First, I would suggest taking a look at a couple of threads on this very fisrt page, since there's a lot of information there already.
Now, to answer your question, I would really suggest N/Mo if you're just starting out, especially as an MM, since it is easier to run. Heal Area is a skill you get very early in the game, and will help you maintain minions until you get some additional skills needed for MM in the late game (Verata's Sacrifice, Blood of the Master). After that, you can continue going N/Mo, or switch to various other MM builds that work just as fine in my opinion. Not gonna get into that though since theres already an 8 page thread on it going.
If you prefer going with something more complete in the early game, I suggest Blood. Lots of direct damage through life steals that keep you alive. You could possibly do this to grind for some XP, solo in some areas, or with a Monk henchie in others. I did it to level up a bit and practice with my Necro (1st char) in Dragon's Gullet.
But also, you gotta remember that the game isn't meant for you to be able to solo everything, unless it's some especific area with a especific build. So it's expected that you use henchies or other players to get things done. That's why I guess the best thing to do for XP early on is really just doing the quests and missions, since it's faster and less tedious in my opinion than just grinding the same area. I'm on my 5th character now and I still do all the Ascalon/Shiverpeaks quests to get to at least 14+, afterwhich I could hold my own in higher level areas, and level 20 came in no time.
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