New Player Guide - By Freth

NOTE:  This post is a work in progress.  Changes will be made from time to time, to refine the content.  This is my own personal view on getting started.  Your opinion may differ.

Quickstart

Get fighting skill to 20 at the practice dummies NE of town. Make a shaft (chop down tree, chop felled tree into logs, log + carving knife = shaft) or use a tool, don't use your weapon as it will be damaged and possibly destroyed. It takes about 45 minutes. Rest by backing off so stamina can restore.
Pick a deity so you can cast spells (and heal yourself).  See this post for deity info, then go to the altar of three at the light pillar.  Pick your deity.  Pray to 30 faith.  Become a priest at the altar.  Pray to at least 60 faith, 80 or 90 if you're patient.  Store your favor (spell power) in gems (10ql or higher) using the vessel spell, for use later when you need it.
Learn how to perform first aid on yourself.  Forage cotton for bandaging wounds.  Bad and serious wounds require healing covers (made from animal parts) and you can die from them.  Eventually, you'll want to grow cotton and garlic.  Cotton for open wounds, garlic+fat = farmer's salve for bruises.  See the wiki for info on healing covers.
Starter tools can't be improved.  Replace your tools by making your own.  See below for a list of tools.  The public mine is south of town on the hill next to the guard tower.  It has all of the ores you need.
Make a large cart for travel and storage.  Acquire some horses (I offer free horses, contact me).  Acquire 3 large crates for max storage in your cart.

You should be ready to venture out into the world at this point.  See the guide below to fill in some blanks.


New Player Guide

The Mythmoor experience is different from other servers, because there are many mods added, which enhance the experience. For a complete list of mods, see mythmoor.com/mods/.

Being dropped in the middle of a starter town with no clear direction can leave even the most experienced player overwhelmed.  Wurm Unlimited has so many possibilities that you can have a "I'm here, now what?" experience where you stand in Moor's Rest (the starter town) and find yourself directionless.  This post aims to give you purpose, so that you have a direction to go.  One could simply set out from town and learn the game as they go.  That's what I did.  I explored the map, died several times, but I had fun doing it.  For the adventurer, this may be the best and most enjoyable option.  However, if you want a more structured approach, read on.

TIP:  The wiki (www.wurmpedia.com/) is your friend.  Use it often.  It has most answers you seek.  


Getting Started

There are four basic categories you should focus on as a new player.  Fighting Skill (45 minutes), First Aid (5-15 minutes), Deity/Spells (30-45 minutes) and Tools (30 minutes).  Once you've tackled these, you should be ready to start skilling up in whatever you choose and/or beginning your life in Wurm.

TIP: It would be beneficial to you to join a settlement. This gives you a safe environment to skill up before setting out on your own and it also provides a small community for you to be a part of. If you're the exploring type, you may want to skip villages altogether and seek your own path. You can find ads on the village recruitment board in the center of Moor's Rest.

Fighting Skill
The first thing you should tackle when arriving in town is fight skill.  On the outset, you're quite squishy as a new player, so it's a good idea to build your fight skill up to 20 before venturing out, using the practice dummies just NE from the center of town.  You can only attain a maximum of 20 fighting skill at the practice dummies.  It takes about 45 minutes to get to 20.  You'll want to step back and take breaks to let your stamina restore.  This speeds up the skill gain process and makes best use of the time spent at the practice dummies.

Do not use your weapon.  It will take too much damage and possibly be destroyed.
Use a shaft.  You can make a shaft from a log.  Logs come from trees.  Use a hatchet to chop down a tree, then chop the felled tree into logs.  NOTE:  Younger and older/shriveled trees and fruit trees typically drop a log instead of a felled tree.  Carve the log with a carving knife to make a shaft.  Use the crafting window (B) and recipe window (N) to your advantage.
Use a tool.  If you want to gain skill in a particular tool, use it instead of a shaft.  Since you'll be making your own tools later, damaging a tool isn't a major issue.
There's a new player dungeon north of town called The Sewers.  You may want to run through it after gaining 20 fighting skill, to work on your specific fight stances and weapon skills.  Also, there's decent loot for making it to the end.


Deity/Spells
Having a deity on your side means you gain access to spells. For a complete list of deities, see this thread: wurmunlimited.proboards.com/thread/74/godess-mythmoor-white-shark-starfall

All deities have the same spells.
There are no priest restrictions; ignore the in-game warnings.
The difference between deities is their bonuses and sacrifice items (see link above for info).  Sacrificing certain items helps you regain favor quicker.
Once you've decided on a deity, you should head over to the light pillar. Find the altar of three. Read inscriptions. For player gods, you need to use the random option until your deity of choice pops up.
After choosing a deity, pray until 30 faith. Become a priest at the altar. Your favor (spell power) bar will appear the first time you pray after becoming a priest.  You can now move to any altar (of your deity) and pray if you want.  Pray until you reach your desired faith level. Most deities give you a nice bonus around 60 faith. It doesn't take much time to reach 60 and it's well worth the effort.
Upon becoming a priest, you can cast spells. You'll need a statuette of your deity (see the thread link above). Statuettes can only be made of silver or gold. You'll find silver and gold veins in the public mine. The public mine is south of town, up on the hill next to the guard tower.
The main reason for having a deity is for healing spells. Conventional first aid becomes backup when you can cast cure light, medium and serious wounds on yourself.
You can store favor (spell power) in gems that are at least 10ql and above. The gem can be used to restore your spell bar (favor), giving you the edge in battle. Gems are found during mining and also can be found in treasure chests that randomly spawn on the map.

