Help:Country pages

Attention: This page is in progress! Our Wizards are hard at work writing or updating this article. Some information may be absent or outdated. Want to speed things up? Visit us on Discord and volunteer to help out!

Country pages are pages which provide outlines of the countries of Equestria at War (EaW). These pages should include a mixture of lore and gamplay information, though there should be a focus on the latter. This page will give an overview of what country pages should look like, alongside advice on how to write one. As always, if further help is required, feel free to message one of the Wiki's admins on their talk page, or ask questions in #wiki-discussions on the EaW Discord server. For the basic syntax that all country pages generally share, see the #Base syntax section at the end of this page, and for a good example of the advice in action, see  Equestria.

Pre-writing preparation

While editors do not have to be EaW experts to write for the wiki, you will obviously need to gather information before you can add it. This information, whether it's information about lore, localisation, statistics, etc., can be gathered from multiple sources:

• Playing the mod: Probably the easiest option, as information can be simply copied directly from the mod, but can be time consuming if the mod takes a long time to load. Additionally, make sure you are playing on the latest version of the mod; check the wiki's main page if you are not sure.
• Reading the game files: Can be quicker than loading the mod if you know what you are looking for, especially with localisation, as you can simply copy and paste, rather than copying it down yourself and risking errors; if you do not know your way around the files, however, it can be difficult. If you need help reading the files, feel free to ask for help in #wiki-discussions.
• Going to social media: While it is advised to use the above two options for information that comes directly from the mod, there are some things (e.g. art, including high-quality portraits and flags; strategy guides) that will require going to other sources, such as the r/equestriaatwar subreddit and the Discord server.
• Checking the Timeline: Unlike most other pages on the wiki, the Timeline is maintained almost solely by Professional Horse, a developer, and should be accurate with the current mod version. If there are any issues with the page, please let us know at #wiki-discussions.

Now you have got your information, you are ready to edit.

Sections

Country pages can generally be divided into roughly 10 sections, each with a varying number of subsections (if they have any at all).

Introduction

While not the first piece of syntax on a page (as the Russian wiki link and the infobox come first), this is the first thing a reader will usually see when opening a page, so it should be grabbing their attention and making them want to read on. While readers will tend to have a specific reason why they have gone to a country's page (e.g. strategy advice, finding out secrets, etc.), but its still important for the introduction to look good, otherwise that could give a bad impression for the rest of the page.

Introductions should not be too long (if it's longer than the infobox, that's probably too long) and written in a 'storybook' format (i.e. it should be like the blurb for a fantasy novel). While there are exceptions to these rules (e.g. Barrad's page almost breaks the first and is formatted different to other intros), these are only for unusual cases (i.e. abuse of authority by Big Saij).

Lore

The lore section should give an overview of a country's backstory, based mainly on in-game information (e.g. the intro screen, city guides, character descriptions, etc.). Additionally, as mentioned above, the Timeline can also be consulted, and for canon countries, this section can include references to the events of My Little Pony (MLP), though it should always be assumed that a reader has not seen the show, and information from MLP should only be added if:

1. It does not conflict with in-game information, and
2. It will improve a player's understanding of in-game information.

Editors should be careful when writing this section, however, to not spoil anything. While information that a player would not normally have access to at the start of the game can be consulted, the following question should always be kept in mind:

Would a new player having access to this information improve their experience of that country?

If the answer is yes, add the information; if not, then do not. Finally, detail is encouraged, but be concise. A lore section can be long, but only if it's deserving of that length, and not filled with waffle.

Geography

The geography section should summarise the landscape of the country, based mainly on in-game information (e.g. the intro screen, city guides, character descriptions, etc.). Once again, editors should be careful when it comes to spoilers (i.e. is there a secret lair hidden in a country's forest that a player would be better off finding during gameplay? Then do not add it here).

National focus

As each country's national focus tree should have a separate page, going into detail regarding each focus's effects, the national focus section on a country page should summarise each branch of the country's starting focus tree and highlight any key focuses, with a reasonably sized image of the starting tree. Other trees, loaded after the start of the game, should also be summarised, with whole-tree images included, though trees which are particularly secret/unique should be kept hidden using a spoiler template.

Technology

TBA

Strategies and guides

Welcome to the meat of a country page. The strategies and guides section should in its subsections outline the practical gameplay impacts of almost everything previously mentioned in the page, explaining why they matter and what opportunities they offer, alongside the different paths the country can potentially go down.

Starting situation

The starting situation section should summarise the key information from the technology, politics, economy and military sections, identifying what the country's primary strengths and weaknesses are at the start of the game in 1007. Be comprehensive, but make sure to focus on the main reasons why those assessments are relevant; if a country will likely be at war by middle to late 1008 (e.g.  Olenia), more attention should be given to whether they can mount an effective attack or defence at the start, or whether a quick build-up is essential for expansion and/or survival.

Threats and opportunities

The threats and opportunities section should outline the country's foreign relations, and how that can offer expansion and diplomacy opportunities, alongside countries which can potentially pose a risk to the country. Without focusing too much on the country paths, this section should touch on if there are any radical changes between the main paths in their approach to foreign countries.

Gameplay walkthrough

The gameplay walkthrough section should go through each potential path the country can go down, explaining gameplay mechanics and key focus tree effects. The structure of this section is the most fluid, through structures will generally follow one of two formats:

• If there is a path the player is set on from the start of the game (1007), with the player having to actively deviate from that path (e.g.  Colthage and  Equestria), the main path should be outlined in a gameplay walkthrough section, with a following alternate paths section outlining other paths (e.g. Constitutionalist Colthage and Solar Equestria)
  • The alternate paths section should also include seceding tags (e.g. the  Coltvan Republic and  Lunar Empire), providing a summary of how the tag switch occurs (and can be avoided), while providing a link to the relevant tag's page for more information about the country itself.
• If there are multiple paths the player can directly choose from, with all being given equal weights (e.g.  Wingbardy's starting focus tree choice,  Polar Bears' faction choice in the 2nd Unification War), each main path should be given its own main header, with sub-paths being included under the relevant header (e.g. the different paths under anti-Fascist Wingbardy) and secret/unique paths being in their own sections (e.g. collaborator and Juche Self-Reliant Polar Bears).

Other sections (will add individual sections later)

• Cosmetics: This section should, using the below table, display the different cosmetics (names, flags and map colours) the country can have.
• Behind the Scenes: This section should cover any trivia related to the development of the country, such as who created what. Make sure to reference (using the <ref> function) sources (e.g. Discord, Reddit, etc.)

Tables and templates

Introduction

(ruwiki & country infobox)

Technology

(Tech table & advisor (designers, concerns, and theorist) tables)

Politics

(National spirits template, parties template, leaders tables)

Economy

(Laws and development, factories and resources templates)

Cosmetics

(Cosmetics template)

Base syntax

TBA