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== How to use common templates ==
Generally speaking, usage instructions can be found in the template page, e.g. {{Tl|Party}}.

# Find the template you want to use
# Read the template page and learn about its usage
# Copy the information in the dashed box
# Paste the information on your desired page
# Fill in the fields as needed. There is no reason to delete fields that you are not using -  if there is no information, they won't show up.

== Who needs to use them ==
'''Everyone!''' Templates give a sense of unity to the entire wiki.  They guide authors in writing articles.  Templates also help in categorization and organization. 

==Common Templates==
These are the most used templates in the wiki. The last field shows an example of that template in use.  As a note, the examples were chosen because of proper usage of the template. This is not endorsing any party, person, or group. 

{|class="wikitable"
|-
!Page Type
!Template
!Example
|-
|Citizen Page 
|[[Template:Citizen]]
|*See Tutorial! [[Citizen Page Tutorial]]
|-
|Company
|[[Template:Company]]
|[[Great Grains]]
|-
|Newspaper
|[[Template:Newspaper]]
|[[Formerly Yours]] 
|-
|Organization
|[[Template:Organization]]
|[[REF Holdings]]
|-
|Party
|[[Template:Party]]
|[[Flashback Sweden]] 
|-
|Country 
|[[Template:Country]]
|[[Romania]], usage for conquered country 
|-
|Region
|[[Template:Region]]
|[[Gulf of Mexico]], see the bar for usage for conquered countries
|-
|Military Unit 
|[[Template:Infobox_military_unit]]
|[[French Legion]]
|}

These are the most used flag templates
{|class="wikitable"
|-
!Flag Type
!Template
!Example
|-
|Flag Link
|[[Template:FlagLink]]
|{{FlagLink|Italy}} (the name of the country is included)
|-
|Small Flag
|[[Template:SmFlag]]
|{{SmFlag|Italy}} (just a flag)
|-
|"Ball" Flag Link (bold)
|[[Template:CountryLink]]
|{{CountryLink|Italy}} (the name of the country is included in bold)
|-
|"Ball" Flag Link
|[[Template:CountryLinkNormal]]
|{{CountryLinkNormal|Italy}} (the name of the country is included)
|-
|"Ball" Flag Link
|[[Template:FlagBall]]
|{{FlagBall|Italy|20}} (just a "ball" flag)
|}

== References ==
References are important! You can use {{Tl|Ref}} to add a reference, or {{Tl|eLink}} to add a link. For more information see [[eRepublik:Reference_policy]].

== Notices ==
Notices tell readers and editors a bit of information about the page. Such as, the page needs translation, is unfinished, is in progress, etc.<br> 
To use a notice, type <nowiki> {{notice name}} </nowiki> and the notice should appear on the screen.<br>
'''[[Help:Common templates/Templates|This]]''' is a collection of common notices.

==Template Name Space==
All templates are listed and managed in the [http://wiki.erepublik.com/index.php?title=Special%3AAllpages&from=&namespace=10 Template Name Space].

==Changing/Creating Templates==
Templates can be changed but there are restrictions. Past experiences have shown that directly changing the template will go wrong in 99,99% of the cases. To prevent "accidental changes" the main template pages have been protected by the [[eRepublik:Administrators|Sysops]]. Additionally, only a select group of experienced users, called [[eRepublik:Engineer|Engineers]] have the ability to make changes in the template name space. 

However, templates, like the Wiki, are open to improvement.  If a user wants a change a template, he or she should not create duplicates of the existing templates with small additions or subtractions.  Why recreate the wheel? Instead, the user should propose a change to the main template to the entire community. '''It is extremely important for the unified style of the Wiki, ease of use, and linkages that changes to templates are done in a controlled and consistent manner.''' Any prototypes must be done in the user's sandbox.

===Common Template Change Process===
This process must be followed for the templates listed in the '''Common Templates''' section, above, as changes to these templates will affect hundreds of pages. 
#Make suggestions on the template's talk page 
or 
#Create changes and test it thoroughly in your sandbox
#Contact the Wiki community through the affected template's talk page and leave a note about the proposed change in the [[Bar]]
#Follow the discussion and voting 
#If changes are agreed upon, ask one of the [[Sysops]] to unprotect the template and make the change

===General Template Change Addition Process===
Users, who are not Engineers, can create templates for the wiki, however, they must follow this process:
#Create the template and test it thoroughly in your sandbox
#Contact an Engineer and request that he or she add your template to the template name space
#The Engineer will create the template and it will be ready for use.

== Translating templates ==
[[Help:Translating_Pages#How_to_translate_templates|How to Translate Templates]]
You can help by translating templates

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