30 Manuscripts

Being a scholar, wizard, and bibliophile, the personal library of Atal the Wise Councilor is considered to be one of the largest and most extensive collections in the known world. The few known rivals include the King's Grand Archive, and the Seven Galleries of the Papal Depository.

1. The DeHansen Diaries
by Vildam Rouge
Some scholars argue over which was real, and which was the literary creation, Robin Hood or Lisa deHansen. While there are numerous tales of the former, there are heraldic records and the diaries of the latter. The Diaries detail the campaign of a noble born woman turned rogue in her fight against the oppressive then ruling powers. Many consider the DeHansen Diaries to be a basic treatise on how to operate a forest guerilla force, as well as a primer for female equality.

2. 100 Delicacies
by Gourmand Earl D'Aconda
Within this thick tome are over 1000 recipies for 100 different delicacies, ranging from the almost tame, yet exotic Xoct's Sauce to the expensive lotus mushroom. Within this book are no fewer than six recipes using dragon pancreas.

3. The Black Hound
by Vicholet Farbi
This book portrays a shapeshifting character named Fang who wanders from place to place, protecting children and causing all sorts of mischief and violence against oppressive monsters and evil step-parents. The book was originally for a noble child, but the parents disliked the anti-authoritarian sentiment and almost destroyed the book after its author was executed for sedition against the crown.

4. Of Grain and Swords
by Lt. Berald Grom
This thick details the importance of logistics in supporting an army in the field. Written in the military city of Wheatsword many consider this to be one of the best, if not the most concise works of supplying and army with food. Most who own a copy of the book consider it to be one of the best books to use for squishing unwanted household pests.

5. The Book of Painted Passions
by Ryzak Longhammer
This racy book is laid out in a biographical fasion of a traveler who samples prostitutes the way a sommalier samples wine. it is an obvious fiction as some of the ladies in question did not live during the same time period. Some think that Longhammer is a pseudonym adopted by a number of writers who have added to this poorly written work. Some versions, attributed to Madame Bathycolpia are much better written, but have a vastly different perspective.

6. The Thumbscrew Grimoire
author unknown
This plain black leather bound book contains a number of methods of torture that range from the mundane fist in the face to the absolutely horrific and macabre. The grimoire has a blank companion book that is used to record interrogations and to make note of new and devious methods of torture.

7. The Malleable Earth
by Dannia Ghostuum
This book details the many uses of clay, ranging from the mundane shaping of plain jugs and pots to the more unusual death masks and spirit binding amulets. The author even intimates using a pottery wheel to contact the spirits of the dead, letting them help sculpt the clay.

8. The Book of Tides
by Lexani Liath
While many of the texts that deal with the Great Demon of the Ocean are surrounded with a mythos of fear and lies, the Book of Tides is considered to be one of the safest, and unfortunately least valuable books for dealing with the Lord of the Ocean and his Drowned Cults. However, it is a valuable treatise on tidal observations in a number of important harbors.

9. Rites of the Condemned
by Father Antimon D'Eralasaq
This book is the personal memoir of a holy man who made it his personal mission to tend to the inmates of one of the few true prisons in the realm. The priest preached, took confession, and gave spiritual atonement to many of the prisoners within their bleak cells. He gave many the last rites as they finally perished, be it from old age, or the gallows rope. His memoirs record a man who fought for good and right in a place that cared only for law and order.

10. The Secret Art
by Szathao Verthicuul
Penned in utmost secrecy, this work details a large number of assassin guilds and assassins. The work was done largely in secret as each of the entities in question would have handily killed Szathao in cold blood if they had a hint of what the author had in mind. Each society is detailed in lurid prose with great emphasis on their moral evil and violent deeds. A popular book among decadenti and immoralites.

11. Exile and Execution
by Mateljan, Kerke Mage
This thick book was penned by Mateljan the Kerke Mage. In this lengthy text he describes the failings of the traditional punishments of exile and execution for criminals, offering detention as a viable alternative. He explores possibilities of work gangs, prison farms, and other means of exploiting a criminal population.

12. A History of Currency and Exchange
by Greigor Hest
This 2000 page work details the history of currency from its origins in a barter society to the preiminance of gold in the modern marketplace. It also is a treatise on banking and things like credit and investment which would be almost arcane sciences to the commoner in the field. A commonly found book that is considered to be one of the least frequently read books in the world.

13. The Lucavian Manifesto
by Lord Pavisfascio
This is a continually growing work, and currently occupies six thick tomes. At the behest of the King and the ocuncil of wizards, the Lord and archivist Pavisfascio began to collect evidence, anecdotal and otherwise, of the various small items of magic that surface after the demise of powerful wizards. The Manifesto was named after the horde of the wizard Lucavi, who was a well known maker of small things that invariably caused many problems.

14. Luxurious Wood
by Moncillo, Master Craftsman
While men treasure gold and jewels, the craftsman Moncillo treasured wood, and in his book he details the values of various woods as well as the great things that can be made from them. This book is considered basic reading for any antiquarian or would be master carpenter/cabinet maker.

