Policy:Determining Canon

It was established by the staff and is considered a standard that everyone should follow. Please make use of talk pages to propose changes to this policy.

Because of the nature of the Legacy of Chaos Wikia, all information presented is created without the use of sources or outside influence, except in very limited cases. For this reason, it is important to be able to determine what is acceptable as canon information. This is so that information can be kept consistent across all articles, and in doing so give the Legacy of Chaos a more rich and immersive world. Below are the requirements editors are expected to follow when review canon information, or creating new canon information themselves.

## Atmosphere

When it comes to creating a world, even the smallest details can add credibility to the setting. With this in mind, it is important to create a vivid atmosphere which a reader can relate to. While the Legacy of Chaos Wikia maintains an unbiased, past tense, historical writing style in its articles, this does not mean that proper atmosphere should be excluding. When writing an article about a bar or sewer, it is important to keep the senses in mind when describing a location.

* Hearing - When it comes to sound, be sure to include what a location might sound like, when appropriate. This can include things such as music and the instruments that accompany them, certain vocal reactions given by specific cultures, and especially locations that sound out of the ordinary from what one would expect (such as the lack of an echo). While including a description for a rowdy tavern isn't quite necessary, a tavern that is especially quiet for such an establishment would be.
* Sight - When describing any type of individual, location, or other appropriate physical object, it is important to include a visual description of the object so that the reader can imagine the object in their own mind. While in some cases pictures may be provided, this does not supersede the need to have detailed visual descriptions of physical objects.
* Smell - Like sound, smell is one of the senses that does not warrant as commonplace description as visual stimuli, yet still needs to be covered in some instances. A brothel with a strong smell of incense, or a boat with a strong smell of fish are small examples of where it might be appropriate to include a description of smell.
* Taste - Likely to be the least used method of describing the setting's atmosphere, it will be rare that this may need to be used in an article. Still, things such as foods unique to the Legacy of Chaos setting are good examples of when to include of description of taste.
* Touch - What does the object in question feel like. In many articles, a description of touch may not be necessary, but in a world with magic it may be important to describe the differences of things to our own reality. Special materials, for example, may warrant a different reaction to touch then a normal material of the same type. Most common usage of a description of touch would be found in articles of items with magical origins, as these will differ most widely from real world objects.

## Basic Infrastructure

While the Legacy of Chaos setting may have elaborate social structures and remarkable hierarchies, it is important to remember that even the most sophisticated society will need basic living necessities. Because of this, as editors we must remember to these things in mind when it comes to creating or detailing a society. Some typical questions to ask include:

* What do they eat? - And how do they receive the food. Is it through trade, farming, hunting, or other means?
* Who deals with the garbage? - Or for that matter the chamber pots. No matter how advanced a society, garbage and waste is always an issue, and someone has to deal with it.
* How do they get around? - Transportation is very important, especially in locations with dangerous climate.
* What do they use for money? - How do goods and services trade hands. Either through manual labor, currency established by a government, or a simple barter system, it's rare that items change hands without some form of currency. Taxes are almost always a certainty.

Remember that when creating a society, we must create a fully functioning economy as well. The Legacy of Chaos setting has a fully fledged world, with embargoes, blockades, and trade between nations. All manner of goods and services must be organized and sufficient to support a location. And if it isn't, a location will quickly find itself in destitute conditions, and may not last much longer.

## Consistency

From an out of universe perspective, events can only unfold one way. When an event takes place, or history is written, there is only one way that it occurred. For writing a canon article, it is important to keep this in mind, and in turn ensure that you link the source article to that which details how the event took place, or what occurred in an individuals life. Remember that in the Legacy of Chaos Wikia, we take an unbiased perspective on events. In example, if a character tells of how he slew a manticore with his bare hands, it is important for the sake of accurate articles to describe the event as it actually occurred, not in the way that a story may be told.

Also keep in mind that from an in-universe perspective, it is rare that multiple groups will share precisely the same recollection about how an event occurred. Prophecies are skewed as time flows on, information is lost over the years, and history is written by the victor. When detailing cultural aspects, feel free to include such legends or fallacies about how events occurred, while making sure you also give the true information - either on the article in question or by creating a separate event article for a better description.

## Current Events

The beginning of the Legacy of Chaos story is centered on the precipice of world-wide war. While readers are drawn to conflict, which itself lends to excitement, it is important not to leave out the reasoning of 'why' when it comes to a current event. Even if a prophecy is being fulfilled, it is important to show the why of how that prophecy has been fulfilled. With this in mind, when writing an article for an event, or otherwise detailing actions in an article, make sure you detail **why** this event is just now taking place.

In many cases, this can be as simple as detailing individuals actions growing bold when they sense weakness. Even groups that can easily steer clear of a war rarely do so when possible. Even in times of peace, those who desire more power will sometimes take more drastic actions to try securing themselves that power. Gathering and moving armies is a slow process in most cases. To give a good reasoning for why events are unfolding the way they are, consider each piece of the puzzle that had to fall into place for something to occur. Every society has checks and balances, and even a dictator has actions they simply cannot take without utter failure.

