Prototype Construction rules
Burton Choinski
burton.choinski at MATRIXONE.COM
Fri Sep 29 07:41:16 CEST 2000
Read and comment, guys. :)
-- Burton
"GOOD MANORS"
Construction Rules for P&P
Derived from an article on GURPS Pre-industrial Architecture by Matt
Riggsby, converted from the "death by detail" GURPS measurements. :)
Unlike GURPS (which narrowed it all down to the square yard or cubic
yard, including window and door spots, these rules are provided as an
easy means to get a thumbnail cost and time for construction. The GM is
free to add a "fudge factor" to account for other stuff.
===== LABOR COSTS
=============================================================
Bearer: 1SC/month
Thatcher: 15CC/month
Quarryman: 15CC/month
Lumberjack: 2SC/month
Brickmaker: 25CC/month
Carpenter: 4SC/month
Mason: 5SC/month
Architect: 2GC/month
===== MATERIALS
===============================================================
THATCH: Thatching is made from reeds, grasses, or long leaves bound or
woven together to form larger and more durable bundles or mats. Thatch
tends to replace dried earth in buildings in wet regions and is used for
roofing in all but the coldest climates. It is cheap and easy to find
and produce in appropriate climates but it is a poor structural material
because it will support no weight. Rather, it must be attached to a
wooden framework. Thatch is the preferred roofing material for domestic
architecture, since it is cheaper and easier to install than other
materials.
WOOD: Wood is probably the most versatile of building materials,
stronger and more durable than thatch and earth, lighter and easier to
work than brick and stone.
EARTH: There are two kinds of earthen materials: piled earth and hard
earth. Piled earth is simply dirt dug out of the ground heaped up in a
mound or wall. Piled earth is good for improvised fortifications but
little else. Hard earth, including rammed earth, sun-dried mud brick,
and wattle-and-daub (dried mud over reeds or grass) is the preferred
material for many small buildings at low cultural levels. However, both
forms require frequent maintenance in wet environments. In very wet
environments, such as swamps and anywhere with regular heavy rains,
earthen materials are almost impossible to use.
BRICK: Brick (distinct from mud brick) is made from a mud and straw
mixture baked at a high temperature, turning it into a hard ceramic
which is far more resistant to the elements. Brick, in the form of flat
ceramic roofing tiles or brick arches and vaults, may be used as a
roofing material.
STONE: Strong and durable, stone is the preferred material for public
buildings and fortifications. While it is mostly seen as a wall
material, stone may be used as a roofing material, usually in the form
of sheets of slate, gypsum, or other rock with sharp cleavage planes.
MORTAR: With barbarian cultures, the only "mortar" available was wet
clay, which could be used to smooth surfaces and hold mud bricks
together more firmly. For more advanced cultures however, limestone and
other calcareous minerals could be heated to yield powdered lime, the
basic ingredient of plasters and mortars.
===== TRANSPORTATION
==========================================================
Materials are rarely found where they are needed, so transport is an
important consideration, and can often be costly. The labor necessary to
move materials around on the building site is included in the building
labor figures, but additional labor may be necessary to get the
materials there.
Transport by water is far more efficient than transport by land. Prices
will, of course, vary wildly, but long-distance shipment of materials
over sea can cost as little as 0.3BB per ton per strategic hex if the
builder intends to fill the entire hold of a ship. Poor weather,
piracy, and duties can increase this
somewhat. Shipment by boat or raft up rivers and canals is also
relatively inexpensive, with the price increasing to perhaps three or
four times that.
Shipment by land is the most expensive. Moving materials by oxcart will
cost
in the neighborhood of 5BB to 8BB per ton per strategic hex, which can
increase tremendously if the cart has to travel over poor roads or
through bad weather.
===== MATERIAL COSTS
==========================================================
The costs of the following materials are based on the cost of labor to
produce them, given the rates of production in Matt's GURPS document.
