Yeah, I agree. There are certain resources that prevent us from really developing early on. Food being the primary one. We all know at least one of us is gonna build some sort of food farm as soon as resources permit. Hell, I've prototyped a cattle leather/steak processor that will be priority number 1 in 2.0 that is very resource lean. Just takes cows and wheat, both of which will be in ready supply.
That said, an early-on chicken button will save a lot of trouble.
I think dedicated community resources should start with chicken, possibly wood (to prevent wiping the countryside, like I plan to do
) and maybe coal. Minerals should continue to be a "value-added resource" to encourage work. We certainly don't want a "diamond button" or Grey and I will fight over it.
Perhaps transportation system materials so we can quickly safe-ify a Nether Hub and possibly a tram/highway.
Individual projects should (and always should) be self-supplied.
If we were to start a simple list, I would say
1) Chicken (eliminates the need to search out food far and wide)
2) Wood (eliminates clear-cutting and monster tree farms that add to lag)
3) Coal
The above three represent our primary reason for living. Give us a button and we can build, build, build!