Actually after reading other fantasy novels, where this is a lot of character build up from the start, Steve Erikson has chosen something different. He pushes you head along into action, the back ground story and character buildup is slower and later. Initially I hated the style, but after completing book four I love the style. Yep the character buildup is lower because atleast for the first two books, there will be too many characters introduced, and the timeline is just too vast to concentrate on one set of characters. The key is to just take the story in as it flows without doing too much of "back thinking" on the map or character history, it will all eventually flow in.
The world build up is simply fabulous, he might not have skill of creating colorful characters as Martin, but he more than builds up in creating expansive world across long timelines.
