Faction question

By Haergrim, in Age of Conan

Hey all, haven't had a chance to play the game yet as it hasn't arrived, but was wondering how different the factions are.

I seem to recall reading that Turan and Aquilonia both start with extra military whereas Stygia and Hyperbored both start with a sorcery token (don't know what they're for though), but whate else differentiates the factions? Do you get a real feel for how each civilisation is, or are they pretty much as thematic as troops in Risk?

Each kingdom has its own deck of Kingdom Cards, which represent special characters, military units, events, and mystical powers that each kingdom may have at its disposal. The play of these cards gives each kingdom a distinct "flavor".