Penelionar
High up in the Dragons' Tears Mountains and once the jewel at the heart of the Elven kingdom of Sparos, Penelionar is now an expanse of ruins, a shadow of its former grandeur having been destroyed by the forces of the Vampires of Ymeris far back in the mists of time. Its once grand buildings are now neglected, looted and battered by wind and snow; its wide, once bustling streets now choked with the skeletons of those that once inhabited it.
Defences
Whilst there were Sparite army barracks based in the city, no defensive structures were built within Penelionar or its immediate surroundings, with the Sparites instead relying on the curtain wall that they had constructed across the Valley of Bones to the north. This means that the city is incredibly permeable and its suburbs sprawl out for miles, un-contained by nothing but the edge of what would once upon a time have been farmland.
Architecture
Penelionar was designed to be a grand city that showed off the quality of Elven craftsmanship to any that were allowed within its confines. The main streets are lined with colonnaded buildings constructed out of marble and there are numerous statues, temples, squares, fountains and parks, whose plants are now long dead, scattered throughout the city.
Even the poorer districts were constructed to a surprisingly high standard, with row after row of neat stone-brick built houses modestly arranged away from the more grand districts and thoroughfares.
The city’s far southern end, set on terraces carved into the mountainside is where the grandest of all of Penelionar’s buildings were constructed. The sprawling mass of the royal palace sits at the highest point, looking down over the rest of the city, with its large central spire giving a commanding view over the Valley of Bones and the Desolation of Hissh beyond to the north. Near innumerable monuments built by Sparos’ kings and queens lie immediately at the palace’s feet. One of these monuments is the unmistakable rotund structure, Andromache's Prison, built by King Panagiotis to provide a challenge he hoped would show which of Sparos’ young nobility at the time would be worthy of his daughter Andromache’s hand in marriage.
Almost all of the buildings in Penelionar, despite the grandness and care of their original construction carry the scars of war and neglect now. All of the major buildings, including the royal palace complex, and most of the smaller ones were looted by Ymeris' conquering armies, their treasures and relics stolen and now gracing the collections of many of the Midnight Court’s castles and mansions. Many buildings show signs of fire damage and many have had their interiors collapse, leaving only the shell of their facades standing. The only exception to this rule is Andromache's Prison, which is protected by magical wards that were so strong, Ymeris' forces were unable to gain access to it.
Geography
The city was constructed right at the end of the Valley of Bones, where it widens into a plateau that provided more area for building on than the rest of the valley. In addition, extra space for building was created by the excavation of terraces into the slopes of the mountains lying to the west. These terraces then had the city’s most prestigious buildings and monuments built upon them, such as the Sparite Royal Palace and Andromache's Prison.
RUINED SETTLEMENT
1423DP
Type
City
Location under
Included Locations
Owning Organization
Comments