Forum:SH:Card game citation, pre-CT discussion

Hi guys, I had an idea which would require an addition to sourcing/referencing policy, and wanted to fly it by here first. I actually talked a bit with MJ a bit first about it, and he seemed to think it was worth discussing.

So, I noticed the sources of some articles have quite extensive lists, with large, yet still incomplete, sections that listed specific cards from card games. Now I'm no expert in all the card games out there, but will admit to having extensive knowledge and use of the Wizards of the Coast Star Wars Trading Card Game (SWTCG). Now if I were to go through each game's expansion, or set, of cards that were released, adding each card to each appropriate article's sources sections, including the, and  tags, these sources lists would be MASSIVE. For example, in the SWTCG, there are a total of 32 versions of Anakin and Vader, spread across 10 expansions. There are also a HUGE number of cards that either mention, picture, quote or otherwise have some sort of relation to Anakin/Vader, which would require inclusion in the sources list. I haven't counted those, simply because I realised VERY quickly how many of the 1,284 cards released in this game would be counted.

The idea is simple, and would cover any and all future card games to be released, including virtual sets such as the Galaxies TCG. The sources would list ONLY the expansion/set of the game, with tags such as Mo, Imo and Po to only be used if the subject is not directly mentioned in the entire expansion/set. Any information requiring a reference, such as new, unique information or an image source, should specify the card. Since there is a slim possibility a card game's expansion may have new information not found on a card, perhaps in a rulebook, then the reference should have only the expansion with being used to specify the origin of the information. I have talked with MJ and he has fixed the card game templates so no error message is displayed if a card is not specified.

Perhaps I'm being pedantic, but I feel this could help de-clutter some articles' sources lists, and perhaps save some hassles in future. MJ has mentioned that the coding for a bot to make the changes would not take long, so logistically there is no issue.

The preliminary additions I have as follows:

LG#Sources: *Only a card game expansion should be listed in the sources using the relevant template, not individual cards.

LG#Notes and references: *''If a card game introduces new information, the specific card to introduce the information should be referenced. If the new information is not on a card, such as inside a rulebook, the game's expansion should be referenced with being used to specify the origin of the information.''

MoS#Card Game Templates: ''When citing information from a card game, the specific card containing the information must be specified. The exception to this is if the information's origin is not from a specific card, such as a rulebook. In this case, the expansion should be referenced with being used to specify the origin of the information.''

This last case could either be in a new section subheader under the citation header, or within the citation templates section. A note could also be added to each card game template's page:

"When using this template within the Sources section, only specify the set. A specific card should only be used when this template is used as in reference, if possible."

So what are your thoughts/changes to this idea? Is this a colossal waste of time or an idea worth taking to a CT? Is there a loophole or issue with the wording? Either way, I'd like to get some feedback, to see what you guys think about it. Manoof (talk) 05:17, May 8, 2015 (UTC)