This article is intended to be a comprehensive style guide, describing various guidelines for users when editing mainspace pages in, and providing media for, the Survarium Wiki. While there will be exceptions to these rules, the idea is to help avoid disputes when designing pages and to keep a consistent look across the wiki.
General Guidelines[]
- Try to use simple, internationally-friendly English. Editors should make an effort to use plain-spoken English whenever possible, such that users whose first language is not English will be able to follow along easier. Avoid colloquialisms and expressions that are specific to a particular culture and avoid shorthand terms such as won't and shouldn't, using the full expressions will not and should not instead.
- Try to maintain an impersonal perspective. Editors should avoid terms like I, you or we and avoid posting information which is solely based on one's personal experience. Wikis are intended to be sources of information and not speculation. Use terms such as the user or survivors instead.
- Avoid including unconfirmed or speculative content. Likewise, information which is subject to change or inferred from other information should be avoided where possible. Consider whether something can be easily experienced in game or whether it has an official reference before posting. In the case of the latter, make sure to cite your edit using a reference.
- Keep the content relevant and direct. Avoid references to other, unrelated games (the main exception to this is the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. series) and irrelevant content such as humour. Strive to write articles in such a way that a reader can quickly understand them without having to browse for additional information from other sources.
- Link assosciated words and use proper formatting. The first instance of the page name in the article should be in '''bold''' and words that have their own pages should be linked. Words should not be linked for every instance but in the case of especially long articles, enough that readers do not have to scroll all the way to the top to find them again.
Common Page Sections[]
While some of these sections are common to most articles, not all are necessary. Do not include a section if there is no relevant information to include there. Examples of this are Background and Trivia.
- Intro: A one or two-line opening giving a quick summary of the subject in question. Generally does not require a header and usually where the first bold occurrence of the page name is. In the case of weapon names, a full title with italicized translation is appreciated.
- Example: The Avtomat Kalashnikova model 1974 noch (Kalashnikov automatic rifle, model 1974, night) is an assault rifle which will appear in Survarium.
- Background: A paragraph or two of lore or real-world info. Generally reserved for information which does not directly relate to the game but is useful to know for context. Optional depending on the subject.
- Example: The chemical plant named after Vladimir Lenin, once used to be a vivid example of the Soviet Union's industrial might. For decades the plant was involved in the production of mineral fertilizers for agricultural use and, ironically, it is this very location that was selected as the industrial base for the production of the herbicide designed to stop the spread of the Forest.
- Overview: Probably the most common section after Intro, a brief one to three paragraph description of the subject in regards to the game. Typically the place for stats, facts and other info which directly describes the subject in question.
- Example: Teamplay is the main adversarial mode in Survarium, featuring two different varieties. The basis of the mode is two teams of up to 8 players facing off in smaller, combat-oriented maps. Each team has a set of spawn points, or base, on opposite ends of the map and rounds last up to 15 minutes at a time. It shares similarities with typical Team Deathmatch and Capture the Flag modes found in other games.
- Trivia: Miscellaneous quick facts about the subject which a user may find interesting. Speculation should be avoided whenever possible here, instead focusing on confirmed information that's either uncommon or otherwise noteworthy. Usually also a good place for citation references so that those curious can find out more. Optional but good to have if there's a reasonable bit of trivia to share.
- Example: The name "Survarium" is an amalgam of the word "survival" and the suffix "-arium", meaning a place or location. As such, its name basically means "survival zone", a phrase which is used in official media.
- Gallery: A collection of images related to the subject in hand. While it's good to have a gallery on most pages, it's important to not add too many. A gallery should be a selection of choice images and not a complete collection of every semi-related image.