[Report to the Council: Helmlands Encounters]

[Merne23]

Earth's blessings and Muradin's might to you,

A treasure hunting expedition was held not so long ago, and many events happened along the way. The (un)Official Treasure Hunting Society gathered all comers to the Faceless, the initial party consisting of eight or so members, most notably Danny Steele and Jessika Norieth. These two were the leaders of the expedition until some events later in our quest.
A full roster will be at the end of this report.

We chose to follow the treasure maps we had into the Forest of Eyes, which promised to yield four batches of treasure for us. All was nominal enough for us until we started being pestered by a raven, which all of us came to figure was a familiar of sorts. Following it some ways we found a giant boulder blocking off the wizard's tower within the forest. We didn't have much time to study it at first as we were assaulted first by floating eyes, then by a band of minotaur marauders.

Upon further study and testing it could be inferred that the stone was in fact grounding all energies sent at it, physical or magical. These energies then activated a circle that had been painted nearby. Undead came from it. Examination of the stone itself led it to be found it's of no naturally occurring mineral (this coming from a dwarf). The raven was also bothered by our interactions with it and flew into the trees away from us. Its eyes had a green glint to them.

Jessika was determined to find a way to enter the tower, convinced it was a treasure trove. Danny pointed out there was a cave that led underneath the tower nearby; we eventually all agreed to venture inside to see if this was true.

Immediately within we found a gathering of Bugbears, Gnolls, and Orcs all. We ventured further still and delved deeper, encountering more beasts of that sort along with more eyes. What caught our attention first on the lower levels was a shrine of sorts that can also be found in the Gnoll Pits along Gnoll Pass. Given that these are also found in other locations, it was supposed that these shrines may be used for teleportation, given how all these locations held members of the tribes we'd been fighting until then.

As we made that supposition, an abomination of humanoid and eye stalker make teleported through the center of the shrine and attacked us. More such abominations came from places unknown, either hunting us or tracking us. Given how this didn't halt our progress, we were uneasy but continued delving deeper. It was about this time that Sir Nicholas took de facto control of the expedition.

We proceeded deeper into the caves, first finding pestilent larvae that fed on oozing corpses which needed destroying. There were quite a lot of them, though none difficult alone. What was more difficult were the infernal-touched ogres that we found ding a blazing sacrificial brazier. The first we encountered was a caster who attacked us with no less than three fireballs. After felling him two more of his kin came to attack us. The whole while those larva were nipping at us.

One of our members, Faryn Lorret, was felled at this time. Much of our strength was spent getting to this point and as such many members of our group decided that now was a good time to turn back. However, it was attempted to go further for one reason or another, where we found a door with decorations to the Tormentor upon it. Greater sense eventually won out against curiosity here, though not before a bugbear ambush.

The way back was relatively uneventful until we reached the entrance to the cave, where we happened upon a body drained completely of its blood as well as an open potion beside it. The scent and look of the liquid was found to be blood of some kind, though its otherworldly aroma singled it out as some sort of monster or beast, rather than from a civilized race.

The body was taken up out of the cave for us to dispose of it properly, and during its burning and burial we were observed by a woman of sharp beauty. She watched us with stillness, then seemed to scent the coming dawn and melted into the darkness. Sir Nicholas and Artus Frost sought to catch her before she fully fled, succeeding in marring any tracks she'd left. Many of us agreed that she was a vampire, and most likely the one who had drained the body.

I apologize for the length of this report, but there are three main points that should be reminded of should you find details bothersome.

• There is some otherworldly blockage of the Tower in the Forest of Eyes.
• The strange metallic 'shrines' found in caves in the surroundings can be used by fell forces for teleportation.
• There is a vampire operating in the Helmlands, whose blood is enchanting.

Details may be missing, so if you wish for them you may ask any of the members of our band, which shifted slightly from start to finish. I will of course be available as well.

Firm ground beneath and fire in your hearth,
-Councillor Grurec, son of Torunden

--Apendded: Members List
Jessika Norieth, nominal leader
Danny Steele
Grurec Torunden
Dextar Jes'tar
Faryn Lorret
Topher LyonSeph
Enyo Alacranoix, left before finding the shrine.
Sir Nicholas Alwin Appleberry
Muric Welton, joined during testing of the tower.
Duillyndra Eiritas, joined during testing of the tower.
Artus Frost, joined during study of the strange shrine.