<![CDATA[Meaning-Making: Letters to a Noob]]>https://www.jibranelbazi.com/s/lettershttps://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!cYyX!,w_256,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fd4ca69f3-32f3-4369-b660-ae5098807593_128x128.pngMeaning-Making: Letters to a Noobhttps://www.jibranelbazi.com/s/lettersSubstackWed, 13 May 2026 14:36:03 GMT<![CDATA[Use your damn potions, Noob]]>https://www.jibranelbazi.com/p/use-your-damn-potions-noobhttps://www.jibranelbazi.com/p/use-your-damn-potions-noobThu, 24 Apr 2025 18:01:25 GMT
Photo by Jan Ranft

Hey Noob,1

I peeked into your inventory the other day.

Full stack of health potions, exotic elixers for concentration, willpower, mana—your current build doesn’t even use magic, by the way—and even a few rare buffs I haven’t seen since patch 2.3.

All untouched. Perfectly preserved… to do what, set up shop?

Look, I get it.

You think you’ll need them for an even bigger fight. For the “real” boss. For that moment when you’ll finally feel “worthy” to pop the good stuff. You’re so convinced that what lies ahead is more difficult than what’s in front of you, so you think it’s better not to waste anything now. Careful. Efficient…

Fearful, really.

You know, some players go entire campaigns stocking up. Hoarding resources, plan’n to use them, but never using them. They grind through every zone with only 50 HP, reluctantly suffering damage-over-time, shamefully begging others for buffs, all because they’re afraid to use what they’ve been given.

Then one day, they arrive at the final cutscene… You know what happens to all those potions and items?

They vanish together with the credits.

You can’t take them into the endgame or your next character. There is no bonus XP for finishing the game full of unused potential, man. All you get to keep is how you played the game and who you helped along the way.

And what’s more: the buffs you’re sitting on? They aren’t just for you…

Some are designed to be shared: area-of-effect healing, group teleports, and damn, even three elixers of resurrection that you can’t even use on yourself. You keeping that stuff “just in case” is costing your whole damn party.

The good news? You’ve had enough stuff to press forward for a while now.

You’re merely afraid.

The even better news? It’s not too late to start using them.

So drop a heal, share the buffs, take the risks, and enjoy the journey. Stop acting like the game is meant to be survived instead of being played.

Use your damn potions, Noob.

—From your frequently deceased mentor who’s still rooting for you,
Respawn Rick

So, what do you think of this format? Did you like it? Was it weird? Or refreshing? Did you recognize yourself in this, in gaming in real life? Let me know!

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Cheers,

Jibran

1

With this post, I’m trying something different. It is a “letter” to a “noob.” A player who just started playing the game (of life).

It’s part of a series I’ve been contemplating writing for a few years now—a series where I share life lessons through the perspective of a game. But I didn’t know what format (think: essays, poetry, letters…) to write these in yet.

But then I came across CS Lewis’ amazing "Screwtape Letters,” where he writes satirical letters from the perspective of a “mentor” (called Uncle Screwtape) to a budding “minion of the devil” (called Wormwood). And then it clicked!

So this is the first installment of “Letters to a Noob.”

Letters to a Noob is a subsection of my newsletter where you can read the letters the Noob receives from Respawn Rick—a slightly bitter, long-retired gaming veteran—on how the Noob can better play the game (of life).

Enjoy!

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