Getting Started...

[fldash]

I know this is a 'sandbox' so to speak, but what are some of the things a new player to do to get started... I looked through the forums and didn't see a post like this, nor one in the How-To section up top. I think its a good idea... so list away.

[theTrav]

Creating Your First Character
Press the "Create New Character" button. Your new character will start in a world of his own, shapeless and without body, but as a free floating spirit. You can navigate around the room by clicking the left mouse button, but before you can do more meaningful things, you need a body.

To get a body, please speak with the plastic surgeon to your upper left in the room. Speak to him by clicking on him with the right mouse button. Speak with him again if you want to change gender.

Before you can walk the real world, you also need to choose a name for your character. To do that, speak with Germania, who is to your upper right. Once you have chosen both a body and a name, you can enter the world by way of the ladder to the far upper right in the room. The ladder is also to be right-clicked to be traversed.

Before you do that, however, you will probably want to have a look in the chest to the bottom right from your starting position for some clothes, basic tools, food and dreams. After that, you are free to roam the world as you see fit!

Do that

Interact with Objects
Right click on objects in your inventory or on the map to interact with them. Some recipes in the craft screen require you to first interact with the appropriate object in the map view. Presently: Anvils, querns, churns and spinning wheels. The player will walk up to the object if it can be used that way. Some objects, such as trees, will open a "flower menu", with options which should be self-explanatory.

Find a rock and interact with it, chip off a piece of stone
Then find an apple tree, interact with it, pick an apple or two, interact with them, eat them
interact with the tree a second time, collect a bunch of branches.

Craft Items
In the bottom right menu, click the "Craft" icon. Select the recipe you wish to follow. Make sure you have the proper ingredients in your inventory and then click "Craft".

Craft a stone axe, move it from your inventory to your equipment (one of your hands)

Build Objects
Place the object on the map using the commands from the build menu in the bottom right corner. The player will walk to that position and place a sign at the chosen location, which represents the object under construction. Place the correct raw materials in the construction object, and press the "build" button.

You can also build from the adventure menu, the first thing you will want to build is a whole lot of fires with your branches. Use shift click to load items from your inventory to the building faster.
Light the fires after building them, be careful not to block yourself in when constructing fires, they take a while to burn out.

Learn New Skills
Most skills require about 200 learning points. Avaliable skills will show up in your character screen if you have enough learning points avaliable. Most things you do will earn you a small amount of learning points. (Crafting, chopping down trees, mining, &c.)

useful starting skills are:
lumberjack -> carpentry
plant growth -> farming
fishing
mining

If you want to go down the hunting path you will also want to get the combat skills:
will to power -> militia training -> swordsman (much later)
and the support skills help immensely:
valour -> first aid.

Skill tree:
http://www.havenandhearth.com/portal/res/skills.png

world map:
http://www.havenandhearth.com/portal/res/map.png

[fldash]

AWESOME! Is there anyway to view your location on the map in game... I've seen the world maps in other threads. But trying to discern where I am from the little bit that I can see in the lower left is impossible.

I just got killed by two foxes... I'm guessing I have to created a new character?

[theTrav]

I don't believe you can currently get a map coordinate... GPS hasn't been invented yet, nor has the navigation skill been implemented.

After moving around for a while you should be able to get an idea of where you are relative to a few local features and from that you should be able to find those features on the world map.

I have only been slightly lost once, but on the whole it's not too hard to match the minimap up with the main map if you put some time into it

[kaka]

I just got killed by two foxes... I'm guessing I have to created a new character?

Foxes can't kill you.
At least not yet. ;)

They should have just knocked you out, as you can see by the stars circling your head.
Just wait a while and you'll regain consciousness.

[sami1337]

you navigate using the large map andidentifying the landmarks and features such as those cliffs and resources (pink).