Contributing

Project: Redcap is an Ars Magica site created by and for the Fan Community. We invite and encourage all players to improve the site by creating and editing pages.

Project: Redcap is now using the popular MediaWiki software, which is also used in Wikipedia. That means if you know how to edit articles for Wikipedia, you also know how to edit Project: Redcap.

What Not to Contribute

Please do not post or upload copyrighted material to this site. This includes excerpts from or paraphrases of the Ars Magica rule books. (Even though Fourth Edition is free to download, it is still copyrighted and may not be reprinted here.)

A good PDF on the basics of copyright may be found at the Web site of the U.S. Copyright Office. (Both Project: Redcap, and Ars Magica itself, fall under the jurisdiction of U.S. copyright law.)

Don't post so much detail that a player could use Project: Redcap instead of buying the Ars Magica books. Instead, make general statements and include a | ref tag to cite the book and page number where the information can be found.

A good example of this principle in action may be found on the Peripheral Code page. Each ruling is described in general terms and accompanied by a citation of exactly where it occurs in the text. This is enough to give players an overview of what is in the Peripheral Code and where to find the details, but not so much as to be usable in-game without the original source.

What to Contribute

Anything you can do to make Project: Redcap better will be appreciated. See About Project Redcap for information on the objectives and priorities of Project: Redcap.

We are especially interested in links to Ars Magica material elsewhere on the Web, regardless of its language, age, or perceived quality. Please search Project: Redcap to find the most relevant page on which to add a link. The Internet Site Index is a good place to add links to general fan sites, and sites about player's Sagas are best to add to the Regional Tribunal page where the saga is set.

Adding new articles and improving existing articles by adding more information and references are also great ways to contribute.

Project: Redcap welcomes fan-created material. Here are some suggestions of things you might want to consider creating:

• Links to interesting Web sites you've found, either about Ars Magica or about Real History
• Downloadable character sheets, maps, or other play aids
• Ready-made characters, covenants, or creatures
• Original articles about some aspect of Mythic Europe or the Order of Hermes
• Short articles that summarize how a rule works or explain something from the canon, such as a Hedge Magic tradition or a Regional Tribunal. Please keep in mind our Copyrights copyright policy when writing about the canon.
• Original illustrations, maps, and diagrams.
• Or almost anything else you can think of!

Anonymous Edits and Account Creation

One of the problems with Wikis is that they attract a lot of spammers.

You can edit and even create articles anonymously, but before you can submit anonymous edits the Wiki will challenge you by asking you a simple question about Ars Magica. This is to verify you actually know something about the game and are not just here to sell us Viagra. If you create an account and log in, you will no longer have to answer any questions.

User's Guide

Since we are using the MediaWiki software, the MediaWiki Handbook is a good introduction to editing articles and using the site's features (such as its search function).

We have our own guide on Designing Articles.

Languages

TBD

Finding Technical Help

Because MediaWiki is widely used and well-documented, there is a lot of information on the Web about how to do specific things. We at Project: Redcap have not invested time in copying or creating links to the existing MediaWiki documentation; we prefer to spend our time developing content for Ars Magica. Therefore, the best way to get technical help is to use a Web search engine such as Google or Bing.

For example, if you want to find out how to quote a section of non-copyrighted material (such as a medieval text) and have it appear nicely formatted, try searching for terms such as

MediaWiki formatting
MediaWiki format block quote

If you want to use a feature of MediaWiki and find that it does not work on this site, the most likely cause is that feature is not installed. See the About Project Redcap page to contact the maintainers and we will do what we can to install it.

Advice for Contributors

Here is some further advice for contributors who are interested.

Civility

Be civil. It is all right to express opinions on this site. We're not trying to be completely objective (that's an unattainable ideal). Be careful to:

+ state opinions as opinions, not as facts; + separate opinions from fact where possible, for example in a section marked "opinion," "commentary," or "reviews" + remain respectful toward authors, other people's play styles, and opposing opinions.

Just because you think something is poorly done or a bad idea, does not mean the person who wrote it is an enemy of civilization.

Controversial Topics

The nature of Mythic Europe leads Ars Magica to deal with potentially offensive and/or controversial topics such as anti-Semitism, the Crusades, witch-burning, slavery, medieval attitudes toward gender, and so on. Please do feel free to write about these topics, but write carefully. One of the great things about the Fan Community is our diversity. This implies we owe it to ourselves to be respectful of all religions, nationalities, etc.

When writing about historical events, be sure to use the past tense. Atrocities committed 800 years ago have little direct bearing on modern events. Remember that a lot of players enjoy Ars Magica for the magic and fantasy, so don't get too hung up on Real History.

Perhaps the best angle is to present the controversial topic in a matter-of-fact way, then go on to explain at length all the fun Story ideas it inspires.

Further Content Guidelines

Here follow some guidelines, not strict rules, for how to make your pages useful without violating copyright or hurting Atlas Games' business.

• The main point is not to write so much detail that someone could use your page instead of referring to his or her bookshelf.
• Go beyond what's in the Ars Magica books. Add examples, or suggestions on how to use something in play. Explain when a rule works differently in one edition as opposed to another.
• Include lots of links to other pages (either on this site or elsewhere)
• Refer to game rules by page number rather than quoting from them.
• Similarly, refer to fictional places, events, and characters by page reference when possible.
• If you must explain something from the game world, be very brief: one or two sentences.
• For long out-of-print material (ArM3 and earlier) you can write more extensive summaries, but still be sure to only summarize, not replicate.
• Remember that other people can, and probably will, edit the pages you create.
• Avoid writing detailed timelines of fictional events. Timelines of Hermetic history are included in several ArM5 books.