Category pages just went from the least flexible to the most flexible page type ever! Custom category pages are just the beginning of a new way of doing things on World Anvil and I cannot be more excited about what this will mean for our suite of worldbuilding tools!
What are custom category pages
Category pages were always meant to be a way to clearly separate your content into sections. One of the most common issues had what that they wanted to have the functionality and richness of content/design articles had. This was partially fixed with the introduction of parent articles but… Parent articles were never meant to be used as categories. The custom category pages allow you to completely redesign the way the page looks. Using the Design and Content tabs you will be able to add a lot of custom content AND choose where this content appears. The organization of the structure is very simple, all you need to do is go to the Design tab and use the Drag and Drop functionality to place them where you want. If you don’t want to use one of the sections, just drag it to the “Unused sections” box, you can always drag them back out if you want!
How can you use them
Custom categories can do so much more than the simple implementation. Because of the extra content, they can be used not only to showcase the contents of the category but they can serve you as introductory articles to sections. They can be used to give context and to enrich the experience of your readers. Some people are using them as a way to show their work during competitions and others to write.
Create a Primer for your Party
A category page is a perfect place to organize information from all over a place thematically. That means that you can use the articles under this category, as your core but also provide links to your players to other important articles, maps etc, not in this category but important for the campaign.
Create Information Hubs
Custom categories can be a great way to create “hubs” for your world structure. Using the custom content you get more functionality that the articles currently have in terms of layout and . you can use them to inject links to articles, actual content or even links to maps.
Use them as Monetization Tools
In terms of monetization, you can use the custom content to link to your stores or Patreon or even DM’s guild page
Who can use them
Since the fall under the remit of advanced customization, the Custom Categories, as well as the Custom World Homepage, are both Grandmaster+ features. There is no plan for those trickle down just yet, BUT the technology and changes used on them WILL allow for a lot of great stuff for all guild members, read below!