Newbie Tips

[Sakrysta]

I just started a new baby forest, and all these suggestions have been popping into my head as I go. So I thought I'd start a thread so we who are experienced can help the newbies make the most of their game.

PICKING YOUR NAMES
There are two names you have to choose when you first start. There is your Storm8 ID, and there is your Forest Name. I would suggest that you make them both the same. No one can see your Storm8 ID, so your Forest Name is the easiest way for players to find you.

Think long and hard before you pick your Forest Name to be sure you like it. It will cost you 25 gems if you decide you want to change it later. Which leads to...

HOARD YOUR GEMS
In the beginning, the game LOVES you and throws gems at you like they're candy. DO NOT GIVE IN to the temptation to speed things with gems, even if the game tells you that you should. Trust me, there is nothing that takes long enough at this level to make speeding with gems a good idea. As you level up, the game gets more and more stingy with gems, and you will wish you had saved them for special habitats, animals, or speeding a step in an event to finish it on time & earn a prize. CULTIVATE PATIENCE!!! DO NOT SPEND YOUR GEMS!!!

BECOME A PANDAFFODIL BREEDER
For the first 8 levels or so, coins will be your major need. As soon as you have the coins, buy another Nature Preserve and put a couple Pandaffodils in there. Feed them up, level them up to at least level 4, and as soon as you can do it again until you run out of space. Fire Fields are fine, but you don't need more than a couple in the beginning. Until you can breed Earth & Water animals, Nature are your biggest coin earners. You can sell them all later as you need room for new animals.

TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE BATTLEGROUNDS
Each win in the Battlegrounds gives you something you can use. It's a great way to get more coins & food in the early levels where those things take time.

MAX OUT YOUR FARMS
As soon as you can, max out your farms. If you have time to sit and play continually, Aura Apples are the best value for your coins.

ARRANGE YOUR FOREST TO AVOID ACCIDENTAL GEM SPENDING
The game places that "speed for X gems" button perfectly to encourage accidental spending - in the exact same position on the screen as the "plant" button. This makes sense, because they want you to spend money. My go-to layout for the farms, which is what will catch you most often, is diagonally along the top left edge of the main island - and plant from low to high. This places the farm you have to tap far enough away from the "plant" button so you don't accidentally tap the "speed" button when trying to tap your next farm. Just be slow & deliberate in your tapping, and make sure that the button you want to tap is actually there. Also, don't leave that "speed" button showing when you're done - always tap away to make it go away so you don't accidentally hit it.

That's a good start, and all I can think of right now. What are your suggestions for a newbie?

[Sakrysta]

More thoughts:

SERIOUSLY, DON'T SPEND GEMS
The temptation is strong, especially if you get stuck in the Battlegrounds for multiple rounds or happen to breed an animal with a long breed/incubation time. Hang in there! The first thing you're going to want to buy costs 250 gems, and it will greatly relieve a lot of your frustrations. That is ....

BUY A SECOND NEST AS SOON AS YOU CAN
It's hard to describe just how much that second nest will contribute to your game play. When you have a five-hour duplicate in the den and a 20+ hour egg on the nest, it is so helpful to have that second nest so you can start another breed. Also, a lot of events give you points for hatching, and as you level up and begin to have surplus coins, you can buy coin animals, hatch and sell them, and add to the points you earn.

ADD A BUNCH OF LOW LEVEL NEIGHBORS AND GIFT GEMS TO THEM
Gem buddies are your best source of gem income as the game progresses. Pretty soon all those rewards for trying new games or completing game goals will be used up. Your gem buddies will become your best friends. And DON'T limit yourself to 3! I know you can only send 3 per day, but you can RECEIVE at least 8! Gift back oldest to newest, and always eventually gift back. You will cultivate a good handful of faithful players to trade with and net a lot more gems. You are going to occasionally lose one - that's to be expected as people lose interest and quit. If this happens, just go find another friend whose name or forest you like and randomly send them a gem. Eventually you'll have someone else trading faithfully with you.

[Sakrysta]

VISIT YOUR NEIGHBORS & "PLAY WITH THEIR ANIMALS"
Once you have neighbors, visit them faithfully and collect all the stars from their habitats. This adds bonus coins to their habitats and encourages them to return the favor. This becomes less necessary as you level up, and your high-level friends don't need it. But until you've gotten at least over level 100, coins are always welcome.

Neighbors will have a max of 6 stars to tap. Non-neighbors will have a max of 3. If your neighbor has less than 6 stars to tap, it's because another neighbor has already tapped those habitats, and they haven't collected their coins yet. Which leads to....

COLLECT YOUR COINS OFTEN
Once a neighbor has visited you and clicked on your stars, they won't reset until you collect the coins from that habitat. Check your forest often, and make sure you collect any habitats that have coins above. Coins appear above a habitat either when it has reached about half its total capacity or when someone has "played with your animals and left you a bonus." You can always collect coins by tapping on the habitat and then tapping the coins button as well.

SOCIAL RATING
Your own social rating is pretty much meaningless in the game. Most long time players have low or no stars because visiting neighbors becomes irrelevant as you level up. So don't worry about how many stars are in your rating. Your main goal in visiting neighbors is to build up each others' coins and develop gem buddies.

[lydiatelad]

I have to disagree with Sakrysta's advice below -

"ADD A BUNCH OF LOW LEVEL NEIGHBORS AND GIFT GEMS TO THEM
Gem buddies are your best source of gem income as the game progresses. Pretty soon all those rewards for trying new games or completing game goals will be used up. Your gem buddies will become your best friends. And DON'T limit yourself to 3! I know you can only send 3 per day, but you can RECEIVE at least 8! Gift back oldest to newest, and always eventually gift back. You will cultivate a good handful of faithful players to trade with and net a lot more gems. You are going to occasionally lose one - that's to be expected as people lose interest and quit. If this happens, just go find another friend whose name or forest you like and randomly send them a gem. Eventually you'll have someone else trading faithfully with you."

If you can find 3 reliable, faithful gifting neighbours then you should stick with them, rather than try to cultivate a larger circle of gifting neighbours who you will not be able to send daily gems to.

As it happens, I have a vacancy for a reliable, daily, faithful, gem swapper.

Ray