Editing Beginner's Guide

Welcome to '''Primal Idle'''! This is a hands-on walkthrough for a brand-new save — what to actually do, and in roughly what order, through your first session and first week. For the concepts behind it (the core loop, offline time, saving), read '''[[Getting Started]]''' and '''[[Gameplay]]'''; this page is the practical path.

The golden rule: '''you never lose progress by leaving.''' Primal Idle plays itself on timers, online '''and''' offline. Your only real job is to point your survivor at the right activity and check back now and then.

== Your first few minutes ==

# Open '''[[Foraging]]''' and start '''Gather Crimson Berries''' — your first action needs nothing and produces [[Crimson Berry|berries]], [[Wild Seeds]], and seeds. Watch the timer tick and your [[Bank]] fill.
# Let it run while you read on. There is no penalty for "wasting" time — something is always cooking.
# Open your '''[[Bank]]''' to see everything you've gathered. This is also where you '''sell''' for '''[[Amber]]''', the game's currency.

That's the whole loop in miniature: '''pick an action → it runs on a timer → resources stack in the Bank → level up → unlock more.''' Only one action runs at a time, so switching skills just points your survivor somewhere new.

== Build a resource base ==

Spend your first hour rotating through the four gathering [[Skills|skills]] to stock raw materials:

* {{Icon|foraging}} '''[[Foraging]]''' — berries, fibre, herbs, seeds.
* {{Icon|logging}} '''[[Logging]]''' — wood for tools, buildings and torches.
* {{Icon|mining}} '''[[Mining]]''' — ore and stone for [[Smithing]].
* {{Icon|fishing}} '''[[Fishing]]''' — fish for food.

Each skill levels 1→99 on its own, and higher levels unlock faster, richer actions. You don't need to max anything early — just build a little of everything, because the processing skills eat all of it.

== Turn materials into Amber and gear ==

The four '''processing''' skills convert raw materials into useful goods:

* {{Icon|cooking}} '''[[Cooking]]''' — food that heals you in combat (essential for [[Hunting]] and [[Taming]]).
* {{Icon|crafting}} '''[[Crafting]]''' — rope, containers, armour, saddles, and torches.
* {{Icon|smithing}} '''[[Smithing]]''' — smelt ore into ingots and forge metal gear.
* {{Icon|alchemy}} '''[[Alchemy]]''' — tonics and, crucially, '''tranquilizers''' for taming.

'''Selling for Amber:''' open the [[Bank]] and sell anything you're piling up and not using. Early Amber is precious — don't hoard raw materials you'll never process. The [[Shop]] is a convenience, never a cheaper source than making things yourself, so sell surplus and buy upgrades.

== Tame your first companion ==

[[Taming]] is the flagship skill and your first real milestone. Here's the concrete path to your first creature:

# '''Brew a [[Calming Tonic]]''' in [[Alchemy]] (it just needs a couple of [[Crimson Berry|berries]]).
# '''Stock [[Crimson Berry|Crimson Berries]]''' from [[Foraging]].
# Open '''[[Taming]]''' and start '''Tame Glyptodon''' — it costs '''8 Crimson Berries + 1 Calming Tonic'''. The Glyptodon is a sturdy L1 tame that gives you a '''15% chance of double [[Mining]] yield''' as a [[Companions|companion]].

Once tamed, a creature lives in your '''[[Stable]]''' and can be:

* assigned as a '''[[Companions|companion]]''' to buff one skill (each species buffs a different skill), or
* sent out with your '''[[Expeditions|expedition]] party'''.

Higher tames want '''cooked food''' and stronger '''tranquilizers''' — so keep [[Cooking]] and [[Alchemy]] ticking. Taming XP is slow but it unlocks [[Breeding]] (at level 50) and extra expedition slots, so it's always worth chipping at.

== Fight and explore ==

* {{Icon|hunting}} '''[[Hunting]]''' is combat gathering: you kill game for [[Raw Meat|meat]], [[Hide]] and [[Bone]], taking damage each kill — so bring cooked food. Auto-eat keeps you topped up; match your meal to the prey.
* {{Icon|expeditions}} '''[[Expeditions]]''' are the backbone of long-term progress: auto-resolving runs into a [[Biomes|biome]], powered by your gear and companion party. Beating a biome's '''Guardian''' unlocks the next region, opening new resources, creatures and content.
* After you clear a biome you also unlock its '''[[Caves|cave]]''' (via [[Delving]]) and its '''[[Arenas|Arena]]''' — but those are mid-game concerns; don't rush them.

== Make it truly idle ==

Primal Idle rewards setting up '''passive''' income so progress rolls in while you're away:

* '''Offline progress''' runs for up to '''18 hours''' (raise the cap to 24h with the '''Offline Satchel''' in the [[Shop]]). Check in at least daily so you never sit idle past the cap.
* '''[[Companions#Hired hands (background gathering)|Hired hands]]''' — from [[Taming]] 25 you can set tamed dinos gathering in the background, alongside your main action.
* '''[[Homestead]]''' structures passively produce food and materials and boost your HP — build them up as Amber and materials allow.
* '''[[Dispatch]]''' sends idle stabled dinos on timed missions for loot (and now trains them too).
* '''[[Tribe]]''' (mid-game) adds a whole camp of workers gathering and crafting on their own clock.

== Where to spend your first Amber ==

Good early [[Shop]] priorities:

# '''Reinforced Vault''' — more [[Bank]] slots (rank 1 is only 500 Amber). A full Bank blocks new item types, so keep ahead of it.
# '''Offline Satchel''' — more hours of offline progress; pays for itself if you can't check in often.
# '''Sharpened Tools''' — +2% speed to all four gathering skills per rank.
# '''Sturdy Bandages''' / combat comforts once you start [[Hunting]] in earnest.

Skip the always-in-stock '''supplies''' unless you're in a pinch — they're a safety net, never a bargain.

== Common beginner tips ==

* '''Don't chase level 99 early.''' Breadth beats depth at the start — a little of every skill unlocks far more than one maxed skill.
* '''Keep food and tranquilizers stocked.''' Running out mid-hunt or mid-tame stalls your best activities.
* '''Sell aggressively.''' A [[Bank]] full of raw junk you'll never process is just Amber you haven't collected.
* '''Read the "While you were away" screen'''; it tells you exactly what your offline time earned.
* '''Match companions to what you're doing''' — a [[Mining]] buff helps while you mine, not while you fish.
* '''One save, one tab.''' Sign in to enable [[Gameplay#Saving your game|cloud saves]] so your progress is backed up and synced.

== A rough first-week checklist ==

# All four gathering skills off the ground, selling surplus for [[Amber]].
# [[Cooking]] and [[Alchemy]] producing food and [[Calming Tonic|tonics]].
# Your first two or three tames in the [[Stable]], one assigned as a [[Companions|companion]].
# First few [[Hunting]] kills and your first [[Expeditions|expedition]] Guardian attempt.
# First [[Homestead]] structures built; hired hands gathering in the background once [[Taming]] 25 lands.
# A handful of [[Shop]] upgrades (Bank slots + Offline Satchel first).

== Where to go next ==

* '''[[Mid-Game Guide]]''' — the natural next step, once your skills and party are rolling.
* '''[[Getting Started]]''' and '''[[Gameplay]]''' — the concepts and mechanics behind this walkthrough.
* '''[[Skills]]''' — every skill and what it does.
* '''[[Taming]]''', '''[[Expeditions]]''', '''[[Homestead]]''' — the three pillars of the mid-game.
* '''[[Biomes]]''' and '''[[Map]]''' — the world you're pushing into.

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