Template:Creature/doc

This template is for use in any article about a creature, particularly those from the Prime Material Plane. There are subtemplates that can be used for other types of creatures, namely Creature/aberration, Creature/elemental, Creature/fey, Creature/immortal, and Creature/shadow, that call this one with a different color scheme. Note that some parameters are edition-specific (with suffix 1e, 2e, 3e, etc.) and might be different between editions. For the purposes of this template, 3.5 edition is just called 3e. Most of the parameters are left optional and if left undefined they will not appear. The recommended image size is a width of 250px so that it will completely fill the infobox without increasing its dimensions. You may add wiki links to articles to the relevant topics.

Usage
An example is shown to the right:


 * image    : Optional. Use a standard File: ]] tag with a width of no greater than 250px. No other options are necessary.


 * caption  : Optional. A caption for the image, if specified.
 * name     : Required. The name of the creature.


 * origin5e, origin4e, origin3e, origin2e, origin1e : Optional. The planar origin of a creature, by edition. Natural creatures usually come from the Prime Material Plane, elementals come from the Elemental planes or the Elemental Chaos, immortals come from the Astral Sea or Outer Planes, shadow creatures come from the Shadowfell / Plane of Shadow, aberrations come from the Far Realm, and fey come from the Feywild / Plane of Faerie.


 * type5e, type4e, type3e, type2e, type1e : Optional. The general category of the creature. Types were given in 3e, 4e, and 5e and sometimes 1e and 2e. Fifth edition uses the following types: aberration, beast, celestial, construct, dragon, elemental, fey, fiend, giant, humanoid, monstrosity, ooze, plant, and undead. Additionally there may be a "tag" in parentheses after the type, such as humanoid (orc) so put that as the subtype unless there is an additional subtype. The 4e creature types are: animate, beast, humanoid, and magical beast, often with one or more added keywords. There are many keywords: angel, demon, devil, dragon, giant, undead, reptile, mount, construct, shapechanger, spider, etc., as well as the elemental types for elemental creatures (air, earth, fire, water). Additionally, in order to accommodate the Forgotten Realms lore that does not match with the core 4e setting, the keywords celestial, fiend, and Tel-quessir are also used.


 * subtype5e, subtype4e, subtype3e, subtype2e, subtype1e : Optional. A more specific creature category. A gray orc's type would be natural humanoid, but its subtype would be orc, and a pit fiend's type would be immortal humanoid (devil), but its subtype would be baatezu, for example.


 * alignment5e, alignment4e, alignment3e, alignment2e, alignment1e : Optional. The alignment(s) of the creature as described by the source. If it is a single alignment, like "Neutral" or "Chaotic evil", then use that. You can also say "Any good", "Any non-chaotic", or "Any" if applicable. You may also use the alignment grid for all but 4th edition. For creatures than can be player races, please specify this field as a creature and not a player character.


 * challenge3e, challenge5e : Optional. If the information comes from a Dungeons & Dragons 3rd, 3.5, or 5th edition source, include the creature's Challenge Rating.


 * refs5e, refs4e, refs3e, refs2e, refs1e : Optional. These parameters are for putting  tags in the headings of the edition-specific sections so they don't clutter up the infobox or hang off in space below an alignment grid.


 * origin, type, subtype, alignment, challenge : Deprecated. These are only here for backward compatibility with older versions of this template. Do not use on new pages.


 * patron deity : Optional. The standard patron deity for the listed creature type.


 * vision : Optional. The visual capacities of the creature, usually whether it has normal vision, low-light vision, or darkvision.


 * lifespan : Optional. The average life expectancy of a typical, healthy member of the creature's species.


 * location : Optional. The most common locale of the creature. If possible, use the location listed in one of the Monster Manuals.


 * language : Optional. The language or languages a creature of this race/species is commonly expected to speak - often listed in the Monster Manuals or Player's Handbooks.


 * subraces : Optional. Any notable populations of the creature that are significantly distinct physically or culturally from the norm (and would therefore have differing information in the template).


 * height : Optional. How tall is the creature. Measurements are, in keeping with the current standards in official sources, in U.S. customary units (yards, feet, and inches).


 * length : Optional. How long is the creature. Measurements are, in keeping with the current standards in official sources, in U.S. customary units (yards, feet, and inches).


 * wingspan : Optional. If the creature has wings, how wide they are outstretched. Measurements are, in keeping with the current standards in official sources, in U.S. customary units (yards, feet, and inches).


 * weight : Optional. How heavy is the creature. Measurements are, in keeping with the current standards in official sources, in U.S. customary units (pounds, ounces).


 * skincolor : Optional. The skin color of the creature. Can be as simple as "green" or can be more detailed, noting patterns or other visual distinctions if present.


 * haircolor : Optional. The hair color of the creature, with additional information for how it might change over a creature's lifespan.


 * feathers : Optional. Feather color and distinctions, if the creature has feathers.


 * eyecolor : Optional. Eye color and distinctions.


 * distinctions : Optional. Any other notable characteristics about the creature that are not otherwise noted in the template.


 * based : Optional. What the creature is derived from or based on: a mythological or folkloric creature (e.g., a creature from Greek mythology) or a creature from another fiction setting (e.g., H. P. Lovecraft). Suggest linking to the appropriate Wikipedia article.


 * first    : Optional. Name of any official Forgotten Realms material in which the creature first appeared (e.g. name of a novel or a sourcebook).


 * source & page : Deprecated. This is for backward compatibility only. If all the information in the creature infobox comes from a single source, include both the book name and page number(s), but it is preferred that you use the refs5e, refs4e,... parameters instead.

Standardized Sections
These are the typical section headers for an article about a creature, as discussed in this forum thread. You can easily cut and paste it from here and delete the ones you don't use: