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If you have access to the Stonghold builder's Guidebook, this was a great resource for building bases/guildhalls/businesses. Unfortunately my copy was handed out to a player in a group a few years ago that shortly after broke up, and I never did get it back... :( I think it was written for 3.0, but it might have been 3.5, but like I said it's been a few years...
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Same happened here. IIRC, it's even older than that (AD&D2). The gist of it was to give a price to every 5' chunk of wall (like 500gp for stone and 100gp for wood, I don't remember the exact value), and add everything together. There were other rules for construction (stacking walls, computing the time spent, hiring hirelings, using the player's characters abilities, weather happenstances, etc).
But it's perhaps not the players' goal here: using one's wealth to establish a guild hall isn't the same as constructing one. As a GM, I'd go like this:
1) write down the volunteering characters (all those who want to participate to -and, ultimately, benefit from- the guild hall)
- also list their cohorts and companions, as well as their classes, levels, wealth, and wondrous items (some of those explicitely help construction)
- also list the possible hirelings (guards, healer, cook, maids, bookkeeper, etc.) and other anticipated inhabitants (guests, kids, etc.)
2) compute the required space: I'd go with (a) bedrooms for all, animals included (b) meeting/dining halls (c) kitchens and miscellaneous storage.
- all computed, I'd start with at least 10 squares per inhabitant (3 for a small bedroom, 1 for bathrooms, 2 for storage, 2 for the meeting hall, 1 for the kitchens, and 1 for miscellaneous corridors)
- also decide if they want a fortified hall (adding 50% of the cost), and if so, if they want a courtyard (another 25% on top of this)
- also decide if they want specific accomodations (a room for summoning demons, a chapel, an alchemist's lab, a library, a few secret rooms, etc)
3) assess the availibility of a building nearby corresponding to most of these requirements (even if the building is in disrepair) or an empty (or not-quite-empty) lot
- decide if it's inhabited already and if the current tenants want to lease of sell it (perhaps it's ruins nearby inhabited by evil undeads, make it a quest if possible)
4) assess the characters' connexions with the local authorities (are they new to town, or have them spent peaceful time there, have they made some quest for the local lord, etc.)
5) decide for a price (even if parts of the buying might be made through questing, the permit to establish a guild hall should be expensive)
- as a rule of thumb, I'd start with 1000gp per person (or creature) for the "at least" version, all included. More options (fortifications, etc.) imply a higher cost.
Let them stew (and/or quest) over this. Once all is done, figure some events:
- the other guild halls in town might find them too competitive for their own good, and require a monthly payment or even go in an all-out war, even drawing the authorities
- said authorities might have a change of mind (or the current one assassinated etc.) and declare them outlaw
- their success draw people wanting to join, and opponents wanting to compete (in a friendly manner... or not)
- if they go adventuring, events might occur: weather hazards, vermins, arson, etc. but also beneficial ones, like a Paladin only wanting a roof and defending it against others. To avoid "high-handed recipient" reactions from them, make a table of these (be sure to include "nothing happens" with at least 50% odds) and roll in their presence for each week spent away.
All in all, this is a good point to expand the characters' adventures. Many hooks.
Also:
- all characters under your Leadership PC have to be lodged too, incurring a higher price than without
- if construction is chosen, all characters participating (instead of, say, adventuring) allow for a cut in the costs:
1% per character, 2% if the character a corresponding Profession or Craft skill
5% if the character has a magic item or spells specifically helping construction
- another optional part of the guildhall is a shop; another is a garden (flowers? orchard? vegetables? walled?)
