"This worn leather book is not that thick, but you feel somehow, that you can gather a lot from it. Remember though that reading this tome may require some time."
Welcome to the Editing Guidelines, user!
Above all, the Pixel Dungeon Wiki follows general Fandom Community Guidelines. Users will be expected to be aware of them, as breaking them will result in an account ban.
The following guidelines serve as an extension to the Fandom content rules. They are a simplified and modified version of the Wikipedia guidelines, with several of its fundamental principles and ideas. As such, they do have some space for flexibility when it comes to various edge cases. Provided links lead to the original Wikipedia pages, on which these guidelines were based. Reading them is not necessary, though it can help explain the idea behind them.
When in doubt, ask an admin for help.
Editing guidelines
1. Be bold
"If you feel like you are in the right - act upon it."
Don't be scared to be the change you wish to see, or to speak your mind - even if you're new. If you see something wrong - try to make it better. If you see something missing - add it. Even barely a seed of an article can be turned into a sapling, and eventually a sturdy tree.
If you do something controversial, remember - the power of an argument does not come from user's join date, but from their own words and reasoning.
Wikia is a community project, and requires a lot of input from many people. As it happens in bigger groups, not everyone will form the same opinions on a matter. Therefore, try to edit with the mindset that everyone else will also be bold, and do not take edits of your contributions personally!
2. Assume good faith
"Most people try to help the project, not hurt it."
This means that when judging any action, you should first consider that its author meant well. People will try to do their best with various levels of success at first, but remember, that mistakes are not made deliberately. Assuming good faith in any case helps reach a consensus.
Users are not required to keep that assumption in the presence of highly contrasting evidence, such as blatant vandalism. If bad faith is present however, try not to loose your cool over it, and simply report it.
3. Don't bite the newcomers
"Everyone was a rookie at some point."
No matter what you think of a new user's recent input, be helpful and understanding, and never be rude. Newcomers bring a breeze of inspiration, creativity and new ideas that benefit us all, and feeling unwelcome does not make anyone willing to continue interacting with the community. When giving (constructive) negative criticism about a contribution, be extra careful with your words, and try to compliment the part you liked.
4. Write from a neutral point of view
"An editor should strive to be bias-free."
Content must be represented fairly and accurately. Editors can have a certain opinion on any topic - an article should not. Introducing a mod requires a general overview; it should not offer criticism or be a review. Use neutral language and try to stay objective.
Good editing practices
This section is not for rules, but rather serves as a list of good examples of ways to improve your articles or make everyone's lives easier. Following them may help your article be featured on the main page!
Link everything, back and forth
Links show users that content they are looking for is actually available out there, and increase searchability. But also, do it responsibly and find balance. Make sure that what you are linking does not provide outdated informations.
Don't overdo it, however - a fully yellow hyperlink text can be even harder to read through than a regular paragraph. There's no need to repeat the same links for a reused phrase in lists.
Add pictures wherever you can
Images make articles nicer to look at, and graphics can help explain or visualise certain ideas easier than through text.
Pay attention when writing page and image titles
While nothing is really irreversible, preventing is better than fixing. Try to follow an existing format of naming pages and other media when adding new content:
- All mod pages start with
Mod-prefix, followed by the full mod's name with each letter capitalised. - When uploading pictures, do not add a prefix/indication of which mod it came from in the title; use description and categories for that. Use them only when a file with such a name already exists.
Break up paragraphs & sentences
The shorter a block of text becomes, the easier it is to read, and the easier finding information becomes.
Ask others whenever you're lost
These guidelines and tips, alongside the Discord server were created to ease the beginner's phase and make getting feedback/help faster and easier. There's no reason not to use them!
Write edit reasons
Even a short, generic edit summary helps others know exactly what changed between versions of a page.
Upload good pictures well
When uploading pictures, .png will always be a preferred format over .jpg. Whenever uploading game assets, it's best to take them directly from the game files and increase their size to prevent automatically stretching
Add categories
Both images and articles need categories. They make navigation and finding similar content easier, and having a label for everything is a sign of good file management.