Full Metal Alchemist Fanon Wiki:Manual of Style

This is the official Manual of Style for the Full Metal Alchemist Fanon wiki. It details how articles are to be formatted, and must be adhered to in order to ensure this site maintains a high level of quality and organization. Please forward any questions to a member of the administration.

Please read both the Manual of Style and the Code of Conduct before editing an article, as it will smooth out the process in the long run and avoid mistakes that a user might otherwise make if they are not informed.

Purpose

Here on FMAF, we are dedicated to creating quality articles that demonstrate a solid grasp of both the written medium and the series itself. Keep in mind that article length is not a good indicator of its quality, but rather tact, organization, and control of vocabulary and grammar show the true skill of the author. To that end these rules have been set in place in order to maintain general quality on this site, as well as to encourage its users to adhere to a uniform standard. In the end the members here should work together towards creating their own unique, well-thought-out stories and characters. Please take your time when reading through the guidelines here, but keep in mind that the MoS is not intended to hamper creativity: so don’t forget to have fun.

Page Creation

Any registered user (meaning they have an account) of wikia is allowed to create any article so long as it meets the following criteria:

It must be marked with a property tag that denotes the original creator of the article.
All articles must have an in-universe perspective, meaning the content is written as though the fictional universe of the Fullmetal Alchemist series were reality. No other referenced material from different anime or manga may be introduced. While other series may be used as a source of inspiration, directly copying outside media is not permitted. This includes taking a concept from another series and changing the most minimal amount of information possible in order to fit within the FMA universe. To do so is plagiarism.
- Any article from the Fullmetal Alchemist wiki that has information based around the concepts of the series, by default, is considered an in-universe reference. However content may not be copy-pasted directly from the mother site without being rewritten, as this is considered plagiarism.
- FMAF wiki recognizes that some users may wish to follow the plot of the 2003 anime series as opposed to canon. In order to avoid confusion amongst the other members of the wiki, these articles must be designated as such by placing the 2003 template below the property template on the respective article.
The page uses (if applicable) a well-designed and appropriate infobox. (Although be aware that some articles, such as fiction or article stubs, may not require the use of an infobox at all.)
The page is organized according to standard content sections in proper order.
Users are allowed to create fan-version articles of canonical characters, locations, alchemy, etc. However, the title of the article must be differentiated from the original article by placing the author’s username or an abbreviation of the username in parentheses after the title. For example, “Edward Elric (JohnSmith777)” as opposed to “Edward Elric.”
- The creation of fan-version articles of manga chapters or anime episodes is prohibited.
The page is grammatically correct and written explicitly in proper English. (See: Syntax).
Don't be a “post-and-run” user. If you publish an unfinished article, please mark it as incomplete either by placing a construction template or a stub template at the top of the article.

Property

Marking your articles with your username is important. Consider it to be your artist’s signature. Property tags also assist administrators in identifying vandals as well as aid in categorizing articles. When using the source editor, simply copy and paste the following wiki text to the top of the article:

Which will yield this result:

This article, [PAGENAME], is property of YourUserName.

While custom property templates are permissible, it is highly suggested that you use the standard property template in order to create a sense of consistency. When creating a custom property template, please be aware that a great deal of effort has been put into this wiki in order to make it appear more professional. Custom templates, therefore, should also strive to appear professional. You may not use animated files, such as GIF images, moving text, sprites, etc., in your custom property template.

Note: There may be certain circumstances in which an author does not wish to claim an article, intending for it to be used by any member of the wiki. If you wish to leave an article open to general editing, please use the Free Use template.

Syntax

FMAF is an English language wiki, and as such all content must be expressed in either American or British English. Preference is given towards American English, as this more closely parallels the English dub of the anime and is the official language used by wikia. Vernacular, profanity, slang, (except in works of fiction) “text speech,” etc. are not considered to be proper English. Articles, organizations, countries, Alchemical Spells, etc. may be titled in other languages, with the understanding that the language chosen should make sense within the series and that a proper translation will be provided in the article itself.
As the Fullmetal Alchemist is still, originally, a Japanese series, it is acceptable to give the translations of character names from katakana to English. Aside from this, full translations of words and phrases in languages other than English are required. Translations should be given in this format:

'''Term''' (Kanji (Katakana); ''Romaji'', [Language of origin] for “Meaning of term”, Japanese for “Japanese meaning of term”)

To yield:

Name of article (Kanji (Katakana); Romaji, [Language of origin] for “Meaning of term”, Japanese for “Japanese meaning of term”).

