Brickipedia:Manual of Style
The following contains Brickipedia's Manual of Style. All articles should conform to the standards listed below. Any proposals for additions/alterations to the MOS can be discussed in the forum.
General[edit source]
The following conventions should apply to all articles:
- All articles should contain correct spelling, punctuation, capital letters and language structure.
- Articles should use British English for their spelling. Differences between UK and US spelling can be seen here.
- The article's topic should be bolded the first time it is mentioned (usually in the lead section). If a topic has officially gone by multiple names, all of these alternate names should also be bolded on their first mention.
- LEGO, DUPLO, BIONICLE and QUATRO should all be spelled with capitals.
- Generally, "minifigure" should not be abbreviated to "minifig" or "fig".
- Names of themes based on movies, such as Star Wars, The Lord of the Rings and Indiana Jones should be italicised, however original themes such as Ninjago should not. This excludes cases such as when a TV series, book or film is based on an original theme, such as Ninjago: Masters of Spinjitzu.
- When referring to an episode of a television show, the title should be contained in quotation marks, such as "The Golden Weapon".
- Articles should be written from a neutral point of view (that is, objective). Pointing out features of the topic of the article (eg a set) is encouraged, but using sentences such as "this set is one of the best sets in its theme because..." is not.
- A subject should be linked once upon its first appearance in the article's infobox, once upon its first mention in the article's lead section, once upon its first mention in the article's main body, and throughout the minifigure gallery (if applicable).
- Any images placed throughout the article should be of a suitable size, captioned appropriately, and "fit in" well with the rest of the article (for example, placing a single large image at the very bottom of an article which hasn't been resized with the caption "an hq pic of the set" would not be acceptable).
- If anything requires indenting in an infobox such as a subtheme listed underneath a theme, {{si}} should be used.
- All key chains contain one part and no minifigures. This is how LEGO lists them.
- In most cases, categories should not be added manually- most categories are generated automatically through the use of properly filled-out infoboxes and other templates.
Type-specific policies[edit source]
This section contains requirements for specific types of articles, such as sets and minifigures.
Sets | Minifigures | Themes and subthemes |
Films and television episodes | Television series | Apps |
Video game articles | Objects | LEGO Stores |
Dates | People | Books |
Companies | Parts | Years |
Inventories |
Set articles[edit source]
General requirements[edit source]
- A set header template
- A set infobox
- At least one image of the set must be included, where there is one available
- The main infobox image should be a box image. However, if there is no box image available, the other image may be used in the infobox.
- If a box image and an official white-background image of the set are both available, they should both go in the infobox, with the box image being placed after
|Image=
, and the white-background image being placed after|AltImage=
. - If there are no minifigures present in the set, the field should be left blank and not contain text such as "none", "zero" or "0".
- Prices should be filled out using Template:Price, and at a minimum, the following four prices should be filled out (where the price is known in that currency):
- United States Dollar (US $) (US in template)
- German Euro (€) (DE in template)
- British Pound (£) (UK in template)
- Australian Dollars (AU $) (AU in template)
- Main information describing the set
- A quote of the description of the set from LEGO's website, where there was/is one available, using Template:QuoteLEGO.com.
- A minifigure gallery template, where minifigures are included in the set
- A "Sources" section (if required)
- If a set has been released multiple times, and under a different number and/or name, a separate article should be created for each release
Naming conventions[edit source]
- Titles of set articles usually consist of the set's reference number followed by its official name (e.g. 6552 Rocky River Retreat).
- The names used at Brickipedia are the ones from the American releases. If a set was not not released in the US, the UK name has to be used.
- If a set was released under several different numbers, each set warrants a separate article.
- If a set was released with the same number but under different names, the chronologically first name has to be used in the title.
- If a set does not have an official name or the name is unknown, the generally accepted conjectural name of the set may be used, as it can be found on most databases like Lugnet, Brickset, or Peeron. In this case, please place {{Conjecture|set}} at the top of the article.
Order of sections and section headings[edit source]
- Lead section (no heading): Short paragraph that describes the basic information of the set, like: release year, theme, rough overview of the content and information about the sets release.
- Description: Detailed description of the set's content and functions.
- Availability: To be used only for sets which have limited availability, such as store exclusive and pre-order bonuses. Bullet points with {{FlagAndCountry}} should be used to list where or how the set is available for each country.
- Background: Text that describes the background/context of the featured model in its respective fictional universe (keep it short and simple). This should be written in the past tense.
- Notes: Additional information about rare pieces (pieces that appear in just one or two sets), pieces that make their first or last appearance in this set or other peculiarities.
