have been invited by Paul Shaffer to join you

Malcolm, who plays Kwildar, took this path.  He's recovering from eye surgery, so he's offline for a bit, but I can comment for him as he did this with his character.

Coming in as a Commoner definitely lets you learn through good Role-Play, and can be a lot of fun.  However, it also means it will be several months before your character is as "useful" as a regular starting character, because they will need to learn all the pre-requisite skills before they can begin learning things like how to use a sword or cast a spell.  You would need to learn a class your first game, the pre-requisites the second game, and then learn the skills you want the third game, meaning it won't be until the 3rd game before you could swing a weapon (Which don't have a pre-requisite), or the 4th game that you could cast spells or prayers.  Also, some classes require you to start as that class, like Healer or Dragoon - you cannot choose to become one later, since they are "in the blood."

If you don't mind waiting that long to get in on the action, it's a great way to ease into the game, and role-play learning to become a hero.  But if you're looking to get involved in the adventure sooner, it is advised you pick a starting class.

Hopefully that helps!

Thank you for the welcome, Gwynned. I am glad your husband (OOG) invited me and my family to join. We are looking forward to meeting you and experiencing all the fun.

Best,
Ember

(oog name Elaine Hughes Jenson) :-*