Menaphos

Menaphos is a city located far south in the Kharidian Desert. It is not yet accessible due to the inhabitants' fear of the plague in the neighbouring city of Sophanem.

History
The Second Age saw a rise in power of the Menaphites, a group of humans that had settled in the Kharidian Desert during the dawn of humanity. The Menaphites played large roles in the construction and management of numerous settlements within the desert, including Sophanem, Ullek and Uzer.

The God Wars that scarred Gielinor during the Third Age brought great battle to the Kharidian Desert. Uzer was destroyed by the Elder-Demon Thammaron and Ullek fell shortly afterwards to Balfrug Kreeyath. To worsen matters, exiled followers of the fallen god Zaros were forced into the desert, where they wreaked havoc amongst the local populace. The only surviving cities were Menaphos and Sophanem, which were, at the time, little more than small Menaphite camps. The refugees from the destroyed settlements fled to Menaphos and Sophanem, where they contributed to the cities' prosperity. By the Fourth Age, the twin cities were amongst the largest in the world.

Menaphos held a large deal of political power within the Kharidian Desert, being the only city with any real strength; the only other settlements were small towns and camps such as Nardah and Pollnivneach. Menaphos went to war with Al-Kharid for some time, but little is known of this.

After the end of the Menaphos - Al-Kharid war, it was believed that Menaphos would open its gates to the rest of Gielinor. This, however, was not the case, due to the many plagues set upon Sophanem by Amascut. To prevent the spread of the plague, Menaphos closed its gates immediately. Many of the citizens of Sophanem were trapped inside, and any attempts by the Sophanites to negotiate with Menaphos were met with violence.

The city's closure was met with a great deal of resistance from the city's slaves, who rioted when they discovered that the slaves in Sophanem were no longer working because of the plagues. The riots were stamped out by the city's guards quickly.

Even today, the city remains sealed. Furthermore, recent reports show that the city is cutting off ocean-based trade in the Southern Sea, suggesting that the city is attempting to become more independent. This may mean that Menaphos means to remain sealed permanently.

Menaphos has made attempts to put one of their own leaders on the throne of Al-Kharid under the guise of offering stability to the city while the Emir and Prince Ali are absent, including assassinating the Emir and kidnapping the prince. These attempts have failed however. Amascut has revealed herself to be influential in these events, and it is unknown to what extent the pharaoh of Menaphos is aware of her involvement.

Description
Little is known of Menaphos itself due to its closure and the lack of any features being visible on the world map. It is known to be a very large city, capable of functioning well even when shut off from the outside world. It is said to be divided into four districts; the port, the slums, the Imperial District, and the Merchant District. The presence of a port, coupled with the map displayed while using charter ships, suggests that Menaphos is located at the southernmost point of the desert, along the Southern Sea. Aristarchus, a Menaphite scholar that took refuge in Pollnivneach when the plague set in, also states that the city houses a grand library. This might imply that the city is based on the Egyptian city of Alexandria.

Menaphos worships the Desert Pantheon of gods in much the same way as most of the other inhabitants of the desert. Religion is very important to the people of the city, and so many temples and pyramids have been constructed in honour of these deities. It has been hinted by Jagex that, when the city is opened, more desert gods may be revealed. The current High Priest of Icthlarin also makes his home here. The city's dead are usually sent to Sophanem to be mummified properly so that Icthlarin can guide them to the afterlife. The two cities are linked by a large bridge that spans the River Elid, although only the section of Menaphos's side is guarded by military fortifications.

Using the Orb of oculus, players are able to see into the city of Menaphos, where only paths can be found so far (due to the city being currently unavailable). Some paths head to the side gate, one heads south into the city and one heads far west. This could hint that the city is much bigger than it shows on the world map.

Travel
Note: There is no way to enter the city of Menaphos. However, you can enter some neighbouring places.
 * The Pharaoh's Sceptre can teleports players directly inside the Pyramid Plunder activity in neighbouring Sophanem.
 * The magic carpet system can be used to travel near Menaphos from Pollnivneach and vice-versa.
 * Fairy Ring code is some distance away, but still available if necessary.
 * The Camulet can teleport players to Enakhra's Temple, which can be found underground just north of Menaphos.
 * The Lodestone Network can be used to go to the Bandit Camp and then walk south-east.

Personalities

 * The Pharaoh - Ruler of Menaphos
 * Coenus - Captain of the guard
 * Menaphite guards - Standard guardsmen
 * Jabari - A cunning ambassador sent to Emir Shah
 * Ali the Operator - Banished member of the Amascutian gang
 * Menaphite Leader - Leader of the banished Amascutian gang
 * Toralis - Missing explorer
 * Aristarchus - Desert historian

Trivia

 * Menaphos and Sophanem have the same letters and are spelled backwards, just that the "p" and the "h" are switched in order to make the cities pronouncable.
 * The priests on the other side of the gate appears to be wearing a combination of Menap headgear and Facemask.
 * It is probably based on the ancient Egyptian capital city of Memphis. It could also be based on Alexandria, an Egyptian port which also contains a grand library.
 * Menaphos, as suggested by the RuneScape map, is currently completely empty, most-likely not being designed yet as it can't be entered currently.
 * Unlocking the hint for the music track City of the dead gives the message, "This track unlocks to the north of (and at) Menaphos". This suggests it will be accessible in the future.
 * Menaphos is now one of the only inaccessible places in RuneScape that have not been given information about their release, the other places being Castle Drakan and the Wushanko Isles.
 * With the use of the Orb of Oculus, it is now possible to see into Menaphos, which currently appears empty. However, this is because Jagex have not yet designed the city, not because the city itself is actually empty.
 * Another reason why Menaphos is believed to be a future area is because there is a gate near the rug attendant.
 * After an update on 26 September 2012 the full city of Menaphos has been filled in on the World Map.
 * After an update on the 9th August 2011, you can now open the northern gate to Menaphos, however you can only move one square into the city and it remains vacant. This no longer happens.
 * The cities of Sophanem and Menaphos may be loosely based on the Biblical twin cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, though the connection goes no further than 'twin walled cities situated within the desert'.
 * It is largely theorized that Menaphos is going to possibly expand in a future update, thus, removing the western and Southern Walls. This is supported that the cliff near Menaphos and the massive western extension is going to mean Menaphos will be twice the size than it is now.

Menaphos Menaphos