View source for Gallowpedia:Manual of Style

{{Shortcut|GP:MOS}} 
The '''Manual of Style''' ('''MOS''') provides a series of guidelines for users when creating articles. It serves the purpose of maintaining consistency throughout ''[[Project:About|Gallowpedia]]'' in order to ensure that its articles are easy to read and edit for all. Any questions regarding this manual may be directed at the [[Special:ListAdmins|administrators]] or posed in the [https://discord.com/invite/S7PSNrVNxt Wiki's Discord server].

If you are unfamiliar with Wiki-style editing, please review the MediaWiki Help pages. If you are inexperienced with Wiki formatting, you may play around with it in the [[Project:Sandbox|Sandbox]].

==Article structure==
{{Shortcut|GP:AS}}
Articles should generally be structured in this way, from top to bottom:
* '''Disambiguation'''
** Use the {{t|for}} or {{t|about}} templates. This helps users find their way to similarly named articles. Leave out if not applicable.
* '''Infobox'''
** A floating box with all the essential information about the article subject.
** See the [[:Category:Infobox templates|Infobox templates]] category for a list of currently available infobox templates.
* '''Quote'''
** Use the {{t|Q}} template. This should be a quote from or about the subject of the article.
* '''Introduction'''
**A paragraph (or several) giving a quick overview of the subject matter. 
**This section generally does not require citations; they can be provided in the appropriate sections of the article instead. 
**The first sentence of the first paragraph should begin with the title of the article in '''bold letters'''.
* '''The bulk of the article, under headings'''
**This part will differ depending on what the article is about. However, articles covering similar subject matter should generally follow the same structure. For example, [[Sir Daniel Fortesque]] and [[Zarok]] are both characters, so their articles should generally use the same headings.
**Some commonly used headings on Gallowpedia:
***'''History'''
****A history section will usually appear on in-universe articles such as character or item pages. It should explain the full history of the subject matter within the context of the ''MediEvil'' universe. It can have subheadings dividing the section by historical or personal time periods.
***'''Characteristics'''
****This section is used to describe the subject matter in more detail focusing on its appearance, personality or abilities (if applicable).
***'''Gameplay'''
****These sections usually deal with how the subject matter figures into the gameplay of the game(s) it appears in. For example, in the case of enemy pages, a strategy section and a damage table are quite common.
***'''Behind the scenes'''
****This section is used to explain information about the subject matter that may not be disclosed or observable in the games themselves, such as development information or etymology.
And, near the end of the article:
* '''Gallery'''
**A sampling of images about the subject matter. 
**If the subject has their own image category, a link to it can be provided here using {{t|Main article}}. 
**Galleries may be separated out into a subpage if they are too big (more than 10 images).
* '''Trivia'''
**This section is for information that generally does not fit into any other section of the article, but is still notable enough to be worth mentioning. 
**It is ideal to '''not''' have a trivia section at all, instead finding a place for all information within other sections.
* '''In other languages'''
** Use the {{t|OtherLanguages}} template in this section to list all '''official''' translations of the article subject. Please leave out languages where the words are identical to the original English. Languages that don't use the [[wikipedia:Roman alphabet|Roman alphabet]] should always be included.
* '''See also'''
** Use this section to link to articles on the Wiki that are closely related to the subject matter of this article. For example, the [[Zombie]] article is closely related to the [[Headless Zombie]] article.
**The inclusion of this section is not always necessary; only use it if you cannot incorporate related articles into the main body of the article.
* '''Notes'''
** Use the {{t|Notelist}} template here. This will produce a list of all notes in the article. To make a note, use the {{t|Note}} template.
** Notes can be used to explain editorial decisions made in the article or to go into more detail about specific issues relating to the article where it would be inappropriate to do so within the main sections.
* '''References'''
** Use the {{t|Reflist}} template here. This will produce a list of all citations within the article. For more information on sourcing, see the [[GP:SOURCE|Sources]] section below.
* '''External links'''
** You may link to websites about the subject matter other than ''Gallowpedia'' here.
* '''Navigation'''
** Place an appropriate navbox (or several) under this heading. For a list of all currently available navboxes, see the [[:Category:Navigational templates|Navigational templates]] category.

== Canon ==
{{Main|Project:Canon}}
== Capitalisation==
===In headings===
Use sentence-style capitalization, not title-style capitalization: Capitalize the first letter of the first word and any proper nouns in headings, but leave the rest lower case. Thus "Rules and regulations", not "Rules and Regulations".

For example:
* See also, not See Also
* External links, not External Links
===In the articles===
When writing about a specific in-game item or level, it is ok to capitalise its name.
==Categories==
It is important that all articles are categorised to make searching for them easier. The top level category on the Wiki is the [[:Category:Gallowpedia|Gallowpedia]] category.

[[:Category:Articles|Articles]] can be added to the main category for their type, e.g. because Sir Daniel Fortesque is a character, his article can be added to the [[:Category:Characters|Characters]] category.

