CivWiki:Getting Started

This page is about contributing on the CivWiki. For a guide on getting started playing a Civ server, see New player guide.

Join the CivWiki Discord server!

Welcome to editing on the CivWiki! As a new user, you may be overwhelmed with the amount of history and information that's contained on the wiki. This page is not intended to be a complete guide, however it does help to know Wikipedia's information on getting started, as many of our policies continued there. Don't worry if you don't understand everything, but be mindful to use common sense and be respectful of viewpoints from other users.

If you need any help with getting set up and started writing your first CivWiki page, the main way to get help is to join the CivWiki discord, where most editors are active and looking at the recent changes on the wiki.

What is CivWiki?

CivWiki is a player-run wiki serving as a central database and encyclopedia for all Civ server information. The wiki contains information dating back to the original Civcraft wiki, created in 2013. By participating on the wiki, you're contributing to the ongoing history of the Civ genre of Minecraft servers, dedicated to building player-run realistic civilizations in Minecraft.

Make an account

For vandalism and real-life purposes, we require that every editor creates an account. There are also numerous reasons why to do so for yourself. We highly recommend you use an email address that does not contain any real-life information; while admins on the wiki cannot see this information, it may be helpful for all Civ-related purposes in the future.

Writing

Finding or creating a page

Now that you've created a page, you're now able to edit any page on the wiki.

Unlike on Wikipedia, both editing and creating pages are frequent on CivWiki.

Editing an Existing Page

If you're looking to edit or write about a certain topic on your server, you can find pages up at the search bar in the top right hand corner. If a page is already created, you'll be redirected automatically. If you're looking to check if a page already exists, you can use the search bar in top right or use the search box below:

Creating a Page

If a page doesn't exist (i.e. there are no results in the search box above, you can create a new page with a brand new link:

   There were no results matching the query.

   You may create the page "Red-linked Text You Searched For".

You can also create a new page by inputting in the box below:

Editing

There are two ways you can edit pages, either by using the Visual Editor or the Source Editor.

• The Visual Editor acts like a WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) editor, similar to other places like Google Docs. If you're intending on writing content and providing information, we recommend using this method, as it's much easier to learn. For more info on this type of editing, view the guide on Wikipedia.
• Source editing is the standard way of writing pages on Wikipedia, using wiki markup. If you're intending on making templates, working on navigation, or other affairs not directly related to writing informational content, we recommend using this method. For more info on this type of editing, view the guide on Wikipedia.

On an already existing page, there will also be tabs in the top right-hand corner, Edit, and Edit source (or, if creating, Create and Create source). If you're using Visual Editor, click the item without the word "Source".

Here a couple tips and guidelines:

• Cite your sources!! We highly encourage you to cite verifiable sources, mainly Reddit posts, or Discord announcements. In general, we don't condone the use of Discord message citations, or screenshots of Discord messages, as these could be easily deleted or fabricated screenshots of actual messages. If you must use it, you may use Template:Cite discord message. However, it makes it easier for editors to review your page if there are verifiable citations to back them up.

• Source editing: Use <ref>{external link here}</ref> and paste your reference there. which will eventually create something like this:
• Visual editor: On the 'Cite' tab, you'll see 'Basic'. If you're going to reuse a reference you've already made, click Re-Use

• Link your pages! For navigational purposes, if you happen to write about a page that already exists, e.g. you happen to mention CivClassics in your article or mention another nation, link to the page! It helps to navigate users to related topics.

• Source editing: Use [[page name]] to link to a page (looks like page name), or if you want it to have a different name in the context of your article, [[page name|preferred name]] (looks like preferred name).
• Visual editor: There is something that looks like a link on the top ribbon; a prompt will come up to prompt for a page you want to link. Once typing out your page, you can change the text if you wish by writing directly on the page, or change the link by pressing Edit

• Upload images: To make your pages stand out, feel free to include in-game screenshots to spice up and give extra context to your article.

• Source editing: Upload the images using the Upload file link on the sidebar, taking note of the filename, and then using [[File:Name]] to add it onto the page. For more information on how to frame your images or align them in a certain position, see Wikipedia's help page
• Visual editor: Under Insert, you'll see an option that says Images and Media; you can upload your file directly on that page. For more information, see Wikipedia's help page for VisualEditor.

• Use infoboxes: It'll be easier to use Source editing for this one, but you may see on both Wikipedia and the CivWiki there are boxes with information. For example, Template:Infobox civilization is an infobox that displays a bunch of info on the right hand side of a page for a nation, and likewise for others -- you may want to see Category:Infobox templates for all relevant infoboxes. (You can insert infoboxes on the VisualEditor by going to Insert, and Template, but it's more frustrating to work with that UI.)
• Use navboxes: To better ease navigation between pages, it helps to include a Navbox on your page. There are too many navboxes to list, however, if you have a related topic, for example, you're writing about a country near a geographic region, you can use some of the navboxes on that -- you can view it in the source editor for the name and you may be able to copy it using {{ Template name here }}. Navboxes are usually placed at the bottom of the page. (You can insert navboxes on the VisualEditor by going to Insert, and Template, but it's more frustrating to work with that UI.)
• Categorize your pages: There are a bunch of categories which help to organize pages on the wiki, allowing for ease of use in navigation along with navboxes. Similar to navboxes, it helps to take a related page, or even make your own Category, by copying [[Category:Category name here]] at the bottom of your page.
• Preview your work: Once you're done editing, we highly recommend using the "Show preview" button before publishing, to make sure your page works with all the formatting.