15. Closure and Profile
by Nerim Antietus
This slim book was penned as a tool for use by city guards and other enforcement types. It details a number of criminal archtypes as well as brief descriptions of their means and motives. While commonly distributed in some major cities, most guards consider it to be less than useful as few successful criminals follow the guidelines set in the book.

16. Against the Ogres
by Sir Agincourt Whitewing
Penned by a descentdant of the legendary first Whitewing this medium sized book is both a personal biography of the Whitewing noble family and its trials and triumphs, but also a reliable text for facing ogres in war, and how to defeat them. While some of the accounts are considered fanciful, the basic tactics and formations given are very useful when facing ogres and other suprahuman sized humanoid foes.

17. Uncommon Magic
by Lucindille Featherby
This semi-humorous work is written from the prespective of a house maid or cleaning woman to a powerful mage. While most books of magic delve into ancient lore, potent spells and lists of demon's names, this light spirited work touches on domestic applications of magic, from enchanted feather dusters to unspillable water jugs.

18. Death and the Divine
by Provost Layton Frost
This tome is a piece by piece and step by step treatise on the inhereint dangers and pitfalls of organized faith and the dangers it encompasses. Rather than dealing with affairs of Iacon, this work delves into a religious schism that happened between tow polytheistic faiths and how it could have been avoided. The work is considered almost insulting pedantic and has been declared excommunicated in most religious areas.

19. Courting the Princess
by Anomander Stigyos
This is an older work that is heavily illuminated and illustrated in the older style of books, compared to the newer style that delves into miniscule writing and few if any illustrations. It details the courtly behaviour of a warrior princess looking to find a husband from the ranks of the mercantile nobilty, the military, and eventually from the vagabond adventurers.

20. The Blood War
by Magistrate Zind
Most consider this work about an ongoing war between vampires and a barbarian tribe to be a rather fanciful work of an overactive imagination. However, it is a rare example of hemography as all of the writting was done with blood based inks. The book is said to contain secret truths about vampire weaknesses and powers, though this remains untested.

21. To Taste the World
compilation of many authors
Compiled nearly a century ago, this mammoth set of 28 volumns was considered to be the complete record of all food recipes in the world. While many new books and recipes have been added, this collection is second to none for thoroughness. While there are very few copies, they are regularly studied by master chefs, gourmands, and epicurians.

22. The Curse of Gold
by Hypedies Bzander
This book is not a well received work as it details the dangers of gold, ranging from cursed gold to the great horrors, tragedies, and massacres from history that have been perpetrated in the name of that luminous metal. There were several other books in the series, each decrying one vice or another. Bzander claimed ascetic virtues were mandatory, and true tis belief he died penniless and hungry.

23. Dangerous Mimics
By Anjet of Kjach
This book was recovered from the body of the explorer Anjet herself, an incomplete work. in it she was exploring a nest of small squirrel like creatures and was slain by them. A great irony to a woman who survived encounters with dragons, helf fiends, and worse.

24. The DeMadden Rudders
Compilation of sea charts and captains logs
This oversize book is primarily a large collection of ships maps, also known as rudders. Each map is accompanied by a detailed decription of the various islands and things that have been encountered by ships of the maritime and mercantile power that is the DeMadden company.

25. The Book of Deeds
by Sir Inan Kruppe
This lavish tome details a number of knightly orders, as well as their various creeds, deeds, and outstanding members. The Book is considered almost a prerequisite to becoming a respected knight both in terms of martial ability, but in terms of social obligations and responcibilities.

26. The Critical Path
by Aertin the Woad
Written during a bloom of writting nearly a century ago, this work deals with how to properly critique a grimoire. During that time, almost any mage capable of writing was doing just that, creating a windfall of mediocre to poor quality tomes. The Woad spent nearly a decade dealing with these often juvenile works and attempted in her own way to help each of the new writters in perfecting their skills.

27. The Downward Path
by Mosion of Ogia
This book was penned by a legendary spelunker and scribe who spent much time voyaging into the dark places beneath the earth. Much to the surprise of all, many of these places were inhabited, as well as being homes to all sorts of strange creatures. It is assumed that Mosion eventually settled in one of these underground lands.

28. The Cunning Linguist
by Pashing Stratus
This monumental work deals with translating ancient languages as well as creating new languages and codes for mages and sages. It disects the basics of the written and spoke word, which is an invaluable tool for said scholars. possession and regular reading of the hefty work can improve a characters language skills with practice. There is a second book by the same name that was written by a priestess of Aphrodite that has nothing to do with languages.

29. The Booke of Familiar Spirites
by Scribe of Familiars
This somewhat worn and old book has been a constant companion to mages for more than an age. It was first written ages ago by a master of Familiar magics, and deals with the best way to summon and control familiars and even how to deal with them when they become too powerful or dangerous to the mage or populace in general.

30. The Wakeful Mind
by Morgan of Derekshire
This book, written some time ago by a well versed witch deals with the value of a number of plants and herbs that share the communal ability to ease the need for sleep and counter the enervation often associated with spellcasting. The book is considered to be a cause of several plant species being harvested into extinction.