See the spell list to get an idea what spells can do for you. www.wurmpedia.com/index.php/Table_of_spells


First Aid
TIP:  If you choose a deity (previous section), you'll be able to heal yourself and first aid will become backup for when your favor (spell power) is low.

There are a few ways to treat wounds.  Wounds can be found on the character screen (C). Your skeleton will have varying degrees of red. Click on the red areas to see specific wounds and their severity.

Cotton is used for treating open wounds that are light or medium. Cotton can be acquired by foraging the ground. You can use the foraged cotton to treat your wounds.  Seeds can be picked from cotton for farming.
Farmer's salve is used for treating bruises.  You can make farmer's salve with fat (from animals) and garlic.  Garlic can be foraged.
Healing covers treat bad and severe wounds.  You can make healing covers with various animal parts.  Success rate depends on the quality of healing cover you make.  See wurmpedia.com/index.php/Healing_covers for more detailed information.  Healing covers don't guarantee success and you still may die from your wounds.


Tools
As you may have guessed, you'll be making your own tools, weapons and armor, unless you purchase them from another player. The starter tools will suffice for a short time, but you should take the time to upgrade your tools as soon as you can. You'll benefit from having a set you can improve; starter tools cannot be improved.

How to get wood:  Wood can be harvested from trees all around you.  Fruit trees yield very little wood.  Chop down a tree, chop felled tree into logs.  Logs can be further processed using a carving knife and saw to make shafts, planks and more.

How to get ore:  Go to the public mine south of Moor's Rest, on the hill next to the guard tower.  The first vein you should look for is iron.  It's right around the corner left of the entrance.  Mine ore and then melt it in a forge, turning it to lump.  Lump is used for making tools, weapons and armor.  You may have to make a small cart or borrow one to drag behind you so you can haul the ores to the forge.  See these wiki topics for more detailed information:  Mining, Prospecting, Analyzing and Kiro's Mining Guide

How to make a campfire:  Make kindling out of a log or wood scrap using a carving knife. As long as you have kindling in inventory, you will be able to make a campfire using the kindling and steel and flint.

How to light a forge:  Make kindling out of a log or wood scrap using a carving knife.  As long as you have kindling in inventory, you will be able to light a forge with your steel and flint (right click, light).

Adding fuel:  Activate (double-click) a piece of wood, right click on the campfire/forge and burn.  24kg weight max fuel can be added.

Checking time/fuel left:  Right click and examine the campfire/forge.

How to make stuff:  N for recipes, B for the crafting window.  Follow the recipe.  Starter items are what are used to start the object.  Then additional items are added to the object to complete it.

Tool list is as follows...

Make these first:

Mallet (2) - Building and improving tool. You need two because you must improve a mallet with a mallet and a hammer with a hammer at times.
Small anvil - Making smaller metal items.
Large anvil - Making larger metal items (unless you're at a location where you have access to one).
Hammer (2) - Building and improving tool.

Then work on these:
Awl - Leather improving tool.
Branding iron - Branding animals to your deed to add permissions and settings (only the mayor can rename an animal).
Butchering knife - Getting more resources when butchering corpses.
Carving knife - Cutting wood into round pieces and an improving tool for wood items.
File - an improving tool for wood items.
Grooming brush - Grooming animals, to increase animal husbandry skill.
Hatchet - Harvesting trees for wood.
Leather knife - Leather working and improving tool.
Needle - Cloth and improving tool.
Pick axe - Mining tool.
Rake - Tending crops.
Rope (3) - Leading animals. You can lead up to four, but only get one rope at the start. Requires a rope tool (which we have) and wemp fiber to make.
Saw - Cutting wood into square pieces like planks and shingles.
Scythe - Harvesting grains like wheat, barley and oats.
Shovel - Digging and working with dirt.
Sickle - Harvesting fruits, nuts, sprouts, grass, flowers, etc.
Stone chisel - Working with stone and an improving tool.
Trowel - Stone masonry, usually working with mortar, also as a build tool.
Whetstone - An improving tool for metal items. Made with rock shard.
Water container - Bucket, small barrel, flask or water skin. I recommend bucket.  Water is used for tempering during the improving process and also keeps you hydrated.  I keep a bucket in my backpack for hydration and tempering.