All quantities have been pro-rated and simplified for ease of use. All
prices assume materials are on the owner's land -- if the raw materials
are on another's land increase costs by 50-100%, not including
transportation costs.
sf=square feet, cf=cubic feet
Material Cost Weight Time Notes
Thatch, 100sf 3BB 800# 6h 4" bundles
Pine Lumber, 100sf 7BB 140# 9h 1/2" thick
Oak Lumber, 100sf 8BB 180# 10h 1/2" thick
Firewood, 100cf 9BB 4,000# 13h
Mud Brick, 50cf 4BB 4,800# 5h 200 blocks
Fired Brick, 50cf* 18BB 6,000# 10h 1500 bricks
Stone Rubble, 50cf 8BB 5,000# 15h
Ashlar Stone, 50cf 7CC 7,500# 125h
Mortar, 5cf* 5BB 675# 3h
*includes cost of firewood needed to fire the material
===== CONSTRUCTION COSTS
======================================================
The costs of the following structures are based on the labor costs, plus
the above material costs. All structures below are 10'x10' in size.
Stone and brick structures include an additional 10% of foundation.
For the times below, the second number includes the time to
produce/gather the construction materials, if not done beforehand.
Structure Cost Time Notes
Wood Frame 15BB 9h/14h Uses 50sf of soft wood
Thatched Frame 2CC 12h/20h 4" thick
Pine-faced Frame 35BB 10h/33h 4" thick
Oak-faced Frame 4CC 10h/35h 4" thick
Mud Brick Wall 15BB 6h/11h 6" thick, 1 story limit
Mortared Brick Wall 5CC 17h/27h 6" thick
Unmortared Rubble* 75BB 25h/50h 18" thick, 2 story limit
Unmortared Ashlar 1SC 15h/130h 6" thick, 4 story limit
Mortared Rubble 25BB 8h/25h 6" thick
Mortared Ashlar 11CC 19h/135h 6" thick
Ground Clearing, open 4BB 10h 1,000 sf
", rough 4BB 10h 500 sf
", forested 4BB 10h 100 sf
Excavation 13BB 37h 1,000 cf
*Price and time for 1 story -- QUADRUPLE time and cost for two stories
and DOUBLE thickness.
For roofs take the ground area of the building and add 50% to determine
the actual area. This applies to thatched or wooden roofs. For Mortared
brick (clay shingles) or mortared ashlar, use HALF the determined area.
For ground floors, use wood frame as noted, fired brick at 1/3 cost and
time, or mortared stone at 1/6th cost and time. Upper-level floors use
wood frame, fired brick or mortared stone as noted.
These costs are all base, no frills costs -- time (and labor costs) will
increase with any decoration or higher quality materials.
===== EXAMPLES
================================================================
A peasant house, a 15x20 pine wood faced frame with thatched roof and
wooden first and second floors (upper floor is considered 1/2 a story).
Walls: 15x15 (end) x2, + 15x20 (side) x2 = 1050 sf = 10.5 panels.
Floors: 15x20, x2 = 600sf = 6 panels
Roof: 15x20, +50% = 450sf = 4.5 panels
Total framed wood is 16.5 panels, or 577BB (58CC). Time is 165 hours.
Total framed thatch is 4.5 panels, or 9CC. Time is 54 hours.
This house will cost 67CC to construct if built with materials on the
owner's land, or from 1GC to 13SC to construct if materials need to be
brought in. Total time is 219 man hours (10h per day, this is about 22
man days). If you have to cut and prepare your own materials, the time
is 635 man hours, or 64 days.
A Noble manor, 50' by 30' by 2 story, of mortared ashlar walls and
roof. inner walls are oak-faced frame (guessed with two running the
width of the house, 1 running the length.
Walls: 30x20x2 (ends) + 50x20x2 (sides) = 3200sf = 32 panels MA
Roof: 50x30 x 0.5 = 750sf = 7.5 panels MA
Internal walls: 30x10x2x2 + 50x10x2 = 2200sf = 22 panels FW.
ground floor: 50x30/6 = 250sf = 2.5 MA
second floor: 50x30 = 1500sf = 15 panels framed wood
The manor will cost 462CC (stone) + 148CC (wood) = 610CC, or 61SC. This
is a base price and probably should be multiplied by a few times for
decoration. Time to create this manor is 1168 man hours (117 man days)
if the materials are already available, 6965 hours (697 man days) from
scratch.
--
_____________________________________________________________
Burton Choinski
Principle Software Engineer, Quality Engineering
email: burton.choinski at matrixone.com
phone: 978-322-2135
fax : 978-452-5764
MatrixOne, Inc.
Two Executive Drive
Chelmsford, Ma 01824
www.matrixone.com
The First in Intelligent Collaborative Commerce
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