Twisted Rune

The Twisted Rune is a highly secret cabal of liches and other powerful undead spellcasters. The inner circle is highly secretive, and employ agents to do their bidding, most of which are unaware that they work for the Rune. By the Year of the Dracorage, 1018 DR the Rune had become the most powerful organization in southwestern Faerûn, with agents in every country south of the High Moor and west of the Storm Horn Mountains.

The Rune secretly controls nearly half the powerful families of Calimshan, however they rarely act directly to achieve their goals, instead, preferring to let time work for them since they are, in effect, immortal.

The seven known Runemasters are: Jymahna, Kartak Spellseer, Priamon "Frostrune" Rakesk, Rhangaun, Sapphiraktar the Blue, Shangalar the Black, and Shyressa.

The eighth Runemaster is Jhaniloth.

History
Founded by Rysellan the Dark, an aging wizard from Calimshan, in 864 DR, the Twisted Rune was intended to be a secret consortium of wizards that would be the real power behind all rulers of the Lands of Intrigue. Although infighting caused the destruction of Rysellan and (later) another Runemaster, the members of the group selected others to fill those positions and have worked together in relative harmony to maintain control over much of the politics in their lands.

Halaster's Higharvestide
At dawn on Higharvestide of the Year of the Gauntlet, 1369 DR, two members of the Twisted Rune managed to kidnap Halaster Blackcloak from inside Undermountain. The lich Priamon "Frostrune" Rakesk and the alhoon Ralayan the Ocultacle used a ring of multiple wishes to bind and summon the Mad Mage to Stardock where they intended to probe the great archmage's mind for his intricate knowledge of portals and magical gates.

Year of Lightning Storms
In 1374 DR Priamon "Frostrune" Rakesk was fooled by Khelben "The Blackstaff" Arunsun, his former mentor but now hated adversary, into seeking what he thought to be an ancient Shoon artifact. With this artifact, he planned to take over control of the Twisted Rune. Blackstaff then struck a deal with Sapphiraktar the Blue, the Rune preferring to have the Blackstaff deal with the traitorous Runemaster rather than having to deal with him themselves. The Frostrune's immobilized body was teleported into the Underhalls, where the Mad Mage, in possession of the liches phylactery, could take revenge on his former kidnapper.

Shadows of Amn
In Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn the protagonist can uncover a Twisted Rune safe-house in the Bridge District. In this encounter the protagonist can kill Shangalar the Black, a Runemaster of the Twisted Rune.