Introduction
The Encyclopedia Ultimatus is a series of eight main novels, each transcribed over many megaannum and carefully preserved through magics. Each book has been enchanted to have an infinite number of pages, with each opening to precisely the page of choice upon selection. Despite best attempts, some of the pages are smudged or have obscured details and are difficult to make out— thankfully, the bulk of these pages, although useful in the past, are typically irrelevant to the modern era, lost to Spatium Tempus's fickle nature or natural damage over time that could not be sealed away. These books have been passed along time and time again, with some researchers being chosen to carry them and periodically, new copies are produced through magic, releasing dozens of volumes of information out to the general public, albeit at high prices. Older copies and editions are highly sought out by collectors, archivists, and the wealthy who are interested in the arcane— it is believed that the original books are in the possession of a God somewhere, perhaps. Regardless, whilst it is uncertain whether or not these texts are precisely the original and although there are certainly arguments from various scholars presented, these particular copies of the Encyclopedia Ultimatus, harvested from one of the obscure libraries of Stelateria, are known for updating concisely with all other copies in Asla'nir. As researchers travel the globe, marking new discoveries, creating new inventions, and sampling the culture of the world, these books update concisely with all others, thus creating a 'hivemind' of knowledge. Supposedly, this is what the original texts were capable of, however, whether or not these are the original texts themselves is much to be seen...
Asla'nir
Simply titled the name of the planet itself, within the past three years, Asla'nir has come to feature a small blurb on Dar'nik, however, predominantly focuses on what little is known about the planet itself through experimentation, the calendar, and the histories, races, politics, and inner workings of Asla'nir's various nations. Alongside the Scriptura Deorum, Asla'nir is one of the few books within the Encyclopedia Ultimatus to be banned by certain providences of certain nations, as it is seen as controversial for its general choice to feature unfiltered histories of nations, even if what is generally found on each nation's page to be more of a summary of important, notable events and the past dozen thousand years or so. Asla'nir is split into multiple books, one on each nation of Asla'nir and with them comes the far more in-depth histories, many of which are graphic and disturbing, as they discuss the horrific acts of tyrants, unethical experimentation, slavery, and content generally believed to be ill-suited for the general public. Still, most people are not entirely certain on precisely how certain facets of history have been discovered by researchers, such as Ervaldr in Aloernarch's history, but one can presume it to be due to a series of dedicated interviews conducted with primary sources of real-world history and precisely what lies within it, as well as, potentially, some interpretations drawn upon by keen-eyed viewers. Despite that, this particular copy is the slimmest edition of Asla'nir— it purely provides small summaries, rather than a complete in-depth analysis of each nation
Further Reading
Ephemerium
A book discussing all mortal races to exist, the Ephemerium has an outstanding history and is the first of the Encyclopedia Ultimatus to be produced by technicality, but its true original copy has been long lost to history, destroyed sometime several million years ago. The Ephemerium was originally produced by ancient Vasteriothian scholars, but roughly around the First Plague, Isigkir's government began to suffer and collapse due to the staggering number of deaths and the rising amount of mindless undead produced by the outbreak. After the inevitable takeover of what used to be a small fraction of Isigkirian territory by early Udoxans, the Ephemerium was taken up by Udoxan scholars and joined the rest of the Encyclopedia Ultimatus as the second book released underneath the collection. The Ephemerium has the largest selection of information of the races of Asla'nir out of every book released to date and has been tested, cross-referenced, and verified by multiple scholars— various studies over millions of years have accumulated into this particular book and all-in-all, it has proven to be a reliable, consistent source of information for scholars and doctors all around Asla'nir. With its newest release, it features Tir'anorian races as well, which have been quickly added due to the combined efforts of Dar'nikian and Asla'nirian scholars working together to complete the Ephemerium with every mortal race known to the world.
Further Reading
Scriptura Deorum
This particular novel holds a discussion on what precisely makes a God, how Divine Titles work, and features the most updated information on known Divine figures to date. Researchers have taken a keen interest in seeking out the likes of cults, non-traditional, and new-wave faiths as well in order to place them into the Scriptura Deorum, but it has been a slow, tedious process and most editions do not feature the entire array of cults discovered, let alone the ones in existence. The Scriptura Deorum is of hot debate amongst researchers, theologists, and worshippers alike and many variations have been created and modified in order to include each sect as it sprouts up and a diverse, wide array of information that is nonsecular and unbiased in origin. This has resulted in many religious and agnostic individuals alike regarding the Scriptura Deorum quite negatively, especially those who do not feel that their virtues are being recognised, however, given the writers of the Encyclopedia Ultimatus's views, they have released the following statement: "We do not feel it is in our best interest to change the Scriptura Deorum to accommodate the views of one particular party when it is intended to serve as a neutral framing point that openly encourages discussion rather than enables the oppressive views of those in power to sway what it contains." Quite reasonably, some did not take this response well, but a complete statement was placed into the preface of the tome— some, even, have banned the book historically in certain regions heavily dominated by theocratic rule.
Further Reading
Libellum Magnum Animi
Roughly translating to 'large book of magic,' in other languages, it is typically translated to something along the lines of 'The Complete Grimoire of Magic' or 'Ancient Tome.' Containing various theories and arguments about magic from various scholars over time, the Libellum Magnum Animi explains precisely how mana works, observations of what each magic type is capable of, and descriptions about spellcasting as a whole. Beyond various scholars debating over the origins of mana, Libellum Magnum Animi has remained simplistic in comparison to most other books— it summarises mana and whilst some copies feature an entire spelllist with detailed descriptions on how to cast them, this spellbook feature is typically limited to older forms of the text and in editions sold to the general public, it is usually removed, instead reserved for books that can be purchased separately, all of which are quite popular in more literate nations, such as Udoxa. Collectors, however, quite enjoy bragging about possessing these in a singular book, much to the disgruntlement of their guests. Simply put, the Libellum Magnum Animi's goal is to explain the fundamental aspects of magic and clarify misconceptions, explain public understandings of magic, and give the input of various scholars over history. The book is also known for discussing certain magical ailments, such as soul disorders, and outright possesses pages from other books in the Encylopedia Ultimatus, particularly on matters related to spellcasting, such as Runes and Souls. Given that there are twelve magic forms and over three dozen subvariants of those magic types, there is much to cover and Libellum Magnum Animi's goal is to make it as simple as possible for the average consumer.
Further Reading
Compendium Linguisticum
The Compendium Linguisticum is a cohesive collection of terminology and languages from all around the world— it serves as a reliable source of words for other languages, discusses their origins, makes notes of regional and important dialects or subdivisions of a language, and provides specific, culturally relevant information in regards to a term. Certain phrases, after all, have certain connotations that are specifically for a certain populace or