This may sound stupid but...

marianfaunus

Where do I go to make a character?

I've downloaded the client successfully, the icon is there, but I don't know where to go to make my character.

gattsuru

Bring up the Launcher with the desktop icon. Use the Launcher's setting button to increase your resolution to at least 800x600. After that's done, hit the Start button on the Launcher to bring up the ElementClient.

From the client, you'll want to hit the "Next" button to close the Notice window, and if you have not done so already, select a server. Then put in your username and password, and hit start.

That'll bring you to the character selection/creation screen. Mine goes to the Untamed area and has a Barbarian because I've already played one, but yours will likely have an empty vista of Etherblade or the City of Plume. Yours also won't have a red arrow pointing to the Create Character button, although I wish it did. Click that button.

In the resulting screen, you'll want to set a name, select your species, gender, and class, and even customize your appearance. Continue past that to get your character in-game.

What you'll want to do is look for nearby characters with a Gold or Bronze shield over their heads. This indicates they can offer a quest to you. Not all quests can be completed as soon as they're offered, but most are extremely rewarding, so it's a good idea to at least know what quests are available. Double-click on them to talk to them, and if they have multiple things to talk about, look for Quest Related or options in their Dialog box to find more quest information.

You can also use the Quest Log ("q" key) to track your current quests, and use the Quest Finder to get pointers to other quest-giving NPCs looking for help.