Using the order in the Original Post:
1. 30-06 -- the cartridge that's "too good." It will do anything you need done on this continent, and in the hands of a reloader has more potential than the .308.
2. 12ga -- this has eclipsed all other shotgun cartridges. With modern loadings, it ain't your father's 12 gauge anymore.
3. .22 -- the most popular and useful cartridge ever, bar none. Thousands of rounds of .22 LR are shot for each centerfire round. Adjusted for inflation, it's far cheaper now than when I was a boy.
4. .357 -- Incredibly versatile for anything from small game (I usually use a .38 Special loading for this) to self defense, to short range deer hunting. I include the .38 Special as "part of the family" of the .357.
5. .45ACP -- in the platform designed for it, the incomparable M1911, the finest fighting handgun and cartridge ever.
6. 30-30 -- the classic deer round. I still carry a .30-30 in my saddle boot when riding.
7. .223 Remington -- not only the standard US military cartridge these days, but a fine target and varmit round in its own right.
8. .17 HMR -- it's here to stay. Everything the .22 WMR will do, and better.
9. .308 -- the .30-06 in a shorter case. Not fully the equal of the .30-06 but close enough.
10. .44 Magnum -- the best of revolver rounds for deer hunting (albeit you can load a Ruger Blackhawk .45 Colt to slightly shade it.) Unlike other high-capacity rounds, ordinary people can actually shoot the .44 Magnum and shoot it well.
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