Lorgan's Notes: The Notes

Dear Redeemer of Laken:
As you know, research into finding the essences of your Candidate can be time consuming, sometimes soul-crushing. Bonding maps give us a place to start searching for information, but the exact locations of essences is not the only things one needs to know to succeed.
One must study the landscape, the climate, the locals, the monsters, and odds and ends to navigate a location and find the essence. These notes are my endeavor to provide you not only with the location of the essences, but with as much up-to-date information as possible.
While I can give you a first-hand accounting to reach Laken's essences in Greenglimmer and Snake's Den (yes, I know, my experience is a thousand years removed, but some of it is still relevant, like Underruin's layout), the search for references to the other three were, shall we say, exhausting. I suggest you focus on each location in turn, so you don't get confused about which monster roams where and deadly plants and such (yes, I do know this from experience. Please don't ask, it's a tender subject).

Addendum: Since we no longer have access to the Finder libraries, the research I've already conducted is our foremost refrerence. If questions arise outside of my notes (and I was very thorough, mind) we can either see if an undercover Clastic can peek into a book or two for us, or we may need to form educated guesses. Now that I've met your companions, I think educated guesses will suffice.

Research:
The Purpose of Lorgan's Notes

by our long-suffering hero
Lorgan the Eyestrained
In this Document:

Ask Me Anything!
I have an index. It tells me which of the fifteen crates holds the notes I'll need to answer questions. That's me, thinking ahead. I also marked down which books I used as references, if it becomes necessary to double-check something (if we can find a copy outside a Finder library).
And if you're curious about what I wrote in my introduction, I'll answer those questions, too.

Our First Stop: Snake's Den

I'm curious, as to why the Snake's Den highlighted on your bonding map first. Greenglimmer was my first location. I'll keep track of irregularities, just in case we need that information in the future (Redemptions are full of surprises. Yes, I know that from experience, but it's not so tender a subject. That's why my research is so extensive, to keep the shocking at a minimum).
Black Temple
Glass Floats
The Nevemere
Snake's Den

Patrick Hendry from Unsplash

Ah, the beauty of the desert. Prepare for warm days and chill nights. Not that ghosts tend to notice such things, but the Snake's Den extremes will penetrate essences.