Ilyn Toth

Ilyn Toth was a Red Wizard of Thay who infiltrated the village of Moonhaven during the late 14 century DR. He posed as the local healer, using a pseudonym to mask the more malign activities he conducted within his lair.

"Reanimation seems easy, but restoring life? That prize eludes me. The tome contains the magic I need, but it fights me at every step."

- ''Excerpt from Ilyn Toth's journal.

Description
Normally, Ilyn wore the namesake red robs of Thay's Red Wizards, and adorned his head with prominent tattoos that proudly declared his status within his home nation. He was forced to hide both of those however during his time in the Western Heartlands.

Personality
He was a dark and twisted individual who paid no tribute to any gods. He also appeared to have a distinct dislike of the regent of Thay, Szass Tam.

Activities
"The work here is simple and allows me to continue my research at night, but progress is slow. Reanimation seems easy, but restoring life? That prize eludes me. The tome contains the magic I need, but it fights me at every step. As does my apprentice. At least my familiar has made it easy to secure bodies without raising suspicion."

- Excerpt from Iln Toth's journal.

By all outward appearances, Ilyn Toth was a healer who conducted his work out of the Moonhaven apothecary shop. He helped local townspeople with their maladies and offered all manner of herbs, unguents, and potions for the aid of others. In truth, the Red Wizard conducted macabre experiments at night―all related to the resurrection and undeath―within in underground laboratory.

It appeared that Ilyn's experiments revolved around raising back from the dead a single woman, though he remained entirely unsuccessful. While he could easily reanimate the body of the deceased woman, restoring her back to life proved elusive.

Possessions
Hidden away in his lair, locked behind secret and magical barriers, Ilyn kept the powerful tome The Necromancy of Thay. He tried repeatedly to uncover the book's secrets to aid his research, but proved incapable of learning all it had to offer. Toth also kept a copy of The Collectanea Rubrum, along with his personal journal, and a log of any and all travelers that passed through or visited Moonhaven.

The Red Wizard kept a collection of magical scrolls, along with a circlet of fire in an elaborate chest within his underground study.

Relationships
Ilyn Toth had an apprentice that worked for him, along with a quasit familiar named Shovel, who referred to him as "Illy". His lair was protected by a number of lesser, undead guardians, which were in fact former residents of Moonhaven.

History
Some time during or before the, Ilyn fled his homeland for West Faerûn, in such a manner that elicited the wrath of Thay's Council of Zulkirs. He believed that if he ever returned home he would immediately be put to death.

Ilyn traveled across the breadth of Faerûn to the tiny village of Moonhaven, where he could formulate the correct combination of spells to resurrect the woman he so desired to bring back to life. While masquerading as the village healer he committed many terrible deeds. He killed many of the patients brought into his apothecary, buried them deep underground within his lair, and used their remains as part of his necromantic research.