I max out Repair and Speech as quickly as possible. Jury rigging is just amazing for a perk, and there are so many speech checks throughout the game. I also start my games usually with low charisma so the combination of a high speech skill and lady killer perk helps me bypass the low charisma.

I always Start with speech and lock-pick because of speech checks and Safes.

Repair, lockpick, and Science followed by guns and medicine.

I usually go Speech,Guns,Barter, and then lockpick

Guns, Lockpick and Speech tend to be my usual first three, though it can vary based on the style of the playthrough I'm doing (i.e. if I'm using more energy/melee weapons).

Sneak, i'm a bit of a nosey bastard.

Lockpick, early on in the game you will come across so many locked doors/items, that you will regret not maxing it.

Guns, because they're more common than safes and speech doesn't really assist me against Fiends who want nothing more then to rip my eyes out of my sockets with a toothbrush.

XFeniXRising wrote:

Guns, because they're more common than safes and speech doesn't really assist me against Fiends who want nothing more then to rip my eyes out of my sockets with a toothbrush.

Oh but Speech will help you with Quests, Lowering Prices, and easy admission to Vegas.

I would have to say Guns and Lock-picking are among the firsts.

Speech is always a must, then barter, then lockpick/science or whichever weapon type I'm using.