The Western Eros

[Cyian]

Lotus, The Shinning Jewel of the West

Provincial Governor: Zaithan Del'Thiir

Rank: Metropolis\ Regional Capital
Population: 960,000

Port Authority:
Merchant Vessels 10,000 (private)
Military Vessels 1,000 (imperial)
Support Vessels 3,000 (private)




State Structures
Imperial Pro-Consuls Palace (Governor)
Imperial Complex: Department of Enumeration
Imperial Complex: Ministry of Strategic Services
Imperial Complex: Department of Interior
Imperial Complex: Teleportation Nexus
Imperial Complex: Aqueducts, City Sewer, and Plumbing
Imperial Complex: Paved Highways
Arcanus Antheneaum (Library)
Cathedral of Cyian Imperator Divinus
Scriptorium (Center of Learning)
Grand Curia (Mercantile District)
Imperial Reserve Bank and Repository of Lotus
Jeweled Gardens of Lotus (Wonder)
The Great Barrier of Lotus (Wonder)
Port\Dry Docks


Private Structures
Ludas Magnus
Del'Thiir Amphitheater and Arena
Shipwright
Cathedral of the Pantheon (Katdoral,Koric, and Cyian)
Temple of Katdoral
Temple of Korric
The Spinning Coin (Hotel Casino)
Temple of Chal-Tsu
Temple of the Nine
House of Charity Orphanage
Warehouse Complex
House Del'Thiir Compound
House Doth'Dakar Compound
House Alahara-Veluth Compound
House Aera-Miliani Compound
House Ire-Deluthan Compound
House Lumbrusco Compound
House Unizar Compound



Guilds\Notables

The Inland Sea Exchange
Doth'Dakar Commodities
Alahara-Veluth Trading
Lumbrusco Imports
Lotus Merchants Guild
Unizar Holdings LLC
Farshore Import/Export
The Homewood Commision
Denari Merchants Pavllion


Adventure Guilds
Hall of Mercenaries (Contract Guild\Rawruun)
Directorate of the Magi (Mage Guild)
The Spinning Coin (Thieves Guild\Zivix)
The Immortals (Necromancers Guild\Kauri)
Infernal Brotherhood (Assassin's Guild\Shazar'Saul)


Artisan
(Architect\Engineering,Duergar based, coming soon)
(Blacksmith,Duergar based, coming soon)
(Construction,Duergar based, coming soon)
(Whitesmith, Duergar based, coming soon)
(Tanning\Leather Works, Duergar based, coming soon)
Lotus Millers Guild
Directorate of the Magi (Scrolls and Wondrous Magics)
Minds Eye (Psionic Magics)

Institutions
The Church of Cyian Imperator Divinus
The Church of Korric
The Church of Katdoral
The Church of Chal-tsu
The Church of Bator
The Church of Sardinal
The Church of Rawrun
The Church of Zivix (underground)
The Church of Myrr
The Church of Dardantis
The Church of Nathis
The Church of the Trinity Adherent
The Church of Tyranny Absolute 
Order of the Coin
Knights of Doth
House of Charity



Ludas Magna
Del'Thiir Ludas
Bristlebane Ludas
Aera-Miliani Ludas
Alahara-Veluth Ludas
Lumbrusco Ludas


Lotus often referred to as the Shinning Jewel of the West, is the Empire of Lark's 2nd largest city following only Lark itself in sheer size and scope. Lotus sits on the balmy shores of the Inland Sea, with its enormous natural harbor it makes a perfect home for Larks largest trade hub and center for naval operations.

The Great Barrier

The city's wealth is legendary across all of Severall, and so are its walls. The Great Barrier of Lotus is the largest walled fortification in all of Severall. Its walls are a testament to the empires desire to protect lotus no matter the cost. Impressive feats of engineering and logistics were devised and executed by the Duergar, so that the Great Barrier could come into realization.

The walls rise to heights of 50 meters and width's of 100 meters. Nearly 20 miles long. It took nearly 200 years of cutting the black raw granites flecked with gold from the quarry's in Ditorn. Each slab weighing in at 150 tonnes. Shipping them through Jan's Port, a thousand mile plus trek south to Lotus.