- LEGO.com Description: (since the citation box looks like a "roadblock" it shouldn't come after the actual description because it's too obtrusive, instead it should be positioned at the end of the running text of an article)
- Minifigures included With Template:MinifigureGallery filled out correctly underneath. If there is a large empty space between the heading and this template, should be used directly above this heading.
- Other figures: A subheading of "Minifigures included", to be used only when necessary. To contain another MinifigureGallery template, for other figures included in the set such as animals. Please note that
|smw=no
should always be added as a parameter to the gallery template in this section.
- Other figures: A subheading of "Minifigures included", to be used only when necessary. To contain another MinifigureGallery template, for other figures included in the set such as animals. Please note that
- Gallery: Any other pictures of the set.
- See Also: Links to related articles on Brickipedia, e.g. sets with a similar subject, appearance etc. or articles that describe a related subject with a broader scope or present an overview of related sets. (Not links to the parent theme or a simple list of sets of the same theme)
- References: <ref> tags from the articles. This section should solely contain {{reflist}}.
- Sources: Any other sources not directly referenced in the article.
- External links: Links to external sites.
- Navbox: Respective theme navigation box.
Minifigure articles[edit source]
General requirements[edit source]
- A minifigure infobox
- Video game, film and television series accessories, years and variants should appear in the infobox only when the minifigure has not been released in a physical form.
- A description
- At least one image of the figure, where there is one available.
- The infobox image of a minifigure must be a photograph of the physical figure. An image of a computer-generated representation of the minifigure may be used only when a physical version isn't known to exist.
- A minifigure gallery template, where there is more than one variant of the minifigure.
- The minifigure's image should be that of its exact variant- if there is no image available of this variant, then the field should be left blank.
- An "appearances" section.
- If the minifigure appears in both physical and video game form, have an == Appearances == heading and list physical appearances, then underneath have headings for other kinds of appearances.
- If referring to appearances in television shows, the episodes should be listed chronologically and in the following format:
*''TV series name'' **Season X ***"episode title"
- If a character is only mentioned (directly or indirectly) or appears only in flashbacks, it may be noted in a tag after the episode title.
- An appropriate category for the minifigure. These will usually be added to the page automatically based on the content in the infobox.
- A minifigure template (where applicable)
Naming conventions[edit source]
- For minifigures from a licensed theme, minifigures should be given the name that they are given on any official LEGO website, box or other official LEGO material, unless the name clearly contradicts the name of the character it is meant to represent (for example, Shadow Stormtrooper minifigures are given the name "Shadowtrooper" by LEGO, however Shadowtroopers in the Star Wars Universe are distinctly different).
- If a licensed minifigure has officially been given more than one name by LEGO, then the more correct "in-universe" name should be used.
Order of sections and section headings[edit source]
- Lead section (no heading): Short paragraph that describes the basic information of the minifigure like release year and theme.
- Description: Detailed description of the minifigure.
- Video game variants: For minifigures that have appeared both in a physical form and in video games. This section should discuss the minifigure's appearance and abilities within any video games that they appear.
- Background: Text that describes the background of the minifigure/character in its respective fictional universe (keep it short and simple). This should be written in the past tense.
- Notes: Any important notes about the minifigure that do not fit in the description.
- Appearances: Section with the sets in which the minifigure has appeared. This section should be sorted by item number. Sets that do not have known item numbers should be placed underneath those that do, and be ordered alphabetically.
- Video game appearances: If the minifigure has appeared in a video game, list the video games in this section. This section should be sorted alphabetically.
- Film appearances: If the minifigure has appeared in a film, list the films in this section. This section should be sorted alphabetically.
- Television appearances: If the minifigure has appeared in a television series, list the episodes in this section. These appearances should be formatted in the following style:
* ''[[Television series]]''
** First season minifigure appears in
*** "[[First episode of season minifigure appears in]]"
*** "[[Second episode of season minifigure appears in]]"
** Second season minifigure appears in]]"
*** "[[First episode of season minifigure appears in]]"
- Episodes should be ordered chronologically.
- Book appearances: If the minifigure has appeared in a book, list the books in this section. This section should be sorted by item number. Books that do not have known item numbers should be placed underneath those that do, and be ordered alphabetically.
- Gallery of variants: Section containing {{MinifigureGallery}}, and listing all the separate variations of a minifigure.
- Video game variants: A subheading of "Gallery of variants", to be used only when necessary. To contain another MinifigureGallery template, for any variants of the figure that appears in a video game. Please note that
|smw=no
should always be added as a parameter to the gallery template in this section.
