What's a few basic things I need to know about this website? And what is essence and all that other stuff?

This thread talks about a lot of stuff like that: Newbies: Forum Guide

I'd advise checking our library for lots of other useful information, like why some people's names are colored and any kind of technical issues you might encounter, like where to locate your profile settings.

Basically, it's a big forum and it might seem overwhelming at first, but it's pretty easy to pick up on once you've been around a while. You might want to start a thread in Introductions (if you haven't done so already) and our established members can be very helpful and friendly down there. Like any new forum, lurking a few days usually helps you to get the feel of a place before you actually post. You can pick up on mood and attitude and things like that. Of course, chances are, you've read a lot about us before you actually joined.

Our rules are currently off-line, unfortunately, but we expect you to follow them anyway. Basically be nice, fit in, but feel free to speak out. I think some of our rules are still visible in the FAQ, but those need updating. If you have any questions feel free to ask!

If there were star ratings, your post would get 5/5 from me:

While the Rules page is down, they are not lost. Attached is a copy of the rules as they'd appear in plain text.

If you got any more questions, drop me a PM, either by clicking the button at the bottom of any of my posts or through the UCP (the button at the top of the screen).

I moved your thread down, Reiyen, and was coming with a link, but you beat me to it. *sigh*

Welcome, Dri! You'll find we're overly helpful here sometimes!

*posts link anyway*
Link to Rules

Where is the community story?

It is located within this quite large room: Triterrus

I found one! Halellujah!