It wasn't all a exercise in vanity, the granites that form the wall and its foundation are 10x harder then the conventional shale's limestone and baked brick found all throughout the region. Each seam was meticulously welded together via magics perfected by there creators. The walls also act as a grain depository, the naturally cool area in between the walls makes for ideal storage areas for grains. And once the grain hoppers are filled the hoppers act like shock absorbers against hardened munitions and siege weapons. Its also widely rumored that epic magics enchant the very walls of the Great Barrier and the city alike.
Some muse that to put lotus under siege, is to put a mountain under siege.

The Mercantile District

Encompassing nearly 6 square miles of the city's epicenter, the Mercantile District was planning in perfection. The district was designed in the fashion of a pentagon. With 5 main streets all leading to the ultimate center of trade, the Grand Curia. This is where the Inland Sea Exchange sits. Here buyers and sellers of all kinds of commodities can be found. Anything and everything from Gold Silver and Platinum to Grain Spices and Slaves are traded, purchased, and speculated on. This also of course means enormous tax revenues for the empire, it getting its share off of every single transaction that takes place.

Outside the Curia in the 5 sectors that make up the pentagon framework of the district, real estate is at a premium. Only the most fantastically wealthy merchants, guilds, organizations, and nations can truly afford the prime rates of ownership.

Each building in the district is a blat-en act of one-upmanship. Each trying to out due the last. Resulting in 6 square miles of the most fantastic magically imbued architecture ever to grace Severall.

With this great cost, comes great benefit. Having even the smallest office or store front in the district brings tremendous clout and influence to any deal brokered within Lotus's great walls or out.

The Imperial Reserve Bank and Repository of Lotus

Located on the main block of Imperial complexes in the Western Quarter. It comprises over one quarter of an square mile of the western quarter with its formidable yet elegant fortress like ascetics, its presence is immediately felt to all who gaze upon it. Beyond the powerfully enchanted adamantine fence at the perimeter lay the structure itself. Flat and polished white marbles adorn its steps, walls, ceilings, and columns. At its foundation fifteen steps that stretch across each face of the complex, broken only my majestic sculpted depictions of various hero's of the drow Pantheon. Atop the last step on each face of the complex, one hundred hand carved marble columns that reach forty feet to the ceiling supporting a massive golden dome that rises another thirty feet into the Larkian sky. The only stark contrast to the white marbles and gold dome of the complex are two crimson banners each depicting the holy symbol of Cyian the Divine. At the center of each face these banners drape down from the ceiling too nearly the top steps of the complex.

Inside its walls are secrets to all men and most drow. As, no visible exits or entrances can be seen on the great fence or the complex itself. Its whispered only teleportation magics can gain you access or exit from the complex.

Only ordained house drow of the Order of the Coin can be seen guarding its perimeter ever vigilant in their quest to protect the empires largest repository and mint.

The Order of the Coin is a monastic order within the Church of Cyian and is tasked with the sacred duty of the production, transportation, and protection of all coins, gem, note, and treasures with in the empires banking system.
The Order produces millions, upon millions of platinum, gold, and silver coins each season. This does however include the re-minting of all foreign coin collected each week by the Ministry of Enumeration from all provinces of the Western Eros and the Empire at large. Where laws require all peoples to exchange foreign currency for Imperial.
More recently, laws were passed on any of any old remnant coins that depict the visage of the former empress Sierra. Citizens are required to immediately deface the coin and exchange it for modern Imperial Currency. Stiff fines and penalties have been known to be levied if caught in possession of such coins.

The Port of Lotus

The entire Northern face of the city lies on the great natural harbor of Lotus. Networks of boardwalk docks and levies create a docking room for over a thousand boats with ample room for thousands more safely anchored with-in its harbor.

Day and night crews of merchants, sailors, and slaves flying almost every banner of man, elf , and dwarf toil loading and unloading cargoes from near and far to bring them to market. Here with in Lotus is truly where the lifeblood of the empire flows. Grain for the empires citizens, luxuries for the privileged, and Spices for all.

Giant skeleton frameworks of ships can be seen slowly coming to life each and every day. From the most advanced galleons of war to the most humble of fishing vessels. All taking a shape in the massive naval presence that identifies Lotus.


Warehouse District

In the Northwest part of the Port Authority lies a series of massive buildings used to store goods, cargo, and commodities that are traded on the Inland Sea Exchange. Hundreds of thousands of tonnes of cargo is in storage at any givin time, waiting to be purchased sold traded or speculated on.
This of course means slaves, where several thousand Curr lie in waiting for there new Larkian Masters.
Non Drow Merchants of great wealth have come to call this district home. They have built luxury penthouse accommodations atop the vast array of office buildings and even some warehouses. Most muse they wish to live there so that they may be near whats most precious to them, there wealth. But in truth its being inside the city's great walls that motivates most of all.

