GoArch:Canon policy

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Canon

The Myst canon is a hierarchical collection of material from the following sources, listed in order of prominence:

  • RAWA
  • Myst Online: Uru Live
  • Myst, Riven, Myst III: Exile, Myst IV: Revelation, Myst V: End of Ages, and other versions of Uru
  • The Myst novels (the Books of Atrus, Ti'ana, D'ni, and the preview material from the Book of Marrim)

In cases where contradictions occur, the source that is higher on the list takes precedence.

Examples or precedence

  • While the Book of Ti'ana heavily implies that D'ni is in the Middle East, Uru and RAWA say that it is in New Mexico.
  • While the Watcher's Sanctuary in Uru: Complete Chronicles is yellow and brown, it is blue in Myst Online: Uru Live, and therefore canonically blue (and also canonically called the Watcher's Pub).
  • Myst and Riven use Trap Books as a central game mechanic. However, RAWA has said that they don't really exist. Myst IV: Revelation builds on RAWA's decree by eliminating references to "Trap Books" altogether.

Apocrypha

Apocrypha is any material published by an official source that has been declared non-canon by Cyan or RAWA. While apocrypha is accepted on the Archive, it must be marked as such by including the {{apocrypha}} template at the top of the article. The most prominent apocrypha include:

Non-canon

Projects created by fans are not considered to be canon and should not be posted in the Archive. This includes:

  • Fan fiction stories
  • Fan-created Ages
  • Fan-created game projects
  • Content on unofficial Uru Live shards

Speculation, conjecture, and extrapolation from existing facts are considered non-canon and should not be posted. There is a great deal to be said about D'ni architecture, for instance, but there is not enough canon material available to create a factual article on the subject. Analytical scholarship like this is considered "fanon", and is subject to inclusion in the Fanon namespace once additional rules are established regarding its use.

Finally, concept art and information which is only attainable through hacking the games is considered non-canon and should not be posted or referenced. (Illustrations and concept art may be used as images in infoboxes when no other picture is available, but this may still be ruled inappropriate on a case-by-case basis.)