- Video game variants: A subheading of "Gallery of variants", to be used only when necessary. To contain another MinifigureGallery template, for any variants of the figure that appears in a video game. Please note that
- LEGO.com Description: Description taken from LEGO.com of the minifigure (this section can be replaced with any other official description of the minifigure).
- Gallery: Section with extra images of the minifigure. For example, if a minifigure has back printing or a double sided head, the alternate views of the minifigure can be included in this section.
- References: <ref> tags from the articles. This section should solely contain {{reflist}}.
- Sources: Any other sources not directly referenced in the article.
- External links: Links to external sites.
- Navigational templates (no heading): Any appropriate navigational templates, such as {{SWfigs}}.
Theme and subtheme articles[edit source]
General requirements[edit source]
- A theme infobox
- A description
- A relevant image or logo of the theme
- A list of sets in the theme
Order of sections and section headings[edit source]
- Lead section (no heading): Short paragraph that describes the basic information of the theme.
- Description: Design tendencies and common motifs of sets (and minifigures, when applicable) of the theme.
- History: A history of the theme and its release.
- Background: An "in-universe" background about the story relating to the theme (where applicable).
- Notes: Any relevant additional information.
- List of sets: A list of sets included in the theme, or a link to a subpage containing a list of sets when the list is excessively long.
- References: <ref> tags from the articles. This section should solely contain {{reflist}}.
- Sources: Any other sources not directly referenced in the article.
- See also: Links to other relevant topics, which are not already linked in the article.
- External links: Links to external sites.
Film articles and television episode articles[edit source]
General requirements[edit source]
- A film or television episode template.
- A description of the plot.
- A list of appearances.
Order of sections and section headings[edit source]
- Lead section (no heading): Short paragraph giving general information about the film or television episode.
- Lead cast and characters: The lead cast list with the characters they are playing, with a short description of each character (1-3 sentences).
- Synopsis: An "in-universe" account of the events which occurred in the film or TV episode.
- Appearances: A list of entities which appeared in the episode. Subheadings should be present for minifigures, vehicles, animals and creatures (where each subheading is appropriate)
- Longer lists should consider using {{Columns/2}} or {{Columns/3}}
- Notes: Any relevant additional information.
- Reception: For larger productions, this should be used to describe the response to the film or TV episode. The section should contain only quotes or opinions from professional film critics, and/or statistics from reputable review sites sites as Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic. It is a requirement that everything in this section is fully referenced.
- References: <ref> tags from the articles. This section should solely contain {{reflist}}.
- Sources: Any other sources not directly referenced in the article.
- External links: Links to relevant external sites.
Television series articles[edit source]
General requirements[edit source]
- A series template.
- An overview of the series.
- A list of the leading cast.
Order of sections and section headings[edit source]
- Lead section (no heading): Short paragraph giving general information about the series.
- Overview: A general, "in-universe" summary of the series.
- Lead cast and characters: The lead cast list with the characters they are playing, with a short description of each character (1-3 sentences).
- List of episodes: Using {{SeriesList}} to give a short summary of each episode (2-3 sentences).
- Notes: Any relevant additional information.
- Reception: For larger productions, this should be used to describe the response to the film or TV episode. The section should contain only quotes or opinions from professional film critics, and/or statistics from reputable review sites sites as Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic. It is a requirement that everything in this section is fully referenced.
- References: <ref> tags from the articles. This section should solely contain {{reflist}}.
- Sources: Any other sources not directly referenced in the article.
- External links: Links to relevant external sites.
App articles[edit source]
General requirements[edit source]
- A app template.
- An overview of the app.
Order of sections and section headings[edit source]
- Lead section (no heading): Short paragraph giving general information about the app, including release platforms.
- Characters (if applicable): An overview of the characters involved. This is generally only applicable for games.
- Story (if applicable): A general overview of the story. This is generally only applicable for games.
- Gameplay (if applicable): A description of the gameplay. This is only applicable for games.
- LEGO.com description:
- Notes: Any relevant additional information.
- Gallery: For screenshots and related images
- References: <ref> tags from the articles. This section should solely contain {{reflist}}.
- Sources: Any other sources not directly referenced in the article.
- External links: Links to relevant external sites.
Video game articles[edit source]
General requirements[edit source]
- A video gametemplate.
- An overview of the video game.
Order of sections and section headings[edit source]
- Lead section (no heading): Short paragraph giving general information about the video game, including release platforms.
