Structuring an active support community migrating from Facebook

[nathank (Nathan Kershaw)]

@HAWK

They are category independent. They are housed in their own category and can be used forum wide.

I don’t think she means those templates. Rather, Topic templates.

@stephtara

Writing this I realise I’m unsure how far templates go: they provide pre-written text in the input form, but can they actually change the “shape” of the input form, like custom user fields add more fields to the user profile or sign up form?

Well, there are actually several options here. For the basics, see this:

Using topic templates for categories

This guide explains how to use topic templates in categories and explores alternative methods for structuring content in Discourse. Required user level: Administrator Topic templates are powerful tools for maintaining forum consistency and guiding new users. This guide will walk you through setting up category topic templates and explore alternative methods for structuring content in Discourse. Summary Learn how to set up category topic templates Discover a…

There is also an experimental feature which I think is exactly what you are looking for:

Introducing Experimental Form Templates

Hello, Discourse Meta Community! We are excited to introduce a new experimental feature, form templates. With it, you can enforce a structured form with data validation as part of the topic creation flow. [multiple_form_templates] Enabling the feature The feature is hidden behind a site-wide experimental flag. To enable it, just turn on the experimental_form_templates site setting under Admin ▸ Settings. Managing the templates The form templates can be created, edited, and deleted a…