For game specific subcategories, the naming format should be "X in Y", where X is the main category and Y is the game, e.g. [[:Category:Levels in MediEvil|Levels in MediEvil]].

== ''Italic'' titles ==
The names of real world video games, books, soundtracks and similar should be written in italic to distinguish their meaning. For example:
* ''MediEvil''
* ''Ghosthunter''
* ''Les musiques de MediEvil''

==Multiple links==
Please make attempts to avoid making multiple links to the same article. For example, if you already have a link to the page [[The Desecrated Church]] in an article, please don't add another link to the same page later in the article.
==Perspective==
{{Shortcut|GP:POV}}
===In-universe===
If something is '''in-universe''', or is described as such, it belongs to the ''MediEvil'' universe exclusively and not to the real world. Characters, for example, are in-universe, but the voice actors who portray them are out-of-universe.

Articles about any in-universe topics, such as characters, terminology, or species, should always be written from an in-universe perspective. In-universe articles should never refer to ''MediEvil'' by name, or any other real life things such as publications, developers, or the like. The exception to this are the "Gameplay" and "Behind the scenes" sections. 

Articles that are primarily about gameplay elements, such as inventory items or the levels, may be written from an out-of-universe perspective.

====Tense====
In-universe article sections, specifically the history section, should be written in the past tense.

This is because in-universe articles on ''Gallowpedia'' are presented as historical recordings. Keeping articles written in past tense provides consistency and flavour.

However, if a character, item or location is deemed to still exist, it is permissible to use the present tense.

===Out-of-universe===
'''Out-of-universe''' is the perspective opposite of in-universe, i.e. something written from a real life point of view. While articles about in-universe subjects should be written from an in-universe perspective, articles about the games, books, developers, or other real life ''MediEvil'' material should be written from an out-of-universe perspective.

==Sources==
{{Shortcut|GP:SOURCE}}
Under most circumstances, a source for a given article will be officially released media. For general information that the average user could obtain on their own, such as a game ending, no source needs to be cited.

If a "[[Template:Citation needed|Citation needed]]" template is in an article, it means that information still needs to be verified.

In other instances, some information may come from an official source, but isn't readily available to the general public. In such instances, a source of this kind ''should'' be cited or linked to. You can use the [[Template:Bookref|Bookref]], [[Template:Gameref|Gameref]], [[Template:Pressref|Pressref]], [[Template:Twitterref|Twitterref]] and [[Template:Siteref|Siteref]] templates to more easily cite such sources. Don't forget to include a [[Template:Reflist|Reflist]] under a '''References''' heading at the end of the article as well.

''Gallowpedia'' also allows original research on its articles. For more information, see [[Project:Original research]].

==Spoilers==
{{Main|Gallowpedia:Spoilers}}

==Uploading files==
*When uploading new files, ''please'' put them in their correct category. If a category does not yet exist, you may create it.
**You can explore our existing image categories [[:Category:Images|here]].

*Please try to give files '''sensible''' titles. Uploading a photo with the title 56744asfd7asf657af.png doesn't help anybody.

*'''Do not upload files and do nothing with them'''.

== Usage of 'you' ==
It is preferred that editors do not use 'you' when referring to Dan or the player as it sounds less professional, as well as 'we'.

* For example, instead of "'''You''' eventually corner Palethorn in Cathedral Spires.", use "Dan" or "The player" instead so that it becomes either "'''The player''' eventually corners Palethorn in Cathedral Spires." or "'''Dan''' eventually corners Palethorn in Cathedral Spires."

* The only exceptions when using 'You' are Walkthrough sections on [[:Category:Levels|Level]] articles and Strategy sections on [[:Category:Bosses|Boss]] articles, as they are written as guides that explain the subject matter to the reader.

Additionally, '''always''' avoid writing in the first-person when writing articles, especially in character or enemy pages.

*For example, "Zarok's initial attacks are him chasing Dan around, spitting acid at him and swiping at him. I used the Magic Sword to defeat him." Personal techniques for boss fighting and experiences in the game are best avoided at all times, as this is where it tends to be easiest to slip into first person.
== Miscellaneous ==
* Use colons in titles where appropriate. For example:
**''MediEvil: Resurrection'', not ''MediEvil Resurrection''
**''MediEvil: The Game Prequel'', not ''MediEvil: The Game Prequel''

*Due to the [[SCE Studio Cambridge|British roots]] of ''MediEvil'', [[wikipedia:British English|British English]] should be used on the Wiki instead of [[wikipedia:American English|American English]]. For example, please use [[Dragon Armour]] instead of Dragon Armor.

* When linking, keep unnecessary words such as 'the' and 'a' out of the link itself, unless they are a part of the name.

* If you see any variant of "It should be noted..." or "It is notable that..." or "Of note...", remove it. It is unnecessary.

* If you see any variant of "It is interesting that..." or "Interestingly, ...", remove it. Saying that something is interesting is technically an opinion.
==See also==
*[[wikipedia:Wikipedia:Manual of Style|Manual of Style]] on Wikipedia.
==Navigation==
{{Gallowpedia policies}}
[[Category:Policies]]