Welcome to torn, this game, it's fun. It's addictive. It will consume your life. I play at work, home, and at night. In you're free time when your not playing you'll be thinking about it, how to make money, how to level effectively, that guy who keep placing $1 bounties on you... But you will look at all the guides out there, reading an studing like its a final examine. I know I did. Many sources cite that there is no xp bar, or how much do you get from certain tasks. However I made 15 in 37 days, I had set backs and some road blocks. This is my first account, and I was experimenting.
Many sources say "just take Xanax an hot the gym, attack inactives, drink an smoke an do crime" yet people who are doing that are about 60 days in and still level 11. I don't recommend drug use, or the "enhancers" before 15. You can take them, but don't do it often. Sure Xanax gives you 250 energy, but trashes stats, most drugs trash stats. Makes you weaker for fighting. Now you can take a xanax, and hold the energy.
example: your faction is at war, you want to chain attacks, log on when you have full energy, let's say it's 100 cause you can't buy a donator pack, you take a xanax, you now have 350 energy. Wait 8 hours, you'll battle stats won't have a negative modifier. This does require planing, I would talk to you're faction leader, an have everyone stack energy like this for a couple days before war, then start war. Steam roll them with chains they can't keep up with.
As a warning, and faction that pushes Xanax on noobs, to farm chains for respect, is sketchy. They don't care about you, they are trying to farm respect to sell their faction. Especially if they are in war 24/7. And they pay you based on war hits not contribution.
Example: let's say you win the war with 1000 respect by you're faction. The winings are 300mil. They do 500k a hit an you did 10 hits. That's 5 mil they are paying you. But you helped in chains and got 100 respect. You did 10% contribution. 10% of 300mil is 30mil... Think about. You have a high addiction rate now. You spent the better part of 3 days in the hospital. Could really do much, not stat leveling, no crimes really, an he's pocketing most of it. Is that fair? No. Now I'm not taking into consideration expenses, like Xanax and heals. Respect with wars not hits. Leave any faction you feel is using you there are better ones.
24/7 wars will stunt you're level, some wars with prep can actually help you. You have to be prepared.
With that said there are 6 categories I feel with help you. I call them: attacks, Battle stats, work stats, merrits and honors, crimes, missions, These can build off of each other an help you. Especially make you money.
Attacks; it's self explanatory, you'll need roughly 240-260 attacks, never mug or hospitalize, it gives less exp, tbh mugging doesn't pay much. Just attack an leave.
Battle stats; all they stats you get from the gym. Just work out daily, multiple times a day. You should always go to the next gym when you can. Except ones that don't train all stats, youll be catching up on them if you do that an neglect a stat. You should have roughly 950 in strength, speed, defense and dexterity. You can try an favor one, but I recommend that after 15, have a good base of stats before you specialize, like the foundation to house. Make yourself stable. Or you'll crumble like drywall.
Work stats; they are labor, endurance an intelligence. The only way to level them is buy working or college, always have some course going, you can take a bunch of beginner courses they are 7 days to complete. You should throw merrits into education reduction to make it go by faster. Join a player owner company, not a npc job. Player owned will not only pay more buy has better perks an will train those stats quicker. You're combined work stats should be about 1200.
Merrits and honors; these are like achievements, you can get merrits to unlock perks. Hunt them in your free time. There are many guides out there. I had about 85 merrits, most were in education.
Crimes; these are good ways to make money... An exp....even merrits. Try an do at least 100 crimes of each, you get honors for it. To make good cash, search the junk yard between Sunday -tuesdays. (I'll explain later) You should have completed about 1700 crimes.
Missions; DO ALL missions you can. They give exp an some cash, and you can use the mission points to buy stuff you can use or sell. George's missions are easy, dukes are okay... You'll realize how much of a senial boomer Duke is. It's worth the frustration.
Now with that said we have a idea of what we should be at to reach 15, it's not perfect. You may have slightly different stats. I feel these categories are a sliding scale, you can focus on one, more than the other and get to 15. But the balance can help.
Making money; yeah I know you want to know how to make cash to get a full set of combat armour. Like I mentioned above, junkyard! The items you get from the junkyard sell for a lot, like o2 tanks, kerosene, hydrogen tank and diesel. They are used in arson. Never, and I repeat, NEVER, LIST ANY ITEM UNDER THE PLAYER MARKET PRICE. read that again, an again, you are losing money, always make the price at least $100 -$150 higher. When you under sell everyone losses money. At some point someone will attack you or bounty you. Don't be that guy. Good way to make money, buy blank DVDs from super store, you can max out at 100 for $80. That's $8k . You then can sell for $750 Each. That's ~$70k after fees. You've made about 9x you initial i vestment.
Easy merrits; you're first mill donate it to the church, you'll get 2 merrits. It's worth it. Attack dominodom, that's a merit, get married, doing missions will give you a merit, if you take 4 Xanax an get 1000 energy stored that's a merit.
Factions; find a good helpful faction that will help you not stunt you. Always do organized crimes in the faction, they pay well. Also factions can unlock perks an boosts.
Player owned companies; they an stat boosts are worth it. All you have to do is exist. The job points you get every day you can spend to get some nice items or boost, there's guides on what each company gives based off of type. Just don't be inactive long than 3 days an have over 10% addiction rate, they will send you a message about it to try an get you to fix yourself, if you don't they will fire you.
Why I advise against drugs; they are expensive. Weed an beer are okay on occasion, they have a low addiction rate. Xanax and others have a high rate, everyday you're addiction rate goes down, but not a lot... Now after level 15 you can travel to exotic places other than torn. One place has rehab. Sweden. Other than that you'll have to sweat it out. An if you overdose you'll be set back about a day, you're stats and happiness will crash. So with low stats that have negative modifier , being less profitable for your company, being broke. You've set yourself back a couple days. Use them responsibly.
This how I got to level 15 in 37 days, I could have made it sooner if did somethings different. Some levels are harder than other. If you fine a level hard to get out of see what category you are low in and focus on that. Trust me bro I'm a random guy on the Internet