Some examples:
by Bruce Heard1. Hovel, 30x20 - settled area, 1 lone farmer, poor tools, limited skills
Clearing & Levelling: clear,
flat, level terrain
Foundations: unremarkable terrain, no cellar
Walls: sticks & mud, plaster inside, whitewash outside
Floor: dirt floor, no attic
Roof: thatch, peaked roof
Door: 1 outside door
Windows: 2 openings w/plain shutters
Plumbing: none
Furniture: humble
Fireplace & Chimney: one, humble
Total Value: about 15gp (that's
150gp for an adventuring PC)
Construction Time: 3 1/2 weeks for one motivated peasant
2. Tavern, 60x60, 1st & 2nd floors, urban setting, three people with necessary skills/tools
Clearing & Levelling: evenly
sloped terrain, city lot w/debris
Foundations: using pre-existing foundations and a basic cellar
Walls: common wood & paint finish
Floors: all common wood, with one attic
Roof: thatched, peaked)
Doors: 2 outside doors, 4 inside doors
Windows:6 windows, plain glass/shutters
Plumbing: rudimentary (kitchen)
Furniture: cheap and sturdy
Fireplace & Chimney: one large, one small
Total Value: about 530gp (5,300gp
for an adventuring PC)
Construction Time: about four months with a crew of three motivated
workers (remember there was hardly any levelling and foundations
needed for this).
3. Basic Castle: all stone, four
corner towers, crenulated walls, one donjon, gate and drawbridge
(nothing extravagant). Construction is in
Borderlands, mostly with slave workers (and with other people
involved, the total crew comes to 50 people), lacking adequate
tools, etc.
Total Value: about 20,000gp (or 200,000gp for an adventuring
PC)
Construction Time: one year and 17 weeks.
4. The Great Wall of Wong-Chu
(whatever): 100 miles of stone battlements built in Borderland
conditions close to +200% and 2,000 workers.
Total Value: about 7 million gold (about 70 million gold for an
adventuring PC)
Construction Time: about 11 years