Crypts of the Vigilant Eye

The Crypts of the Vigilant Eye, also known as the Crypt of Vigilance, were a secret burial place for the Watcher's faithful located beneath Helm's Hold, a veritable city beneath a city.

Description
The crypts were built as a resting place for the followers of Helm, specifically those paladins who died in service protecting the innocent of the Realms.

While the halls of the crypts were decorated with statues of proud knights and its tombs were adorned with Helm's holy symbol, its deeper levels featured more enigmatic imagery. Some hidden alcoves featured tall skeletal figures draped in robes, standing in stark contrast to the armored sentinels that were more commonly encountered.

Geography
The Crypts of the Vigilant Eye were predominantly located under Helm's Hold, they extended as far east as the Watcher's Forest area of the Neverwinter Wood. The western halls of the crypts opened up into an extended underground tunnel connected to the great Chasm that opened up within the city of Neverwinter.

Geographical Features
The the crypts were built within natural caverns and tunnels of old civilizations that long predated the city of Helm's Hold. They were accessible by means of a lone stone tower found in the.

Defenses
The only defense the crypts had against intruders were the spirits of the fallen Helmite faithful, whose remains were interred within.

History
The crypt complex served as the resting place for Helm's faithful long before the construction of Helm's Hold. They were first discovered in the, when builders were beginning work on the Cathedral of Helm within the Hold. The ghostly protectors of the crypts rose that same year, following the divine death of Helm himself.

In the late 15 century DR, the succubus Rohini rose to power in Helm's Hold and allowed the Abolethic Sovereignty to claim the crypts for their own devices. The aberrant beings from the Far Realm dispatched horrid undead monstrosities and foulspawn began to appear throughout the maze-like tunnels of crypts. Unfortunately, the Helmite ghosts could take no direct actions against the Sovereignty's Symphony of Madness, concentrated "Spellplague energy" that emanated from the Hex Locus and permeated the halls of the crypts.

The Helmite ghosts and the Sovereignty's servants were not the only residents of the crypts. A band of Uthgardt barbarians of the Gray Wolf Tribe infiltrated the Crypts of the Vigilant and became trapped within. They established a small camp in a single tomb that linked to the Well of Bones chamber in the Cathedral above. The werewolves went mad with hunger after their entry tunnel collapsed behind them, attacking anything they could conceivably eat.

Some time circa the, Ashmadai cultists serving Rohini took over an area of the crypts for their own ends. The cult leader Halas the Pure ventured into the tombs in order to complete rituals that would summon devils into Helm's Hold. They even managed to corrupt one of the ghosts of a Helmite paladin and turned it against their enemies. Fortunately the Hero of Sleeping Dragon Bridge managed to stop their efforts, slay their leader Halas, and put the spirits of the fallen to rest.

Rumors & Legends
It was rumored that the crypts may have been originally built by cultists of Myrkul or some other ancient god of death.

Appearances

 * Video Games
 * Neverwinter