- people under your PC's Leadership might not want the same pay hired underlings get, but some would be nice nonetheless
Here is some possible computations:
- hypothetical 14th-level party of 4 including 2 PCs with Leadership and at least one spellcaster with interesting spells (like Wall of Stone):
- an additional 2 cohorts (around 10th level), and ~30 followers (should be enough for the general maintenance on the site), assuming a Cha mod of 0
- stables for mounts and/or companions for the adventurers and possible guests
- the whole thing needs room for 50 people, that is 500 (at the very least) to 1500 squares - followers of the same job can live in common rooms (like guards in barracks), but managers will need space for managing the whole thing
- you might want a tower and a subterranean lab for your arcanist, a chapel for your prayist, a courtyard to welcome people and train your guards, a smithy for your smith, a shop for your crafters, and a set of secret rooms for your rogues
- total cost (roughly) between 100.000 and 300.000 - they might want to involve a bank... or not (side note: WBL 14 is 185k); the bank role (lending money) can be played by the local authorities or a friendly church
If they want to build the thing, let them make the plan for it - or help them if they hire an architect. Have the highest Craft(Masonry) make the weekly check with a +2 for each PC. They can build the outer walls first and then continue inwards, or the opposite (or completely at random) - their choice. That should last a year. Can be hurried by hiring other people, incurring a +20% cost per month removed (can't go less than 3 months).
EDIT: Note that, once the thing is completed, your Leaders will have a +2 to their Leadership score, allowing for ~20 more followers. Also, high-Cha Leaders have way more followers than my initial value of 15x2. For instance, a 14th level Cha-based class might have a +6 Cha mod, bringing the "hall completed" number of possible followers to 180 (90x2). Have they plan (and budget) living space accordingly.
Also, you might want to have a look at the living costs and salaries. If your fortress holds 200 people, you have to take into account the buying of food and water (and/or have high-level cleric followers create some of them).
If you want inspiration, The Pathfinder AP #3 (Hook Mountain Massacre) article "Keeping the Keep" has something about strongholds, and Kingmaker 2 ("Rivers Run Red" I think) has an article about building whole kingdoms.
The kingdom article might seem a bit big, but since it's an abstract system, it should be possible to adjust it.
I'm sure there are 3rd-party books/pdfs about guilds, too.
Beyond that, you know your players best. If you think they would love micromanagement, you could let them count the beans (if that's your idea of a fun time, too). Otherwise, I'd abstract the system to some degree.
I'd have a few scores they roll on:
Honestly, it's a case of whether the players want a secret hide-out, a base of operations, or a serious stake in the running of a city.
If you're in a large city, there are likely established guild halls for all their professions and they won't be able to have a special clubhouse all for themselves if they want to be active members of the guild.
If they're a known adventuring party, they could instead do the Fantastic Four maneuver and take over some large tower in the middle of a city, set up quarters based on each of their specialties, and leave it at that.
There's a big question of "Where" and "What" they're wanting.
You'll save everyone heartache if you have a talk about the level of involvement they want with a base. Do they want to train new soldiers, sell things etc.. what does the base do?
If its just a glorified hotel room they might simply buy it or adapt it from something they can conquer. I wouldn't waste too much gray matter on it.
Is the place a character sheet entry or an NPC?
Sigurd
Wall of stone and stone shape. Problem solved, and you can even offer to build one for the local lord too. =D
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WotC had a system for organizations in the back of their PHB2 that I liked, and while the stronghold builders book was written for 3.0 for the actual construction, it was easily converted to 3.5 since alot of things for materials didn't change system to system.
So to run and have an organization PHB2 v. 3.5
Construction: Stronghold builder's v. 3.0
There was also some information on running businesses and similar types of items in the DMG2 for 3.5
Hook Mountain was good for running a single building but seemed overly simple IMO.
Kingmaker Player's guide had a broader system for running a kingdom that struck me as very birthrightish.
Wall of stone and stone shape. Problem solved, and you can even offer to build one for the local lord too. =DHave to have stone available. Most stone historically had to come from a quarry, which could have been miles away. Wall of stone if memory serves would dissapear eventually.
Wrong. That's the beauty of it. Wall of stone has a duration of "instantaneous". It CREATES the stone, as long as it can be anchored on existing stone. So build yourself a keep next to a mountain, or on one.