jdeleski
First Post
"Little by little they rose grimly into the western sky; allowing us to witness various bare,
bleak and blackened summits...in the reddish Antarctic light against the provocative
background of iridescent ice-dust clouds. In the whole spectacle there was a persistent,
pervasive hint of stupendous secrecy and potential revelation...I could not help feeling
that they were evil things--mountains of madness whose farther slopes looked out over
some accursed ultimate abyss."
--H.P. Lovecraft
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In September of 1930, researchers from Arkham’s Miskatonic University, led by
Professors Dyer and Lake, set sail for the Antarctic continent on a bold venture of
exploration and discovery. Two months later they landed in Antarctica near Ross Island;
twenty men, fifty-five dogs, and five large Dornier aeroplanes were set upon the ice.
Their mission was to survey a geologic history of the Earth’s last frontier, to chart from
the air where no human foot had stepped, and to determine at last, once and for all,
whether Antarctica was indeed one land mass or several.
In much of this they were successful. From November of 1930 until mid-January of 1931,
the expedition achieved goal after goal, milestone after milestone. Aerial explorations
flew over and mapped thousands of square miles of previously unexplored territory. Sled
teams took core samples from scattered spots over nearly a quarter of the continent.
However, history does not remember the Miskatonic Expedition for its successes, but for
its final tragic failure.
The end of the expedition came just as the team seemed on the brink of their most
spectacular triumph. On January 23rd, a large party led by Professor Lake, broke through
into an unbelievable treasure-trove of ancient bones and fossils in a series of caverns at
the foot of a hitherto-unknown mountain range. For 2 days, they explored the caves,
bringing up specimen after specimen, some utterly unlike any living things that have ever
been studied by science. Then they were never heard from again; all were believed killed
by a tremendous Antarctic gale that swept the campsite on January 24th. A rescue
mission the following day found only silence and a few pathetic remains of the tragedy.
Now, in March 1933, a new expedition is forming, intent upon a return to that forbidding
Antarctic plateau and Lake’s campsight. British world explorer James Starkweather and
American geologist William Moore have joined forces to attack the Antarctic. The two
men have experience with harsh environments, both having traveled in the Himalayas, and
Starkweather on the Arctic ice cap as well. Their stated goal is to return to the high, cold
interior of the Antarctic continent and to finish the work that Lake and the other began
three years ago. The two are gathering a team of scientists and technical experts whom
they believe will allow them to succeed despite the dangers.
Thus begins the next chapter in those Mountains of Madness.
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The Recruiting Office can be found here.
A history of our events and evidence can be found here
To read the attached newspaper clippings, you may need to first save them on your hard drive.
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