Cog is an as-of-yet anonymous whistleblower within the FBI Special Affairs Division and the head of the Cog Conspiracy.
Biography[]
Working directly against the agency unknowingly employing him, Cog posts a popular series of conspiracy videos on YouTube, “exposing the full extent of the vampire terrorist menace”. The persona that he crafts for himself online is that of an intelligence agent for the "deep state" that controls several world governments through blackmail, blood magic and an ancient pact with moon aliens. While the overwhelming majority of what is posted under his name is gibberish to anyone clued in to the topics he discusses, his collected conspiracy library, the one that he doesn't make public to just anyone, is a treasure trove of clues for any aspiring monster hunter.
While he offers no proof for any of these wild assertions, Cog lays out his manifesto in a series of cryptic and riddle filled essays that are still widely shared all over the dark web. Originally posted under the name 'incognito' as a series of screenshots on a Youtube channel dedicated to UFO Robot Grendizer, Cog laid the blame for multiple terrorist attacks in Europe and Asia on face-stealing vampires working for the deep state. Of the many conspiracy theories that have gained traction in the popular mind, Cog’s in particular has drawn a cultlike following from a wide swath of Americans trying to explain their own government’s seemingly inexplicable actions.
The cracks in the Masquerade have grown as vampires have become politically fractured and all but openly hunted. While many world governments involved in the Coalition do their best to cover what traces of the supernatural they can, the dark web has allowed rumors to spread to a populace ill-prepared to tell truth from fiction. Unable to square their reality with the story provided by the media, many turn to these conspiracy theories to answer their questions. Why are their cities crumbling while fleets of armed drones patrol the world’s skies? Why are their politicians unable to fight for them but so quick to go to war overseas? Why won’t anyone just tell them what the hell is going on?
Cog has filled that gap with a strange and disjointed story hidden in a virtual easter egg hunt spread across multiple websites and USB geocaches. While the first few pages of his manifesto were made public they were incomplete, but between the lines were clues to where the rest of his story could be found. Each time a new piece of the manifesto is unearthed, his followers spend days pouring over the text and any accompanying drawings in hopes of finding clues to the next puzzle. According to Cog a great spiritual war is already being fought in the shadows and the dark corners of the Earth. All people, but Americans in particular, have a holy obligation to arm themselves in this conflict against these infernal forces.
In his later posts Cog even details the various strengths and weaknesses of several vampire families, as well as a method for interstellar communication through mirrors. The vampires and moon aliens aside, the ultimate mystery his followers hope to discover is Cog’s identity. Since Cog uses the terms “flavor country” and “my delicious American brothers” so often in his manifesto, many believe he’s the host of a discontinued cooking reality show turned CIA agent or possibly one of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Others suspect the culinary turns of phrases may actually hint at why the vampires have aligned themselves with the shadow government.
References[]
- HTR: Incognito Report
- VTM: Second Inquisition, p. 122
- HTR: 5th Edition Core Book, p. 228