Help:Names
This page deals with conventions for page names on Lotro-Wiki, and how to resolve naming conflicts. See also spelling, and help topics.
Febr. 2022 news: Note especially Conflicting Old Page Names.
Spelling and Style
Follow in-game spelling, capitalization, and hyphenation as far as possible. For details on that topic, see see Help:Spelling and Punctuation.
Lotro makes heavy use of special characters, especially so in names. If needed, see wiki-editor tips.
- Be careful when naming a page!!!
While fixing a typo within a page is simple, renaming (moving) a page requires quite some work. All links to the page must be updated, etc. Avoid the unnecessary, please.
Now follow guidelines and rules for page names, as well as some exceptions. Tips and examples follow further down, to keep the important bullets short and crisp.
- Page names should be in singular, also so called summary pages
- Unless the in-game name so requires:
- Use British spelling and grammar
- Do not begin a page name with "the"
- A page name with special characters or starting with "the" should have a redirect
- For page names with leading "the" or special characters, add
{{DEFAULTSORT:X}}to the page, where X is the page name in common letters, and without leading "the"
Exceptions
At Lotro-Wiki we usually "correct" in-game mistakes:
- The first and last words must always be capitalized, plus all nouns, adjectives, verbs, etc.
- Unless previous bullet applies, functors (and, at, in, of, the, to, etc.) should always be lower-case, regardless of the game
- For names with dashes, always use lower-case after the dash, as in Rune-inscribed Brass Earring instead of "Rune-Inscribed Brass Earring"
- NPC surnames should have both components capitalized, as in Sackville-Baggins
Historically, page naming has never been consistent, neither in-game nor at Lotro-Wiki. When finding an odd-ball page, read its talk-page to find clues, if any. Feel free to chat with other editors about these topics.
Singular or Plural
A page name should be singular, while a category always is plural. A page is about one entity, or one kind of entities.
For an editor it is much easier to add an extra "s" to a link than it is to remove plural. Compare one [[Rangers|Ranger]] versus several [[Ranger]]s.
Sindarin Plural
If plural Sindarin is in the page name, see Help:Spelling and Punctuation for more detail.
Plural or Possessive
Make certain the page name is correct in regards of plural and possessive forms. A common mistake is to write for example "Nathan Hodge's Farm" when in-game it reads "Nathan Hodges' Farm". So, watch out for possessive forms and words ending in 's'.
Exceptions
A historical note about a discontinued exception: Once we used to name so called 'summary pages' in plural, to avoid naming conflicts. But such conflicts are avoided by using name specifiers (see about disambiguation below). So nowadays Wolf is the summary page for that kind of species, instead of "Wolves", while the creature that is named "Wolf" in-game has its page re-named to Wolf (The Shire). (Those older pages are slowly being renamed to singular; and each such fix reveals numerous links in error.)
Disambiguation
Quite often two or more entities have the same name. How to resolve such cases is called "disambiguation" (removing ambiguity).
First off, which use cases are there? What can be done about them? Can something "share" a page? More fleshed out comments and examples follow further down.
- A particular NPC appears in many locations
- Create one page without "name specifier" (see below), but create sections for the locations where the NPC appears. Links would look like:
[[Halbarad#Halbarad (Eregion)|Halbarad]]which results in Halbarad, which is a good example page. - A particular NPC also appears as combat-only enemy
- Create pages for each appearance using "page name specifiers", see below; see also the bullet about "instance boss"
- A particular NPC is unnamed and has just a title
- Create a page such as Stable-master (Galtrev), which is using "page name specifiers"
All other use cases are about two or more same-name subjects that each deserve their own page.
- Two or more NPCs share the same name
- Create separate pages using page name specifiers, such as Wíli (Thorin's Gate) versus Wíli (Twenty-first Hall)
- A creature appears in different regions or with reasonably different stats
- Create a separate page for each location or level (or what specifies the creature) using "page name specifiers"
- An "instance boss" appears in different fights with distinct loot, tactics, etc.
- Create a separate page for each appearance (quest, dungeon, etc.), using "page name specifiers"
- A deed and a skill share the same name
- Create separate pages using "page name specifiers" and note especially the advice in Deeds, Skills, etc below
Page Name Specifiers
Page name conflicts are handled by appending a "specifier" within parentheses "()" to the page name. The specifier is different from case to case. The correct name is used within the body text, of course.
