Guild Wars 2 Wiki:Ignore all rules

This page is a suspended policy proposal. It has been superseded by a list of common wiki practices. The Guild Wars 2 Wiki has no policies. All former proposals are kept for historical preservation.

If a rule prevents you from improving or maintaining the Guild Wars 2 Wiki, ignore it.

You do not need to read any rules before contributing to the Guild Wars 2 Wiki. If you do what seems sensible, it will usually be right, and if it's not right, don't worry — we all make mistakes. Even the worst mistakes are easy to correct: older versions of a page remain in the revision history and can be restored. If we disagree with your changes, we'll talk about it thoughtfully and politely, and we'll figure out what to do. So don't worry. Be bold.

Despite its name, "Ignore all rules" does not sabotage the other rules. Its purpose is to keep them from sabotaging what we're doing here: documenting Guild Wars 2. Rules have no importance compared to that goal. If a rule conflicts with that goal, the goal takes precedence.

Here are several other things that "Ignore all rules" does and does not mean:

What "Ignore all rules" means

1. You are not required to learn the rules before contributing.
2. Don't follow written instructions mindlessly, but rather, consider how the wiki is improved or damaged by each edit.
3. Rules derive their power to compel not from being written down on a page labeled "guideline" or "policy", but from being a reflection of the shared opinions and practices of a great many editors.
4. Most rules are ultimately descriptive, not prescriptive; they describe existing current practice. They sometimes lag behind the practices they describe.
5. WikiLawyering doesn't work. Loopholes and technicalities do not exist on the Wiki. The Guild Wars 2 Wiki is not a bureaucracy.
6. The spirit of the rule trumps the letter of the rule. The common purpose of documenting the game trumps both.
7. Following the rules is less important than using good judgment and being thoughtful and considerate, always bearing in mind that good judgment is not displayed only by those who agree with you.

What "Ignore all rules" does not mean

1. "Ignore all rules" does not mean that every action is justifiable. It is neither a trump card nor a carte blanche. A rule-ignorer must justify how their actions improve the wiki if challenged. Actually, everyone should be able to do that at all times. Make sure to always have an answer ready!
2. "Ignore all rules" does not stop you from pointing out a rule to someone who has broken it, but do consider that their judgment may have been correct.
3. "Ignore all rules" is not an answer if someone asks you why you broke a rule. Most of the rules are derived from a lot of thoughtful experience and exist for pretty good reasons; they should therefore only be broken for good reasons.
4. "Ignore all rules" is not an exemption from accountability. You're still responsible for reasonably foreseeable effects of your actions on the encyclopedia and on other editors.
5. "Ignore all rules" is not an invitation to use the wiki for purposes contrary to that of documenting Guild Wars 2.

See also

This policy was adapted from What "Ignore all rules" means and Ignore all rules on Wikipedia..