Help:Standards and Formatting
Formatting Links
Formatting on the wiki entails, among other things, the use of source coding on pages to link to appropriate pages (SRD, homebrew content references, etc.). The following is a short list of linking help, separated by edition.
| 5e Linking | Result |
|---|---|
| [[5e SRD:|]] | link to SRD terms/items |
| [[(5e )|]] | link to homebrew items |
| [[5e SRD: Skill|]] | link to SRD skills |
| {{5a| }} | link to ability score |
| {{5c| }} | link to SRD condition |
| 4e Linking | Result |
|---|---|
| 3.Xe Linking | Result |
|---|---|
| [[SRD: | ]] | link to SRD terms |
| [[ | ]] | alternative method to link to SRD, often for rules |
Grammar Styles
The following are guidelines based on general observations from official Wizards of the Coast products.
For guidance outside of WotC books or this article, a good rule of thumb is Wikipedia's List of Guidelines.
The standard language used on D&D Wiki is U.S. English. The only exception to this is proper nouns that are spelled in a way to reflect in-game culture. This is not with intent to alienate anyone, but is simply following the practices of the WoTC. (e.g. favorite instead of favourite, maneuver instead of manoeuvre, -ize instead of -ise, armor instead of armour, or aluminum instead of aluminium.)
You are not required to create your articles in U.S. English, but it is encouraged, and you should not revert attempts to change your spelling to U.S. variants.
Common Misspellings
| Misspellings | Correct |
|---|---|
| lightening (illuminating) | lightning (electricity) |
| mithril (J. R. R. Tolkien) | mithral (Gygax) |
| rouge (a color) | rogue (a scoundrel) |
| diety (weight-lossy) | deity (god[dess]) |
"Effect" and "Affect"
The common usage of "affect" is a verb. (This only affects non-living matter.) The common usage of "effect" is a noun. (Living matter is not subject to this effect.)
However, there are less common usages of these words where the reverse is true. An "affect", as a noun, is a physical manifestation of an emotion, such as a frown indicating sadness. To "effect", as a verb, is to put into practice; "to effect a change" is to make that change happen.
Commonly Used Special Characters
| Character | Code | Description |
|---|---|---|
| − | − | Minus sign |
| – | – | En dash: literally means "through" (19–20, 1st–9th) |
| — | — | Em dash: used to represent values of N/A or Nil (e.g. a non-ability "Con —") |
| × | × | Multiplication sign |
| → | → | Right arrow: used for the "Back to" footers |
| ‘ | ‘ | Left single quotation mark |
| ’ | ’ | Right single quotation mark; also used as an apostrophe |
| “ | “ | Left double quotation mark |
| ” | ” | Right double quotation mark |