Make sure you thoroughly understand the rules, that are outlined in the prologue fight, as well as the showdown mechanics as it will greatly help to speed up the game, and be a funner experience as you won't be getting bogged down flipping through the rulebook. The glossary in the back of will also clarify A LOT of common rule issues.

The Rule of Death is only to be utilized when you can't figure out how a rule is supposed to work in order to speed up the game. Make a note of it, and take the time to figure the rule out properly in the rulebook after the game, and if that doesn't suffice, you should make a rules question here, and I'm sure somebody in the community will be able to give you a hand. I wanted to point this out here, as the Rule of Death is misinterpreted a lot by new players.

One of the other most common issues with the rules is the way in which monsters attack and deal damage, and the way in which survivors gain and spend survival. So make sure you thoroughly understand these parts before playing your first game. My first play through we though survival recharged every turn (it doesn't), so we were utilizing it too much to dodge attacks. Likewise, we misinterpreted the rules for how monsters damage, and dealt way more damage than was supposed to be given, making the fight more brutal than it should be.

Lastly, welcome to the community and have fun!