I dont know if this is part of the game mechanic ( I guess it is) but it makes expansion more tedious as many captured castles are recaptured very fast (if ladders) even when I leave 1-2 lords to guard it.

He had awarded Thir to himself and parked himself inside the city to make sure nobody attacked it. Every single lord in that time has dissapeared from the area with the exception of the king. I hurried off and was back within 24 hours with a small garrison for my castle. The remaining lord to sent off raiding to a neighbouring settlement. I asked 2 to patrol around each castle/town. I figured this would at least mean they will carry out my tasks. I noted that all the lords in the party were of decent faction with me lowest 20 or so. I had been awarded a new castle, and I needed to slip away for day or so to train a garrison or at least enough troops to stop it being seiged by every passing enemy lord. Stop them being recaptured before they are granted to a lord and garrisoned. We took the castles and Thir with no fuss and nominal losses. My intention was to capture Thir, and the two castles in its immediate area. Last night I lead my factions king, with 6 lords against the Nords. More to the point they would stay there for weeks on end until I tell them I don't need them to do that task anymore. This was a great way of keeping bandit attacks down on villagers in peace time, and a nice raid/seige deterrant in war. The thing I loved most about being marshall in old mb, is I could pick a lord and order him to patrol my lands. and then to reach the top rank, becoming the faction marshall. The other is as its acceptable that lords can come and go as they please, it seems you end up with a very depleted force in a week or so as it seems everyone has something more important to do! It is based on production and consuming 11 resources, which are being produced rural. Well thats preferable to standing still waiting days on end for everyone to come to you. Minor issues and annoyances are it seems you have to tour the realm, in order to collect vassals. The main reason for this was the annoying campaign sumons, though granted these aren't as punishing in warband. The easiest way to make your King like you, is either join him in battles he is in, be it normal battles or sieges, along with beating yourself a lord and then riding back to tell him. (And you seemed to get it offered alot more easily then). like 00B said, as you perform well and you please your King, eventually he will start pestering you about becoming the Marshall. In the old MB I always took marshall as soon as it was offered.

Mount and blade being marshall