Amaleki has much more to say and finished both the book of Omni as well as finishing the available space on the small plates. With Amaleki, the small plate tradition ended.
Amaleki lived through momentous times. During his lifetime there occurred one of the greatest disruptions in all of Nephite history. That story began with Mosiah1, whose story must have been told in Mormon’s record, but which was lost with the 116 pages. Much of what we know of the first Mosiah comes from this record that intended to cover the more spiritual aspects of the situation, rather than a full historical account.
The spiritual beginning came when Jehovah warned Mosiah1 to leave the city of Nephi and take all who would hearken unto the voice of the Lord into the wilderness. Amaleki intended to couch this historical event in its spiritual context, much as Nephi had used history for a more religious purpose. Thus, the people were led by preachings and prophesying, and were led to a new land. This becomes the first time we learn of the new location that will become the heart of Nephite society for the next nearly four hundred years.
If we accept that the Book of Mormon took place in a Mesoamerican setting, there is an important correlation to reconstructed history. A linguist has noted that there was an invasion of a new ethnic and language group into the location where it is presumed the city of Nephi would have been. It occurred at about the same time as this event, as related by Amaleki, and had the effect of scattering many of the elites of the area. That is, of course, the very thing that the Book of Mormon records happening at that point in time.