Greetings, Adventurers!
Now is the perfect time to play New World, especially if you’re new to the game. Aeternum continues to evolve through new features like mounts, progression changes, and improved open world PvP. Each change was a result of player feedback. Returning players might not recognize these revamped shores or systems, but the fresh experience makes New World even more enjoyable.
We partnered with a variety of New World content creators to help new and returning players ease into Rise of the Angry Earth. Whether you’re curious about additional weapons, modes, storylines, areas, or features, here’s everything you need to know for your next trip to the Eternal Isle.
New Player Tips
“New World had a rough start with a lot of bugs,” ArsheeTV said. “Some remain, but the heart of the game is still really fun. There's a lot to do now and the combat system is second to none. New players today can experience New World how it was supposed to be at launch.”
Revamped Main Storyline
“My favorite part about the Revamped Starting Experience and main storyline has to be the story, quest, and cinematic changes,” ArsheeTV said. “At first there was a need to rush to endgame ahead of everyone else. Now you can enjoy even better progression at your own pace.”
Almost every zone was overhauled based on player feedback. The few remaining original zones will be revamped in future releases. Here’s what to expect:
Start the adventure with friends: Players spawn in one of several zones at the beginning of the game. Head to a friend’s location to play early quests together.
Multiple ways for solo and group players to progress: There are different objectives for certain quests that give you the option to remain solo or join a group of players depending on your preferred experience.
Diverse objectives to keep gameplay fresh: Objectives range from puzzle and traversal challenges to unique interactions with the world and dynamic events. There’s always something new to find.
An epic adventure surrounding the mysteries of Aeternum: Conquer new enemies, obstacles, and locations to reveal the truth about the Eternal Isle.
“I recently finished the revamped level 1-40 main story experience and it is so much better than when the game released,” LiamH said.
Progression
“Whether you play solo or with friends, reaching level 60 has never been quicker,” ArsheeTV said. “You’ll get to level 60 in less than a week from just the main storyline quests. If you wish to quickly catch up to your friends at level 60, they can power level you, but I don’t recommend it. New players should take their time and enjoy their first experience in Aeternum.”
Don’t Feel Overwhelmed
“There will be a ton of quests on the screen whenever you open the map,” ArsheeTV said. “Don’t fret and instead focus on the main story. Remember, you can always tackle side quests later if you truly want to complete them. Spoiler alert you won’t need anything from many side quests until you hit max level (base game). Quests after you hit level 60 will be more important than the previous low-level quests which were only there to support your growth to max level.”
“Have fun and explore. If you hit a wall, feel free to tune into Twitch streams and ask creators questions. You’ll get feedback quicker than any other platform. Enjoy the game at your own pace and remember to DODGE!“
Combat and Weapons
There are 15 unique weapons waiting for you to wield. Find your favorite with these recommendations:
“Use every weapon to figure out the pros, cons, and feel of each one,” LiamH said. “There may be a fair few combos to try, but you can equip different weapons on the same character.”
“When it comes to combat, New World has a healthy mix of choices, both on the PvE and PvP side,” EternalHazard said. When preparing to go into a fight, whether it's against other players or the legions of opposing forces across Aeternum, it's important to prepare beforehand. Make sure you have plenty of potions and always maintain your “well-fed” buff at the very least. Be sure to pick a weapon that you're comfortable with when approaching difficult content, and if something seems too difficult to do solo, don't feel bad about asking for help.“
Looking for the right time to strike? “Combat offers brief windows of opportunity that you can take advantage of,“ FusionThunder said. ”Whenever a player is in the midst of an animation, that's your chance to land a stun or an interrupt.“
Factions
Each of the game’s three Factions have their own unique style and beliefs. Membership comes with a few Perks like the ability to flag yourself for PvP in the open world and join Companies.
“Factions are the lifeblood of New World, with all three having their own unique quests and vendors,” EternalHazard said. “Joining one of them gives you a slew of potential allies in your open world PvP fights and War pushes to gain Faction Influence. If you aren't interested in PvP, then Faction choice isn't as crucial since players of any Faction can group together for PvE (and most instanced PvP content), so choose whichever one you like. If you find that you'd rather play as a different one down the road, you can swap every 60 days.”
