In the ninth month of 2702, tragedy struck the proposal new capital city – New Ivrea – when Blight appeared there. This is the first, and only time on record that Blight has encroached upon a civilised area. This oddity may bear further investigation. [Personal note: remember to check with High Priest Niam on the progress of the Lords. They must have some new information on the Blight by now.]

This year
Following my suggestion, earlier this year High Priest Sepyt Niam asked the Lords of Rotan to investigate Blight. Although their forays have not been wholly successful, they have managed to collect a remarkable amount of additional information from their allies. Perhaps this information can best be summed up by a list of facts, rumours and suspicions:

• There is no Blight on the Island of Tilloniti, or in the Great Desert.
• The Blight seems to be worst in the forests of Miris.
• The elves have discovered that there is a link between the gemstones known as "life crystals" and the Blight. It is hypothesised that the Blight is cause by larger versions of the same mineral. An attempt to sever this link is apparently what caused the death of the great elven mage Camanthalar a few days ago.
• A similar, yet different phenomenon is growing many leagues to the south, past the great desert. I have not yet had an opportunity to interview the Lords’ guest from this area, but I understand that he refers to the southern phenomenon as the "Shimmering".
• There have been sightings of the creatures known as "illithids" in many blight areas. The sources of these sightings are not all together reliable, but during a recent interview, the Lords felt that this was an important link, so I have decided to include it in my report.
• An "ocean" version of the Blight seemed to have affected the Bird Islands. Subsequent reports from the Governor indicate that the problems on the Islands have gone away, so it is my view that this was a different phenomenon, unrelated to the Blight.