Founded at the dawn of the Empire, Otosan Uchi served as the home of the first Hantei Emperor, and has been the Imperial City for the Hantei Dynasty that has ruled over Rokugan for more than one thousand years. For the first few centuries, the city expanded rapidly, but its growth slowed eventually, never actually stopping but holding relatively stable as time went on. Unfortunately the coastal region in which the city was built is among the Empire’s unstable in terms of the frequent, low-grade earthquakes that plague the area throughout portions of the year. As a result, many structures are constantly damaged by the quakes and exist in a state of near constant repair. Some of the outermost portions of the city, including the low stone wall that surrounds it, are never fully repaired and mar the image of the city as the most grandiose in the Empire with their terrible condition. The innermost regions of the city are vastly more stable, however, owing to their superior construction. In fact, there is a sort of second city within the city, forbidden to all those who do not live within or possess an invitation. This “forbidden city” is dominated by the Imperial Palace, the embassies of the Great Clans, and some of the most ancient and revered temples in all of Rokugan.
A compound, gaijinya, exists in Otosan Uchi for diplomatic purposes. It is not an embassy, as such, but more of a designated compound that gaijin are restricted to when the Emperor summons them to the capital.