Welcome to Dakka!
Empire was my first
WHFB army. I love their "jack of all trades" play style, but for the sake of my blood pressure I had to move on to other armies due to my constantly misfiring artillery dice.
Any tips for a newbie? One, check your forum posts for typos.

Two, always be trying to improve your painting ability. Look for new techniques and ways to play with colors.
Glad to hear you have a good group to play with!