Login to AoC
Set your graphics. The burden on your system is the main issue that will hold you back from having a great time in this game. Because of this, you should set your graphics as soon as you are given the option. This is first seen on the login screen. Regardless of your system specs, I would set your graphics initially LOW, and then trick the graphics up when your done creating your character and are on the beach.
Character creation. I go through this part a lot in my earlier AoC Review article so I won’t dwell on it a lot. Select a server (Again: I caution against PvP servers unless you really don’t mind griefing.). Select your Sex, Class, culture, face, etc. There is NO stat differences depending on which culture you choose. However, certain classes are only available to certain cultures.
Level 1-5
The first 5 levels are the tutorial levels. It is a simple solo play adventure with a storyline of your salvage from the sea and running through the jungle to the city of Tortage. At times your screen will be flooded with ‘Help me” buttons…which can be so obtrusive that they are not helpful at all. If you are a MMO veteran, you will have no trouble with this at all.
Every male (no matter how old) will likely make a female toon and disrobe just to see what the M rating is all about. Just do it, get it over with, and lets move on.
Your on the beach. You are given a big ol 2-handed oar to paddle your enemies with. Your first Quest NPC ‘Casilda’ is straight ahead. Speak with her…honestly she sounds stoned to me…but I’ll chock that up to sun exposure. She wants you to kill a ‘scavenger’ who imprisoned her…hes right behind you turn back to the beach and go to your left. Kill him and take the KEY. Return to Casilda and free her for your reward….”And whats your reward from this scantily clad stoned female?” …she will follow you for the next 5 levels without offering any help except to be your personal MMO Cheerleader. Honestly, she ought to give you her +3 PomPoms.
Before heading into the jungle there are a couple of things you can do and are often missed by most players. First head down the beach past the Scanger you killed and kill a few of his Scavenger groupies. IN the boxes by the shore you will see broken bottles in the sand. Click on them, they can be used to dual wield (Dual wielding Bottles? ..the prefered choice of any barbarian). Further along you will find crocodiles who look surprisingly like alligators. Kill them and find the Ancient Crocodile (in the alligator costume). He will drop some teeth and a mangled arm (For the mantle above the fireplace). There is also a chest to loot . Return to where you first started, If you swim off the shore directly from where PomPoM girl was tied up, on the sea floor you will find another chest to look. If you killed all scavengers and Aligators along the beach you ought to be at level 3 even before heading into the jungle.
With your cheerleader in tow (You dont have to do anything else with her..she is technically your pet) Head into the jungle. As soon as you enter go to the left and then to the right of where Casilda was held captive and kill the ‘mini-bosses’. Mini-bosses are no tougher than regular mobs, they just have a title and are generally 1 level above the rest. But they are not epic. A lot of people miss these guys, but don’t, they have good beginning armor and weapons.
Understand with your Big ol Oar ..you can easily take on 3 mobs at a time. Do no be cautious or timid here…was Conan timid?!?!? …break their necks! The arrows in your hotbar allow for left, right, or overhead attacks…You’ll see shields on your opponent which demonstrate where his/her defenses are placed. At this stage of the game…and pretty much for the first 20 levels…it doesn’t matter a BIT! Just mash the 1, 2 and 3 buttons keeping your opponent in front of you. 1,2,3 and 1,2,3 he’s dead…1,2,3 she’s dead…1,2,3 and 1, 2, 3 their pet panther is dead ..who the heck keeps a pet panther?!?!
Ok after that the path forward is pretty much a straight line through the jungle which you can see on your mini-map. This path is lined with Pillagers, Poachers and Picts. In fact, if it doesn’t start with a letter P, its not your enemy! Slash your way through the jungle with your big oar and your righteous fury against the letter P. The mobs come in groups of 2-3 and can easily be beaten. You may find a 1H weapon here or there, but the big ol oar is all you’ll need. If you want to go dual wield, feel free. Remember the standard MMO kill order applies in AoC ..kill casters first, ranged DPS second, and melee last.
You made it to Saddur. Congrats! Saddur is your former slavemaster in the body of a washed up professional wrestler. When you approach him you enter a quest storyline. Speak with him a bit. He cant get through the gate because he lost the key. At the end of the storyline he will attack. By this time you are likely level 3 and this guy is easy. He usually drops a good weapon (Good being relative to a lev 3). However, Once he dropped a pair of pants called 'Soiled Loincloth'....I DARE YOU TO WEAR IT! To get through the gate you need to turn left and bum rush the Picts.
The Pict village is nice. Remember to look in the side huts for more NPCs to kill as well as the chests to loot. Midway through on the left side is a miniboss. For barbarians and fighters he drops a bow, other classes may get other equipment. The main thing is that you now have a way to range pull if you’re a melee class. Take some time out to practice with the bow and learning how to swap out of the bow and into your melee weapons (Shift-R).
Head to the demons area at the end of the pict Village. Kill the demons to the side first (and collect the chest in the demon circle) then head to the boss. Behind the demon boss is a stone chest. Click it to retrieve the key. And return to the Gate (Where you parked Saddur’s carcas). Then you can click the gate to watch it rise. Please, please appreciate the impaled skeleton as it rises up as well…I know I did.
Last leg of the jungle. Now its Apes. However, you’ll find that these guys have a few more hitpoints…and they don’t start with ‘P”. Undaunted, you can still kill them easily 2 at a time. Three may be a challenge however. Follow the path to the Ape King (His mom must be so proud) and Kill him (…perhaps not). Don’t cross the bridge yet, there is a chest to the right guarded by 2 apes. Kill them and get it. Then cross the bridge and head to the gates.
Your cheerleader Now leaves you. And you can head into the main Tortage Zone.
Time to completion, about 15 minutes...in fact, you probably lost time reading this!!
xD
I also am a verry active Dude? ( 
) and i love to hug.. All for me!
