I think alot of people prefer EA, there seems to always be more MP games set in EA. EA has more powerful mages/units that have later died out in the MA or LA.
LA is made very interesting by the presence of Ermor, Ashen empire and R'lye, Dreamlands. Alot of games revolve around on how to deal with those 2 nations.
I would recommend playing a very militeristic nation such as MA Ulm with limited magic first. The magic system can be a little overwhealming at first, it was mind boggling to me for sometime anyway...
The forum is very friendly and any questions you have usually get answered very quickly. But do try hunting around to see if its been covered before.