- Characters: An overview of the characters involved. It should be in the form of a list or table, and each list item should describe its abilities if playable.
- Story: A general overview of the story.
- Gameplay: A description of the gameplay, including controls and mechanics.
- Development: Any information on the development and other behind-the-scenes information.
- Notes: Any relevant additional information.
- Gallery: For screenshots and related images
- References: <ref> tags from the articles. This section should solely contain {{reflist}}.
- Sources: Any other sources not directly referenced in the article.
- External links: Links to relevant external sites.
Object articles[edit source]
General requirements[edit source]
- A object template.
- A description of how the object is built.
Order of sections and section headings[edit source]
- Lead section (no heading): Short paragraph giving general information about the weapon.
- Description: A description of how the object is built, mentioning the parts used to make the object and how they fit together.
- Usage in video games (where applicable): A description of how the object is used in video games, and any special abilities that they may grant the character.
- Background: An "in-universe" description of the object and its usage.
- Users: A list of minifigures which have are included with this object in sets. If the object has several variations, the variant should be listed next to the user in brackets.
- Gallery of variants (where applicable): Using {{MinifigureGallery}}, showing all of the variants of the object.
- References: <ref> tags from the articles. This section should solely contain {{reflist}}.
- Sources: Any other sources not directly referenced in the article.
- External links: Links to relevant external sites.
- Navbox (no heading): Any appropriate navigational templates, such as {{Weapons}}.
When to make object articles[edit source]
- Object articles are designed for object held by minifigures, such as weapons.
- Variations of objects should be grouped on the one page. For example, double-bladed lightsabers and lightsaber pikes should simply be a part of the lightsaber article.
- Weapons composed of single parts should instead follow the Manual of Style for part articles.
LEGO Store articles[edit source]
General requirements[edit source]
- A store template.
- Details about the store.
- If the store is a LEGO Certified Store, and not a LEGO Retail Brand store, it must be clearly distinguished.
Order of sections and section headings[edit source]
- Lead section (no heading): Short paragraph giving general information about the store.
- Description: Description and features of the stores, location within shopping malls, or any other relevant details.
- Events: Any special events that have occurred or will occur at the store.
- References: <ref> tags from the articles. This section should solely contain {{reflist}}.
- Sources: Any other sources not directly referenced in the article.
- External links: Links to external sites. This should contain a link to the store's page on the official site.
- Store navbox (no heading): {{StoreNav}} should be placed at the bottom of articles.
Date articles[edit source]
General requirements[edit source]
- A month navigation template
- A list of events which occured on the day.
Naming conventions[edit source]
Date articles are named so that the month followed by the day number. For example, November 7.
Order of sections and section headings[edit source]
- Lead section (no heading): Short paragraph giving general information about the day.
- Events: List of LEGO-related events which occured on this day. Events are grouped by year, and should follow a consistent style:
* '''[[year]]''':
** Event 1 occuring at this time
** Event 2 occuring at this time
** etc..
- The events should be sorted such that the latest year is placed at the bottom.
- If a day has no events, the section should read
* No known events.
- References: <ref> tags from the articles. This section should solely contain {{reflist}}.
- Sources: Any other sources not directly referenced in the article.
- External links: Links to external sites. This should solely contain {{DateWP}}.
People articles[edit source]
General requirements[edit source]
- A person infobox
- A "type" of person tied to LEGO in some way, these being:
- A set designer
- A creator of a LEGO Ideas project that was turned into an official product
- A voice actor for an official LEGO product or publication
- A person who appeared an official LEGO film
- A person involved in the making of an official LEGO film, video game, television episode or other such publication (including directors, producers, screenwriters and game directors)
- A person involved in the running of The LEGO Group
- A Certified Master Builder
- A writer/illustrator contracted for an original work (but not for things such as novelisations of films)
- A composer who has written as song specifically for a LEGO production
- A singer who has performed specifically for a LEGO production
- A member of the LEGO Community Team
Order of sections and section headings[edit source]
- Lead section (no heading): Short paragraph giving general information about the person.
- Biography: A biography of the person. This should be mainly focused on the person's career.
- Work with LEGO (a subheading of biography): A section focusing specifically on projects this person has undetaken with The LEGO Group.
- List of works: Should contain only a filled out {{ListOfWorks}} template.
- These works should be listed chronologically.
- In general, this should contain a list of works that the person has directly contributed to. Additionally, for actors and actresses, this may include minifigures that are based directly on characters from a film or television series that the actor or actress has played.
- References: <ref> tags from the articles. This section should solely contain {{reflist}}.
- Sources: Any other sources not directly referenced in the article.