- Always add a single space between the name and the specifier: "Stable-master (Galtrev)" instead of "Stable-master(Galtrev)"
- Always capitalize the specifier: "Swift and True (Deed)" instead of "Swift and True (deed)"
See also cross-linking duplicate pages below!
Conflicting Old Page Names
To avoid a very common linking mistake when creating and having same-name pages with specifiers, the following applies:
- The old page must be moved (renamed) so it gets a page name specifier as well. Thereafter, nothing should use the old non-specified name, meaning all same-name pages must have page name specifiers. Consequently, editors must find and link to the correct page name, and chances for correctness increases dramatically.
- Directives: An old page should be moved to have a page name specifier. Walk over and update all links for the old page name; watch out for and fix links that erroneously link to the old page name. Upon move, a redirect may be left behind, for googling purposes only. If a redirect was left behind it must be deleted after a few weeks. After the page move or redirect deletion, the remainder (the red stuff) must be "protected" so that only admins can handle it, together with an exact summary text so that future editors understand why it must not be revived. Hence, without a "generic name" editors must find and link to the page name with a specifier, and the risk for mistakes is almost cancelled. (Without permissions to "move" and "protect": Chat with admins or add a
{{Move}}tag on the old page, and fix erratic links while waiting.)
Note: This policy about "Conflicting Old Page Names" is new (Feb. 2022), so there are many old pages breaching it. And consequently there are many erratic links. Hopefully we will be able to remedy this over time. Currently there is no active project to fix this but every time somebody stumbles over a link in error, please follow the directives above or tag the page for "move", also mentioned above.
NPCs and Bosses
Use (Location) as specifier. Often the name of the Region will do, otherwise Area, or the most precise location or dungeon. See also Help:NPCs.
Examples: Amdir (Ranger) versus Amdir (Brigand) versus Amdir (Cargûl)
Creatures
Most often, use (Location) as specifier, see previous section. However, in the rare case of creatures that are roaming the same neighborhood and have reasonably different stats, using (Level X) may be a better choice, where X is the middle of the range, if any. See also Help:Creatures.
Examples: Dourhand Miner (Forochel) versus Dourhand Miner (North Downs).
Having separate pages makes extra sense when quests relate to them. But it also simplifies editing and updating their stats.
Deeds, Skills, etc
Historically we used a priority-list for which page could flee the name specifier. But no longer, see section Conflicting Old Page Names above. The same policy applies in this case: use "name specifiers" for all duplicate page names!
And so an advice about pages names which consist of just one or two common words, most often for deeds, effects, skills, titles, or traits. For such page names, be forethoughtful and add name specifiers right away. Consider it disambiguation in advance. That will prevent linking to the wrong page by mistake, a really common error.
Example: Before moving "Camp" to Camp (Effect), imagine how many pages were linking to "camp", unrelated to any "effect".
Locations
Page name policies for locations are as follows, in order:
- If a location has a map, use the name on that map, for example Old Forest
- Otherwise, use the name shown under the radar (mini-map)
- For interiors, always use the indoor name
- When in doubt, check the size and colour of the system message when entering a location
- Large, beige text = Region
- Medium yellow text = Area
- Small white text = Landmark
For more detail, see Location.
Items
Use (Level X) as the page name specifier, where X is the minimum level, a number. If same-name items share a minimum level, use either the quality ("Uncommon", "Incomparable") or the item-level (Item Level Y) as the name specifier.
Example: Item:Shoulders of the Aurochs (Item Level 50) versus Item:Shoulders of the Aurochs (Level 60)
Cross-linking Duplicate Pages
In summation we see that "page name specifiers" can solve all same-name conflicts, and they help minimizing linking errors. However...
Such "duplicate pages" must link to each other to help visitors find the correct page. Put the template {{Other|...}} on top of each of the related pages. The result is that all of them link to each other. See the template documentation for more info.
To keep the output short and readable, use as little text as possible–counting each letter. Remember that the links are informative in themselves.
Special Case
If there are four or more (see why 4) pages linking to each other using the "Other" template, it may be helpful to create a separate disambiguation page with the original page name. This may also be necessary if the text generated by the "Other" template becomes unwieldy or difficult to read, and it cannot be improved.
The disambiguation page must be tagged for Category:Disambiguation Pages. It should contain just a simple list of links for the related "duplicate pages". Each such page must link back to the disambiguation page only, using the "Other" template.
Example: See Angmarim Scout and {{Other}}.
Footnote: Technically there are no "duplicate pages". Neither are there any duplicate subjects. But there are many subjects with duplicated names.
| Tools for Editors | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ||||||