Word Choice and Spelling

US/UK word choice 

The Skywind project uses US American English following grammar and spelling standards appropriate for printed text. This has been chosen because the Elder Scrolls games are made by an American company and are initially released in US versions.

However, a large number of Skywind team members are not based in the USA, and may be more familiar with another dialect of the English language; British Standard English being one of the most common, as well as the foundation of several other national dialects. The following (non-exhaustive) list provides guidance on a number of common issues speakers of this dialect are likely to encounter when writing for Skywind.

This section also contains usage notes for when multiple spellings or variations on words exist in US English. It should therefore be treated as a universal resource for all writers.

For more general spelling aids, we recommend the Merriam-Webster dictionary: www.merriam-webster.com. Anyone found using non-standard words like "alot" will be fed to an alit.

all: Some dialects or idiolects of English heavily use the prefix "al-", either as an elision of the word "all" (e.g., "alright" instead of "all right") or a vestige of that word where it has been dropped elsewhere (e.g., "although" is used by many UK English speakers, whereas a US English speaker would tend to use "though"). In Skywind, be careful not to use the "al-" prefix when it does not feature in standard US English, but note that some words with this prefix do exist: "already" does not carry the same meaning as "all ready".

analyze: Use "analyze" and "minimize" instead of "analyse" and "minimise". While the "-se" spelling is common outside the US, the "-ze" spelling is always preferred in American English. Note that some words do not have an "-ze" form, such as "advertise."

color: Many UK words spelled with an "ou" drop the "u" in US spelling, such as in "color," "favor," and "honor." Despite the spelling "Saviour’s Hide" having appeared in previous Elder Scrolls games, the spelling in Skywind should be "Savior’s Hide."

catalog: Do not use the UK spelling "catalogue" – the US spelling "catalog" should be used for both the verb and the noun.

councilor: Many UK words (but not all!) spelled with a double consonant (e.g., "councillor"), some of which are only created when forming a plural (e.g., "levelled"), only have one consonant in US English (e.g., "councilor," "leveled"). Note that "worshiper" is to be spelled with a single "p," even though this is counter to prior Elder Scrolls usage in which double-"p" "worshipper" has been far more common.

dialog, dialogue: "Dialog" is preferred for interface elements (e.g., "dialog box," "dismiss the inventory dialog"), and "dialogue" for character content (e.g., "the NPC's dialogue varies by player character race").

center: UK words ending in "-re" are spelled "-er" in US English, such as "center," "theater," and "specter" (even though the latter was used for undead creatures in Morrowind). 

program: In UK English, "programme" is the most common form of the word, whereas in US English the "-me" is dropped: use "program."

grey: Although both "gray" and "grey" are acceptable in US English, the spelling "grey" should be preferred in order to maintain consistency.

jewelry: The US spelling "jewelry" is to be used rather than the British spelling "jewellery"; "jewelery" is a misspelling.

spelled: This is a perfect example in which to illustrate regular and irregular forms of verbs. "Spelled" (regular) and "spelt" (irregular) are both valid past participles of the verb "to spell" in UK English, whereas US English has largely eliminated irregular forms – we do likewise.

while: The US "while" should be used, not the British "whilst." Similarly, "among" should be used in preference to "amongst."

Elder Scrolls word choice

The Elder Scrolls games use many unusual terms and names, some examples of which can be found below.

Though once again it is not within the scope of this document to present an exhaustive list, we would suggest that you particularly pay attention to using the correct plurals. Most creatures in the game will generally be pluralized with an "s" (e.g., "alits," "guars," and "atronachs"), with a few notable exceptions: for example, "dreugh," "draugr," and "dremora" are both singular and plural, and "lich" is pluralized with an "es" to become "liches."

Ald'ruhn: In Morrowind, the apostrophe spelling, "Ald'ruhn," was used in all dialogue and on the paper map for this major city on Vvardenfell, but the cell names (and thus all scripts and console commands which refer to it) used the hyphenated spelling "Ald-ruhn" because of conflicts with the apostrophe as a string delimiter sign. (Also, in some cases, the "r" is capitalized!) In Skywind, we have no such coding issue: "Ald'ruhn" is correct in all instances.

animunculi: Also known as constructs, automatons, centurions, and robots. Like with the real Latin word ‘homonculus’ from which it derives, the singular of ‘animunculi’ is ‘animunculus’.

Boethiah: The spelling in Skywind is "Boethiah"; "Boethia" was a spelling introduced in Oblivion and should not be used.

Cyrodiil: Note that as a noun, the name of the province is spelled "Cyrodiil," but as an adjective, it is spelled only with one "i" as "Cyrodilic" -- "Cyrodiilic" is a misspelling.

cornerclub: Dunmer drinking establishments are often called "cornerclubs," without a space.

egg mine: Kwama nests are "egg mines," with a space. 

fatigue, stamina: Elder Scrolls games since Morrowind have consistently featured three primary attributes: health (represented by a red bar), magicka (a blue bar), and lastly a green bar indicating your character's physical energy, used to perform various strenuous activities. Skyrim referred to this attribute as "stamina," whereas Morrowind and Oblivion referred to it as "fatigue." In Skywind, "stamina" is the preferred term. "Fatigue" is acceptable due to it appearing in already-voiced lines adapted from Morrowind, but a gloss should be added when practical to show that the term refers to the same attribute.

