Trader would definitely be a good choice for you to start with. You will be able to leverage yourself as being a benefit to many other players and it could help you gain protection from them.

As far as making potential allies, I found that the best made plans for alliances outside of the game fell apart quickly as the game randomly places all the players around the map. Your potential allies could end up being on the complete opposite side of the map from you. You are probably better off finding out who is near you at the beginning and befriending them. That being said if you need any help in-game I will definitely be available. My in-game name is Trom.