So, how do you play this game?

[SlipperyJim]

Starting as a Warlord seems to be a bit simpler. I flailed my way through several false starts, but now I'm playing a game as a Senator in the Empire stage, and it's going rather well. I'll try some kind of magic-y type for my next game....

Edi already answered your questions, and I can't really improve on his answers. So here's some general advice from one newbie to another:

• Combined arms are your friend. In particular, don't neglect your missile troops. A handful of archers and/or crossbowmen can do a fair bit of damage to the badguys.
• Know thine opponents. Dwarves are surprisingly tough. Knights are tough, too. Goblins are wimps.
• Beware of walls! Enemies inside of walled cities, towers, castles, etcetera are much harder to defeat than a similar force in the open field. Siege units might be a good idea, or just overwhelm them with sheer numbers.
• Mind your surroundings! Independents can walk in and re-capture those lucrative villages, towns, farms, & mines that you worked so hard to add to your empire. You probably won't have enough money to recruit enough troops to defend everything, so you might try a "zone defense" strategy. Let the independents capture your farm for a turn or two, but re-conquer it ASAP.
• Always keep a decent gold reserve if you can, just in case some tempting commander becomes available to hire. I'm very bad at this. It's frustrating to be informed that Schlomo the Wizard has offered his services, only to find out that I only have 18 gold in my treasury!
• Winter sucks. No, really. Your income drops by something like 75%, so forget about recruiting any troops.
• Save your game before you try anything risky, so you can reload if it doesn't work out like you hoped it would. There are probably some purists who will mock me for saying this, but I don't care. It's a single-player game, and I don't have to answer to anyone for how I play it.