Nomenclatura.Ampla.Arcanentum.Monstrumque. Fratris.Guzmanis
Brother Guzman's Expanded Nomenclatura Of Magiclings And Monsters
"It is needless to emphasize here the power of names and knowledge, so I will not lose time explaining the necessity of a unified nomenclatura of magiclings and monsters.
Rather, I would explain to the Disciples and the most naive amongst us the uselessness of my life's work. For such a nomenclatura is pointless and impossible to achieve. But yet I hope that others shall come after me to complete and expand it, for it is as cucial and important than it is pointless and impossible.
The main reasons for me to say that a magiclings' nomenclatura is impossible is because one cannot simply name a magicling. Whenever we do so, we simply describe the creature aptitude and specificities. However, it fails to express its intimate nature. Consider the following example:
Even newly recruited Disciples know what a vampire is: it is a blood-drinking undead thing-of-night. However while studying them, one would realize that there is no such a thing as 'typical' vampires. The name would split into a countless list of influences; contamination source, evolotionnary process, hemophiliac dependancy,...
One might then argue that such is too for dogs, horses and sheeps; species spliting in various races and bloodlines. Yet, this couldn't be more wrong; the difference between cursed vampires and contaminated ones makes them as different one from another as cats and fishes might be, as their magical genesis will define their nature more deeply than any natural birth does. And there isn't two identical magiclings genesis.
In fewer words, a nomenclatura of magiclings is either one of two: it can be specific about the very nature of different magiclings, or accept to list only the perceptible and common caracteristic of heterogeneous 'groups' of magiclings. This is as to say that a nomenclatura is either accurate and impossible to read nor complete, or approximative and generic yet helpful.
I chose the later."
- Introduction in Nomenclatura.[...].Fratris.Guzmanis,
Brother Guzman (698, Terrante)
Purpose
Originally just the craze of a lone friar who became obsessed with the study of magiclings, the quality and extensiveness of Brother Guzman works got the curiosity and interest of the Herzhi Order, to a point were some of them even came to him for advices. The existence of the Order came obvious to him over the years and Brother Guzman ended up being secretly recruited amongst the Dwellers, whose well-furnished libraries allowed the former monk to ellaborate the most complete magiclings compendium ever.
Document Structure
Clauses
The Nomenclatura is organized in four chapters, each of them became a standard reference within the Herzhi Order
- Descriptionis vanitatum necessitatique - Of The Need And Vanity Of Classification
a summary of the difficulty of classifiaction giving explainations on Guzman's decision for his own classifiaction - Nomenclatura modesta arcanentum - Sorted Nomenclature Of Magiclings
the monenclature's main body; certain categories were theorized by Guzman and are still relevent a century later - Descriptio proprietatis arcanentum - Descriptions Of The Magiclings' Properties
sometimes forgotten, this chapter is the foundation of many other studies as it characterizes the magiclings and exposes their specificities - Libris pretiorum arcanentum - Books Of Value About Magiclings
being that Guzman travel the continent for his researches, the bibliography of his Nomenclatura basically became a universal entry-list to the Herzhi knowledge
Publication Status
Even though destined to the Herzhi Order's members' eyes only, some few copies of the book were lost. Some of these copies found their way in occultists' and mages' libraries, held there as curiosities, as the Nomenclatura has only ever been written in the Sealed Words.
However, Guzman's first essays were written in Dornian, before he was recruited amongst the Dwellers, and some of these copies were sent to other scholars, shared, lost,... Nowadays, one might come across a scholar owning the occasionnal copy of these digests; yet their quatlity is usually inferior, as the first essays were based on an imcomplete knowledge and have then been denatured in the copying process (misunderstandings, religious propaganda or censorship,...)
However, Guzman's first essays were written in Dornian, before he was recruited amongst the Dwellers, and some of these copies were sent to other scholars, shared, lost,... Nowadays, one might come across a scholar owning the occasionnal copy of these digests; yet their quatlity is usually inferior, as the first essays were based on an imcomplete knowledge and have then been denatured in the copying process (misunderstandings, religious propaganda or censorship,...)
Historical Details
Background
Brother Guzman was an itinerant grey-monk of the Crying Merciful Order, in Terrante during the mid VIIth century. He was operating in the Valdero region when the Red Jihad (656) broke and he witnessed the horrors commited by Sultan Bashir III ' Demon-Tongue''s armies; he even often barely made it out alive. Following his Order's teaching, he stayed in the Valdero to help anyone struck by the aftermath of the conflict, be he Bontist or Lawful.
His faith in the Merciful and his obedience towards his Order took a serious blow in 659, during the Holy March, when united Bontist nations counter-attacked the Demon-Tongue, rallying to the call of 'Baptism or the Sword!' and perpetrating on the civilians populations equally horrendous war-crimes. In the 660's, the Valdero was plagued by skirmishes and endless raid on both sides, villages were 'pacified' (ergo, run through by sword and fire) and the grieving of the population was such that many magical manifestations appeared. (ghost processions, wild hunts, nightmares, white-knights, ghuls,...).
