[One, Two, Middlesboogie]

I registered with Bitlocker ages ago (when the forums were still Ezboard) so I know how that works. It's all the stats and Moolah that are confusing me. Are they required outside of battles?
Obviously, I'll have to tag onto a storyline, since that's the whole point of the RPG, but where would be the best place for me to go? Are newbies expected to start a new storyline going, or what?
As you can all tell, I'm deeply confused and really need enlightening.