FAQ for beginners

Some frequently asked questions:


Why did I spend 10 minutes trying to decide what stats to start with, and then it tells me that they have been set to 20, 1, 13, 1, 20???
The stats are preset for all characters so that you will have the same opportunity as other classes to equip and learn the same things in the game. The starting classes only affect your starting weapon, skills, and spell; they make little difference once you reach main. Unfortunately, the option to ‘choose’ your stats has not yet been removed.

Where is my Golden Rod?
When you master certain skills, you get medals (such as the Golden Rod for fishing) that show up in your bio. To find out which skill gives which medal, go to: http://critical.unm.edu/terrafacts.htm . Note that after your bio fills up with medals the rest will not appear.

Why are there extra medals in my bio?
They are lag medals, and will disappear with time.

How can I increase my stats?
By mastering skills. To find out exactly which skills increase which stats, go to http://critical.unm.edu/terrafacts.htm

What happens when I am hungry?
When you are starving, your hp and mp will stop regenerating. When you relog, they will start decreasing, eventually reaching 1. It will not kill you, but if you touch a monster you will probably die.

What is this purplish-gray bar below the mana bar?
It is a power status bar. When it is full (purple-gray), you hit the hardest. However, the difference between highest and lowest hits is not very large, unless you are a new player.

What do potions do?
Blue potions heal hp, red heals mp. Yes, it is switched. Green potions (only available on main) heal hp (thanks Ghostka). Potions also act as food, meaning they won’t work if you are full.

How do I heal myself?
If you started as a mage, you will have the Minor Heal spell, which you can use to heal yourself, provided that you have blue crystals in your inventory. If not, eating will bring up your hp, but not if you are full. Qieros is the best way to get healed when you are new; he is scattered on screens throughout noob and main, and will heal you completely and quickly. Later on you can buy a minor heal spell.

How do I use spells?
Click on the sparkly icon in the top right of your window, there should be a spell listed there (Inxition, Fireball, or Minor Heal). Click on the spell name, then click the lightning bolt. Now, click on your target. After you are done with the spell, click the X.

Where can I get new spells?
On noob island, you can buy the three starting spells (inxition, fireball, minor heal) in Eyre, on Lost Island. They cost 5k each. However, you can buy them for 800g each in Escher, which is the first city on main.

What do I do to get a campfire?
Give Qieros a pair of leather boots. It lasts forever, but you cook slower on it.

What is an hp cap?
Each monster will only get you to a certain hp level, no matter how many you kill. That is its hp cap.

HELP!!! Why am I losing hp when I die?
You must have killed someone who was not vile, making you a vile murderer. When you die vile, you lose 4% of your hp. If you had over 80 hp when you died vile, 1 of the hp that you lost will be a perma. Perma means that you will not be able to gain it back no matter how much you train, unless you use a golden cup. This will not normally be a problem, unless you are planning to max your character.

How do I get rid of this vile status?
On noob island, give Agavar at Edgewood respawn a long sword. On main, give Wrel a Nature Shift book, except when you are at dragon hatchlings, where you must give a Bolt book. Note that this only stops you from losing more hp, and you still have to train to regain the health points.

How do I check how many permas I have?
Type +check permhp

When can I join a guild?
At minimum 81 hp. Some guilds require a higher hp/score. You can only be invited by the leader.

How can I make my own guild?
When you have 100hp, you can obtain an Oraku’s Orb (50k from Guild City), which will allow you to create a guild.

When will each of the sword skills go up?
Slash starts at 50 parry (???), thrust: 31 slash, swordsmanship: 51 slash, heavy arms: 61 thrust, fencing: 21 swordsmanship.

How do I plus an item?
When you smith an item that is broken, it has a chance of gaining a plus. This only works if the item can be plussed. Note that you can plus an item at any level of blacksmithing, but you have most chance at 100 bs.

Are there any sites that can help me do quests?
www.holyknights.freewebspace.com/guides.htm is the Holy Grail of Terra quest help sites. Not that it is extremely thorough or complete, but it does give detailed directions, in the form of maps. There are holes in the guides, so you may need to ask for help in broadcast. There are no item quests here, nor are the newest city quests included, those being Eyre, Class Island, and Badona.

You can also try the Lollypop guild’s site, which includes guides for Class Island, Badona, and a few assorted item quests. http://www.geocities.com/the_lollypop.guild//home.html

There are a few quest guides floating around in the help forum, the search function may help you find them. If you are really lucky, a nice staff member may help you with guides that are in the spoilers forum, which is closed to normal players.

Are there any general guides about Terra, other than quest guides?
The stickies in help forum are quite useful. The most compact and helpful one is the Terrafacts sticky http://critical.unm.edu/terrafacts.htm

Are there any world maps so I can see where I need to go?
There IS a world map on the Terraworld website at http://www.terragaming.net/img/world.jpg , but there are almost no details. Bortre made a very nice map of Noob Island at http://www.clicketyhome.com/noobisland.gif , as well as Lost Island at http://www.clicketyhome.com/lostisland.gif , which may help you.

How can I become an officer?
You must post an application in the recruitment forum, and follow the guidelines set out there.

Can I get a house?
When you get to main, there are two ways in which you can get a house: buy one off a player, or build one on your private house plot, which is in crossroads. For the first method, you may have to pay 10k for a door change. For the second, you must also buy a house deed, which is 30k+. You may pay more if you want the appearance of the maps changed.

What does it mean when someone says to ‘pump wars’?
Pumping means to put a faction into power. This is usually done by giving the leader of the faction that you want in power 100-200 heads from the faction that is currently in power. To find out which is in power, type +who is in power?

How do you join a faction?
You need to get heads from one of the two opposing factions, and give it to the leader of the faction you want to join. The three factions are Warriors, Mages, and Adventurers. For example, if you want to join wars, you’d give the leader mage or adventurer heads. Each head gives you approximately 120 minutes of play time. If you have less than 61hp and die while in a faction, you will get kicked out.

Why join a faction?
Factions let you level different skills, and they each have their own advantages as well. Warriors let you max all sword skills, axe fighting, and hammer wielding. They also make you hit harder and get hit less. Mages let you max all spell skills, staff fighting, and unholy combat. They make your spells stronger. Adventurers let you get all war skills to 80, plus a greatly increased chance of parry and block, so that you don’t get hit as much.