Albion Online, the sandbox MMO by the Berlin-based developer and publisher Sandbox Interactive, is playable for everyone since this week. We took a look around the world of the game and want to give you some helpful tips for beginners.
1. Follow the main quest!
Even if this is your twentieth MMO, follow the main quest! It will familiarize you with the peculiarities of Albion Online, for example when it comes to crafting.
At the end of the quest line, you will also be rewarded with a mount. These steeds are, as you will quickly learn, essential for your later progress in the game.
2. Don’t expect to be hand-held
Unlike some other MMORPGs, Albion Online throws you into the deep end to a certain extent. Instead of giving you detailed instructions on where, when, and how to do things, you first receive just one task in the aforementioned quest: Go, gather, and process things!
Where or how you are supposed to do this? You will have to figure that out yourself.
But don’t worry, the mechanics are not incredibly complex. Once you are familiar with the basics of the game, they follow a universal pattern and remain unchanged across the various item tiers. As far as crafting mechanics are concerned, Albion Online does not reinvent the wheel. It only requires that you can find the wheel by yourself.
3. Set a goal for yourself
Albion Online is purely a sandbox game. Therefore, the initial quest line is the only one you will see in this MMO. While some may enjoy this level of freedom, it may feel unusual for the majority of typical MMO players to have to independently seek a task or vocation. What you do with your time in Albion Online and in which direction you orient yourself is entirely up to you.
4. The interface is your friend
Essential for every new player, especially at the beginning – understanding the interface. Albion Online does not take incredibly complex or innovative paths here either. However, there are some very helpful features hidden here and there that you may not notice at first glance.
Notably, the area map (key N). When you open this in an area, you receive a schematic, stylized, and at first glance rather confusing overview of your immediate surroundings. However, in the top right corner hides perhaps the most important information on this map: A list of resource types and levels available to gather in this area.
Not all five materials (stone, ore, leather, wood, and plants) can be found in all five different biomes. The percentage next to it indicates the chance of finding a specifically enchanted material. However, this is not important for getting started in the game.
5. Don’t be afraid of big numbers
Staying on the topic of the interface, during the introductory quest, you will notice a box full of tasks in the upper right corner of your screen. Tasks with seemingly incredibly high numbers at first glance.
For example, you will be prompted to gather 2500 pieces of a single material to unlock the tool with which you can mine the next higher tier of that resource. It looks disproportionately high at first glance. It is definitely more than what you are used to from the current standard MMOs. But don’t let that intimidate you.
Of course, if you are not a fan of grinding, you will probably never warm up to Albion Online. But gathering goes faster than it appears at first glance. Type 2 materials can be mined faster with a level 2 tool than type 3 materials, the latter reward more points and resources.
How you navigate the destiny board is up to you. And: You do not have to do everything! This is a sandbox game! Like everything, you also have the choice of whether to specialize in pure resource gathering, refining, or crafting various weapons and armor.
6. You determine your path!
The simplest and safest way to prevent the time-consuming gathering of supposedly wrong resources is probably to think about what path you want to pursue in Albion Online right from the start.
Do you prefer fighting, gathering, processing, providing your fellow players with food, or relieving other players of their belongings in PvP?
The destiny board is essential for you here! You open it via the quick key B or the small icon to the right of the task box. Now, it is important not to be intimidated by the sheer mass of possible goals. Choose the path that you like best. Do you prefer crafting or fighting? If you prefer fighting, then close-range or ranged? Or magic?
All options are open to you, and you do not have to commit to just one path. For quick, goal-oriented progress, a certain degree of consistency is definitely advisable.
7. No one will believe me! Or will they?
No matter how low-tier the material is, the answer is mostly: Yes! And that’s a good thing! Because you need silver, the standard currency of Albion Online, for almost everything! Whether it’s to repair your gear, set up trade offers, or later in the game buy your own piece of land – you have to pay for all of that.
How great it is that almost every item you gather or create can somehow be sold. This is mainly thanks to Albion’s crafting mechanics. So, to craft higher-value items, you need both the raw materials for them and processed materials from a lower tier. So there is always a buyer for your gathered materials.
If you keep these few points in mind and orient yourself roughly according to them, not much should stand in the way of your successful entry into the basic mechanics and tasks of Albion Online. We wish you a lot of fun exploring!
You might also be interested in: Everything you need to know about the world bosses of Albion Online
