When you first decide to create a new character, you'll find yourself in an area containing various controls with which you can customize your in-game persona to your heart's desire. Once you're done creating your character, you'll be whisked off to a training area. This section of the guide includes some tips for getting the most out of your training.
Unfortunately, in the character-creation portion of the game, you choose your profession after having chosen your breed and after having spent several minutes deciding what you will look like. In other words, say you choose the muscular but not so intelligent Atrox, and you then decide that you want to play as a nano-technician. Your best bet will be to go all the way back to the beginning and re-create your entire character. Because of this, it is wise to keep your profession in mind from the very beginning and choose the breed accordingly. Be sure to refer to this guide's section regarding professions before beginning character creation.
Before you attempt to kill any of the monsters provided for you in the training area, take a minute to examine your equipment. You should begin with a set of maps, a nano formula or two, a special move or weapon, a treatment kit, and some first-aid kits, in addition to an achievements board and, if you are an Omni-Tek citizen, an Omni-Tek shirt.
If you are an Omni-Tek citizen, begin by equipping your Omni-Tek shirt, your weapon--if you have one--and your maps. If you have a special move, then get that ready in your shortcut bar. Next, examine your nano formulas and increase whatever skills they require so that you will be able to use them and get that ready in your shortcut bar too. You will also need to make use of your skill points and place your treatment kit in your shortcut bar. If you need any assistance on using your skill points, simply refer to the section in this guide regarding your chosen occupation. Lastly, increase your aggression to max and leave it there, unless you start taking a lot of damage, at which point you may want to back it down some.
Of course not. Unlike most games, Anarchy Online encourages you to work in teams: When teamed up with others, you'll get very close to the same number of experience as you would have gotten on your own, and the enemies will be significantly easier to vanquish, at least for nano-based professions. This will become vitally important once you leave the initial training grounds and enter the Real World. A reet of paradise is fairly easy for anyone to take down solo, but a blood reet will kill a much tougher character if he or she tries to take it alone.
You are now ready to take on the monsters in your training area. At this point, you have one goal: Get to level 4. You will not be able to leave the confines of the training area until you have, at the least, reached level 2 or obtained 1000 credits. However, it is recommended to wait for level 4: The extra IPs will help you a lot more than the credits burning a hole in your pocket. In addition, you will often find yourself too weak at level 2 to do much more than act as bait. Now, while the general goal is to reach level 4, there are several important milestones along the way. For now, however, walk out and kill monsters until you reach level 2. While doing this remember: If you are about to die, you can run to the guard for assistance.
Since you have now gained a level, take the time to distribute your skill points again, and from now on remember to do this with each level. Keep in mind that you don't have to distribute all of your points at once. Whatever IPs you don't spend will be saved, so don't feel that you have to invest in a skill that you don't feel you'll use simply because you have excess points. Upon reaching level 2, you should be familiar with your opening training area. Each training area (there are several) has a section that is a little bit further from the rest where some of the harder monsters are. At level 2 you should be able to head into the second area and attack them. This will give you more experience than you were getting previously and will hopefully force you to develop some tactics when fighting tougher monsters. Continue to fight here until you reach level 3.
At this point, it is time for you to take on your first mission, if you're feeling up to it. Leave the training area and explore the small area of town that you should have access to right off the bat. You'll find a mission booth here. Request a mission and turn the difficulty all the way down, then raise the experience slider so that you'll get as much experience as is possible. Afterward walk in and complete the mission. This should give you a vague idea about what missions will be like later on and, at the same time, give you far more experience and credits than you would have received by fighting monsters in the training area. If you are not able to make it to level 4 on the first mission, however, simply head to the training area and make a few kills; it should not take many.
Congratulations. You have an established character on your hands. Head out into the city and take on a couple of missions until you reach level 6. From that point on most of the action that you will want to involve yourself in will take place in the outside world. Travel in groups whenever possible, and you just may live long enough to see some of the higher levels.