“The main thought that should go into a Faction choice is whether there are people in that Faction that you want to play with. Whether it's friends, family, or even your favorite streamer, those will be your allies as long as you're under the same color banner. Since there's relatively few differences between the three, the choice isn't one you need to stress too much.”
Companies
Companies are player-run organizations that may take control of Aeternum’s Settlements. Here’s how to navigate them.
“As someone who's been in a bunch of different Companies of all shapes and sizes, I'd say being in a Company doesn't really give any advantages other than putting a name behind the group of people you play with,” EternalHazard said. “While large scale Companies often participate in Wars for territory control, the groups are fairly exclusive and require a significant amount of playtime, experience, and gear to join. New players shouldn't expect to participate in a lot of Wars. Outside of that, Companies simply exist as a social space for you and the people you choose to play with.”
PvP Content
Jump into these PvP modes for a chance at more than just bragging rights:
3v3 Arenas
Coordinate with your team to wipe out the enemy team. The last one standing wins.
Outpost Rush
Gain control of fortifications and resources in this 20v20 game mode for max-level players.
Influence Races
Capture Influence Towers and strike down enemy Factions in open world combat for territorial supremacy.
Wars
Lay siege to an enemy Fort or defend yours from an enemy Company.
Open World PvP
Flag for PvP combat throughout Aeternum, but watch out for enemy Factions.
PvE Content
Throughout your journey, you’ll come across the following PvE options:
Expeditions
These five-player instanced challenges will take Adventurers to the darkest corners of Aeternum. Coordinate with your team to face dire threats, learn more about the source of Corruption, expose the Angry Earth’s ulterior motives, reveal the deeper menace behind the Lost, and delve into the secrets of the ancient Guardians.
Mutations
Mutations are more difficult versions of Expeditions. Overcome modifiers, curses, and more for even greater rewards. The Rise of the Angry Earth expansion is required to play Mutations.
Elite Zones
Encounter some of Aeternum's toughest adversaries in dangerous areas throughout the Eternal Isle.
Events
There are many seasonal events like Nightveil Hallow, Turkey Terror, and Siege of Sulfur that feature open world activities. Defend enemy gauntlets, topple giant bosses, and more for event-specific rewards.
Trade Skills
Trade Skills are non-combat related skills that fall into one of three categories: Crafting, Gathering, and Refining. Skills like Musical Instruments, Mining, and Cooking all have separate levels. These skills help you complete quests, gain experience, defeat enemies, and generate Coin through New World’s economy.
“Gather everything you see for your Trade Skills,” LiamH said. “Mine each node and regularly chop down trees because those items are needed to kick start your Crafting.”
“Don’t rush to sell your stuff,” DeathzHunter said. “Buy orders are sometimes way cheaper than the item cost.”
Join the Community
“From my experience, new players are generally welcomed in New World,” EternalHazard said. “Asking a question in global or help channels in game usually gets several helpful responses and many players go out of their way to offer help with gear, quests, and resources.”
“You’re not in this alone,” Savvvo said. “Utilize the team chats because chances are, someone else in your server is trying to do the same quest or activity.”
“This is a community based game,” Tinker_Balambao said. “Take the time to help others. Your leveling and min/maxing is secondary. For example, I keep an eye out for people asking for help in global, and make an effort to run training Expeditions for new folks.”
Play Your Way
“The biggest piece of advice I can give new players is that there is no wrong way to play New World,” EternalHazard said. “Whether you want to rush to endgame, PvP or gather resources and decorate one of your in-game houses, the best way to play is the one that you enjoy the most.”
Returning Player Tips
“Remember the annoyances that led up to you leaving the game before and see how they feel now,“ FCDoomsday said. ”Most of the snag points around Crafting, gear, grouping, levelling and endgame activities have either been improved or replaced.“
Should I Make a New Character or Resume my Journey
“Like picking up a book or resuming a TV series you haven't watched in awhile, returning to New World (or any game) can leave you feeling a bit lost,” BagginsTV said. “But you can give yourself a great recap on what's what by levelling up a new character. The new questing experience is so much fun that I highly recommend getting back into New World by levelling a fresh character up.”
“It really depends on what is important to you as a player,” Jayoddity said. “If you have a character that is a relatively high level, I would personally suggest jumping in on that character to enjoy the expansion with other players in a similar situation. However if you have a low level character, then restarting and enjoying the new Main Story Quests with the improved levelling is not a bad option.”
