Guide talk:Getting started

Any planned "end points"?
So, where can we stop the guide? After we talked about the first boss, or a bit later? --MrUnhandy 19:45, 23 May 2011 (UTC)
 * As it's about Getting Started, I believe the first boss should discuss about Eye of Cthulhu, as it's most likely that the player will encounter this boss first. It can also be hinted about Dungeons and Jungles. For example: "After you've beaten your first boss, you might feel a little more adventurous, and you might find something special if you wander long enough..." --Reginald Danger Safety™ 00:53, 26 May 2011 (UTC)
 * I think the Eye of Cthulhu or Skeletron should be first. However, I'm definitely leaning towards Eye of Cthulhu because I fought Skeletron first and died...Tylamimo (talk) 09:51, 27 October 2014 (UTC)

Article is in Wrong Point of View
The article should be in 3rd person, talking about how to survive. Parts of the guide are in 2nd person. --The preceding unsigned comment was added by 99.127.148.79 (talk).
 * It's a place to start... feel free to rewrite, revise... :D -- Wynthyst [[File:Curseicon.png]] talk  04:43, 22 May 2011 (UTC)
 * started, not finished
 * I am currently rewriting the entire thing. I'm rewriting it as 'this guide will help you accomplish this'. It adresses the reader as 'you', and does not use expressions and figures of speech. This was discussed in the Discord server. --Kwonunn (talk) 21:55, 23 March 2019 (UTC)
 * Should we be using third person here? I was just starting some editing (clarity/grammar/other similiar issues) and it seems a lot more awkward to use third person rather than second. We're not Wikipedia here. The main articles should be written in third person, yes, but with these guide articles in their own space it really seems best to use second person here. --Yoshi348 18:59, 2 September 2011 (UTC)
 * I Agree, it is more user friendly the way it is written. Easier to understand for newer players. --Leaorem 12:42, 6 March 2014

Working on some revisions.
When I came here the first time, I was really desperate for some knowledge on where to start and what to do. So I plan to revise as much of the first few parts as I can, adding information that would help those who come into the game. This will include:

1. Rewriting the character and world creation page, giving more details about each setting.

2. Adding a bit more detail on character movement and hotkeys in the Getting started in your new world section, as well as details on the equipment you start off with.

3. Rewriting the home section to include some more detailed instructions on crafting with a link to the crafting page.

4. Rewriting the combat section to make it more new user friendly.

These are some of the most critical parts of learning how to play Terraria, and needs some work.

I will also try to work in a more neutral view, but as a beginner's guide it helps to come across as easily as you can, which is done by using second person singular words. --Ragen 00:49, 3 June 2011 (UTC)


 * I just updated the Character creation category, so feel free to tell me how it feels.--Ragen 05:45, 3 June 2011 (UTC)
 * "Getting Started in Your New World" has been revised with the changes.--Ragen 15:33, 3 June 2011 (UTC)
 * "Your Very First Home" has been revised with the changes.--Ragen 22:22, 3 June 2011 (UTC)
 * "Defending Your Home" has been revised.--Ragen 12:04, 4 June 2011 (UTC)

How to continue from here.
I think we can really improve upon the rest of this guide. What other kinds of information would we want a new player to have access too?

Poorly made - How about you list the keyboard commands, there aren't many. And I mean list, in one spot, one after the other. There's hardly any. I have to leave the game since no one thought to just list all the commands. I no, I don't care if you've already memorized them, they should be listed on the front/main page, and they should definitly be listed here.

Starting in Singleplayer versus Multiplayer
What's the rationale for suggesting singleplayer over multiplayer for new characters? What's the difference between the two modes? We should give some reasons on top of the suggestion to start in SP first. - Spinfx 14:40, 17 July 2011 (UTC)


 * I believe it's because of the learning curve. Without prior knowledge and a practical understanding of the game mechanics, multiplayer will be a very frustrating experience, even if you play on LAN with another person.