- External links: Links to external sites. This should contain links to Wikipedia and to IMDB (in cases where such links are available).
- People navbox (no heading): A relevant people navigation template should be placed at the bottom of articles.
Book articles[edit source]
General requirements[edit source]
Order of sections and section headings[edit source]
- Lead section (no heading): Short paragraph giving general information about the book.
- Synopsis: An description of the book's plot. Please note, this section does not apply to reference books.
- List of appearances: A list of minifigures and models which appear in the book.
- Minifigures included: With Template:MinifigureGallery filled out correctly underneath. If there is a large empty space between the heading and this template, should be used directly above this heading. To be used only for books which include a minifigure inside in the book.
- Notes: Any other relevant additional information which does not fit into the other sections of the article.
- References: <ref> tags from the articles. This section should solely contain {{reflist}}.
- Sources: Any other sources not directly referenced in the article.
- External links: Links to external sites.
- Navbox: Respective theme navigation box.
Company articles[edit source]
General requirements[edit source]
Order of sections and section headings[edit source]
- Lead section (no heading): Short paragraph giving general information about the company.
- Background: A brief history and overview of the company.
- Work with LEGO (a subheading of Background): A section focusing specifically on projects this company has undetaken with The LEGO Group. This does not apply to The LEGO Group article.
- References: <ref> tags from the articles. This section should solely contain {{reflist}}.
- Sources: Any other sources not directly referenced in the article.
- External links: Links to external sites.
- Navbox: {{companies}} navbox.
Part articles[edit source]
General requirements[edit source]
Part articles should be named by their official LEGO Design ID, not their Element ID. For example, Part:57899 references the part's Design ID (58799).
- The exception to this rule is for parts with a Design ID that have a very large number of corresponding Element IDs. For example, Part:76382 (a common piece for the upper part of a minifigure) has over 1000 Element IDs. In this case, the part should be split up into subpages and use the following naming style: "Part:Design ID/Element ID". For example, Part:76382/4295326 references part with Design ID 76382 and Element ID 4295326. In these cases, the root Design ID page (in the example, Part:76382) should contain a list of all of the subpages.
Part articles should contain:
- A part infobox
- Colors should be specified using the CID1 (Colour ID according to Colour Palette, EID1 (Element ID), and Image1, etc, parameters
- A description
- A complete list of appearances
Articles should not be created on parts and/or accessories, that have only appeared in video games or movies.
Recommended order of sections and section headings[edit source]
- Lead Section (no heading): Short paragraph that describes basic information about the part, including its official LEGO title.
- Description: stating the size, shape and (optionally) printing design.
- If it applies, Background. Some parts have story relevance in their respective themes. In themes with stories as big and complex as BIONICLE however, keep it no more than a paragraph long.
- Appearances: a list of which sets the part has appeared in. Use colour subheadings beginning with a semicolon for the best formatting.
- Notes: This section should contain notable other pieces of information about the part, for example Element IDs and oddities.
- External Links: The last section, which should only contain {{External info/Part|<Design ID>}} and a bullet-pointed link to its Brickset page underneath it.
Naming conventions[edit source]
Titles of articles about parts follow the form "Part <Design ID number>". (e.g. Part:60470)
The Design ID is the number that specifies a part's shape (and is mostly imprinted on its bottom side), while the Element ID also specifies its color (and is found on current LEGO building instructions). The numbers used by Peeron are Design IDs. Element IDs or Fan IDs from sites like bricklink.com should not be used.
Year articles[edit source]
The following type of MoS is currently being re-examined in our policy forums.
General requirements[edit source]
Year articles should contain:
- The Template:Year
- A list of events which happened in that year
- A list of themes and subthemes that were introduced or discontinued in that year
- A wikitable with the sets released of that year. The products are listed via the wikitable. Inside the table there should be informations about the set number, the set name, the piececount, the amount of figures included, the price and the month release date.
- Appropriate categories
Recommended order of sections and section headings[edit source]
- This will happen/has happened in <year>: Events happened in that year.
- Themes introduced or discontinued in <year>: List of themes that were introduced or discontinued in that year.
- Sets introduced in <year>: List of the sets released in that year.
Inventory articles[edit source]
The following type of MoS is currently being re-examined in our policy forums.
General requirements[edit source]
Inventories can either be on sets or minifigures.
- The Template:Up
- The Inventory. (Using {{Inventory}} and {{IS}})
- The Template:Inventory Details
- Inventories should only contain headings if the subject has more than one variations (ie. A minifigure with more than one variation.)