Imperial Palace
The Gate of Elemental Dragons: (1) On the southern side of the palace, this massive fortified gate towers above the nearby city.
Five Dragon Bridges: Five ornately carved jade bridges lead to the Gate of Elemental Dragons, each carved of the appropriately coloured jade in a manner representing one of the elements. It is tradition to cross into the Palace along the bridge of your aspect. Bridge of Red Jade (2), Bridge of Blue Jade (3), Bridge of White Jade (4), Bridge of Black Jade (5), Bridge of Green Jade (6).
Gate of Dedicated Servitude: (7) Anyone who is not Dragonblooded (or part of an Exalt's entourage) enters the palace through this smaller fortified gate.
The Meridian Gate: (19) Beyond the Elemental Gate lies a vast courtyard, which could house upwards of a hundred thousand people at any given time. It is from this gate that the Empress would deliver direct announcements to her officials, and inspect her armies. It was tradition for victorious returning generals to present themselves and their troops to the Empress here, offering up slaves and plundered treasure to her. This massive courtyard also has two side gates, the Minister’s Gate (17) and the General’s Gate (18), through which soldiers and bureaucrats enter the courtyard and approach the Meridian gate, in whose inner chambers are located numerous audience chambers for meetings with the Empress or high officials.
Grand Offices of the Thousand Scales: (I) Through the Minister’s Gate lies the vast maze of halls and chambers which house the vast majority of the Realm’s bureaucrats, as well as many of their families and servants. The Grand Offices are a city unto themselves, with their own shops and eateries operated by the extended families of the hereditary bureaucrat clans, hidden away amongst the alleys and corridors.
The Impregnable Office of the Treasury: (31) Second only to the Imperial Library in size, and connected to it by underground corridors, the Treasury looms large over the heart of the Thousand scales. Its marble floors and secure offices (once guarded by Legionnaires, now by soldiers under command of Patrician Clan Bal) are filled with the scribble of quills and the clink of jade coins. Stories passed between junior clerks and assistants hold that there are hidden cellars in the Treasury that date back to the time of the Anathema, or even before then. There are supposed to be rooms in the complex of buildings with windows that look out onto different worlds, from the dwellings of the gods to the mansions of ghosts. Some even claim that the building is haunted by Anathema who were killed in it ages ago.
The Imperial Library: (30) A sprawling, multi-level complex of yellowed marble the colour of parchment, whose maze of shelves seek to roost a copy of every text known to Creation, from the Black Treatise of Mela to copies of bureaucratic forms and registers accumulated over seven centuries. Access is restricted, with tight controls to prevent risks that might harm the tomes contained on the shelves, and the convoluted indexing system is understood only by a few families of hereditary librarians who may spend their whole lives within its walls.
Hall of Silent Dedication: (24) Through the General’s Gate lies a large and ornately carved building, where the 5,000 men of the Silent Legion live and train, and where both young slave-boys are prepared to join the Legion and old eunuchs find rest in retirement.
The Hall of Supreme Harmony: (36) On the other side of the Meridian Gate, the Hall of Supreme Harmony houses the Scarlet Throne, and the chambers used by the servants, consorts, and children of the Empress for living, sleeping, meetings, leisure, and anything else she might desire of them. It is also the only path through into the Gardens of the Imperial Manse, and current abode of the Imperial Regent.
Blossoming Orchid Pavilion: (8) A large teahouse, left open to the breeze in the mornings ands closed against heat in the afternoon. Many Dynasts come here in its public hall or private alcoves to enjoy refreshments such as flower Teas and Dynastic Dim Sum.
Gate of Eternal Peace: (16) Gateway into the Square of Imperial Servants (H), housing the offices and chambers of the bureaucracy which administers the Palace itself.
Thousand Horse Pavilion: (21) Palace stables, home not only to the Imperial Menagerie, but the mounts & palanquin bearers needed by the Dynasts to depart the Palace.
Pavilion of Painting and Song: (44) A frequent location of Tepet galas in the Palace, this pavilion is filled with beautiful works of art, as well as chambers for artists, musicians, and writers whose work found favour with the Scarlet Empress. Her tastes were fickle, and turnover of guests here was common.
Palace of Returning Heroes: (22) A vast complex for guests specifically invited by the Empress... Strategoi and Imperial Legion officers, ministers or those who performed outstanding services, were given rooms and offices here. Now, the bureaucrats who operate it are guided less by the will of the Imperial Regent and more by bribes from the Dynasts as to what rooms are granted to whom.
All-Seeing-Eye Pavilion: (25) A small gazebo beneath a set of metal supports, atop which rests a wrought-iron sphere. Within the sphere, a flame rendered alchemically a deep red, almost purple, burns eternally, visible from almost anywhere on the palace grounds… a reminder that the Empress sees and knows all.
Altar of Land and Grain: (20) Rituals are enacted here by the Scarlet Empress (now the Imperial Regent) at every planting, asking for prosperity, and then at harvest offering thanks.
Flowing Waters Pavilion: (10) A place for the Palace servants to rest and relax, having some tea and scraps from the Dynastic kitchens.
Pavilion of Imperial Treasures: (23) The repository for incoming tribute, as well as large stockpiles of Jade, magical materials, artifacts, and treasures accumulated over the years by the Scarlet Empress but not placed on display elsewhere in the Palace.
Palace of Imperial Magistrates: (26) Building housing offices and quarters for the magistrates of the Realm. While each Magistrate is granted space here, many rooms are left unused, with only the City’s magistrates staying here regularly.