Getting STUCK
Not sure if this is the place to discuss this, but is it possible to advance in the game if you are landed on a fresh world with no items whatsoever ? This is of course, impossible to do under normal circumstances, but suppose the challenge is established; what can be done to progress ? I've heard the worldgen was tweaked so that there will always be chests accessible from the surface, no mining required. Of the pool of items that can be obtained this way, would it be enough (say at least 50% of world creations) to boost you to access of proper tools for 'normal' game progression ? Any other tricks to boosting yourself out similarly ? --50.113.4.34 07:44, 20 December 2011 (UTC)
 * I tested this and even with bad luck, it was quite possible by a decent margin. Though, only possible with Candy Block drops from enemies to explore beyond the initial terrain obstacles. I say it would have ended very quickly without them, though it does seem very much at the mercy of worldgen. --50.113.4.34 11:35, 20 December 2011 (UTC)

Review time!
I'm back again, and I think it's time to make sure the guide still has a 'newbie' feel to it, and to work out some kinks that come from adding this and that. I do not see much fragmentation, and there has been a lot of syntax work done already. If anyone has any suggestions for additions, changes, and other ideas to add in, leave it here and I'll retweek it to fit in. --Ragen 22:21, 18 February 2012 (UTC)


 * The first part of the guide has been remade into a bulleted, organized guide on how to make a character. The focus was to make sure that instead of a wall of text, the person making a character has the ability to easily alt-tab back and forth, without the risk of losing their position.--Ragen 00:08, 21 February 2012 (UTC)


 * The second part of the guide has been remade.--Ragen 04:53, 21 February 2012 (UTC)

Special note on the new rewritting style
I realize that the change that I'm implementing is incredibly different from it's previous format, almost to the point that the guide itself could be considered a whole new guide. It's a bit extreme from a point of view, but I think it will work out for the best.

With the way bullets are presented, new information can be added easier by simply adding a line with a bullet. One of the biggest problems so far was the added line here and there that, while improving the guide's information, created a disjointed feeling that without prior knowledge could be confusing to someone new. The bullets will prevent that by allowing separate points to 'stand on their own', and thus not influence the syntax of the paragraph. If someone feels this may not work, please let me know and I will change it back to a narrative.

footnotes missing
After explaining to survive underwater by building a shaft there is "(2)" in the text but it is not a link and there is no explaining anywhere I could see. I thought it refers to the 2nd video, but in there is no visualization of the shaft technique. 91.65.138.8 08:50, 25 February 2012 (UTC)
 * It refers to picture 2. --Icke 10:00, 25 February 2012 (UTC)

Guide Revamp Complete
The new guide is on my Talk Page.

So I've finally completed the guide. I have made some extreme changes to the guide in an attempt to make it much more compact, and much more to the point. In regards to that:


 * The removal of a large section of writing: the mining section. It clashed with the rest of the guide in ways that a rewrite could not fix. A better place for it would be in the mining guide.


 * Information was rearranged to present the reader with what they need as they need it. For instance, the Combat section inside the Beginning Gameplay section has most of the information from other parts of the guide, all presented in one easy to access location, versus all over the place.


 * A plan. The guide is now streamlined under the assumption that the reader wishes to survive their first night in Terraria. To achieve this goal, the guide attempts to lead the player towards making it through the night. After that, they can choose their next goal.

I believe that the guide is still far away from being presentable. It is very much a rough draft made by one person, and there are pieces that need to be checked. I will most likely begin making the Xbox and PS3 versions soon, and this guide here will serve as a template for the new versions. So please, feel free to help out!

Create a wooden broadsword as soon as possible?
Should the guide tell how to make a wooden broadsword as soon as possible? Broadswords are a lot easier to fight with than shortswords. -- KhymChanur (talk) 08:07, 6 October 2013 (UTC)

Permission to update?
I would like to request permission to begin updating the guide to compliment newer, easier strategies, and encompass the changes the 1.2/1.2.3 updates brought to the beginning of the game. -User:Leaorem

It's been a really long while since I edited this wiki, kinda surprised this guide hasn't been updated more - no mention of Expert mode (granted, PC version only), for example. Kinda busy with IRL so I can't commit any updates just yet. No need to wait, go ahead. - Spinfx (talk) 12:16, 7 August 2015 (UTC)

Tips for knowing and changing controls
The very first thing I tell anyone who is new to this game, is to change the inventory button from Esc to E, or something else. I feel this is very important, as Esc is very cumbersome to press constantly. (You literally have to take your hand completely off WASD while playing, which takes much longer). I think it should be one of the first things listed in this guide. I also think the auto-cursor should be mentioned. I'm seeing a lot of new players not using it, having NO idea it even exists. I also noticed that shift-clicking to auto-mine and auto-place torches isn't mentioned either...