Is it Daunting to Return
“New World has made many changes that mean picking up the game after launch isn’t overly daunting,” Jayoddity said. “The levelling process has been sped up, which means you will catch up in no time and have fun doing so. There are many positive changes in the expansion that also improve endgame content and make New World a good option for all MMO players.”
Will Returning Players have Viable Gear
“New World is about to be updated with its first expansion,” Jayoddity said. “All players are going to be searching for new equipment and joining that journey is part of the most fun you can have in MMOs. This type of vertical progression has rarely happened in New World. Gear that you acquired in the game’s early release has been theoretically very usable up until the expansion. The only changes would be if the meta changed or you wanted to try a new build. The expansion functions somewhat like a soft reset but that is what creates the most fun experiences.”
Players without the expansion will also have an easier time catching up. “The removal of Expertise in the next update will definitely improve the catch up for most players,” xVBlackSwanXv said. That just leaves gear acquisition without the 2-3 week grind for Expertise.”
Weapon Balance
“All weapons have been somewhat usable in most situations and when this has not been the case the developers have reacted quickly and addressed the issues,” Jayoddity said. “Obviously perfect balance is an impossible goal and likely would be an unfun gaming experience but in general most weapons are viable.”
“Whilst every weapon is viable, not every weapon combination is viable. However in the upcoming expansion there’s an addition of a new type of gear called “Artifacts”. Not everything is known about these but there is a Great Axe for example that scales using Intelligence rather than Strength, which will open up some possible crazy, magical melee combinations.”
“Don’t feel pressured to only play meta builds,” xVBlackSwanXv said. “Get excited to try new builds, take notes on what works and revamp what doesn’t. Build the setup you enjoy playing and never let anyone tell you how to enjoy the game.”
Mutated Expedition Changes
Developer Note 9/25: "Initially we considered changing to a weekly limit of 100 Mutation runs a week, this was due to planned changes to the amount of loot that would be dropping (i.e. a reduction) and the removal of Umbral Shards. After consideration regarding the amount of loot dropped per expedition (maintaining a high level of drops) and testing we are instead raising this limit to 35 due to the impact on other parts of progression and economy, and we will continue to monitor."
To further improve Mutations as an endgame activity, we’ve revamped the experience for level 65 players. As a result, you will need to purchase Rise of the Angry Earth and max out your character level to enter Mutated Expeditions. Based on player feedback, Mutations will have 3 difficulties and a weekly limit of 100 Mutations. This added accessibility means less time waiting for groups and more opportunities for players to help less experienced Adventurers.
xVBlackSwanXv shared some tips to increase your chances of earning more desirable endgame rewards like Artifacts through Mutations. “Be tilt proof, think about how you can make it through each obstacle, and always communicate” xVBlackSwanXv said. “Positioning can make or break Mutation runs.”
Notable Features
Gear Set Storage
Previously, players would have to manually swap their equipment, piece by piece, sometimes during Expeditions. Now you can save your favorite sets and swap instantly. “I use Gear Sets every single day to switch between different playstyles, like tank, healer, and DPS,” BagginsTV said. “Changing all of my armor, weapons, consumables and jewelry with the click of a button is very satisfying.”
Content and Quality of Life Improvements
“Cross-Server Outpost Rush, Leaderboards, the removal of Expedition Keys, the addition of Group Finder, the new Ennead and Empyrean Forge Expeditions, connected storage sheds, the list is goes on,“ BagginsTV said. ”New World has improved so much since release, but for me I love a good Expedition run - all of the changes that made Expeditions more accessible (and added new ones with amazing boss fights) go down as my top picks."
Heartrunes
“The Brimstone Sands update has been one of my favorites so far,” BagginsTV said. “The addition of the Heartrune allowed me to further "expand" my character's loadout, equipping different Heartrunes depending on what challenges I faced. "Stoneform" in particular has saved me in many tough fights."
Help Forge the Future of New World
“Community feedback is crucial to keep the game moving in the right direction,” xVBlackSwanXv said. “Don’t be afraid to use the “Submit Feedback” feature, or take advantage of the Discord to contact the devs with suggestions. I can’t stress enough – our voices are being heard.“
Featured Guests
Make sure to follow each content creator for more guides, tips, and other original New World content:
Let us know your thoughts on starting or continuing your adventure. Thanks for your support! We’ll see you in Aeternum.