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Newbie Tips
Original article written by Cindy Saunders posted 10 years 3 weeks agoAs a freshly graduated newbie I want to pass on a few tips to hopefully help out the next crew that comes along. First off I want to plug SIMperior. If you can afford it your Sim life will be so much easier and profitable.
Next is the how often can I train and race my horses? My advice is you can train one time per week. This can either be Galloping, /Timed Training/Schooling/Walking/Swimming or performing Longe Line training. The catch is only once per week no matter which you use. In other words do NOT train a horse on Monday and then come back and Gallop on Tuesday. If you train on Monday you are done until next Monday for that horse. Side note, Saturday/Sunday and Monday all count as Monday in Sim time.
How often can I race? I suggest once every 3 weeks. If you race on week 1 then your next planned race should be week 4. After you get some experience you can occasionally race with 2 weeks rest but I do not recommend it until you get some racing under your belt. Also treat workouts similar to races. You do not want to work out and then race the next week. Example: workout week 10-11-12 (which is OK) then race week 13 (not OK). Allow at least 1 rest week between workouts and racing. Two if you had a long string of workouts. Also, check the dates of races when entering; I once entered a horse in a race a followed that up with a race the following week, I was not paying close enough attention to the week of the race. While the game sort of looks out for Newbies, because I was not watching closely enough, my error injured my horse and cost me several thousands of dollars in vet charges.
Ask for a Mentor. I did not and I had to learn way too many things the hard way. There is a thread in the forums just for that purpose. Be patient as Mentors are in high demand and many times get hooked up with a new player who asks a few questions and then eventually decides, for whatever reasons the game is not for them and leaves. Most Mentors like to work with one New Player at a time.
What should you expect from a Mentor? They will gladly answer your questions. Hopefully pass on their knowledge and give you tips on how to play the game and improve. My personal experience with many of the folks that are active Mentors has been fantastic! What should you NOT expect from a Mentor? You should not expect your Mentor to give you money, horses or points. You will be expected to invest your own time into learning the game, particularly the breeding aspect. I cannot stress enough that to succeed in the Sim just like any other endeavor in life it takes time and dedication. I refer to an old phrase that goes “The more time I invest, the luckier I seem to get” or something like that…lol!
Acquiring horses is critical for new players. You are given a generous head start in your Sim life by the Steward. You get a nice chunk of money to start with and several booster shots of more money as time passes. You also get almost free room and board for your first 20 week. You only pay the weekly stable rate which should be insignificant for a Newbie. You should scour the New Player page in the Sales area daily looking for cheap horses. “Alexandra Jaysman” almost always has nice race-able horses for sale for $1000. Sometimes very good horses get slipped in from a dispersal. Also many veteran players drop very nice horses in just for the Newbies. The harder you work at it the better horses you can get!