Needing some quick help. Are the 4 decks supplied in the original game meant to be shuffled together before play? any help appreciated.

(sic)

I imagine you've figured this out by now but no, they're meant to be kept separate at least initially. The Empire & Dwarf decks can be intermingled, as can the Chaos & Orc decks and included in the box are extra cards for a draft game.