Greg, my buddy from our time playing together on a professional team, had some very important things to tell me about the alien game I was going to enter in about a week. But first, he ordered a pizza. Then he insisted on small talk until it came. Then he refused to say anything more about it until after we had a chance to eat. Whatever his reasoning, I was getting a bit annoyed by the time he did get to the subject itself. He did eventually get around to it though.

"The first thing you need to know is that there are things that people inside the game are not supposed to tell people who haven't been initiated yet. It isn't anything really bad, it is just... dynamic difficulty is the best way to describe it. If you cheat it will come to bite you in the ass, especially at the beginning. You follow me so far?"

He was all business at this point so I kept my response direct to the point. "So how do I know if information is restricted?"

He scowled, "Mostly you don't, so be super careful about how you search for information before you get in. Once you are in, just make it clear you are in the tutorial and don't want restricted information. At that point if they screw you than they screw themselves too. The merchants and such who show up will know better than to make a mistake. Just know that this limits what I can tell you."

I nodded. "Whatever you can, just thanks for the help."

He nodded back. "Always keep in mind: Meaningful risk equals reward. Don't do dumb shit, but also don't sit around passively. This keeps you safe because higher leveled people won't have much reward for going after you but lots of risk if they start something, but it also means that if you start something than you shouldn't expect to get off for free.

"Also, aliens are people. Even with their advantages, they can be just as dumb as anyone else. Don't forget that." He made a face before stopping. "I can't really tell you much more than that about how it all works, but that should be enough to get you through the tutorial."

I nodded before asking a clarifying question. "So will that be a big deal in the tutorial, dealing with aliens?"

He shrugged. "Maybe? Different tutorials are different, so try to get a good one if you can. Something that fits your skills." He waived me off before I could follow up with another question. "You will get more explanation once you are in there, so don't try to get more from me about it. Remember the first point." He shook his head and continued. "No, where alien stupidity comes in is usually after you get out of the tutorial. The class you choose is a really big deal to the hardcore RPers."

RPers? Role Players? "You mean people take the in-game lore seriously enough to cause fights about it?" I asked.

"You better believe it", came the reply with a knowing nod. "And while upgrading your class can be fairly easy, changing from one path to another is difficult and expensive. Expensive as in, your entry into The Game is cheep in comparison. At least, depending on your level. So pick your path with that in mind."

I took a moment to let it all sink in. My genre of games were never RPGs. Roll Playing Games always had too much of a social element to it; with people came chaos, and with chaos came bad luck. In my experience it was better to control what power you could rather than hope for help from others. It was somewhat ironic, then, that I didn't make it big in the shooter genera, as individually focused as even the team arenas are, and instead went professional in a MOBA. The term "Multiplayer Online Battle Arena" doesn't sound like a team sport, but in reality it is one of the most multiplayer role focused types of games that exists. But then, that is the catch: it is role focused. You can be as social or anti-social as you want but, so long as you fulfill your role, you are still a good player. "So then what are the roles, or paths, I need to choose from?"

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"The three you have to choose from are Magic, Superpowers, and Tech." He answered, then turned to focus things down. "Tech usually isn't treated as being the powerhouse that the other two are, but they have the best guns and money making options. People who pick that path are often meticulous and calculating, but you get the mad scientist types too. You can also find them everywhere, even in areas that are heavily controlled by one of the other two paths. Most who go this direction end up as some sort of builders or crafters, so keep that in mind too." He rolled his eyes before finishing. "They are also the most focused on the statis quo. Afterall; they are builders and crafters and such."

I let everything sink in before answering with a half-smile. "Not a bad direction, it sounds like, but I just can't see myself going into something that leaves me sitting at a crafting bench all day."

He huffed a laugh before continuing. "At the other end you have the mages. Their whole lore is about using magic to rewrite the fabric of reality, or some such thing. They have some impressive variety and some extreme effects, but can run low on magical stamina and have nothing really unifying them as a group; you know, other then that they all seem to be powered by chaos. There is no real stopping a mage who decides to throw everything they have at you, but that doesn't stop you from just waiting them out or distracting them with the shiny." He sighed before relaxing back in his seat. "Fair warning, though: I'm not exactly the most objective opinion when it comes to the Arcane Arts. Some of them are ok but, well, some antagonism is expected considering my path."

I narrowed my eyes in consideration. "How much does 'luck' play a role in what mages can do?" I asked. My experience with "random" chance led me to look for cover if I saw a shooting star; so anything powered by "chaos" would be my natural bane.

He gave a considering noise and waived his hand side to side in an uncertain motion. "Honestly, there isn't much luck involved for anyone who has the right skills. And every mage does have those skills. Try to do magic without those skills, however..."

His answer told me all I needed to know. "So maybe not my first choice, but I also don't have to worry about someone triple-critting me with a normal fireball."

His eye roll was friendly but exaggerated. "Your luck isn't that bad."

I gave him a flat stare...

"Moving on," he spoke, quickly changing the subject. "The Superpowered path is all about individuality. Everyone who takes this path is primarily focused with their own advancement, which can make large groups somewhat rare. You will find more than a few unabashed Supervillains too. We trade off some of the variety that mages get for unending stamina with our discrete powers. A lot of us end up as juggernauts and such in addition to whatever else we focus on. You won't find a lot of variety in what each of us can do, but by god we will be the absolute best at it." He smiled at me and shrugged, "and yea, that is my path. You can tell by how effortlessly pretty I am now."

I visibly rolled my eyes, but couldn't help a smile at his joke. "So any warnings I should know about that group? You know, besides the obvious."

"Nope!" He answered with another smile. "Saying that one-dimensional, egocentric powerhouses are exactly that seems redundant."

I gave a friendly eye roll in reply. Anyone who can't make jokes at their own expense is taking things too seriously.

"The next thing you need to figure out is what it will take to prepare to actually go into The Game. There is a lot to think about when you plan to literally drop off the planet for months at a time." I sighed. This next part was not something I was looking forward to. This was sounding like paperwork.