Limited Fish Choices??

[Aflac]

Hey guys,

I'm very new to this whole reef thing. I'm in the process now of acquiring all the equipment and trying to figure this whole thing out (It's kind of overwhelming).

After reading as much as I can, I'm leaning towards a bare bottom tank.

My question is: Does this limit the choices of fish I can get??

The reason I ask is that the one fish I REALLY want at some point is a Mandarin Goby. From everything I've read it seems that they require feeding from the substrate. Another fish I was checking out is a lawnmower blenny.

Can these fish (and others) survive in a bare bottom tank or will I have to find something else?

Hopefully you guys can help.

Thanks in advance,l