> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.pawtato.gg/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.pawtato.gg/pawtato-land/gameplay/heroes/starter-hero.md).

# Starter Hero

Every player gets one free Starter Hero to begin with — here is what it can do, when it retires, and how to make it permanent.

When you create your first Hero, Pawtato Land hands you a **Starter Hero** free of charge: one per account, ever. You choose its class, fur tone and expression; it arrives already deployed in the game, equipped with a training weapon, and ready to adventure. Its card and detail panel carry a **Starter Hero** badge (an **S** pill on the smaller cards) so you can always tell it apart from a Hero NFT.

The Starter Hero is there to get you playing without spending anything. It fights, quests, fishes, mines and harvests exactly like any other Hero — but it is not an NFT, and that shapes everything below.

## What a Starter Hero cannot do

* **It cannot be recalled to your wallet.** There is no token behind it, so it can never be unstaked or withdrawn to Sui.
* **It cannot be listed** on the [Marketplace](/pawtato-land/gameplay/marketplace-and-exchange/marketplace.md).
* **It cannot be sent on** [**Patrol**](/pawtato-land/gameplay/heroes/patrol.md).
* **It does not unlock the economy actions.** Selling, converting resources into TATO and transfers stay closed while the Starter Hero is the only Hero on your account — see [Marketplace & Exchange](/pawtato-land/gameplay/marketplace-and-exchange.md) for the full list. Buying is open to everyone.
* **It cannot** [**Pledge**](/pawtato-land/gameplay/heroes/pledge.md) **to another Player.**
* **It does not count towards the Hero-staking** [**badges**](/pawtato-land/gameplay/achievements.md). Those are awarded for depositing Hero NFTs into the game.

## Retirement

The Starter Hero is a starting point, not a permanent extra body. The moment your account holds a **real Hero** — a Hero NFT you bought, deposited from your wallet or minted, or an upgraded Starter Hero — the free Starter Hero **retires** and stops being playable.

A retired Starter Hero is locked out of the [Proving Grounds](/pawtato-land/gameplay/adventure/proving-grounds.md), [Dungeons](/pawtato-land/gameplay/adventure/dungeons.md), the [Arena](/pawtato-land/gameplay/player-vs.-player/arena.md), [Assignments](/pawtato-land/gameplay/adventure/assignments.md), daily [Quests](/pawtato-land/gameplay/adventure/quests.md), the [Ascension](/pawtato-land/gameplay/heroes/ascension.md) Quest, [Fishing](/pawtato-land/gameplay/adventure/fishing.md), [Mining](/pawtato-land/gameplay/adventure/mining.md) and [Herbalism](/pawtato-land/gameplay/adventure/herbalism.md). The game tells you which action was blocked and points you at your other Heroes.

{% hint style="info" %}
Retirement is not deletion. The Hero stays on your roster with everything it earned, and **upgrading** brings it straight back into play.
{% endhint %}

## Upgrading your Starter Hero

Paying **TATO** turns your free Starter Hero into a permanent, purchased Hero. It **keeps its level, stats, equipment and name**, and gains full playing rights:

* It **never retires** — it keeps playing alongside every other Hero you own.
* It can be sent on [**Patrol**](/pawtato-land/gameplay/heroes/patrol.md) to earn [Influence](/pawtato-land/gameplay/land-nft/influence.md).
* It unlocks the **economy actions** on its own, the same way a Genesis Hero does: selling on the Marketplace, placing sell orders on the [Exchange](/pawtato-land/gameplay/marketplace-and-exchange/exchange.md), converting resources into TATO, and transferring resources and items to other players.
* It can [**Pledge**](/pawtato-land/gameplay/heroes/pledge.md) to another Player.
* If it had already retired, upgrading **puts it straight back into play** across every adventure surface.

{% hint style="warning" %}
**An upgrade buys playing rights, not an NFT.** An upgraded Starter Hero still cannot be listed on the Marketplace and still cannot be withdrawn to your wallet. If you want a tradeable, withdrawable Hero, buy a **Hero NFT** instead.
{% endhint %}

### What the upgrade costs

The price is read from the market: it tracks the **lowest Hero sale on the Marketplace over the last few days**, and is never allowed to fall below a minimum floor. That floor is pegged to a fixed baseline value and **scales with the live TATO price**, so it holds its worth as TATO moves. The exact number is always shown in-game before you confirm.

Only **sellable TATO** can pay for the upgrade — soulbound TATO (onboarding rewards and the like) cannot. If your sellable balance is short, the confirm screen offers a shortcut to swap or buy more TATO.

### How to upgrade (step by step)

1. Open [**Hero Management**](https://pawtato.gg/?hm=1) and select your **Starter Hero**, or open its detail panel from the Hero sidebar.
2. Click **Upgrade Hero**. The confirm screen lists exactly what the upgrade unlocks for you right now, shows the Hero, and states the price.
3. Check the price and your TATO balance. If you are short, use the swap shortcut on the screen to top up first.
4. Confirm. The Hero's **Starter Hero** badge disappears and it plays like any other Hero from that moment on.

## Inactive accounts

If an account holding **only** the free Starter Hero — no other real Hero and no Land — goes completely quiet for **14 days**, its onboarding grants are reclaimed: the free Hero, the equipment and skill scrolls the game handed out during onboarding, and any **soulbound** balances. Anything you bought, deposited or earned as sellable is untouched, and an upgraded Starter Hero is never reclaimed.

Simply logging in and playing keeps the clock reset.