Spec to 10 looting at character creation, borrow the max amount of money you can from every city while you work your way to the mercenary guild, I usually aim for 15k - 20k.
Hire whatever Elite troops you can find, you need 6, preferably ranged of a single unit type. If you have multiple types of troops you get less loot(this includes companions). If you can't find any good Mercs check out Taverns for Maidens/Virago Heroines, or check back at the Merc guild later.
Ask the Tolranian Tavernkeepers about work and find whatever lord has the bandit camp quest, it should be Count Barainius(Vinica Lord) or Count Calarius (Lesbere Lord).
Use your 6 Elite troops to clear the bandit camp, there are two main enemies to watch out for. The outlaw camp leader wears black armor with a shield and a helmet with horns on it, the other danger is a Knight of Doom with a repeating crossbow. Position your troops to isolate each of them, having your elite troops focus fire on them goes a long way to keeping deaths down.
Common drops are netherworld armor and repeating crossbows, Galwe explosives drop every so often during the first clear but I rarely see them after. Any elite troops you bring with you who die/are knocked out will also drop their equipment.
The first turn-in is around 7 levels and like 20k in cash. Wait at Vinica for the quest to restart and repeat for however long you want. There are other bandit camps but Tolranias loot is OP.
Take your new cash and repay all the loans you originally took out.
Use your excess money to buy land, this protects your money and starts building your investments early.
Add 4-5 points into persuasion, go to any town tavern and buy everyone drinks from the bartender for 1 relation with the town.
This will let you buy enterprises in every town for 1k instead of having to quest for relations. Galwe, Lille, and Elsinore dyeworks have the best-paying enterprises, but it shouldn't take too long to buy one in every town.
Take your passive income stream to Maccan and see the priests inside the castle, buy as much honor and renown as you can, come back every so often to buy more fame.
High honor translates to relations with honorable lords, go introduce yourself and make instant friends. This should give you some free attribute points and they might send you gifts every so often.
Specialist troops can up your personal and leader skills saving you valuable points. Ransom brokers in taverns sell slaves that upgrade to various troops. Female assassins and Captains of the Guard both up your training whereas Elite Bounty Hunters will up your prisoner management.
If you want to be a king fast start the Vinica questline and wait for the Zann invasion, set up a camp near Vinica, and stage a large army of upgraded troops there(500 gladiator champions works, but you can use other troops too). While everyone is fighting Zann, take Vinica and put your camped troops into the garrison. Congrats you are now a lonely king at war with Tolrania, not that they can do anything while getting steamrolled by Zann.
