How to set a static html front page

Temporarily change permalinks back to the default settings.

Create a page template and name it page_home.php. Add this to the file:

<?php

// Template name: Static Front Page

You can add code to display the page content later. Like the contents of the index.php file.

Save the file to your theme (or child theme) directory. Create a new page, name it and select Static Front Page from the Template dropdown. Publish the page and select it as your front page in the Settings -> Reading page.

You can add code to the template file to affect the front page style like any other template file. http://www.mydomain.com/ should go to your front page.

Now you can muck with permalinks settings if you wish.