Warcraft Wiki:External links policy
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This page is an official policy on Warcraft Wiki. This policy has wide acceptance among editors and is considered a standard that all users should follow.
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Warcraft Wiki recognizes that external links (elinks) are a very useful addition to a page as they allow people to find further information on other websites - however, they can also be abused. This policy aims to loosely regulate the addition and formatting of these elinks.
Who can add external links
Users must have at least ten edits before they will be allowed to add external links or embedded videos to pages in the main namespace. Exceptions to this include creating a new page or substantially editing a page with other content besides external links while adding a new external link.
Location
Where to put elinks
Elinks should be constrained to one section titled "External links" at the end of a page. Elinks within the main content of a page are discouraged, and should be avoided where possible.
However, in some exceptional cases, such as the linking a map of node locations to demonstrate a specific point or to link to fact-specific sources, it is allowed (more below).
Where NOT to put elinks
As mentioned above, most mid-page links will be removed if found. Links to topics not directly related to the pages subject will be moved or removed. For example, a link to a video of a specific boss fight does not belong in a page about the instance the boss is in, but should be located on the boss's page.
Elinks tagged after an internal link to a non-existent page will generally be forgiven if they help users find information that is not yet in the wiki. This should not be used as a replacement for filling in a page with basic information! These inline elinks are temporary and must be removed when the internal page has been created or un-stubbed. These types of links must come after an internal link only and contain no text, for example:
It is preferred that a stub page is created instead, with an external links section added to help users find the data needed to fill in the page.
Format
To ensure consistent formatting, it is asked that all links in the "External links" section of a page use {{elink}}. Websites can provide a 22x22 PNG image to be used as their icon, or the default globe icon will be inserted by the template. The site name passed to the template should be short and concise. An optional detailed description of what is being linked can also be passed. If the site being linked has many sub-pages for the topic (for example, a boss page might have loot, strategy, screenshots, etc.), it is asked that the base page be linked, not a specific sub-page.
- Do not use abbreviations. If your guild is named <Knights of the Pink Fuzzy Bunny> don't link as "KotPFB"
Allowed and forbidden links
External links should allow the user to see extra information and/or opinions about something specific. If the website linked contains only information already present on the wiki (or you need to pay to access the extra content), the link should not be present. If the information comes specifically from a certain website, the website should be cited as a source link at the end of the section concerned.
- Sites republishing content from another site must cite the original source, including a link. The original source is preferred for the elink, but the republication will be allowed if a citation is included. If duplicate elinks to the same content on different sites are submitted, the original source will be kept and all republication elinks will be removed. Elinks to republications that do not cite their source will be deemed as "stolen content" and removed from the wiki. Continued submission of these stolen elinks will warrant a ban.
Elinks should also be directly related to the article they are placed on. For example, a link to a site about druids would be allowed on the Druid page, but not on the 
[Moonfire] page. However, a page on the same site about the spell would be allowed to be linked from the spell's article.
While we do want a great deal of information on the wiki, inaccuracy or opinions (such as wildly speculative discussions) should be reserved for outside websites and forums, and drop rates of items are best kept off the wiki in database sites (because this sort of information is subject to change with successive patches), so elinks are appropriate for these. For elinks, the Discussion page should be used only to discuss which sites are most appropriate for linking on the main article.
Note that linked content on websites is included under the DNP policy, and links will be removed if the website is considered to be violating this policy.
- This generally includes links to non-English sites. These links should be posted to the appropriate locale-specific wiki instead.
Elinks should link directly to the given website without referral tracking, in order to be equitable to all editors of the wiki. Links which generate revenue for a specific editor through referral tracking will be removed, and repeated additions of referral links will cause the account to be blocked from editing.
How many links do I get?
Every site is allowed one (1) link per page. Mid-page links should be avoided: for example, a list of quests for a faction should all be internal links, not links to an external database site. Naturally, temporary links placed after missing wiki pages are exempt from this, but those links must be removed when the wiki page has been created.
Of course, the external links section of a page should not become half the article - if the links become too numerous, the least useful are likely to be removed after some discussion.
Sorting
Elinks sections are to be alphabetically sorted by second-level domain within priority sections.
The priority sections list is as follows:
- Official information links
- Wikipedia (using {{wp}})
- Auto-generated elinks (such as templates like {{Elinks-item}})
- Manually added elinks
In cases where a domain name is not appropriate or substantially different from the site's actual name (e.g., free hosts, video sites), the true reported name should be used as the sorting parameter. In addition, where the site is directly tied to a guild, the guild's name and the server will be used as the site name and sorting parameter. For example, "Death and Taxes (Korgath US)"
Where appropriate, some links may be grouped together by topic after the more generic links. For example, a boss page might have a number of videos included. These videos should be grouped together at the end of the list, sorted in the same manner within the group. See Nightbane (tactics)#External links for a live example.
Wikipedia interwiki links
Warcraft Wiki, according to the DNP policy, does not allow articles about non-WoW-related or non-Warcraft-related content. However, you may want to link a Wikipedia article should you need to explain something specific to the reader that would otherwise be DNP content. These links should be used only if they are really needed, but are treated like internal links and can be used outside of the External links section.
The syntax is [[wikipedia:Wikipedia Article|Article name]]. For example, [[wikipedia:World of Warcraft|World of Warcraft on Wikipedia]] will give World of Warcraft on Wikipedia. Alternatively, {{wp}} can be used.
How do I add my website to popular Elinks templates?
Even though all allowed websites are welcome in manual external links, there are some templates such as {{elinks-item}} that are widely used and automatically add a link to a certain website on every page using it. If you want to add your database website to one or all of them, it will have to meet minimal standards. We require your use of Blizzard's IDs (self-generated IDs are not allowed and will almost certainly rule out your website). Your website also must have accurate data. And any website not passing the rule of forbidden links (see above) will be instantly ruled out.
If you meet these criteria, start a discussion on the forums. If the response is reasonably positive, you can put a vote up and upon the results it will be decided whether your site will be added in.
Embedded videos
Shortcut: WCW:VID
Embedded videos should be placed into the video section, using <vplayer/> where the video is to be played, or at the end of the article with the external links.
Where possible, better videos should replace poorer videos; disputes should follow the usual procedures (consult with the other editors, vote if necessary) instead of simply adding a new link.
In closing
Warcraft Wiki wishes to provide reasonably-equitable external linking to all sites willing to edit wiki pages. In the spirit of NPOV, we don't wish to show a preference to any site, regardless of what sites the admins and users prefer. Everyone is welcome to add elinks to their site, but abuse of this free advertising will not be taken lightly by the admin staff. Elinks to sites that do not give information not available on the wiki (like spawn maps or droprates) may be removed to keep pages clean.
Remember, do not abuse the wiki to gain traffic to your site - you will be banned and your elinks removed.