Crimleaf Stew

Crimleaf Stew is a thick, spicy, high-calorie meal found on nearly every Vey’Zari dinner table—regardless of class, caste, or syndicate allegiance. Built from slow-rendered vat-root, protein gels, and crushed crimleaf pods, the stew is known for its rich burgundy color, sharp herbal sting, and long shelf life. The base is usually simmered in Rellithar-oil or Therex fat, thickened with fiber starch, and adjusted to the eater’s tolerance with sliced ashroot or burnvine. In the lower levels of Taz’Vaar, it’s stretched thin and served with flatbread or street-wrapped in nutrient rolls. In the high-rises, it’s plated in heat-gilded bowls beside protein slivers and spice foam. Either way, it fills the stomach, masks recycled ingredients, and keeps well even in erratic power grids.   Crimleaf itself is mildly numbing—just enough to dull stress but not enough to sedate—which made it a household staple during syndicate crackdowns and curfews. It also blends easily with synthetic additives, allowing undercity kitchens to mask the taste of substandard rations or off-brand protein slabs. Most households have their own version: bitter for the east blocks, sweeter in the upper mezzanines, and oily-sour in the airshaft communes. Children learn to eat it early, and many Vey’Zari mark a good cook by how cleanly they can stew a vat-root or stretch a bag of ashstalks without setting off the fire sensors. It’s not fancy. It’s not expensive. But it’s always there. And when it’s not, something’s wrong.

Crimpaste Unit Ration, or CPU-R, is the processed, vacuum-packed variant of traditional Crimleaf Stew, designed for long-term storage, rapid consumption, and high-calorie delivery under unstable or combat conditions. Found in undercity vending caches, syndicate ration drops, and smuggled field packs, CPU-R is a thick, gelatinized version of the original stew—preheated through a palm-activated thermal strip, or eaten cold when power cells are scarce. It's manufactured in unmarked factories across Taz’Vaar’s industrial zones, distributed in foil-wrapped bricks, and stamped with a digest-safe expiry strip.   Each ration contains compressed vat-root paste, crimleaf concentrate, synth-protein slurry, and a stabilizer gel to prevent separation. Flavor is aggressively strong to mask filler content, with texture resembling warm putty or glue. Additives vary depending on region—some contain trace amphetolines for energy, others low-dose mood balancers to keep mercenaries functional. Though officially listed as "non-civilian grade," CPU-R is sold openly in black markets and gang zones, where its combination of energy, numbness, and familiarity makes it a survival staple. It's often traded, hoarded, or mixed with water and powdered ashroot to stretch meals across entire crews. In Vey’Zari slang, it's called “Red Brick,” “Boilblock,” or just “Slab.”