GuildWiki:Style and formatting/Bestiary

This article provides information on starting, expanding on and completing articles about Creatures in Guild Wars.

Syntax and Example
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Description
Orcs are green skinned and smell bad. The Brawlers are often seen wielding big clubs.

Location

 * Mines of Moria
 * Upper Levels (Level 1)
 * Mines of Moria (Mission) (Level 5)
 * Mordor (Level 1 and 5)

Items Dropped

 * Orc Bracers

Categorization
Following Categories should be listed (in this order): Note that a creature should only be in the most specific species/faction category that is applicable. I.e. a White Mantle Knight should only be in Category:White Mantle and not also in Category:Humans. If the neither the race nor the faction is a proper subset of each other, both may be included, in which case the faction shall be listed before the species. if the race/faction is not possible to determine (and only in this case!), the creature should be placed directly in Category:Bestiary.
 * 1) The creature's species/faction or " bosses" for bosses.
 * 2) The creature's profession or " bosses" for bosses.
 * 3) The location(s) where it can be found.

BeastInfo Template
Use the Template:BeastInfo to create the info box. Unknown information can be left blank or be substituted by a question-mark to highlight missing information. In case of unknown profession enter "unknown" and remove the icon image link. The image should optimally show the creature without obstruction by player characters, henchmen, other creatures or optical effects (skill usage). Read the helpful tips about taking a screen capture. The species should link to the creature's basic species like "Dwarf" for all Dwarves, including Stone Summit.

Description
Enter a short description of this creature. Include looks, patterns of movement, signs to spot them. Do not include notes and tips on fighting here (see Notes below).

It's important to always establish context and define what the creature is.

An example of a good definition is: ''Sand Wurms are giant wurms that emerge suddenly from the ground, knocking everyone down and targeting one target with a vicious melee attack. They are heavily armored and take a long time to take down. They also are very hard to shake-off.''

An example of a bad definition is: Unlike Siege Wurms, these guys follow you around. This definition defines Sand Wurms as not being Siege Wurms. They assume the reader knows Siege Wurms which may not be true.

It's also important to be mindful of the other sections. Rehashing something that will be stated in the other sections is not a good definition. Example: Siege wurms are found in Dunes of Despair and use Wurm Siege.

If you cannot find anything to say, simply leave this section blank.

Location
List all explorable areas and/or missions where this creature can be found. Group by geographical area if multiple are present. If the creature only appears as part of a quest (like Gulnar Irontoe only showing up with Kilroy Stonekin there), make note of it.

Note: For creatures of high interest (like bosses who have an elite skill that can be captured) a map can be added that shows in detail all possible locations where this creature can be found. The image should be thumbnailed and aligned to the right so that it shows below the BeastInfo box (see Alana Pekpek for an example).

Skills Used
List all skills the creature has in alphabetical order using the Skill icon template. Bosses of the same creature type and profession often (but not always) have the same set of skills like the basic creatures, so you can use a Signet of Capture to get a reference point.

Bosses with elite skills should have those marked with (Elite) after the elite skill.

Creatures that use monster skills should have those marked with (Monster skill) after the skill.

Skill listings for bosses that are confirmed with a Signet of Capture should be marked in the talk page with the date of the check.

Items Dropped
List items that are dropped by this creature in alphabetical order. The general rules for what is and isn't listed are:


 * Weapons - No, don't list (the exceptions are Unique items, and weapons only dropped by that species like the Magmas Shield for titans)
 * Crafting materials - Yes, list common and rare crafting material drops (but only list the ones that you yourself have actually seen, do not make assumptions and don't necessarily believe what the Prima Guide says)
 * Collectable drops - Yes, list
 * Gold - No, just about everything will drop that
 * Dye - No, see Gold
 * Scrolls - No, see Gold
 * Salvage Items - Yes, see Crafting materials for rules
 * Unique items - Yes, use the Green template
 * Quest items - Yes, note in parenthesis if the item only drops when the quest is active
 * Keys - No, those have a small chance of being dropped by any creature in the area that the keys are used