First of all, welcome! I hope you will enjoy your stay.

Before I start with some advice, I would like to give some quick info:

• The game is almost 2 years old; it means it evolved a lot since day one, and it may be a bit overwhelming.
• The game relies a lot on RNG. Everybody is different, and what applies to one person does not apply to the next.
• Each region is very different, and each region is based on a different time zone: GMT+8 for Asia, GMT+1 for Europe, GMT -8 for America. As a big part of the content is based on server time, I highly recommend playing in the region the closest to your time zone.
• The server chat languages are no reflexion of the player base. Talking in chat costs stamina, and as you will learn, for most of us it is a precious thing, we therefore tend to ignore it.
• Each player is different, and at the end of the day, play the game the way you want to play it, no matter what others may tell you to do. You are supposed to have fun!

So now that we put those bases, let's get started!

Choose a character. There is no right or wrong choice. The wizard will guide you through potential good fit based on playstyles you like. You can also check online videos (like our BDM partners!). Note that the meta changes regularly, so don't chose based on that. Also do not worry, you can have almost all character (one version) without spending any real money at all, and you are encouraged to do so.
Start the story. The story will seem very easy at first. Up until South Mediah, it was designed for non-ascended awakened es, which are weaker versions of current es. So go ahead and get this big chunk of the story done!
Read the tutorials. It may seem boring, but if you skip, you can never read them again, and they contain a lot of precious information.
Enjoy your mega growth boost. To help new players to progress faster, a mega growth boost can be applied, giving you 500% more EXP and drops. This ends as soon as one of your characters reaches the level 60, or when the time ends. You should try to maximise this boost, not only on your main character but also on alt characters, which leads me to my next point.
Family. Family is a very important component of this game that should never be overlooked. Some of the elements of the game can only be done with your family, meaning several of your characters will be involved. Spend Black Peals (BP), one of the special currencies, to unlock more slots. Try to level as many characters as you can using the mega growth boost, and regularly try to improve their gear and skills. Having level 3 skills on 5 alts will make your life easier for some of the content in the long run.
Events. There are always ongoing events in the game. You will not have access to all of them in the game, however you should try to focus on those you have. It usually requires little investment, and any free resource is good to get.
Knowledge. Whenever you are going to a new place, look for the easy knowledge you will see everywhere. If you do not want to search too much for the hidden ones, you can find a lot of guides online, either with text and image, or with video. Do not delay it too much, the more you wait, the more you will have to do, and it gives not only CP and HP but also worker stats.
Camp. Never forget to upgrade your camp and hire workers. For workers stats, you want at least the following: one with max strength, to build faster, at least 5 or 6 with max dexterity, to craft faster, the rest with max vitality, to gather faster. Do not worry much about the quality at first, as you will be able to increase their grade once they reach their current max level.
Shop. Do not worry about the shop until you are a few days in the game. You can find numerous advice on what is best to buy, some can contradict one another, it is therefore important to have a basic understanding of the game to make wiser decision if you decide to spend in the game. And I would also like to add that spending in the game is not mandatory, you can have fun and progress regardless!
Have fun. At last, but not least, never forget to have fun, this is the most important part. The game should not become a chore, and I hope you will have a good time in our company! Don't forget to read the website, forum, and don't hesitate to stop by the official Discord server (https://discord.gg/blackdesertmobile) as well, so that other experienced adventurers can help you.