Too true, Fawzia, every game is unique. I'd be interested in seeing how players handle long term strategies. I usually go slow trading to build up a war chest, free-lancing, and after a few months taking a strategic merc contract. I saw King Ulric had Syla Uzas....= 1,100 man army, only fighting 1 faction, so I took a merc contract with him to do a bit of back-stabbing and sneakily kiting uniques to him so he'd get progressively weakened. He chewed up everything thrown at him with minimal casualties, the Three Seers lasted no time at all. The Fierds, with all their Lords in train and a hired merc company, ran away from him as fast as they could. So, since nobody would fight him, he made peace. Now everyone else is ganging up on the D'Shar, who are holding up well considering.
I think I outsmarted myself, I kept renewing my merc contract monthly hoping everybody else would gang up on Ulric and grind down his supermen, then I'd let my contract lapse and go for the gusto. In the meantime fighting uniques and generally improving skills and finances. Trouble is, fighting uniques and jumping in here and there has got me very high relations with every faction on the map, and King Ulric being a peace freak for over a year now has me stymied. Maybe I'll just take a new merc contract with the poor D'Shar so I can have lots of instant enemies to attack when I let that contract elapse.
Most players seem to go for their own kingdom as soon as they can, I'm a bit more long-term oriented and slow (goes with my ancient age), training up companions and building up a big war chest. Any others here doing the more strategic, long term slow thing, picking factions and enemies to play off against each other and what not? Maybe I'm going to have to try the early game blitzkrieg thing more often in the future.