Help me build a system - noob alert!

Hi guys,

New to the board, glad to be hear!

Ok, my system is failing....I'm in need of a new rig, so I want to build one myself. I'm not that technical, and it's been years (2003) since I last looked at anything, so things have changed.

Basically, I have about $1,000 - $1,200 to spend, and I want to buy a decent rig. I have all the peripherals I need (22in LCD, keyword/mouse, speakers), so it's just the blood 'n guts I need....plus some armor.

Now, the first thing I'm having troubles with is deciding whether to get a duo or quad core. I plan on doing some gaming (Diablo 3, bwahaha...and some fps's) and want something I can expand later (a mobo with sli/crossfire?). But I do a lot of web design/dev and multitask like a mofo (probably not half as well as some of you).

I like the idea of sticking with intel as I've read they are ahead in the race for now, but am open I suppose.

Next is a mobo.

Well, I have no clue. I don't need fancy gadgets. I don't plan on needing wifi or external sata (which sounds cool)...just onboard lan and the other basics and I'm happy. I love the idea of having sli or something similar, and something that i can stuff with ram.

Last main thing is the vid card. I am not a WoW player but will play Diablo 3 when it comes out. Otherwise I'll play some shooters, and would love to play crysis. It sounds like the 9800 or 4850 are good?

I guess some ram should be in there too, so if there's anything spefic I should look for I would appreciate it.

I'm in Vancouver, so our usual ordering site is: Ncix.com although some of there towers look pricey.

I'll also need: power supply, dvd burner, hard drive ($70 ?)....anything else?

Thanks SOO much for taking the time to read. What I'm looking for is which component I should buy. There's always that 'but wait til the i7 comes down in price *i don't really know why it's much better*' but I just want to buy something soon.
Evan