The Snake's Nest

The Snake's Nest is a fortress lying in the centre of the Kathriq town of Ilahr. It was built in the 3rd Century BCE by the Vardanid Shahanshah Pakoras II.
The fortress derives its name from a local tale. It is said that when Pakoras II came to visit the completed fortress he stayed overnight in the central keep - this was Parsanian tradition. He woke the next morning to find a nest of vipers under his bed.
The Snake's Nest has been besieged twice - the first time, from 646 to 650, it was defended by the Vardanids and attacked by the Reman Legio de Nemus. The latter won the siege and kept control of the town until 651, when a short siege put it under control of the Farmandrate of Kath, under whose control it has since remained.
== Layout ==
The Snake's Nest is a relatively old and obsolete fortress. It comprises two walls - the outer is six metres high and two thick. It has side lengths of half a mile, with towers at the corners and gates on all four walls. The inner wall is set back ten metres from the outer and separated by a deep moat - it is one metre thicker and three higher, giving the inner wall a square cross-section. 
Inside these thick curtain walls is a courtyard, and in the centre the keep rises three storeys. The courtyard houses the fortress's infrastructure, including a barracks, well, stables and storehouses.
Category:Fortifications
Category:Kath