Capital of Ophir and home of the Ivory Palace where King Almarus and his family reside, Ianthe is called, at least by Ophireans, the “Jewel of the West”. While not as populous as Tarantia or Khorshemish, Ianthe boasts more public squares, temples, libraries, and monuments than either of those cities. Ianthe is the face of Ophir, the face that Almarus and the royal family want the rest of the world to see.
It is also a relatively safe city. Mercenaries serve as guards, and they are plentiful. Torchbearers work on the city’s coin to steer travelers in the night where braziers and lamps are infrequent. Those thieves who ply their trade on Ianthe find harsh times and harsher punishments. The Square of the Hanged Man is famous for its public executions and gibbets. Thieves do not receive a second chance in Ianthe.
The Ivory Palace is a marble marvel made in the days before Ophir was vassal to Acheron. Beneath the palace are a network of old tunnels and sewers pre-dating the current iteration of the city. Who built them is unknown, but the kings of old long since walled off sections leading to any part of the royal compound. A homeless populace calls those tunnels their own and, so long as they mostly stay out of sight, are tolerated.
Ianthe boasts the biggest garrison of knights in Ophir, and they serve as the city’s primary defense. A large wall likewise offers a bulwark against would-be invaders.
Some of the remaining architecture of Acheron was brought, piece by piece, to Ianthe for preservation. The Arch of Time sits in the Square of Mitra, an imposing, black basalt gate covered in bas-reliefs of creatures best not seen in the flesh. It is a curious, anomalous, and jarring monument in a city otherwise given to gold, white marble, and expertly laid roads. Locals have called it a grotesquerie, but no one has ever tried to tear it down.
Ianthe sits on edge of the Tybor River. For millennia, the waters served to transport goods throughout the region. The Tybor River is relatively shallow, but thick mud at the bottom stymy cavalry and infantry, increasing the city’s apparent impermeability to attack. Nearly all bridges are constantly guarded by either permanent wooden hill forts or mercenary patrols.