You can never have too many tools! Different mediums will teach you something new every time and will carry over to your main medium, so just have fun! Traditionally, charcoal drawing was used as a training device for artists who wanted to transition into oil painting. So, if this is something you're interested in pursuing, then it's a valuable tool to pick up. There are two kinds of charcoal, both with a matte finish: natural (called vine or willow charcoal), and compressed (sold as crayons, sticks, pastels, and pencils). Both kinds achieve different results, so it's worth researching exactly what you want out of using charcoal before dipping in. I'll give you an overview though, because I like the sound of my own voice haha. Natural charcoal is very soft and powdery, making it easy to smudge and erase, and can go extremely broad and dark, but can be difficult to control for someone used to pencils and of course is far messier and harder to achieve fine details with. But it is great for a looser, more painterly style, and is a little more forgiving. Just get it fixed with spray or behind glass. Heavier textured paper is recommended here to avoid having a slippery smudgy mess, but it goes well on just about anything tbh. Compressed charcoal, especially in pencil form, is closer to what you may be used to with graphite, but also much more sensitive to hand pressure and paper type than graphite. The marks they make are versatile and definitive, don't smudge as easily, but can be hard to erase and control if not confident with your mark making. Great for transitioning from broad strokes to fine detail work, though. There is no mark you cannot make with these. They also usually come in different grades of softness, like graphite, for added versatility, but can achieve a wider tonal range by comparison from a single pencil. Sharpened in the way Proko and/or Jeff Watts teaches, charcoal pencils are awesome tools for learning about edges, increasing hand dexterity, and eventually moving towards painting. The ideal surface for these is smooth paper, like smooth newsprint or Bristol or fine Strathmore 400 drawing paper. Compressed charcoal "sticks" or pastels or crayons are another thing; something of a hybrid. They usually are either soft or hard as well. Soft pastels behave much more like natural charcoal, but have more definitiveness and permanence, making them great for heavy applications of dark tone and broad, painterly effects. These can go super dark as well. Steve Huston is a fan or using a soft compressed charcoal stick/pastel to lay in his blacks then push his tone around with his finger to get great smooth transitions. So, if that's a look you desire, there you go. Not beginner friendly, though, to my mind, and not great for small detail work. Hard sticks or crayons or "hard pastels" can give more detail control and when sanded to a point or wedge can deliver results similar to pencils but are messier and harder to handle than pencils. They have more surface area to work with as far as mark making capability than pencils, though. The ideal surface these is smooth or vellum Bristol board or drawing paper, or as Steve Huston suggests, marker paper, for his fingerpainting style, although this is very smooth and smudgy, so be careful. I hope this information can help you make a decision about what you want to try out. If you're worried about mess, I'd say pencils are the way to go. They really are the most versatile of all the different types. If you want the ultimate charcoal experience, however, then try some vine or willow charcoal. Compressed sticks or pastels will give you a bit of both worlds, I reckon, but can be difficult to get into if you're super used to holding a pencil. Or get them all and experiment! That's the great thing about charcoal... it's cheap. But you're going to get dirty no matter what! It's just the nature of the medium. It gets everywhere like sand from the beach haha. Have some wipes and towels nearby if it gets too out of hand. Drawing overhand on an angled surface can help, too, or get an artist's bridge to rest your hand on if smudging is a real issue for you. But mostly just have fun. This is what it's all about. Cheers.