Personally the only time I use cheats if I am testing something I've modified otherwise I turn cheat mode off because it can just ruin the game. Plus when you are trying to get somewhere and go to hold ctrl+space then accidently click the left mouse button is so frustrating! (teleports you to where you click if cheat mode is enabled)
For beginners I suggest turning the difficulty ALL the way down just because it makes the game so much easier and just a lot more fun in my opinion. I have played mount and blade since like 2008 and I still play at the lowest difficulty just because being an all mighty berserker that is impossible to take down is just so much fun!
With saving options I go with don't allow me to quit without saving just because I am to great with remembering to save and a lot of the time my game randomly crashes (no fault of floris or warband but my dodgy computer) and I loose all my save progress which is so frustrating! The problem with having that option is that if you get taken prisoner and loose your companions it can be so frustrating to try and collect them all again and majority of the time the bandits take the expensive armour or weapon I JUST purchased.
It usually takes me about 3-4 new games to get settled on a character that I am comfortable with. This is just my play style though, others might create one character and keep that character till they finish the game completely but I find I get bored quickly and ask myself questions like "what if my character was a pure archer" etc. and start a new game.
All this is in my opinion though, others might agree or disagree but that's what I love about the M&B games and mods, you can play it however the hell you want.
Quick tips though:
- Look up a decent companion build and when starting a new game tick the gather companions box
- Make sure when building an army you have an even amount of cavalry/infantry to archers, and when you go into the battle try to set up your archers on the nearest high ground close to the enemy. Pressing 2 then holding F1 and placing the flag where you want them to be is a good way of placing them.
- At the very beginning of the game try to enlist in a lords party that isn't the king (I find the king gets cocky and gets himself into impossible battles causing you both to get captured) This can get you a relation boost with the person you enlisted with, decent experience, some honour from battles also the added benefit of loot and not having to pay for food or troop wages
- Once you think you are a high enough level that enlisting with a lord kinda becomes useless and a waste of time (or you are just bored of doing nothing) try and sign up as a mercenary of a kingdom and correct me if I'm wrong but I believe they pay for 75% of your troop wages? This will really help you with maintaining a decent army
- Depending on your difficulty setting you should be able to take a caste with 150ish troops garrisoned with an army of 80ish semi upgraded troops as long as A LOT of them are archers. I set up my archers to rain hell on the defenders while my infantry is charging up the ladders.
- If you are going well in a battle but you get yourself knocked out DO NOT press tab just go away from the computer get yourself a drink and let your troops finish off the job because they have the added advantage of you being in the battle (concious or not) and majority of the time will finish the enemy off for you.
A lot of those tips you have probably heard before but they are quite helpful in getting yourself started.
(Sorry if this is classified as digging up an old forum post but I thought I might add some tips to the OP and maybe any others reading this.)