I began with using Pop!, especially if you have a nVidia card it will streamline a lot of the problems and dependencies of having a nVidia GPU.
As for the terminal it’s a really powerful tool. You can totally wipe your system if you put in the wrong sudo command, or edit files in your root directory. The usual commands like cd (change directory), ls (list files and folders) are essential when you navigate through your file system. CodeCademy has a bash learning program which will go through the basics.
Remember to not run a super user (sudo) command if you’re not sure what it does. That also goes for changing files that are not in your home directory. I borked my first two installs, so in the beginning: backup essential files and keep trying, there is also no shame in reinstalling the entire OS.
Feel free to reach out if you have any more specific questions!
Nobody mentioning the Xenoblade series? If you like long JRPGs with 100s of hours of gameplay look at Xenoblade Chronicles 2 and 3!!! Recommend starting with the second one, but it’s not neccesary to play them back to back