If you're happy with what you've written, press "Save page". Congratulations! You've made your first edit.

Making it Better

It's OK if your first article feels like it sucks! We all made really bad edits in our first days.

• One easy tip to make yours better is to take a look at someone else's page for inspiration. Most pages on Special:Recent changes are great picks, a
• Additionally, you can get feedback on your pages from editors!
• If your nation/topic isn't as fleshed out in-game as you would like it to be, it helps to play Civ to create the history for yourself.
• Make use of all infoboxes, navboxes, images, tables, formatting and other helpful editing to make your page varied and stand out!

Wiki editing is a skill that's built over time, just like playing the piano. With more practice, tips, and expertise, you'll be a pro at editing pages in no time!

FAQ

How do I resolve a dispute between edits?

• First, contact the editor who made the edits, and/or raise a Talk page. On the top left, there is a "Discussion" tab, where you can address these concerns.
• Another way to reach editors is through the CivWiki discord, where most editors are active and asking questions about their projects.
• Be mindful and respectful of disputes, and be approachable and assume the other editor is acting in good faith, and listen to their ideas for improving the page.
• If the dispute is not resolved, contact an administrator or bureaucrat on the wiki or discord.

Why can't I edit a page?

We block pages about contentious current events, or highly contested pages, to prevent spam or edit wars occasionally. Generally, most of these are under temporary ban; contact an administrator on the CivWiki for more information about a certain page.

What happens when two users edit a page at the same time?

This is called an edit conflict. You'll get a conflict screen that displays both versions in separate windows, along with a summary highlighting the differences, and instructions on how you should proceed. It's virtually impossible to lose any data.

Why was the edit/page I made removed?

There are a variety of reasons (some common reasons). The first thing you should do is look at the history page for the article you edited. This will tell you who changed it, when they changed it, and hopefully a short reason why they changed it. If it says something like see talk, then you should look at the talk page for the article. Also, you should look at your own talk page to see if you have a message there. If you don't find a reason that is satisfactory, politely ask in the article's talk page about your proposed change, and maybe you will get suggestions about changes that you can make so that your change will go in, or you may get reasons why your change should not happen.

In general, be polite and understanding of the editor(s) making criticisms, assume they are acting in good faith and listen to their ideas for improving the page.

Sometimes, we also move pages for standardization reasons -- you may see that we make redirection pages for nations like Mount Augusta due to the many iterations it has.

What standards should I use to edit the page?

In general, you should edit using Wikipedia's manual of style; while there are some Civ-specific exceptions we try to keep the

Additionally, try to write your pages as neutrally as possible, preventing heavy bias on a certain topic. As this wiki is intended to provide information and not provide arguments for one side or another, we hope to prevent bias on the wiki and keep the content as neutral as possible.

How do I change the name of an article?/I messed up naming my article and already written content!

Not a problem! Although on Wikipedia there are autoconfirmed users (we're still working on that!), the only people who can currently move pages are admins and bureaucrats. Message a bureaucrat on the CivWiki discord for help on that.

Why am I having trouble logging in?/uploading an image?/editing a page?

You may want to look at Wikipedia's help for logging in.

We also host our wiki through Miraheze, and sometimes there are downtimes due to scheduled maintenance. Usually, there will be a big banner at the top letting you know when it's happening, but be aware sometimes downtimes are unexpected.

What is the ideal/maximum length of an article? When should an article be split into smaller pieces?

Similar to Wikipedia, you want to keep it a decent length that's readable but not overwhelming. If a page is getting too long, it's preferable to split it up into multiple different pages, for example, one about the history of a nation, etc.

Can we debate or talk about the subjects here?

No. The CivWiki is not a forum for debate, and arguments about the topics should generally not be seen on the Talk pages or on the discord. We will hand out blocks and timeouts for excessive arguing, and the Talk pages and the discord should be used for topic improvement only.

How else can I help?

There are several community projects that the CivWiki supports and are pursuing:

• Take a look at the CivWiki:Editing Projects page for long projects that are looking for support. Old history from Civcraft 1.0/2.0, for example, written roughly 10 years ago at the time of writing, is in desperate need of support.
• The CivWiki Newsletter is a weekly newsletter intended to highlight current events around the Civ community across multiple servers. You can help by writing featured articles, seen on CivWiki:Featured.
• In-game support is encouraged, through third-party tools intended for use by players, mods on servers like the Distant Horizons project and Ghostwriter, or contributing to the actual plugins that the server runs on.