...don't we always have time to lose.

[Terrible joke. Sorry!]

But there are many things I must learn before I can begin to stand on even footing: geology, gemology, history, strategy, everything I might need to know to succeed. And I don't know how much information that would consist of or how long it would take to learn.

[Is there a library, he sounds like he needs a library for some overzealous preparation.]