Quotes given within an article should use a quote template, as opposed to italicizing blocks of text.
Articles must be grammatically correct and written in the proper tense. While it is understood that minor mistakes are inevitable, repeated errors within the length of the article or a general disregard for conventions such as proper sentence structure will be considered a violation.
- Articles must be written in the third person perspective (“he/him”), not first (“I/me”) or second (“you”), except for narrative prose (fiction) which may be written in any persepctive the author chooses.
- If an article (non-narrative) details a living character, it must be written in the present tense. Deceased characters should be described in past tense.
All proper nouns are to be capitalized. Titles must follow the standard rules of capitalization. Nouns referring to specific items, concepts, persons, or locations from the series must be capitalized. This includes all military ranks, including General, State Alchemist, etc.; specific branches of alchemy such as Fire Alchemy or Alkahestry, all place names, and specific entities such as Homunculi, the Philosopher’s Stone, the Gate of Truth, etc. When a series term refers to a non-specific element, such as “alchemy,” “transmutation,” or “alchemists,” the term is not capitalized.
- Do not format a link simply to change the capitalization. For example, [[Alchemy|alchemy]]. Only [[alchemy]] should be used, as the redirect will apply automatically.
The format of all articles should be in simple paragraph format. Complex tables, tiers, or number style systems are prone to coding error and their use will not be tolerated.

Redirects

A redirect is a code that forwards a shortened term or phrase to the official page. For example, the link [[Mustang]] would lead directly to [[Roy Mustang]]. Redirects are intended to be concise and useful, therefore it is important that they are used efficiently.

A redirect may be added to a specific character article only if it is unlikely that another user might use it or that it could refer to a similar article. For example, [[Strausberg]] could be added as a redirect for “John Strausberg,” but a redirect of [[John]] would not be acceptable.
Do not add unspecific, ambiguous, or pointless redirects. (e.g., redirecting [[The Gunpowder Alchemist]] to [[John Strausberg]] is redundant as few users would search for or use the “Gunpowder Alchemist” link.)
Do not create redirects in languages other than English.
If an article is renamed and the move is intended to be permanent (i.e., a redirect would not be appropriate considering the rename) all links to the original article should be renamed as such in order to avoid confusion.

Content

The order of article sections is standardized across the wiki in order to achieve a sense of consistency and professionalism. It is not required that an article include all sections, but those that are included should follow the proper section format in order to keep articles uniform and orderly. Do not add additional main header sections (==Main==) other than what has been specified below to an article. If needed, subsections may be included to further organize information, and here authors are afforded more freedom in the content they chose to include. Sections marked with a red asterisk (*) are those considered to be mandatory, while the other sections may be added or omitted as needed.

Section Order

Note: An introductory paragraph should be provided at the beginning of the article in order to give a general summary of the character. This section is not formatted as a header and can be rather brief as long as it serves to create a picture of the character as a whole in a few sentences.

1. Appearance*: This is a physical description of the character’s appearance, from stature to facial features and style of dress.

2. Personality*: This section details a character’s personality including their emotional patterns, psyche, quirks and tendencies, etc. as well as speech mannerisms and their general view of the world. If a character has many facets to their personality or if they have a psychological disorder subsections may be included.

3. Relationships: Here is where a character’s interactions and views towards other characters should be given. The section should be formatted as a bulleted list with a description of the relationship after each name.

4. History*: Rather self-explanatory. This section details a character’s back-story, from the childhood and upbringing to past education or occupations, their involvement in the military, etc. Special attention should be paid to series details relevant to the character in question, such as how a character first learned alchemy. Longer history sections may benefit from breaking up large paragraphs of text with subheadings.

5. Equipment: If deemed necessary a list of the equipment may be provided, which should be formatted as a bulleted list with a description of each item following its name.

6. Abilities*: This includes anything the character could use to their advantage in battle. Even if a character is not intended to be a combat participant, aspects such as intelligence or medical skills may be listed here as well. Specific skills that encompass at least a paragraph or more of detail, such as alchemy or Alkahestry, should be given under a subheading.

7. Plot: A description of a character’s involvement in any particular plot, whether in a role-play, an original work of fiction, or in the canonical storyline. This section includes the events that the character is currently a part of or will be a part of in the [subjectively] near future, and as such it is not to be confused with the history section. In regards to role-plays, do not detail events before they actually happen. Remember that honesty is always the best policy.

8. Quotes: This section includes notable quotes given by a character. List each separate quote as its own bulleted entry. Do not list quotes made by other characters about the character in question.

