Request: Early Build advice

[taptap]

Let me offer three builds:

* Hunter
* Stealth + archery: pick your battles and engage targets at distance
* Balanced stats (e.g. 2/4/4/4)
* Notable abilities: Disguise, Weaponsmithing (for arrows), Sprinting, Focus, Concentration, Listen + Flaming Arrows to engage armoured targets
* Equipment: start with longbow, you can graduate to a good shortbow / dragonhorn bow for larger criticals later
* Start: a bit melee at start helps, either take versatility or put 3-4 points into it

* Military / intimidation archer
* Archery + fear: pick your battles by inducing fear and engage targets at distance
* Notable abilities: Song of Elbereth, Majesty + good light sources, typical archery / archery-aiding abilities
* Start: again a bit melee helps

* Lullaby singer (aka Luthien)
* Only needs dexterity and grace.
* Walk to Morgoth unnoticed and pick up a Silmaril / both possible as pacifist or with opportunist archery on easier targets
* Notable abilities: Song of Lorien, Disguise, Listen, Vanish
* Equipment: collect a weapon able to cut a Silmaril (Angrist is best, both for feeling true to lore and for cutting)
* Note: needs perception otherwise a random trap going off will alert a dozen enemies you are ill-equipped to fight

[Wisp412]

I am new to Sil, its very different than other games and Roguelikes, but it looks very interesting! I would like to request some of the more experienced players to lay out some "effective" builds. I imagine that there are alot of other newbies that would appreciate these sorts of builds as Sil is a very complex game and has free form skill builds (and as far as I'm aware there isn't anything like this, at least, not in one place). I'm interested in early game advice and tips only. What I mean by that is, that I would prefer to figure out the general playstyle myself, but getting the starting stats and skills right is a little overwhelming. Its also fairly hard to figure out whats "viable" to get early, and whats worth building towards. So what I would like to see is something like:

• Build name.
• The point of the build (Like dex/ accuracy based melee, the end goal of the build, be brief).
• Early stat and exp location, what to build at the first forge or two if applicable.
• How to play the early game in general, give some tips for how to play Stealth or Singers for example. Try not to spoil everything about it though.
• I don't want to see builds only made for beginners. If theres a small change for a build that makes it more suitable for beginners and gives it early survivability then just say as such.

That sort of format, feel free to change it however you wish, its just the best way I could think of to convey my thoughts simply. I would prefer this to be focused on the early game. If someone wants to give mid, or late game advice I would prefer for it to be elsewhere as it ruins some of the fun for me. I would love it if every reasonable build was listed, even less viable ones, or ones unsuited for newbies (like Stealth pacifist). Thanks for any advice!