Nation: The Empire
Province: Eloesus
Population: 320,000
Kersepoli is a great city, the home of an ancient race of warriors whose martial vigor remains even without a standing army.
HISTORY
Among the oldest and most well-regarded city states of Eloesus, Kersepoli developed gradually, growing to about 10,000 people by the second century Y.B.E. After draining the nearby swamps, it expanded in size rapidly throughout the Golden Age of Eloesus.
Kersepoli, though relatively egalitarian like her fellow Eloesian city-states, never truly had a democracy. Two kings ruled, whose power was checked by an oligarchy of powerful generals, until the 100s Y.E. when a strong-man named Peres overcame his co-ruler, abolished the oligarchy and declared himself Supreme King of Kersepoli, forcing everyone in the city into submission. After a severe fire during his reign destroyed most of the city, King Peres cleared the area in the middle and built the Garden of Orphne.
In the 450s Y.E., Kersepoli and its king, Elidas, fought the Imperial armies. However, when the tide began to turn against Eloesus, King Elidas surrendered and subjected the city to Imperial domination, with the condition that he’d be left to rule. This greatly angered his subjects, who gave him the moniker “Elidas the Coward.”
In the rebellion of Heidathra at the close of the fifth century, Kersepoli was a co-conspirator. The last King of Kersepoli, Pericletas, fought valiantly alongside the rebels. When the Last Eloesian-Imperial War ended in failure and all Kersepoli’s soldiers were slain, Pericletas was executed in Kersepoli. The city’s walls were demolished and all rebels were killed or enslaved, but the city’s shrunken population and most of its buildings were left intact. A magistrate and a city council was established. Kersepoli signed an agreement to never field a standing army again. Throughout the next few centuries, it slowly but steadily grew in size. Its resentment to the Empire’s rule has never disappeared.
CULTURE
In ancient days, Kersepoli was the most martial of the Eloesian city-states, having a strong class of soldiers and lacking the powerful navies that made Korthos and Thénai famous. Some of the martial spirit remains, and one Kersepolan Academy (see below) is dedicated to the study of military arts. The bronze statues that dot the city are most often of hoplites with their round shields and heavy spears. Their patron deity remains Tyros, god of war.
Their hard martial vigor has softened, however, and many have taken up the Thenoan arts of philosophy and art in the wake of their defeat by the Empire.
SIGHTS
- The Orphne: By far the most famous attraction of Kersepoli is the Garden of Orphne (often called merely “The Orphne”), a verdant oasis bursting with greenery, flowering plants, and life-giving artificial streams. There, philosophers and artists hold discussions over glasses of sweet wine. By night, the Orphne is rumored to become a haunt of vice and a den of spicers. The Orphne, named after the original priestess who presided there, is dedicated to Seladora the Mother of Nymphs. Many statues of nymphs can be found amid the lush garden.
- The Temple of Tyros: A towering pillared temple to the god of war overlooks the city at its highest point.
- The Baths of Felix: Thermal baths built in the time of the commanding legate Felix.
- The Academies of Kersepoli: An association of schools and lecture halls “dedicated to the promotion of knowledge and learning.”
