Beginners' guide to Terraria on iOS and Android - tips and tricks inside

Side-scrolling craft-'em-up Terraria can be a pretty intimidating experience for a new player.

Everything's out to kill you, nothing is made very obvious, and your useless guide just offers cryptic advice that's no good to anyone. And if you don't figure things out by nightfall, the zombies will get you.

So, let Pocket Gamer be your guide, instead. Here are some expert tips for starting out in Terraria. We start with a step-by-step breakdown to making your first house and getting the right tools.

Plus, we list some general tips to keep in mind when you leave your home behind and wander out into the weird wastelands of this randomly generated planet. Good luck!

Get wood - Getting wood should be your first priority when you touch down in the world of Terraria. It's the most important material for the items you'll need at the very start of the game.

To get wood, equip your axe and hold your finger on a tree. After a couple of seconds, the tree will explode and shower wood on your heads. Oh, and aim your axe at the very base to avoid leaving stumps.

Build a work bench - Once you have ten pieces of wood, you can make a workbench, which enables you to craft bigger and better stuff. Make the bench, put it in your inventory, and place it at the site of your new home. Build a house - Now, you need to build a home. Use your pickaxe to level out some ground, and get building. A home needs a background wall (so craft lots of wood wall blocks), two walls (wood or dirt will do), and a ceiling.

Now you'll be safe from monsters while stood inside.

Dig out the bottom three tiles on one wall and place a door. Now you have easy access in and out.

You should probably build your first home close to your original spawn point. Why? Because until you start building beds, you'll always return to the same spawn spot when you die.

Watch out, though: your guide will wander about near the spawn point, carelessly opening doors and letting monsters inside your new house.

Kill some slimes - Next, use your sword or pickaxe to kill slimes. These guys drop gel when they die, which you can use (along with wood) to craft torches. Place these on the walls to light your new abode. Get some stone - Your next essential item is a furnace, but you'll need some stone to craft it. Wander left or right until you find some stone. You won't have to dig deep, as stone often rests on the very surface.

Dig some out with your pickaxe. Once you have 20 stone blocks, return to the workbench and craft a furnace. You can now smelt ore - like copper and iron - to make stronger materials.

Find iron - Speaking of iron, it's now your new target. This stuff will enable you to make more powerful versions of all your basic copper tools.

It can be hard to distinguish iron from stone. Iron looks slightly darker than stone, has a subtle brown tint, and sparkles in sunlight. You might need to dig a little underground to find a rich iron ore vein.

Now, smelt some iron bars in your furnace, and use those bars to build an anvil in your house. Use the anvil to make a new pickaxe and sword. A broadsword, that is. Shortswords are tricky to wield, especially on iOS and Android.

Explore! - You now have a base of operations, with all the main crafting stations. You have a more powerful pickaxe, and a better sword for fending off monsters. You are ready to wander off into the vast unknown of your randomly generated Terraria world.

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Here are some tips for beginner players to help you get the most out of your adventure...

Make beds - You can turn cobwebs, which you can grab from dungeons and caves, into silk with a loom. A workbench enables you to turn silk and wood into a bed. Now, you can place this down to create a new spawn point - even deep underground. Get a grappling hook - Grappling hooks are a fan favourite. To make your own, simply kill a skeleton for the hook and craft the chain from three iron blocks. Find chests - Chests in dungeons contain rare items, like the magic mirror and the breathing reed. Once you've emptied a chest, use a hammer to dislodge the chest and put it in your pocket. You now have a free chest for one of your homes. Build a chest - and store your money in it. Why? You lose half the cash in your pockets when you die, but your fortune is safe if kept inside a chest. Keep it locked up until you find a good use for it. Build armour - but only after making tools. You need tonnes of iron for helmets, chainmail, and greaves, so spend it on swords and pickaxes before hats and shoes. Get sand - and turn it into glass to make bottles. These can hold various potions, with lots of different effects. Build bridges and steps - If you come across an incredibly deep canyon, an impassable mountain, or a massive chasm, you can use excess dirt blocks to fashion bridges and platforms.