9. Trivia: Trivia is where behind-the-scenes information is provided about a character, such as quirks, a character’s favorite color, etc. Information may also be provided about the author’s process of creation behind the character. Generally the section can be used for miscellaneous facts, but it should be kept organized by using a bulleted list of entries.

Note: For pages other than character articles (such as locations, events, organizations, etc.) sections may be arbitrarily decided upon by the author in order to best fit the content of the article. However, it is strongly advised that the user pattern these pages after similar ones already extent on this wiki. When it doubt, it is best to refer to the Fullmetal Alchemist wiki and Wikipedia when deciding upon a particular article’s section order.

Sexuality and Violence

It is clear to almost all fans that the Fullmetal Alchemist series contains no small amount of mature content. Mainly, dark themes such as human transmutation and the level of violence portrayed on-screen are what lend the show its TV-14 rating (although some episodes were rated as high as TV-MA). Users should be aware that Fullmetal Alchemist is a series that prominently features warfare, and as such the violence both canonically and in fan-created works can be brutal, but it should nevertheless not be excessively graphic. Additionally, under wikia’s Terms of Use, any wikia project is “intended solely for users who are thirteen (13) years of age or older.” Thus, it is to be unanimously understood that this is a PG-13 wiki. As such, users are held to abide by the following stipulations:

No pornographic or gratuitously violent content is allowed. While a certain level of sexual and violent content is permissible, no explicit descriptions of sexual activities may be posted in any form.
- Gratuitous violence, as defined, is violence that serves only for the sake of adding violence and does not serve to develop the character or story at hand in any way.
Content that describes violent or non-consensual sex, as expressed by wikia’s terms of use, is expressly prohibited. Incidents such as rape, etc. may be mentioned, but they are not allowed to occur “on screen.”
By no circumstances are role-plays between any user under the age of eighteen (18) years of age that involve sexual activity allowed. As defined, this includes any role-play whose sole purpose is to detail the events leading up to intercourse or similar activities between two characters.
FMAF understands that certain users may wish to include content that would more closely fit under a TV-MA rating. Under these circumstances, it is highly advised that the articles be marked with a content warning template, which will serve to notify other users to the article’s mature content. Any user may use this template at their own discretion if they feel an advisory notice is necessary for their article.
The administrators of FMAF reserve the right to delete any article determined to contain inappropriate material. However, there must be a consensus between at least two admins before an article may be deleted, unless the article in question is clearly explicit. If you are concerned about any content you feel to be too graphic, please contact a member of the administration immediately. Do not address the issue yourself.

Media Usage

As FMAF is a fan-based wiki that derives no profit whatsoever for its posted content, users are allowed to use images and media from other series in their articles. However, to preserve a level of professionalism across the wiki, there are a few guidelines to follow when uploading non-written media:

Any visual media (such as images and videos) must not contain graphic or explicit content. (See: Sexuality and Violence). There will be zero tolerance for pornographic images, including but not limited to nudity, hentai, and some forms of ecchi.
As a manga and anime based fanon, all images (including animated GIFs and fanart) must appear to be manga or anime style. The use of live action video or photographs is not allowed. Highly-rendered CG imagery, such as video games, is not allowed, although cover art and other illustrative art from video games may be used so long as it is two-dimensional and in a manga or anime style.
If music is added to an article, it must use the youtube player without autoplay.
Images from other manga and anime series, including fanart, may be used without giving attribution. However, if the user wishes to use an image created by an original artist, they must state the source in the article where the image is included. It is highly recommended that users first secure the permission of the original artist before including such images.

Violation

It is inevitable that somewhere along the way the Manual of Style will be violated. Sometimes this occurs because of simple misunderstandings or mistakes, but most of the time it happens when users fail to read the guidelines. When an article is determined to be in violation of the Manual of Style, it will be designated by the violation template, as it appears below:

"Humankind cannot gain anything without first giving something in return. To obtain, something of equal value must be lost. That is Alchemy's first law of Equivalent Exchange... In those days, we really believed that to be the world's one and only truth."

This article, Manual of Style, is in direct violation of the FMA Fanon Wiki's Manual of Style. The owner of this article has exactly one week to revise the article, after which it is subject to immediate deletion. Please contact a member of the administration for further information.

Please note that this template is to be applied to articles only, as users themselves are held to a Code of Conduct in addition to the Manual of Style. To repeatedly violate the Manual of Style is considered an offense under the Code of Conduct and users will be held accountable to the consequences detailed there as well as having their article marked with the violation template. Any non-admin who removes the template will be subjected to the consequences listed on the Code of Conduct.