Well I am 4 hours into the first campaign. I went with the game's recommendation and am playing the high elves.
Initial impressions...its fun! Probably one of the best tutorial and learn to play advisors systems in the TW games I have played. Definitely a major departure from RTW2 which is the TW game I had been playing over the past couple of days. (Still need to finish my Iberian campaign!)
The biggest highlight was a pyrrhic victory against a wizard (who I think was from the vampiric coast faction) and his army. He just about took out my entire army single handedly. No question he would have won if I had not just recruited several Lorthern Sea Guard units into my army. They held the line and eventually took him out. Seriously, I wish I had the magic that dude was casting. He made my phoenix look weak. Anyway, I am at war with I think 5 other factions. This due in large measure to my honoring the defensive pacts I have with other high elf empires. The strategic situation is tenuous. Magical Sea Pirate Vampires (?) to the west, Dark Elves to the north, Greenskins to the east, and no where to go in the south until I develop a navy.
The one gripe I do have about the game is there is just too much detail (I know heresy) on the campaign map. It just looks, well, ugly. (Too be fair it could be my monitor) I think I have messed with the graphic settings enough to make it look decent. Pretty sure I can do a little more. However, they could have abstracted the terrain a little more and made it a little more pleasant to the eye from my point of view.