I like to build things. My current world is gradually filling up with full-service bases, small outposts, fenced farm plots and berry patches, lookout towers, seaports, and lighthouses, all connected by roads and trails. These activities take up a lot of time, but once these things are built, it is nice to have the transportation infrastructure and scattered bases. Even in the early game, it is possible to get a good start on this by developing the starting meadow area.

All of the maps I have played on so far have had extensive black forests. Unless you got unusually unlucky with your seed, there should be more than enough burial chambers to supply the surtling cores that you need at this stage. Three or four burial chambers should provide enough for a kiln, a smelter, and a few portals. While searching for burial chambers, remember to mark any copper deposits that you find on the map. If you find an area with three or four in close proximity to each other, you might want to build a smelter base nearby so that you can process the metal close to its source. You might need to dig a trench around the smelter base to keep the trolls away. It's even better if the copper deposits are close to the coast so that you can collect tin as well. Searching for a location like this is well worth the effort.