For New Players

• http://www.prisonblock.com/mentors

• Mentors volunteer to help new inmates learn the ropes. In exchange for their kindness, please show them respect.

• Ask them for help, but do not leech off of them. Do not beg or demand, they are NOT obligated to help you in ANY way.

• This is not an easy game when you are first starting, but there are a lot of resources all new players should get familiar with, before digging into the game, and especially before mailing and asking another random player for freebies.... http://www.prisonblock.com/tutorial, http://wiki.prisonblock.com/Main_Page, as well as all the stickies in each and every forum.
• I believe most mentors volunteered because they really did want to help keep new players excited about the game, and keep them coming back, but I'm not sure how many would be willing to send you money, items, or amenities when you've been playing for just a few hours, or even a few days and haven't had time to discover all that Prison Block has to offer.  However, if you've used the resources available to you, I think every one of us would be more than happy to answer any questions you still have.
• If the others are like me, we don't like to say no, or in more severe cases, ignore your mail all together, so don't be afraid to mail any of us, just try to put a bit of thought into what you want to ask.

• When someone does mail you asking for items or amenities, or creates a thread on the forums asking for items or amenities, it's not really appreciated to tell them to "contact a mentor".  If you want to help out yourself, I think that's great, talk to a mentor and arrange to have items or cash passed on to new players.  We will take care of it for you, but with anywhere between 4 and 40 mails a day, we can't possibly send things to every single person that contacts us, much less the ones that create a thread asking for help. 
• Mentors may help you send items to another player that you want to help out, but are under no obligation to do so.  We run the same risk as anyone if for some reason you are marked as dupes with that person.

• As it says, I've played this game for 1 year, 4 months.  I'm in the same time zone as game time, so depending on my schedule, i'm here off and on from 7am until 9 or 10pm.  I asked to become a mentor as soon as the opportunity was available, I was tired of playing hardcore every day, but I was still online most of the time, and have always enjoyed helping new players and watching as they grow over time.  I still look at everything very closely, so if you have any questions about making money or earning favors, questions about other players, training, raiding, or criming, I think I'm a good person to ask.

Q: will you send me xxxxxxx?

A: chances are, if you've been playing less than a week and/or i've never talked to you before, no. 

Q: will you send these items to xxxxxx for me?

A: unless i know you very well, no.  i won't risk getting myself in trouble for anyone.  even for basic items, i'd rather just use my own to avoid the trouble.  i will never send amenities to anyone.

Q: what is the best way to level up quickly?

A: don't be in such a rush.  level won't get you as far in this game as really understanding it will.  if you have to know, mug, but your stats will be awful for your level, and you'll make more enemies along the way than you want.

Q: how can i join a gang?

A: You'll get more invites than you want if you stay active, but take your time and join the right one.  Most good gangs won't recruit until you can at least make it out of New Jersey.  The really good ones won't bother until you can get to Arizona or South Dakota.

Q: Can i join your gang?

A: Definitely no talk to me again in a few months

Q: can you take care of xxxxxx for me?

A: no, i think every single person that's played here has taken their beatings at one time or another.  keep hitting the gym, get stronger than them, and you'll be surprised just how respectful people can be all of a sudden.

Q: can you mentor me?

A: this is the one i get most often, and of course the answer is yes, but i'd prefer if you gave me an actual question.  I do get a lot of mail every day, so playing 20 questions isn't one of my favorite things to do.

In closing, welcome to all the new players.  You have found one of the most in depth games and addictive games on the internet, and you can pretty much abandon all hope, but you're also going to have a lot of fun while you're here, and I do look forward to helping some of you find half as much enjoyment as i've gotten out of Prison Block.