Ïs (ees)
Oh, to see the shining city of Ïs again, my heart would burn to glass.
Many times, this old, passed down proverb has brought wandering Isuldians back to the thriving center of their civilization, if only to feel safe and cool in the twinkling city of glass. Almost sacred to the culture, this city is a physical manifestation of how the Isuldians thrive in the impossible wastes of the desert and the strength of the community over centuries. Marbled with beautiful stained glass and tall spires, this capital appears as a fever dream rising from the mesas of the Isuldian desert.
The Hilltop Haven (or Hell)
While thousands of Isuldians flock to Ïs either from neighboring settlements or cities, many thousands of natives already live within the crowded metropolis squeezed onto the top of a single mesa. A traveler could see Ïs from miles around, both from its many towers, spires, and architectural height and from its light. The combination of small space and a growing population caused the city to grow upwards resulting in its iconic skyline. Distinct from the rest of the landscape, Ïs is easy to pick out from the mesa tops. Also, regarding the light, Ïs is the capital of a nation whose largest export is colored glass. As such, much of the nobility and upper class have invested in huge displays of windows, artwork, and building projects featuring this bright glass. And in a place, such as Isul where the sun seems brightest, stained-glass windows have the ability to shine unequaled. But in this crowded space where many come to seek refuge, some meet their fate. As Isuldian culture and government is imperially focused, the opportunities many believe abound in the capital are all a lie. Sleeping in the streets, stuffed into crowded houses, life for common folk in Ïs is not flattering. Many gave up their struggling existence within the protective walls of the city to seek refuge at the base of the mesa, a collective garbage heap where the city's refuge has fallen down the cliffs. Although appealing from the outside, the dark depths of the city are not mentioned in the glowing accounts of the capital city.Architecture
Sponsored by the wealthy to improve the look of the city and to keep immigrants coming from all over the desert, many magnificent spires are a major source of pilgrimage for many Isuldian communities that believe them to be some of the best sights in all of Pentham. These spires follow the traditional style of Isuldian architecture of s-curved aesthetics. Rounded windows, spiral designs, and pointed tops are common tropes in the local planners' repertoire."It was like nothing I've ever seen before. The spires were taller than the trees in the Northern Divide and they sparkled like the ocean on a sunny day."As mentioned before, Ïs is famous for its glass windows. It is here in the city that the true beauty of the colored glass is reserved for Isuldians to cherish. While this special glass is the biggest, and only, export of the nation, Isuldians are still cautious of whom they sell to and consistently save the best of each batch for building in Isul itself. Call them selfish, but few beings have ever seen Ïs to compare the rest of the glass in the world to.- a particularly poetic, and rare, traveler to Ïs
Shelter from the (sand) Storm
While a functioning city on its own, Ïs is a go to place to escape the furious sandstorms which rise up in the desert just outside the mesa canyons inside which Ïs is located. Although it is placed on top of one of these mesas, it is still sheltered as the smaller mesas shield it from the furious winds and scraping sand. One can always tell when a sandstorm is on its way by the number of travelers coming into the city at any given day. When a storm kicks up on the dunes, all the nomads in the region will bring their entire camp into the city. It is times like this when the already dense population has to suck in for a while to accommodate everyone.
Landscape at the base of the Ïs mesa
Type
Capital
Population
43,596
A defense platform jutting off the Ïs mesa
Comments