"Strength", Amn Tir, is not bad at all. You're not guaranteed an Amn, but it's not unlikely you'll hit 2 or 3 during a character's career. Put it in a 2-socket polearm and you've got a good Act 2 merc weapon, with life leech to improve survivability, and Crushing Blow. Put it in an ethereal polearm, and it's even better, with no durability problems on a merc.
It's not a bad runeword for your own use, either, if you have a fast-attack-rate character to trigger the Crushing Blow often.
Another thing I've found useful is throwing topazes (even chippies) in socketed helms and armor as soon as possible to get a better selection of gear early on, when you don't really need a lot of help from your helm/armor to survive.
Edit: Why do I always think of more to say after I hit post?
It's not a bad runeword for your own use, either, if you have a fast-attack-rate character to trigger the Crushing Blow often.
Another thing I've found useful is throwing topazes (even chippies) in socketed helms and armor as soon as possible to get a better selection of gear early on, when you don't really need a lot of help from your helm/armor to survive.
Edit: Why do I always think of more to say after I hit post?