Sick of the war and human suffering, Guzman ended up taking refuge in the study of these yet gruesome odd phenomenons. This hobby lasted even after the war cooled down, and in the early 670's, the monk had amassed enough informations to compare to a Hunter's knowledge. Wanderers in the Valdero region even took the habit of coming to him for advice and informations. Guzman was progressively initiated to the Order as a Dweller, as he would consider that 'true Mercy hears the cries of even the dead's souls and true Commiseration weeps even for the damned's fate'. Brother Guzman never saw any contradiction between the calling to the Father and the duty of a Herzhi.
He spent the rest of his life travelling to pursue his studies of magiclings, with a unique approach; still deeply religious, Guzman considered that even magic had to 'make sense' and as such tried to find some order amongst the magiclings. While other nomenclatures were but chaotic lists, his Nomenclatura tried to classify magiclings and magical manifestations.
Brother Guzman wrote and published his works in 698, in the winter of his life, as '[he]'d rather make a first and only step rather that dying dreaming of travels', leaving to other the task of pursuing his works. Even though the complete Nomenclatura was written in the Sealed Words, Guzman kept the titles in Dornian on a whim. He died in 699, at age 78.
His faith in the Merciful and his obedience towards his Order took a serious blow in 659, during the Holy March, when united Bontist nations counter-attacked the Demon-Tongue, rallying to the call of 'Baptism or the Sword!' and perpetrating on the civilians populations equally horrendous war-crimes. In the 660's, the Valdero was plagued by skirmishes and endless raid on both sides, villages were 'pacified' (ergo, run through by sword and fire) and the grieving of the population was such that many magical manifestations appeared. (ghost processions, wild hunts, nightmares, white-knights, ghuls,...).
Sick of the war and human suffering, Guzman ended up taking refuge in the study of these yet gruesome odd phenomenons. This hobby lasted even after the war cooled down, and in the early 670's, the monk had amassed enough informations to compare to a Hunter's knowledge. Wanderers in the Valdero region even took the habit of coming to him for advice and informations. Guzman was progressively initiated to the Order as a Dweller, as he would consider that 'true Mercy hears the cries of even the dead's souls and true Commiseration weeps even for the damned's fate'. Brother Guzman never saw any contradiction between the calling to the Father and the duty of a Herzhi.
He spent the rest of his life travelling to pursue his studies of magiclings, with a unique approach; still deeply religious, Guzman considered that even magic had to 'make sense' and as such tried to find some order amongst the magiclings. While other nomenclatures were but chaotic lists, his Nomenclatura tried to classify magiclings and magical manifestations.
Brother Guzman wrote and published his works in 698, in the winter of his life, as '[he]'d rather make a first and only step rather that dying dreaming of travels', leaving to other the task of pursuing his works. Even though the complete Nomenclatura was written in the Sealed Words, Guzman kept the titles in Dornian on a whim. He died in 699, at age 78.
Legacy
To understand of how fundamental Guzman's Nomenclatura became to the Order, one might remember that before it was published, many a Hunter tried to produce likewise nomenclatures (Ilvernes d'Yon - 534, Brasqis El-Wêd - 427,...) and even though, within few years after the first publication, the word 'nomenclature' became a Herzhi abbreviation for 'Nomenclatura.Ampla.Arcanentum.Monstrumque.Fratris.Guzmanis'.
It may also be noted that Guzman's work was left untouched for over a century; even the rare commentators who would disagree with Guzman's classification would rather do it under the form of addendas and comments than to write a new version. This might be explained by the fact that Guzman's work was extensively sourced and that his research would delve centuries back and expand to the four corners of the known world. Within a century however, the various comments were numerous enough to need a synthesis, and this work was undergone by the Wanderer Stéphane Carpentier (see right panel). Even though, copies of the original work are easy enough to come by in Herzhi libraries. The Nomenclatura is one of the few absolute 'must-read' books of the Herzhi libraries, and every Disciple is asked to be familiar with it, while Masters end up possessing an encyclopaedical knowledge of the various classifications and of even the most rare magiclings Guzman and Carpentier listed.
It may also be noted that Guzman's work was left untouched for over a century; even the rare commentators who would disagree with Guzman's classification would rather do it under the form of addendas and comments than to write a new version. This might be explained by the fact that Guzman's work was extensively sourced and that his research would delve centuries back and expand to the four corners of the known world. Within a century however, the various comments were numerous enough to need a synthesis, and this work was undergone by the Wanderer Stéphane Carpentier (see right panel). Even though, copies of the original work are easy enough to come by in Herzhi libraries. The Nomenclatura is one of the few absolute 'must-read' books of the Herzhi libraries, and every Disciple is asked to be familiar with it, while Masters end up possessing an encyclopaedical knowledge of the various classifications and of even the most rare magiclings Guzman and Carpentier listed.
Type
Study, Scientific
Authoring Date
Brother Guzman's original version: 698
Discussed Nomenclatura (819)
by Stéphane Carpentier
Guzman's work was so exemplary, so complete in its synthetic approach of Herzhi knowledge, that it was basically left untouched for over a century. Over the VIIIth century comments, critics and addendas progressively completed the original work. In the early 800's, the Wanderer Stéphane Carpentier decided to update the Nomenclatura; finishing his Discussed Nomenclatura took over a decade and it was one of the key reason to award Carpentier the title of Master-Wanderer.
Modern copies of the Nomenclatura are almost exclusively copies of the Discused one.
Modern copies of the Nomenclatura are almost exclusively copies of the Discused one.
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