I like Grindan from Conflux; he has earth magic as his primary skill, a slow spell in his spellbook, and his specialty is +350 Gold. At the beginning of the game, he's incredibly strong, even though he's a mage, because by level 3, he usually already has Expert Earth Magic. Add to that about 100 upgraded sprites, and you get a very decent army in the first week with minimal investment. This allows you to develop the city and acquire the resources needed to build phoenixes.