I’m not sure what the maximum band size is, but I’m at 249 in one of my current games (it went way up from just over 100 when I started my own Faction).
You start out solo and begin recruiting with the first quest. Throughout the game, you are building up your band with cavalry, infantry and/or archers. Now it’s time to look at the shiny parts of the game: selecting, fighting with and leading your band of warriors to conquer your foes! Troop Combat If so, you’ve got an idea of what the game is about and got a taste of the combat portion.
Okay – hopefully you read Part One of my look at Mount and Blade/Warband.