Pavilion of Sincerity and Solemnity: (45) A special pavilion for Immaculate monks visiting the palace to stay. It has its own permanent clergy, who pray to the myriad gods of the Realm and its institutions.
Great Halberd Gate: (13)
Hexagon Pavilion: (9) An open hexagon-shaped pavilion, its blue clay roof tiles and blue glass pillars reminiscent of the architecture in Lord's Crossing. The Pavilion was a gift from the family of Tepet to thank Her Scarlet Majesty for granting them Great House status. Its stone floor is carved with winding channels through which water flows and gurgles, awaiting Dynastic soirees and Drinking Games of 'floating cups'.
Waterside Pavilion: (11). A gift to the Scarlet Empress from Prince Sesus at the formation of his House, where Dynastic elders sometimes meet for Tea or fishing.
Flowering Garden Gate: (12)
Gate of Rehearsing Rites: (14)
Gate of Defending Peace: (15)
Hall of Wise and Knowledgeable Advisors: (27) Large complex of buildings serving as headquarters of the Wise and Knowledgeable Advisors of Foreign Tributaries, the Realm's Foreign Office.
Hall of Honourable and Humble Caretakers: (28) Sprawling complex containing the offices of the Honorable and Humble Caretakers of the Common Folk, as well as numerous sub-departments including the Imperial Census and Benevolent Stewards of Health and Utility (the Apricot Ministry).
Hall of Infallible Conveyors: (29) Large complex serving as headquarters of the3 Infallible Conveyors of Official Messages and Heartfelt Expressions (the Imperial Post).
Hall of Humble and Honest Assessors: (32) Sprawling complex that serves as headquarters of the Humble And Honest Assessors Of The Imperial Tax.
Palace Artisans' District: (33)
Gate of Kindness and Tranquility: (34)
Gate of Peace and Longevity: (35)
Scarlet Palace: (37) The Scarlet Empress’ personal living quarters. The Imperial Regent has not taken up residence here.
Pavilion of Shining Enlightenment: (38)
Tower of Cultivating the Mind: (40) A tall, fortified tower on the Imperial Palace walls. It is home to a small throneroom, reception chamber, study, and libraries, sometimes used by the Scarlet Empress to receive more academic-minded guests. One such library is the Room of Three Rarities, so named for the three pieces of ancient and masterful calligraphy displayed within.
Tower of Accumulating Beauty: (41)
Tower of Seeking Clarity: (42)
Tower of Abstinent Meditation: (43)
Thousand Waterfalls Creek: (A) River flowing eastward from the central mountain ranges, passing the Imperial Palace and sinking into the sewers of the Imperial City before heading to meet the sea at Vatamu.
Great Square of the Eternal Realm: ( C)
Imperial Palace Gardens: (D) A vast expanse of gardens that intermingle and flow into each other, including gardens for each aspect of each season featuring seasonal plants, herb and vegetable gardens for the Palace kitchens, quiet meditation groves, moon ponds, drinking streams, and many more. By tradition, Great Houses, Patrician Clans, and satrapies of the Realm will often gift additions or sections of the Garden to the Empress, expressing the flora and fauna of their ancestral lands or commemorating some particular cultural or historical event.
Square of Receiving Good Fortune: (E)
Square of Preserving Supremacy: (F)
Courtyard of Blessed Entry: (G)
Square of Imperial Servants: (H)
Imperial Palace Moat: (J)
Great Wall of the Imperial Palace: (K) Forty-five feet high.
Square of the Chosen: (L)
Square of Wrathful Storms: (M)
Square of Fruitful Harvests: (N)
Gardens of the Imperial Manse: (O)
Imperial Palace West Wing: (46) Sprawling maze of rooms and courtyards, where the Houses live at the Palace. House Tepet, House Ledaal, House Cathak, House Sesus, and House Peleps occupy sections of the West Wing Palace.
Imperial Palace East Wing: (47) Sprawling maze of rooms and courtyards, where the Houses live at the Palace. House Ragara, House Mnemon, House V'neef, and House Cynis occupy sections of the East Wing Palace. House Ragara is currently in negotiations with House Nellens over including that House in the East Wing.
Imperial Manse: (39) The Imperial Manse was constructed in the distant past, during the First Age. During the Shogunate Era it was abandoned and forgotten until the woman who would become the Scarlet Empress entered it during an attack on Creation by the Fair Folk during the time of the Great Contagion. In the more than seven centuries since no other mortal or Dragonblooded has ever entered it and returned to tell the tale.
The Imperial Manse is the centerpiece of the Imperial Palace and is at the center of a large garden. Physically it is a huge, squat octagonal building decorated with Orichalcum and black Marble, it possess a single door that is a slab of Black Jade. Inside this impressive building are controls that unify all the War Manses of the Blessed Isle's Imperial Defense Grid as if they were a single weapon. In addition to these controls, the Manse contains First Age mechanisms that made the Empress an equal to the Shoguns who came before her.
The Realm's senior leadership today is greatly worried over its inability to access the Imperial Manse, as it is one of the Empire's most important military resources. This concern is twofold. First, no one among the Realm's current leaders has any idea how to get inside the Manse, much less how it works (or even the true scope and extent of its powers). Second, a number of sorcerers have been studying the Manse, and everyone knows that whoever emerges from the Manse knowing its secrets and its powers will be the next Emperor or Empress by default. In order to prevent this the Great Houses and other factions within the Realm watch the Manse closely, ready to pounce and cut down any who seem prepared to penetrate it.