## Geography

When selecting a location for a nation or event, it is important to consider the geography of that area. In real world history, the shape and nature of the land is often more important in determining the shape of a nation then the desires of that nation. Battles are often fought in locations of strategic value to one side or another. Roads exist for quick travel between one major city and another, and towns and villages commonly arise in between these cities.

For the layout of a city, many things can be taken into account. Some cities are designed around protection - a castle built on a cliff side so they have one fewer side to protect. From there a city may spring around it, with villagers building structures outside the wall to maintain safety. As the city grows, a second wall is built to protect the large number of citizens now living outside the caste. A traveling army will often dig ditches to protect against ambush, and perhaps flocks of merchants or traders come to trade. After, some stay in the makeshift area, building homes and creating a town there. Sometimes even a single family leaving to live on their own in a forest may spurn the growth of town. If the villager chose a small clearing in the forest, then other houses may eventually spring up around them as other's move, or the family grows and requires more houses.

Make sure that your location and event has some reasoning in regards to geography. It is rare indeed that location plays no part, and the Legacy of Chaos setting is no exception.

## Hierarchy of Needs

Humans - and in turn other intelligent races - must meet a certain hierarchy of needs in order to properly achieve all they are capable of. For groups to do this in the Legacy of Chaos setting, these rules of need still apply. Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs lists the things a human must be provided with, from those needed for basic survival to pursuing philosophy. Keep this in mind when writing cultural details for a group, or the inner workings of a nation. If conditions in a place are so poor that the inhabitants struggle to survive on a daily basis, it is very unlikely they will have guilds dedicated to research or philosophy. And when a society fails to deliver on any of these needs, it will collapse until these needs are restored.

## Logical Actions

Though Newton's third law applies to physics, the concept holds true to many aspects of life. Decision making is an important part of all history. Government's are established to deal with the farther reaching decisions, and produce the desired outcome. With this in mind, a logical approach is typically taken. When writing canon for the Legacy of Chaos setting, most often it is necessary for an outcome to make sense. Rules are implemented for a reason, and for a system to work properly it must be logically feasible.

### Illogical Actions

While the above holds true, history has shown that logic itself does not always dictate individual actions, or even those of nations. Mental instability can lead to illogical actions, and sometimes events do not pan out the way things might have been intended. While we encourage editors to give logical reasoning for most instances of history or actions, we also require that sometimes this not be the case. Whether it's caused by religion, hatred, or pure insanity, logic does not always win the day. Things that may seem inevitable in retrospect may have appeared anything but as events unfolded. Even superstition is powerful and influential, so keep these things in mind when editing an article.

## Inequality

To build on groundwork laid out in the Basic Infrastructure portion of this policy, most times people do not oppress others just for fun. Wealth is never distributed equally, and not everyone can be on top. One group may find themselves on the short end of the stick for any number of reasons, whether it be gender, race, or a physical trait. Majorities are silent, and minorities aren't. Ideals are constantly debated and reformed, with more tolerant societies providing better treatment for minorities. There are always tipping points to what people are willing to put up with, though these levels vary between groups and societies, dependent on culture.

## Multicultural Ethnicity

Ethnicity's need to be as nuanced and well-rounded as possible. It is required that they have a justifiable culture, but not that they be one-dimensional. A Nation will often contain more then one singular culture, and will often be influenced by migrant groups.

## Polylithic Organizations

It is rare that governmental systems and ethnic groups wholeheartedly share every view about everything. Ideals must be balanced and compromises created, especially in governmental structures. Religious groups will not interpret every tenet of a religion in the same way. When writing an article about a group or organization, remember to include differing views on certain points, or create subsets of those groups, such as differing political parties or methods of worship.

## Research

When writing an article, we would ask that you have some small understanding of what it is you're writing about. The Legacy of Chaos setting does pull certain aspects from the real world, such as weaponry and warfare. Knowing how real things such as trade routes and guilds work will help you detail them in Legacy of Chaos articles.

## Scientific Plausibility

For the Legacy of Chaos setting, a certain suspension of disbelief is required for many things. In a world with magic, it can be easy to forget that even such a world operates on rules and principles just like the real world. Where magic is not involved, our setting still functions in the same manner, with gravity, speed, and force, all functioning in the same manner. If including a custom element, or detailing a spell description, describe how it works, not simply that it is. Detracting too far from reality can shatter that suspension of disbelief, rather then just stretching it.

## Stereotypes

Don't rely on stereotypes. Set some forth, as they exist for a reason, but not every orc will love wanton slaughter and battle. Not every knight will be a paragon of justice saving damsels in distress. Men are not all one thing and women are not either. When creating characters for a nation or article, we ask that you not rely too heavily on these stereotypes. Give the characters something different, small nuances that set them apart and give them a sense of life.