Vapochilled - Don't be intimidated too much. I seem to recall that you've bought John McKay's book on the
Victory. That's an excellent way to start "learning the ropes." McKay is one of the best in the business; his drawings are exquisite.
Another book you might want to acquire is
The Anatomy of Nelson's Ships, by C. Nepean Longridge. The title not withstanding, it's about how he built a model of the
Victory on 1/48 scale. The advantage of Longridge over McKay, for your purposes, is that Longridge has more text. He describes such things as yards, masts, and parrels verbally - and provides excellent drawings, by George Campbell, to clarify any complicated points.
The lousy Heller instructions do present a problem, and I can't offer a simple solution for it. If I were building that kit I'd throw away the "English translation" of the instructions, use the French ones to sort out the part numbers, and rely on McKay and Longridge for the rest. But - to be honest - I've been building ship models for forty-eight years; if I were just starting out I'm not sure how I'd take on this project. Frankly, I probably wouldn't.
Now, then. A mast (forgive me if I'm insulting your intelligence) is a vertical spar. An eighteenth-century square-rigged ship has three masts: fore, main, and mizzen. (The big spar sticking diagonally out of the bow is called the bowsprit. Let's leave it out of this discussion.)
Each mast is made in three sections: lower mast, topmast, and topgallant mast. (Note that the topmast isn't on top; it's in the middle. And the upper section of the topgallant mast is referred to as the royal mast, but - at this date, and on board this particular ship - it's actually just a continuation of the topgallant mast. Welcome to the wacky, wonderful world of nautical terminology.)
A yard is a horizontal spar to which a square sail is attached. (By "square sail" I don't mean that it's actually square in shape; it's usually a trapezoid. It's called "square" because when the wind is blowing from directly astern, the sail is set perpendicular - square - to the ship's centerline. That distinguishes it from a "fore and aft" sail, such as a jib, staysail, or spanker, which is set parallel to the centerline.)
The center of the yard (though the Heller designers apparently didn't know it) is secured to the mast. The wind blows into the sail, the sail pulls the yard forward, the yard pulls the mast, and the mast, by means of the standing rigging, pulls the ship.
In the case of the lower yard the securing apparatus consists mainly of a simple network of ropes, called a "truss." That mechanism lets the yard swing around the mast, to accommodate the changes in the direction of the wind. The three lower yards are called, respectively, the fore lower yard, the main lower yard, and the crossjack (or crojack) yard. (There's no sail on the crossjack yard during the era of this particular ship. To explain why would take a while.)
The other yards (topsail yard, topgallant yard, and royal yard, fore, main, and mizzen) are secured to their respective masts by "parrels." A parrel is a simple gadget consisting of a set of ropes running through wood balls, which are separated from each other by wood boards with holes drilled through them. (Believe me - it's really quite simple. The drawings in either McKay's or Longridge's book will make it clear in a second.)
Those upper yards have to move in two planes. When the sails are furled, the yards are lowered; when the sails are set, the yards are raised. And, like the lower yards, they have to swing around the masts when the wind (or the ship's course) changes. The parrels act sort of like crude ball bearings to let that happen.
(Incidentally - the extremity of a yard is called the "yardarm." Those literary references to "hanging somebody from the highest yardarm" are silly. There are two highest yardarms - one at each end of the highest yard.)
The Heller
Victory (unless the company has changed it since I got mine - highly unlikely) ignores all this; it provides no means of attaching the yards to the masts. That's ridiculous. No ship could function that way.
This is just the tip of the great iceberg of sailing ship terminology and technology. Believe me, there are easier ways to learn this stuff than by building the Heller
Victory. Unfortunately, at the moment there's a shortage of good, simple plastic sailing ships suitable for newcomers to "cut their teeth on." The ideal subject would be a small vessel - a brig, or a schooner - on a large scale. There aren't many kits in that category, but if you're interested I'm sure the other Forum members and I could suggest some.
Unfortunately it's tough (as the above paragraphs demonstrate) to explain this stuff verbally. Is there a ship model club in your neck of the woods? Or somebody who's been building ship models for a while? Getting acquainted with other modelers can be the biggest help of all - and makes the hobby a great deal more fun.