You all seem to miss the boat... he's starting from scratch, you're asking him to buy drow or 32 pointers and ... then build some of the tigher stat dependent class/build combos where two points may lock you out of areas for some time until toming
... Maybe not quite up your alley... bloody really the caster classes or cleric class make the easiest straight forword builds in 28 pointers which stand the test of time longer than any melee or specialty classes. i.e. A human sorc with cha 18 con 14-16 and the remaining divi'd is hard to mess up... plus skill point wise produces enough funding to launch alts, and runs enough favor easily to open drow and 32 points without up front costs. Come end-game still very effective and lasting.