Reddit mentions of Empire Level E280 16-Inch Heavy Duty Professional Combination Square w/Etched Stainless Steel Blade and True BlueR Vial

You can make a huge variety of joints with just a few tools. This is close to what my toolset looked like when I cut my first dovetails.

Note: None of these are affiliate links. I don't get paid if you buy these.

$28 Dozuki "Z" saw
I prefer western style saws (like the Veritas saw /u/jbaird recommended), but you will be able to cut very nice joints with this:
https://www.amazon.com/Z-saw-07029-Dozuki-Z-Saw/dp/B001DSY7G6/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1495827959&sr=8-2&keywords=japanese+saw+dovetail

$14 Empire combination square
https://www.amazon.com/Empire-Level-E280-Professional-Combination/dp/B000EU0ZB0/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1495828208&sr=8-4&keywords=combination+square

$10 pocket knife for laying down lines:
https://www.amazon.com/Stanley-10-049-Pocket-Knife-Rotating/dp/B00002X201/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1495828775&sr=8-2&keywords=stanley+knife

$24 marking gauge:
https://www.amazon.com/Crown-152M-Miniature-Rosewood-Mortice/dp/B001V9KOSM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1495828829&sr=8-1&keywords=rosewood+gauge

$35 chisel:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004SG70L4/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1


You could also get:

$49 DMT coarse sharpening stone. Only sharpening stone you need. Get a strop eventually.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0001WP1L0/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

$5 Stanley Coping saw. Will help you remove dovetail waste.
https://www.amazon.com/Stanley-15-106-8-Inch-Length-4-Inch/dp/B00009OYG2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1495829310&sr=8-1&keywords=coping+saw

Provided you're gonna buy lumber that's already prepped, you should be good to go with the above. I'd suggest building things rather than 'practicing joinery'. You'll get plenty of joinery practice along the way :)

Let me start by saying that this would be the bare minimum. This is assuming that you have all the experience to use these tools effectively as someone who has the appropriate skill and knows to do things like not bear down on a saw when cutting, keeping everything square, how to mill boards by hand, how to not kill sandpaper in a few strokes, how to tune and sharpen a hand plane, ETC.


2x$8.69Vise grips Two vise grip clamps. Clamps can be universally adjusted and clamped in almost any direction with some quick thinking. One is never enough.


$9.99Cheap set of chisels Everyone needs a chisel. These will be made from a milder steel, but it's better than nothing.


$22.00Generic ryoba saw A ryoba saw will double for crosscuts and ripcuts. They go as far as you can take them provided you treat them right.


$18.62Bench Plane You need to be able to take down material in terms of thickness. A simple bench plane will due for now.


$20.61Block Plane A block plane will help slightly with end grain smoothing where the bench plane cannot.


$3.47Bundled Sandpaper You need to finish your products somehow. I would get a generic bundle of sandpaper and use it sparingly and tenderly.


$12.85Square Keeping things square is vital.


$6.79Mallet Hammering your chisels is going to be very important since you cannot use a 2x4 reliably.


$3.47Wood Glue Need to be able to glue things together.


$11.80A set of card scrapers Remove material smoother and faster. You don't want to waste sandpaper if you don't have to, and these are quite versatile.


$8.06A bastard file A bastard file will do for now when it comes to heavier shaping and sharpening your card scrapers.


$15.92A small drill viseKeeping something secure in place is very important. A small vise will accommodate small and narrow pieces of lumber and can be bolted to a bench.


$3.97Assorted finer sandpapers You need something to keep your chisels constantly sharp, especially when it is such a mild steel as a set of 9.99 chisels.


$15.59Wipe on polyurethane You need to be able to finish your products somehow.


Comes to $170.52 I would use the rest to make a bench and two sawhorses out of some 2x4's.

There will be people that disagree, because to some extent it is about preference, and it also depends on what, exactly you do. Having said that, I'll give you a run down of stuff I either had when I started, or use frequently, or serves multiple purposes, etc.

• Combination square for measuring and marking right angles
  
• Tape measure
  
• Typical wood saw for big, sloppy cutting
  
• Better saw for precise cutting. I like japanese ryoba or type of backsaw
  
• Basic set of wood chisels. Nothing crazy is needed to start, just know you might be sharpening more often until you get better ones
  
• Personally, it really changed my game when I got an old Stanley No. 4 hand plane off ebay and fixed it up. This you might want to wait for and it depends if you want to get into stuff where you'll use it.
  
• Drill.
  
• Electric sander. If it's to expensive to start get one of those sanding blocks where you tuck in the sand paper.
  
• Clamps. You might start with bar clamps from harbor freight. The plastic quick clamps from there will break. The bar clamps aren't too bad. If you can buy better clamps to start, definitely do it, but you can get by on those.
  
• wood glue
  
• 2 part epoxy... when my first joints didn't fit... this helped!
  
• drawer liner. I put it under stuff so it doesn't slip.
  
• hammer and mallet
  
  Other than that, it really depends on what you want to do. I left out power tools except for a drill because when I started I couldn't even afford that and used my dad's. I never like when people give starter lists that include table saws and stuff, because if I had seen that on a woodworking starter list I would have been turned away. You can start with cheap stuff and make good pieces, it just takes a little longer and a lot more elbow grease.