British officer's man-stopper of choice.

Sometimes leaves a trace of a fine english workmanship.

Ash-Filled Urn

grid [U]

Everyone is fatally allergic to this dust.

Sometimes leaves a trace of a sneezing dust.

Collapsed Ziggurat

grid [Z]

An ancient stepped pyramid partially buried in sand. A draught seems to exhale from its center.

It has been described as a broken prison.

Outdoors

Area has been blessed or warded by some cult.

Main Tent

grid [T]

Base camp for the dig team. Canvas walls flap in the desert winds.

It has been described as an intense experience.

Indoors

No warding found here.

Excavation Pit

grid [P]

A deep trench cut into ancient earth, lined with half-uncovered walls and bones. Something waits expectantly a little deeper down.

It has been described as a blashpemous burrowing.

Outdoors

Area has been blessed or warded by some cult.

Riverbank Shrine

grid [R]

A crumbling altar beside the Tigris. Offerings still appear overnight, though no locals admit to placing them.

It has been described as a place of offerings.

Outdoors

Area has been blessed or warded by some cult.

Colonial Outpost

grid [O]

A stone building guarded by soldiers.

It has been described as a wound on the land.

Indoors

No warding found here.

Suspects/Weapons/Locations/Motives

Inspector

grid [I]

Thaddeus Vane

height: 6' 0"

gray eyes

right handed

yog-sothoth cultist

Sheikh

grid [S]

Omar al-Hariri

height: 5' 9"

brown eyes

right handed

nyarlathotep cultist

Intelligence Officer

grid [O]

Reginald Pike

height: 5' 11"

gray eyes

right handed

dagon cultist

Archaeologist

grid [A]

Evelyn DeWitt

height: 5' 6"

brown eyes

left handed

necronomicon cultist

Mystic

grid [M]

Brother Hadad

height: 5' 8"

brown eyes

left handed

deep-ones cultist

Ziggurat Keystone

grid [Z]

The final stone in an arch, or a life.

Sometimes leaves a trace of a sense of stability.

Scorpion Jar

grid [S]

One is annoying, but one hundred are deadly.

Sometimes leaves a trace of a hissing and clacking.

Poisoned Wine

grid [P]

A very good year... to die.

Sometimes leaves a trace of a sickly sweetness.

Webley Revolver

grid [W]

The British officer's man-stopper of choice.

Sometimes leaves a trace of a fine english workmanship.

Ash-Filled Urn

grid [U]

Everyone is fatally allergic to this dust.

Sometimes leaves a trace of a sneezing dust.

Collapsed Ziggurat

grid [Z]

An ancient stepped pyramid partially buried in sand. A draught seems to exhale from its center.

It has been described as a broken prison.

Outdoors

Area has been blessed or warded by some cult.

Main Tent

grid [T]

Base camp for the dig team. Canvas walls flap in the desert winds.

It has been described as an intense experience.

Indoors

No warding found here.

Excavation Pit

grid [P]

A deep trench cut into ancient earth, lined with half-uncovered walls and bones. Something waits expectantly a little deeper down.

It has been described as a blashpemous burrowing.

Outdoors

Area has been blessed or warded by some cult.

Riverbank Shrine

grid [R]

A crumbling altar beside the Tigris. Offerings still appear overnight, though no locals admit to placing them.

It has been described as a place of offerings.

Outdoors

Area has been blessed or warded by some cult.

Colonial Outpost

grid [O]

A stone building guarded by soldiers.

It has been described as a wound on the land.

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. This (fingerprint) was found on the weapon producing a fine english workmanship.
  2. A sickly sweetness was found, but not at the riverbank shrine.
  3. The Mystic never visited the colonial outpost.
  4. You receive an anonymous telegram with the cryptic message 'EHT HKIEHS SAW NEES TA EHT NIAM TNET.'. (decodeThe Sheikh was seen at the main tent. [reversed])
  5. The necronomicon cultist wielded the scorpion-filled jar.
  6. The Inspector was seen at the broken prison.
  7. The Archaeologist was seen at the excavation pit.
  8. A ziggurat keystone was found at the collapsed ziggurat.
  9. A sneezing dust was found near the body.

Accusation