Getting Started 101 - The Perennial Coast

This is copy of the in-game books we sell (5g) in Bastion's Point to new players looking for help getting started. You can also read it for free here, or in the game in Bastion's Point on many tables, counters, etc.

As Always, there is no completely right or wrong way to level your character and these are only ideas to help you get started. Mileage Varies. Use what you can and feel free to ignore what does not fit. I have sold literally hundreds of these books and gotten a lot of great feedback and thanks so I figured I would expand out and post it here on the forums as well.

Bastion's Point
Getting Started 101 - Just Get Me Going! - By Aartemis

70007-10000
Rev 1.2

Hello and Welcome to Shroud of the Avatar!

SOTA is a very rich and detailed game and there shall be more then enough guides written to detail the finer systems of it all. This guide is going to get you up and running in a shortest amount of time so you can get over that beginners hump!

OVERVIEW
Lets not waste ANY Experience!

First thing is first, you need to shut off all the skills the game has turned on for you so that you can focus on two main things, your "go to" attack and the ability to carry things. TRAIN STRENGTH is located under TACTICS and depending on how you started (Mage, Fighter or Ranger), you may have to work up HEALTHY to 20 before starting on it. If you do need to train HEALTHY, be sure to turn it to Maintain before starting on STR.

You can get to your Skills by pressing K and then using the little Green Arrow in the corner of the Skill Glyph to set it to Train, Maintain, Nothing, or Unlearn.

You also want to pick ONE "Go To" ACTIVE Skill of your choice to train. Say, THRUST for Fighters, or FIRE ARROW for Mages. Just make sure its an ACTIVE (Red) Skill that only goes up when you use it. Grey colored skills are Innate, and trigger many many times in a fight. They use a LOT of your XP Pool and should only be turned on (trained) 1 at a time.

Once TRAIN STRENGTH gets to 40, set it to Maintain and go train HEAVY LIFTER. This is what will give you all that carry capacity. It goes up pretty fast and in no time you will be carrying 2x-3x your current maximum.

At this point you will be able to carry enough loot to make some decent gold per adventure run out in the wild.

OK That is enough about Skill Training, this will get you started and allow you to Kill things and Carry Loot, for more detailed information on XP Skill Pools and Skill Training, see our Advanced Guide to Skilling.

DEVOTIONALS

Devotionals are Shrines (They look like a Stone Pool of Water with a Stone Artwork Attached) that offer the devout Avatar a Buff (enhancement) based upon the Shrine Type. For more information on Shrines, see the SOTA Users Guide. Bastion's Point has 2 of these that Offer In-Combat Regeneration of Health and Focus for 9 hours! They are located near the Blacksmith Shop in front of the Large Statue of the Titan of Courage. Use these whenever you play, simply walk up to them (or jump in) and the buff will be applied. Use the In-Game SOTA-MAP (In-Game Windows Menu - Top Right) to locate the Shrines if you have trouble.

WHY DO I KEEP DYING?

No matter if you want to be a Mage, a Ranged Archer, or a Fighter, getting started can be very daunting.

Monsters hit hard and it seems like everything is higher level then you. What I suggest is, no matter WHAT your future skill set, start the game with some Fighting skills. You will always need to get something out of your face and need a fall-back in case you run out of FOCUS. You can always untrain it later and re-apply the XP to a different skill.

I am not saying don't be a Mage or Archer, just saying that IF you are having a problem dying all the time, lets get you some protection until you can train those other skills up!

So first we have to get you out of that starter gear and something that can protect you, and hit for a ton for damage. I suggest putting on Plate, and getting a 2H weapon. You can always take your build to another direction in a few weeks and even work towards it while adventuring BUT if you can't get any Gold, or Resources, you won't get that far. SO, This is a great way to get going without being stressed over tons of deaths.

WHAT TO DO

You have finished The Solace Bridge Outskirts and now there is huge world in front of you. What do you do now?

First off lets get some easy QUESTS out of the way to earn you some gold to get gear. Do the following, which can be found here: http://www.questsoftheavatar.com/perennial-coast/

FARMHOUSE PROBLEMS: 500g, 2500XP - Get the KEY from Bently's Farmhouse in East Perennial Trail and return it to him in Soltown (Tavern).

IRON BLADES FOR GEOF: 200g, 2500XP - Kill Skeletons in East Perenneal Trail until you get an IRON BLADE, then take it to him in Soltown (Refugee Camp).

MIDNIGHT AT THE GRAVEYARD: 75g, 2500XP - Talk to Jeanne in Soltown (Refugee Camp), until she lets you know about the robberies that have been goin on. Search for suspicious characters near the Graveyard (Soltown).

BRIDGE OF THE LIVING DEAD: 750g, 5000XP - Talk to Ashton in Soltown about HELP. Kill Undead in Solace Bridge (North of Soltown/Bastion's Point) until you get Grandma Kellen’s Recipes. Return to Ashton.

You should now have 1,525+ gold (extra from killing the undead) and 12,500XP in your XP Pool towards Skilling!

Head to Bastion's Point and get a Full set of Plate from the NPC Combat Merchant (Near Blacksmith). 1222 Gold. Then with the remaining gold, get a coopper or iron 2h weapon from the Blacksmith or BP Getting Started Gear Vendor.

You should now be able to hold your own in Soltown Catacombs (in the Soltown Graveyard), or South Celestial Wetlands killing Bandits for rusty weapons which you can sell or salvage.

But Before I go...

LEAVE NO STONE UNTURNED...BUT DON'T HOARD...YET

One of the biggest helpful methods I like to tell new players about is the fact that early scenes are just stocked full of resources and loot you can leverage to your early advantage.

Veteren Players want resources and will PAY for them, and as a new player adventuring, you can take advantage of that using Vendor Fill Orders. As you are working through SB Outskirts, Solace Forest, The Wetlands and Trails, use your gathering skills to mine every ore node, chop every tree and salvage each and every weapon for scrap. NPC vendors pay next to nothing for them but PLAYER VENDORS will give you some good gold for resources and scrap.

Bastion's Point is a good example of a Fill Order Vendor. We buy in small amounts like 25 or 50, and then resell to a bigger market in larger groups of 100 and 500. Just click on the SELL Tab of the vendor to see what we are buying.

Do we make money on the fact new players need gold? Sure, its no secret, but in return you are getting a fast liquidation of supplies without dealing with Public Vendors, Stocking Fees and having to know what to charge for everything.

Its Immediate gold for resources that you can use for better gear, training, and consumables like heath, focus and might potions. These consumables REALLY Help the young player. There is plenty of time to hoard resources later in the game when you become a crafter yourself. Early on its best to just get your skills and training done.

THANKS FOR READING!

Visit Bastion's Point often as you level up for better gear, fill orders, social clothing or resources!

Swords High my Friend, Until Again We Meet!

 

Great book Aartemis!