Whoa whoa whoa, I go to sleep and there is a new Subterfuger in the game? With a long post? It feels like I missed out on quite some things.
So I think most of the things that should have been said has been already said, I, myself think the two most important things are:
1. Talking to people (other forumers explained this quite a lot)
And
2. Specialists. These are the bread and butter of the game and even if they are not completely balanced, you should know what each one does and choose your specialists accordingly, not only how strong they are individually, but also how strong they synergize with other specialists. You should also analyze what kind of a situation you are in and if specialist x will help you in that scenerio. For all your questions regarding specialists, the FAQ has a pretty detailed section about them, both individual questions and how some of them work together.
Welcome darkwizard, and I am looking forward to play with you anytime! You can invite me to any game you play, via username Niverio.
About the Knights And Squires, I would gladly participate as a Knight.
Imagine how stupid the average person is. Then realize that half of the people are even stupider than that.
-George Carlin