Lordsmen

Within Requiem there are only a handful of true military positions remaining. There are the Kings Swords, or the standing military controlled by the central government. There's the Crownguard, or the royal guard who protects the palace and royal family. There's Wyvern Knights and the various groups surrounding them. There's the navy, the Saltbound. But for most looking for a standing military position, it comes down to the Lordsmen. 
Lordsmen are a standing military who function under Requiems 4 lords. They are moment to moment under the control of whatever lord they have sworn to, functioning by instruction of the lord and their chosen commander. Lordsmen number in the thousands, often in the realm of 1-3 thousand individuals, split between large settlements and small military posts. Many are kept in reserve, switching between active duty and reserve.
The equipment and training of the Lordsmen is entirely up to a Lords politics. Some Lordsmen are as well equipped as Kingswords, some are more equivalent to a large militia force. Most Lords treat Lordsmen as a necessity, paying, training, and equipping them fairly well - though in peace time this often falls into more neglect. 
Despite Lordsmen being at full discretion of the Lord they serve under, they also owe full allegiance to monarchy. It is well within the right of a king or queen to call on the Lords to hand over control of their Lordsmen in the outbreak of a war. It's been seen a few times in history, most recently in the 3rd invasion and the Dragon War in which lords were forced to give control over to the king.

Type

Military