Help:Style guide
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Use this guide when creating or tidying a page. The aim is a recognisable archive: the same type, spacing, colours and reusable components, with the writing doing the work.
Choose the right structure
| Page type | Use this pattern |
|---|---|
| Article, character, sermon or story | A short introduction, one status label where appropriate, descriptive sections, sources and a topic category. Use Character Panel for character facts when it fits. |
| Archive or index | Page header, Archive navigation, then headings and lists. Use cards for a handful of major destinations, not every paragraph. |
| Help guide | Help navigation, a short explanation, numbered steps and a few useful links. Keep one main task per guide. |
| Site/reference page | Site navigation, a short introduction and clear sections. Permissions and policies should be concise references, not running discussion threads. |
The front page can have a larger welcome banner, but uses the same card surfaces, borders and spacing. Layout differences should follow the job of the page, not a separate theme for each author.
Type and colour
- Keep Citizen's existing fonts and light/dark colours. Do not add a different font, fixed text colour or background to individual articles.
- Let the wiki supply the page title. Start sections with
== Heading ==, then=== Subheading ===. Do not skip levels or make an entire heading bold. - Use sentence case for new headings and ordinary prose. Preserve established page titles and fictional proper names.
- Use bold for a short lead term or an important label; avoid whole bold paragraphs, all-caps instructions and decorative lines between every section.
- The muted red accent belongs to shared components. Do not hand-copy its colour codes into pages; the shared styles keep those components consistent.
Components, not copied styling
Use a starter layout for a new page and existing templates for repeated elements. Keep CSS in TemplateStyles or the maintained site stylesheet, not inline style= attributes.
An archive introduction and a pair of useful links can look like this:
{{Page header|section=Archive name|intro=What this index collects.}}
{{Archive navigation}}
<div class="archive-card-grid">
{{Archive card|page=Ikuuna Canon|title=The setting|description=Start with the overview.}}
{{Archive card|page=Stories|title=Community stories|description=Read submitted writing.}}
</div>
Link cards should point to real pages and explain what is there. Keep long lists as lists. Use Template:Collapsible section for supplementary material only; leave essential navigation, status and instructions visible.
Pictures, tables and icons
- Use thumbnails or the shared character panel, with useful alternative text and a caption where needed. Avoid fixed widths that break small screens.
- Record creator, original source and actual licence/permission on the file page. Uploads are public, including images used on private pages.
- Use tables for comparable facts, not for positioning the whole page. Keep columns short enough to read on a phone.
- Icons should clarify an action. Keep a text label or accessible name as well; a reader should not have to guess what a symbol means. Use the existing interface icons for editing controls and menus.
Search and link previews
Write a useful introduction first. Search descriptions should summarise what a reader can actually find on that page; search engines may choose a different excerpt.
For maintained hubs and guides, use Template:Page metadata once on the page itself. Give it the exact full page title, a clear label and a short description that matches the visible introduction. Do not add hidden keyword lists, unrelated names or claims about search rankings. Keep metadata out of shared layout output; template documentation calls belong inside <noinclude>. Check the title-bound call after moving a page.
Before saving
- Preview, check links, and open the result on a narrow screen.
- Check both light and dark themes when changing shared styles. Keep keyboard focus visible and do not rely on colour alone.
- Preserve the author's wording, citations and intentional poem/story formatting when making a styling pass.
- Test shared template changes with Help:Template previews and explain the change in the edit summary.
For user pages, these components are optional starting points. Keep personal introductions separate from article templates and review each page’s content and layout individually.