Hollow Knight Wiki:Editing Guidelines

Welcome, Future Wiki Contributor!

Please make sure you also familiarise yourself with the Rules of Conduct and How To!

This page serves as a guide to help editors get started on this Wiki. '''Please read this article all the way through before making any edits if you are new! It will ensure that the edits you make are of the highest quality!'''

You are encouraged to join the Wiki Discord where contributors of the Wiki have a better line of communication.

To-Do: On this page you can see what tasks are being done by whom and also where help is needed. If you wish to contribute, feel free to pick a task and mark it as yours by adding your name to it. Alternatively, you can see here for missing information.

General "Rules" of Thumb  DO use the Source Editor and please refrain from using the Visual Editor - it totally messes up the Wiki code on pages. If you're not sure how to do something, ask for help! DO ask before making new pages, most missing pages have already been made or are already planned by someone. DO ask questions if you need any help or advice or if you can't find anything. DON'T add new categories to pages. These are being handled by the admin/mod team. DON'T overwrite pronouns on pages before asking! Most things in the game are genderless (hence why they are referred to as it/they), unless explicitly stated. DON'T start working on something someone else already started. If you wish to assist, contact them with the information you have rather than editing over their current work. DON'T add entirely new pages surrounding Silksong content, please keep all that content on the Silksong page for the time being. 

Formatting and Design Please keep to the formatting that is already in on pages that are done. If you have any questions, ideas or suggestions, please contact The Embraced One on the Wiki or on Discord: The Embraced One #6059.

Terminology Try to keep terminology and descriptions consistent throughout the wiki, using formal and impersonal language. '''Avoid using "you," "we," and other second-person terms, and do not use slang or colloquialisms. Avoid terms like "probably," "looks like," "clearly," "really," etc.'''

The following is a list of terms as they should be consistently worded (more to be added later):
 * "The Knight"/"Hornet": When referring to the character that the player controls, including physical contact and lore references. Do not refer to the player character as "the player".
 * When in doubt, try to reword the phrase to not include either one (e.g., "Retreat when [Hornet/the Knight] is low on health" could be re-written as "Retreat when low on health.")


 * Soul: All caps whenever describing Soul specifically as a gameplay mechanic. All caps is not needed for lore, enemy attacks, etc.


 * Nail: Capitalised when describing the Knight's Nail, lowercase in other instances.


 * Health: Health is denoted in "Masks" (e.g., "this attack deals 2 Masks of damage").


 * Geo: Capitalise when referring to a nonspecific amount of Geo. For Geo values, use the template  with the amount (e.g., "Drops  upon defeat"). For more informaiton on how to use the G template, check it's documentation.


 * Enemy attacks: Use the present and imperfect tense when describing enemy attacks and behaviour (e.g. "Charges forward, spinning into a ball"). Only use future tense if the attack is circumstantial (e.g. "Will jump back if the Knight gets too close").


 * Controls: Always in all caps. Because the game supports both controller and keyboard inputs, button prompts are not denoted by their relative name but by the naming convention in the options menu: JUMP, ATTACK, FOCUS/CAST, DREAM NAIL, QUICK CAST, DASH, PAUSE, INVENTORY, SUPER DASH, QUICK MAP, LOOK UP/DOWN, and the directions UP, DOWN, LEFT, and RIGHT.


 * Directions: Use the cardinal directions to refer to where something is in-game (e.g., "south of Forgotten Crossroads" or "west part of Deepnest"). When combining directions, keep the word un-hyphenated ("northeast," "southwest," etc.)


 * Trivia/Lore: Unless stated in the game or by the developers, all correlations and references are possibilities, not absolutes. Preface trivia with good evidence as "likely" or "presumably" true. Please keep lore-related content on the Lore section of the Wiki.

Spelling
 * Hollow Knight uses British English. This is confirmed by the developers and shown in the game numerous times. As such, the Wiki also uses British English.

 DO add locations to pages where applicable. Please make it a gallery instead of just a simple image insert. Example: Duranda Location. DO add links ONLY to the first instance of each topic mentioned in an article. 

Lore Lore can be in a specific section of a page or on its own page within the Lore category. Generally, lore does not belong in trivia sections. All lore sentences should have an appropriate reference added at the end which provides evidence. See citation below.

Speculation and claims with no evidence have no place on the wiki. Evidence can come directly from the game, from official merchandise such as the Wanderer's Journal, or from statements of the developers.

Trivia Anything about a specific subject that does not fit into any other section on a page is considered Trivia and should be put under the Trivia heading for that page. If no Trivia section is present, you may add it to the bottom of the page. Please refer to other pages that have trivia sections for its format.

 DO only add trivia if it is verifiable. If it is verifiable, then it should include a citation link to the source where it is mentioned.  </ul>

What is trivia
 * Information about changes in game design while the developers were creating the game.
 * Inspiration that the developers took from the real world, other games, or literature.

What isn't trivia
 * General information about the game world that could fit in other sections of the article.
 * Possible inspirations that were never mentioned by the developers.
 * Coincidental similarities.
 * Personal speculation.

Citation Where applicable, include citations with links to sources such as interviews. To do so, after the entry that the reference supports, add, for example:

On Silksong's steam page Hornet is called a "Princess Knight".

Screenshot Requirements
 * Screenshots need to have a resolution of exactly 1920x1080.
 * PNG files are preferred over JPG files.
 * Using Debug Mod is required in order to disable the HUD, player character, player lighting, and vignette. This is only possible on PC.

How to install and use Debug Mod to take screenshots:


 * 1) Download Mod Installer
 * 2) Run ModInstaller.exe and let it download the necessary files.
 * 3) Click on "Install" next to "Debug Mod", click on "Yes" to install it, then close Mod Installer once this is done.
 * 4) Start the game, load a save file, then pause the game.
 * 5) Press F1, click on "Cheats", then "Invincibility" and "Noclip". Press F1 to close the Debug Menu again. This allows you to get to areas more quickly and without being damaged by enemies. To access Stag Stations it is the easiest to disable Noclip again temporarily.
 * While in an area you want to screenshot, press the following buttons:
 * DEL: Disable the HUD
 * BACKSPACE: Disable the Knight
 * HOME: Disable player lighting
 * INSERT: Disable vignette around the screen
 * Player lighting and vignette will be automatically turned back on when there is a room transition, so make sure you turn these off again when taking a screenshot.

Location Map Requirements For the location image of individual items (such as Love Key), use the the unmarked area maps without cropping them, and mark the location of the item on it using , without changing its size.

The unmarked area maps are found on each area's page, in the infobox under "unmarked".

The final map should be uploaded complying with the following naming convention:
 * Mapshot_HK_Item Name.png for Hollow Knight maps,
 * Mapshot_SS_Item Name.png for Silksong maps,
 * If necessary, you can add numbering to the end of the name, for example "Mapshot HK Isma's Tear 01.png"