I don't know how these should be added, I'll let someone else do that. But these are essential pro-tips that will make playing the game a lot smoother.

-Change inventory key from Esc to E

-Ctrl to toggle auto-cursor

-Shift-click to auto-do things

Edit: I went ahead and made my changes under the Movement and Tool Use section. I hope they fit in well.

71.211.64.152 06:46, 15 August 2015 (UTC)

Tips
Why are those tips right up at the top? Anyone opening this guide likely knows little about the game, this information wouldn't be relevant yet. Not to mention some of them are completely subjective: "buy a katana", really? It doesn't even explain WHY. - Spinfx (talk) 04:58, 7 November 2015 (UTC)
 * If you're referring to this page, this is only the talk page, not the actual guide, Spinfx. TOTORO01 (talk) 06:22, 23 March 2017 (UTC)

Talking
As a new player, I don't really get what to do when the guide says, "Talk to him if you want." How? There's no talk button. 104.60.172.228 02:53, 23 March 2017 (UTC)
 * Not sure what you mean, if you mean "talking" to NPCs, you can only right-click on them and do the options. There is no "talk" button per se.TOTORO01 (talk) 06:20, 23 March 2017 (UTC)

OH NO
somebody changed a part of this page into Spanish!


 * Reverted, looks like the editor wanted to translate the page, but accidentally made the edit in the Official Wiki. Bame66 (talk) 23:48, 26 November 2019 (UTC)

we need to add stuff for 1.4 on to this page
journey and challenge mode 72.23.199.154 18:52, 17 May 2020 (UTC)

Consuming items
This getting started page recommends: "At the start of the game, a decent way to gain health is by eating MushroomMushrooms. These spawn naturally on grass blocks in a Forest biome. To harvest them, simply swing a tool or weapon at them, and you can pick them up. Consuming one will restore 15 health."

However, as a new player, I have no idea how to consume items. Searching for consume items does not get me to any useful documentation. Clicking on a mushroom doesn't seem to do anything. Double clicking on a mushroom doesn't seem to do anything. JRodman 01:59, 29 May 2020 (UTC)
 * Place the mushroom in a hotbar slot (top row of your inventory) then close your inventory, scroll to that item, and hit . Or pick it up with your mouse and click somewhere outside your inventory slots. Or just press H to consume the first available healing item in your inventory.  Equazcion  ( talk ) 02:04, 29 May 2020 (UTC)

Boss Guide pages - general strategies overhaul
As you may know, the boss guide and strategies pages all share the same general strategies segment, up to a certain point. I think that especially on the earlier bosses, this can make the article quite unfriendly for beginners. For example, on the Eye of Cthulhu page it says consider beating a weaker boss beforehand to give a pool a hearts for the fight. But the EOC is often the first boss to defeat. All of the pre-hardmode bosse pages mention stuff that is only in hardmode, and at that point the reader might try and search those things up. That's if they are a new player and don't even know what hardmode is yet, which is likely for someone looking at the EOC page. So basically, the general strategies segment is oversaturated with unnecessary information that makes it hard to read. This could be fixed if the pages were written only with that boss in mind. Instead of using the same copy/pasted stuff, it should be written from the ground up with noob friendly, uncomplicated tips and strats. The more detailed stuff already has a place in the specific strategies section, for players who want a guide that holds their hand a bit more. I understand that these pages are like this because of time constraints, but I think that the wiki would really benefit from this. That's why I'm going to be re-working these specific segments. This won't be done for a while, I have other work to do that is more important than editing wikis, but eventually it should get done. Needless to say, it would be great if other editors chipped (get it, Chippy?) in. Slimeybrooklyn (talk) 05:14, 11 February 2021 (UTC)