That's a pretty broad question. Do you have any musical preferences? Without that....
My suggestion might be to look into the smaller Line 6 stuff. The smaller combo amps are reasonably priced, and provide a lot of tone options for the price. There are modeling amp haters out there, but I liked the flexibility. When you figure out what "your" tone is, you can always look into a specific amp that fits. For just jamming with friends, anything around 30 watts is plenty obnoxious. Speaker size is up to you, but I prefer the 12", single or double. Just remember that you'll be the one hossing this thing around. Trying to carry an 80 lb combo amp up and down two flights of stairs is killer. I'd also look into the used market. People trade in gear all the time, and you can find some deals. Just try to buy from a store you trust, and be sure you try the stuff out. Some folks abuse gear.
Also, learning the basics of keeping your guitar set up properly will do wonders. Don't get me started on the folks that bring their guitars into the shop to have a string changed. People think their guitars suck, when all it needed was to have the intonation set and the truss rod adjusted. Knowing how to do some basic maintenance and setup will reap huge benefits, and save you a lot of time and money. The "Guitar Player Repair Guide" by Dan Erlewine is a worthy investment. I wish I would have had that when I started. Or.... use the internet!
For what it's worth, my first guitar was a used Series 10 "super strat". Not the best guitar in the world, but it served me well. There are times when the guitar is the limiting factor. As a beginner, just spend your time learning first. Develop proper knowledge and technique. When you develop some skill, you'll start to see what you'd prefer in a guitar as well.