The Imperial Palace

In the Western Quarter lays the immense and beautiful Imperial Palace of House Del'Thir, domicile to Zaithan Del'Thiir, Consul of Lark, Champion of Kaz'ryn the Great , and Master of the Western Eros.
The palace grounds cover over 2 square miles of the Western Quarter, and was a personal gift from the Emperor upon creation of House Doth'Dakar's newest house minor. House Del'Thiir. To the casual viewer the palace is a sprawling marble villa with heavy accents of drow in the architecture, cleverly blended with the distinctive romantic columnesqe Larkian architectural style. Every inch of the palace and its grounds have been meticulously struct by an artisans hand. Huge Fresco's of precious gems , reliefs struck in gold and platinum, and fine filigrees accented with precious metals and gems adorn its halls.
However, its the statues and sculptures that number over one-thousand that bring by far the biggest acclaim. Fantastic depictions of both men and monster stand in graceful elegance all about the grounds and its halls. So detailed and lifelike some whispers say that's exactly what they are.
Now, to the astute viewer skilled the arts of war and military tactics may not even realize the purposeful layout of the palace and its grounds. The greatest Larkian tacticians and mages assembled the ingenious defenses of the compound, visceral defenses combined with powerful arcane and divine magics could allow for the defense of the compound to Zaithan and a handful of men. Every precaution was taken in its construction. Rumor has it Zaithan personally ripped any information about the defenses of the palace from all that conspired in its design and construction. Only Zaithan and precious few others know about the mysteries of the Imperial Palace of Lotus.

[Sardinal]

Lotus Continued

Chander's Retreat (Minor Wonder)

Located south of the Lotus' famous Jeweled Gardens in between the Cathedral of Cyian and Dannik Square, Chander's Retreat is a large public park. Filled with Palm, Date, and Fig trees, the park also attracts peacocks from the Gardens. At the center of this oasis of nature is a large clear pond surrounded by sandy beach. A large statue floats over the vary center of the pond. The statue, in polished white marble, depicts an elf, male, floating in the air, his back arched and head thrown back. Pain is etched into his features and eldritch purple light blazes from his mouth and eyes twenty feet into the sky. The mans arms are outstretched wide and more purple light blazes from his hands. Finally, orbiting the man in a circle are twenty objects. Each object is different, but each changes shape at the top of every hour. The shapes these objects take are generally marble versions of weapons or armor, but sometimes jewels, jewelry, and even books have been seen. Finally, a web of fine cracks seem to slowly grow over the form of both the man and the objects. More pruple light leaks out from these cracks. At the top of every hour, the cracks vanish.

Edith Park

Near the Verain gate lies Edith Park. A long winding park filled with palm trees, and well tended walkways which wind around a pair of small ponds at either end of the park and a large statue in the center. The Statue, in white marble, depicts a kind faced woman in robes standing on a platform. Her arms are outstretched with palms up and clean fresh water springs from them to fill the deep pool below her.

Cameron Square

This large public square stands on the north side of the Imperial Compound. The white marble steps leading up to its main platform contrast starkly against its black granite walkways. Around the edges of this massive square are two dozen statues on white marble bases. Each bronze statue depicts a famous noble of the empire. In the center of the square is a massive stone grotto. Walking into the grotto one finds himself on a rough stone path with pools of hot lava on either side. At the far end, kneeling on a platform of basalt is a statue of a human man. The mans face is haggard, his full beard and long hair wild and unkempt. He wears robes and a hood and stares with mournful eyes at a greatsword, a staff, and a holy symbol of Thelin all of white marble.

Dannik Square

This massive square stands at the southern entrance to the Imperial compound. It is similar to Cameron Square, with its contrasting granite and marble and it's statues of famous Larkane heroes. At the center, however, instead of the grotto, there is a huge large set of bronze statues. The depict a human man, in robes and bearing a staff that glows with purple and gold light. He is standing over four other bronze figure, glaring at them with what some describe as anger and other describe as disgust. The other figures are a male elf on his knees and holding his hands to his face, a female half-elf lying on the ground in fetal position, a human male lying face down with his hands flat on the ground as if about to push himself up and a female human on one knee with her hand palm out in front of her face as if warding away the glare of the man towering over her.