Fighters Guild: The non-possessive form should be used (e.g., "Fighters Guild" but not "Fighter's Guild" or "Fighters' Guild"). In Skywind and Morrowind, the term "Guild of Fighters" is sometimes used to refer to the guildhall locations, but "Fighters Guild" is still used to refer to the faction itself.

legionary: The preferred term for a soldier of the Imperial Legion is "legionary," not "legionnaire." "Legionary" refers narrowly to the Roman professional soldiers upon which the Imperial Legion is patterned and was acquired directly from Latin. In contrast, "legionnaire" was borrowed into English from French in the 19th century, gaining currency with the notoriety of the French Foreign Legion and other modern military "legions" such as the American Legion (from whence the term "Legionnaires' Disease" derives).

Mages Guild: The non-possessive form should be used (e.g., "Mages Guild" but not "Mage's Guild" or "Mages' Guild"). In Skywind and Morrowind, the term "Guild of Mages" was used to refer to the guildhall locations, but "Mages Guild" is still used to refer to the faction itself.

magic, magicka: Both words are sometimes used in the Elder Scrolls games, but the meanings are slightly different. "Magicka" refers to the energy needed to cast spells, whereas "magic" refers to damage, healing, levitation, or other (non-elemental) effects that can occur as the result of a spell, birthsign power, or enchanted or Daedric item. "Magic" may occasionally be appropriate under this definition for in-game text in Skywind; but following from the example set by Morrowind, we prefer "Magicka" for all spells: "absorb magicka," "fortify magicka," "restore magicka," "resist magicka," "weakness to magicka," etc. The adjective forms are "magical" and "magickal", respectively, the latter form being used in some of Morrowind's skill books. "Mana" is not a term that exists in the Elder Scrolls universe and should never be used.

night eye: This spell effect exists in Morrowind, Oblivion, and Skyrim, but Morrowind and Skyrim spell it as "night eye," while Oblivion spells it with a hyphen ("night-eye") or in the case of some enchanted items, "nighteye." The correct spelling for Skywind is "night eye."

paralysis: "Paralysis" is to be preferred over "paralyzation," despite Morrowind's use of the latter for the cure spell effect.

soul trap: This spell effect exists in Daggerfall, Morrowind, Oblivion, Skyrim, and ESO. Morrowind spells it as one word, "soultrap," whereas all other games spell it as two words: "soul trap." Skywind uses the latter spelling.

septim: This is the proper term for the currency in use in contemporary Morrowind, which may also be colloquially termed "drakes" (due to the seal of Akatosh on the reverse) or just "gold." This is one of the only instances where a word that was originally a proper name (i.e. relating to the Septim dynasty) has become a lowercase common noun through long use..

smith, smithy, smithies: Some Elder Scrolls games occasionally refer to armor- and weapon-smithing NPCs as "smithies," which is an incorrect word choice. "Smith" is the correct word for the person, and a "smithy" is their workplace.

Summerset Isle: Though in its first game appearances in Arena and Daggerfall the home province of the Altmer was spelled "Summurset" and "Sumurset" respectively, from Morrowind onwards "Summerset" has crystallized as the correct spelling. Note that the wholly incorrect term "Somerset" might not be flagged by spell-checking software, as this is a county in England…

Thieves Guild: The non-possessive form should be used (e.g., "Thieves Guild" but not "Thieves' Guild," much less "Thieve's Guild," a typographical error).

Udyrfrykte: In Morrowind (specifically, Bloodmoon), this creature's name is "Udyrfrykte"; this is also closest in spelling to the Norwegian source words. However, in Oblivion, the creature is spelled "Uderfrykte," and a third spelling is used in Skyrim, "Udefrykte." The Morrowind spelling should be used.

Vaermina: This Daedric Prince's name is spelled both "Vaermina" and "Vaernima" in various books and other sources. Overall, "Vaermina" is the more common spelling and therefore is preferred on the wiki except when quoting specific sources that use "Vaernima".

venin: When referring to the ingredient dropped by spider Daedra, the correct term is "venin," not "venom" -- venom is the fluid, while venin is the actual toxic chemical found therein.

Use of real-world languages 

The Elder Scrolls is inconsistent in the use of words, phrases, or names from real-world languages. Despite their names, Bretons do not speak French. Similarly, unlike other fantasy universes, Latin and Greek are not fantasy stand-ins for known antique in-universe languages. While Imperials may preserve Roman names, cultural tropes, and scraps of Latin in book titles and organizations, in-universe it is not entirely clear where this cultural strand came from: in existing lore, Old Cyrodilic (the most likely candidate) is indicated to be related to Ayleidoon, a language that resembles neither Latin nor English in its grammar and vocabulary.

References to existing Elder Scrolls literature featuring either language are acceptable, e.g., De Rerum Direnni, Ordo Legionis, animunculi, etc. However, as we have no pressing need to innovate in Skywind, it is best not to draw too much attention to these background elements. We would therefore advise against the introduction of any new Latin and Greek terms that require a gloss in English if at all possible. Similarly, phrases in Latin or Greek that are commonplace in English speech and literature (e.g. "per se", "inter alia", etc.) should be avoided in favor of appropriately idiomatic English.

Numbers

In prose, numbers should generally be written out as words if they are used as part of a sentence: for example, one would refer to "five Orcs making havoc in the marketplace," or "twenty-one ships on the horizon." This is especially the case in spoken or quoted dialogue, which should always be written out, even in the case of large numbers.

For written statistics and tables, however, it is proper for the numbers to always be in numerical form. When written in numerical form, numbers with four digits before the decimal point (if any) must use a comma (e.g., "1,234").

Abbreviations

Abbreviations should generally be avoided in prose text and dialogue as much as possible. Unlike in this style guide, "e.g." "i.e." should not be used in any in-game text, including scholarly books.