Help:Categories

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Every article should be in one or more categories, and there is no limit to the number of categories that a single article can be in. PathfinderWiki has a category structure that ensures its readers can find information about a specific subject, and other, related information, quickly and easily.

Basic guidelines

Categories are metadata provided by the Mediawiki software used by PathfinderWiki, and are designed and primarily used for discovery. They are not intended to reflect the current state of canon; the article content is. When in doubt, err on the side of overcategorization, use categories to reflect both the past and present traits of a subject to aid in discovery from any canon source, and use the "Please check categories" category and the article's talk page to reach a consensus.

No matter what category you are putting your article into, a few basic guidelines exist. Always put your article into the most specific category, then also into its parent categories up to an appropriate point. Note that this goes against Wikipedia convention, because we are a more specialized wiki and can provide extra usability for our readers.

For example, consider the article on Belor Hemlock. He is an inhabitant of Sandpoint so he should be in that particular inhabitants category. Because Sandpoint is in Varisia, he is also an inhabitant of Varisia, so he should be in that category too. Varisia is part of the continent of Avistan, but there is no need to add the Belor Hemlock article to Category:Avistan/Inhabitants, because this is such a broad category that is it not useful to browse through. So, we would add:

[[Category:Sandpoint/Inhabitants]]
[[Category:Varisia/Inhabitants]]

Note that these are not the only categories that this article should be placed into. See below for more detailed categorization guidelines for the type of article you are writing or categorizing.

Choosing a category

Consider what your article is about. Usually, articles can be put into one of several main categories.

Real-world articles

Artwork and Media: You are uploading and summarizing a piece of artwork, such as an image or audio clip.
Authors and Artists: Your article is about a person who has contributed to a piece of canon Pathfinder material. This might be a sourcebook, a novel or an official blog or messageboard post from the Paizo website.
Books and Adventures: Your article is about a published (or forthcoming) piece of canon Pathfinder material, whether it's a novel or a sourcebook (including adventures, boxed sets, and the like).
Accessories: Your article is about a Pathfinder Roleplaying Game gameplay aid or accessory, such as maps, pawns, and miniatures.

Canon articles

Deities and Divine Entities: Your article is about a god, demigod, or similar entity that bestows spells to their followers.
Creatures: Your article is about a type of creature that inhabits the Pathfinder campaign setting. Do not confuse this with an inhabitant of the setting (see below). For example, an article on red dragons is an article on a creature, but an article about a specific individual red dragon is an article about an inhabitant.
Inhabitants: Your article is about a named inhabitant of Golarion. This is not necessarily a humanoid, since dragons and nagas are as much inhabitants as humans and elves.
Organizations: Your article is about an organization, its structure and membership, its associated locations, and other related subjects.
Locations: Your article is about a location or place in Golarion. This could be a city, river, mountain, road, building or any of number of other types of location, including whole regions and continents.
Magic Items: Your article is about a magic item, whether unique or representing a type of item, and includes artifacts.
Spells: Your article is about a specific named spell that exists in the campaign setting.

Unsure about categories?

If you have written an article and are unsure about which categories to apply, or simply want your categories double checked, then please feel free to add this text at the bottom of your article in this format:

[[Category:Please check categories]]

This flags to others that the article's categories need checking or adding. We hope that, soon thereafter, another wiki member will be along to help.