Acquire:
Pelt - An improving tool for polishing items.  Looted from dogs, mountain lions, wild cats and large rats.  You should be able to find a random dog near Moor's or possibly a mountain lion or wild cat.  You may have to travel a bit north to find one.  You can also ask for one in global.  People give them away to new players all the time.

There are other tools that can be made, but they are specialty tools for various tasks that you'll get around to as you need them.

TIP:  Even though you have some tools already, make replacements as soon as you can so you can improve your tools.


Beginning Your Journey

Transportation/Storage/Hauling
It's a good idea to work on getting your mind logic to 20.1 so you can command a large cart.  This will provide much-needed freedom.  You can gain mind logic from doing most tasks.  If you want an easy task you don't have to think about, mine for awhile and you'll get there in no time.  Saw some logs into planks and carve logs into shafts.  Make stone bricks with rock shard.

Once you reach 20.1 mind logic, make your large cart and improve it to above 10ql so that it can be commanded.
Get someone to make you three large crates.  Or as an alternative, make five small crates yourself.  Have someone load them into your cart.  This provides storage for large items like rock shard, logs and resources.  Large crates store 300 items, small 150.
Make a large chest or coffin and also put it in your cart for unique item storage.
Ask for some free horses if you can't find any close by.  Someone should be able to help.  There's also a free horse pen east of Moor's that my alliance runs.  It's only for new players looking to outfit their large cart.  Send a message to Freth or Torath.


Making Money
Making money is fairly easy.

Kill stuff to get "bounty" money.  The tougher the mob the more money you get.
Collect loot from corpses.
Sell corpses and items to a deed marker.  There is a limit to this, but it helps.
Take on odd jobs.
Skill up in a trade and sell your wares.
Find rare loot.
Participate in events to get high-end loot, which you can sell.
Harvest resources and sell them, especially during seasons where fruits and nuts are ready for harvest.
Buy money from www.mythmoor.com at $5 for 10 silver.
Become a subscriber of Mythmoor which gives you 10 silver a month, a portal, 100 mind logic (10 queued actions), sleeping powder and other perks.


Improving Your Tools

Improving tools is fairly straight-forward.  Your tool quality level, coupled with your skill, determines the cap in the quality of resources you can gather.  Typically somewhere in the neighborhood of 10ql above, so that you have a chance to get higher resources.  Those higher resources can then be used to improve your tool that much farther.  

Improving requires a number of tools to perform.

Wood:  

Tools
File
Carving Knife
Pelt
Mallet

Resource
Log
Plank


Metal:

Tools
Whetstone
Water
Pelt
Hammer

Resource
Lump of Ore


Rock:

Tools
Stone Chisel

Resource
Rock Shard


An icon next to an object in inventory (see right side) shows you the next item you need to use to improve that item.  Metal items must be glowing hot, as does the lump being used to improve the item.  Whatever your raw resource (log or lump), it needs to be higher quality than the quality of the item being improved.  If the item you want to improve is too big to fit into inventory, examine it to see the next improve item to use.

Improving using menus can become very tedious.  I suggest you go into settings and bind keys for improve, repair and activate.  This allows you to hover over an item and queue up improve and repair and do this to multiple items (especially if you have a lot of queue actions).  It speeds up the process greatly.  Some people like to use high quality toolbelts to hold their improving tools, for ease of switching between them.

As you may have guessed, when you settle at your own place, you'll want a large anvil and a container of water nearby.  I like to keep bulk storage bins nearby too, so can access kindling, logs and lumps from storage.

See the improving guide on the wiki for more information.

Repairing and improving go hand-in-hand, because sometimes when you attempt to improve something you damage it instead.  Some items require specific crafted items to repair them.  For instance, some fence types may require a stone brick to repair them, 10ql at a time.


Leveling/Terraforming
Flat land is required before planning a building and planting crops.

You'll want to do some digging on flat land at first, to get your skill up a bit.  This is so you have the skill to dig on uneven land.

Land is divided into square 4 meter by 4 meter tiles.  Surrounding those tiles are rectangular borders.

When you dig, the corner nearest to where you are standing is the one that's affected.  Thus, leveling manually can be done by adding or removing dirt from tile corners.  While you have a tool active, you can see slope differences on the tile borders, which changes depending on where you're standing.  Down means dig, up means add dirt. Sometimes it's necessary to use climb to get to a corner to lower it.  Extreme slopes will cause added dirt to roll off and disappear or you'll need twice the dirt to raise a corner.  You may need to level other corners around it to add dirt effectively.

The level and flatten actions are great for quickly getting land shaped to your needs.  Start by flattening a tile.  Make sure the tile itself says flat.  Then stand on that tile and use level to bring other tiles around you down or up (up requires dirt in your inventory) quickly.

There's also a technique called FlatRaising.