arch isn't hardmode anymore. In fact it's probably the best beginner option
>archinstall is less of a hassle than even ubuntu's installer
>packages aren't outdated
>perfectly stable kde environment without effort, while still letting you customize the things you care about like your filesystem and whatnot
only issue imo is that some software only release .deb files (mullvad, i'm talking about mullvad, release official flatpaks already)