World Building: Macro-economics (Part 2)

(Updated)

This post is a dump of fairly raw data on the amount of goods produced by a manor. This data is meant to be scaled up to the province level, not detailed down to Harn-like granularity. My long term aim is to create price indexes for a few broad ranges of goods from which I can derive prices for items on the equipment lists and for trade should the player wish to try their hands as merchants. The information here will be used to set the production values of the base index.

The manor produces Food, Metals, Raw Textiles and Timber and exports these items to local urban centers where they are consumed or worked by craftsmen into manufactured products. These are the average amounts produced per manor, not every manor's output will be strictly as described below. In a small barony of five manors there may be only one mining operation which produces 1500 lbs of metal per year and no mining at all in the other manors.

Amount of Food:

• 1 acre produces on average 500 lbs of foods per year.
• A person consumes about 5 lbs of food per day.
• 20 acres supports 1 family adult and dependents with 10000 lbs of food per year or 5 tons. (Includes feed and seed.)
  
• A manor of 100 feeds 50 city families which is 500000 lbs of food per year or 250 tons.
• This food is produced on 3000 acres.
• Includes grains, meat, grapes, milk, fruit, etc.

Amount of Metal:

• Iron produced at 3 pounds per capita per year.
• A manor of 100 produces 300 pounds per year.
• This is mostly iron but can include gold, silver, copper, tin, zinc, etc.

Amount of Textiles, Furs, Hides:

• Linen from flax.

Flax 1000 lbs per acre of which there is spinable flax for 25 yards of linen.

5 yards per outfit.

Acres of flax per manor = 10% of 3000 = 300 acres which produces 150 tones per year or 7500 yards of linen or 1500 outfits.

• Leather

Pigskin is common.

10' sq per pig.

400 pigs per manor, 25% butchered a year.

50 lbs of meat per pig

5000 pounds of meat per year or 2.25 tons (as apart of total food)

1000' sq feet pigskin or ~100 yards of leather, 20 outfits.

Cowskin from naturally loses only, i.e. 10% of herd.

Herd of 100 cattle.

40' sq feet per cow

400' sq ft leather per year

~45 yards of leather or 9 outfits

Deer, Elk

Hunt 50 a year

20' sq feet per animal

1000' sq feet deerskin or ~100 yards of leather, 20 outfits.

Sheep

200 sheep per manor, 10% loses

5' sq ft leather

10 lbs of fleece per year, 15 yards of wool or 3 outfits

2000 lbs of wool per year or 1 ton or 3000 yards or 600 outfits

100' sq ft or 9 yards or 2 outfits

• Furs (beaver, rabbit, fox, ermine, etc)

Hunt 50 per year

~4' sq ft furs

20 yards per year

Amount of Timber:

• 200 trees per acre, 30' tall 10" diameter, 500 lbs. or 100 tons per acre total.
• Sustained harvest at 10% = 20 trees weighing 10000 lbs. or 5 tons.
• 200' board feet per ton. (Board feet 144" cubed.) 10' 2"*4" is 960' cu. is 6.66 board feet.
• 10' by 10' wooden wall (30 2*4s) is 200 board feet.
• Acres of timber per manor = 10% of 3000 = 300 acres which produces 1500 tones per year.
• A 20' by 30' for wooden house requires 22 tons of raw timber.
• 1 urban family burns 20 tons of wood as fuel per year reducing available timber to 500 tons per year.
• Building upkeep for 100 dwellings reduces available timber by 200 tons.
• 300 tons of timber available per year.

Total yearly exports of a manor:

• Food: 250 tons (Mostly grains, some meat, fish)
• Metal: 300 lbs (Mostly iron)
• Textiles: flax for 7500 yards of linen, 3000 yards wool, ~250 yards of leather (Pig, Deer, Cattle), 20 yards of furs (Beaver, Rabbit, Stoat)
• Timber: 300 tons

Total Value of Exported Goods: ~1800 GP per year

• Food 1CP @ 50lbs - 100 GP
• Metal(iron) 2GP @ lbs - 600 GP
• Timber 1GP @ ton - 300 GP
• Flax 1GP @ "42 yards" - 180 GP
• Wool 1GP @ "25 yards" - 120 GP
  
• Leather 1GP @ "1.5 yards" - 375 GP
• Furs 10GP @ "1.5 yard" - 133 GP

Next post will look at urban wages and will determine prices for common adventuring items based off the information provided here.

World Building: Politics and Macro-economics (Part 1)

The economy of the fantasy world in which my campaign is set consists of a network of interconnected economic forces: the feudal system, the guild controlled markets of the free cities, the economics of the various church holdings and the working of the various non-human cultures. Each one has its own unique political structure. Part one of this series will focus on the sub-economy which is among the most self-sufficient and the most familiar to players of fantasy RPGs.

(A warning for those playing editions in which characters gain experience through the acquisition of gold pieces; the economic system about to be described was not designed with character level advancement in mind. I suspect that this system will hinder character leveling if strictly followed and will collapse if characters are given enough wealth to level normally.)

Feudal Economics

Building from the previous series, we have obtained the population levels from the building block of manor farm to the level of the province. Now we will determine the economic power for those holdings.

The Economics of the Manor

The manor is mostly capable of supporting its self. Any surplus raw goods it produces, it trades with urban economy and receives manufactured items or coin in return. The value of a manor's agricultural surplus is based on the following:

The raw material cost of supporting the family of one urban dweller of average means equals one silver piece per day.

The cost per month is thus three gold pieces and the yearly cost is 36 gold pieces or 9 gold pieces a season. With the 1:2 urban to rural population ratio we previously established, it takes two rural farmers to produce this wealth. A manor house with a population of 100 could thus produce an agricultural surplus worth 450 GP a season and 1800 GP a year. Note, much of this wealth is in perishable form, such as taxed grain. We'll say only half one-tenth is in coin. Most coinage in circulation is copper and silver. Gold is very rare and platinum is never seen.

Each season, the lord of the manor may choose to tax this production lightly (1/4), moderately (1/3) or severely (1/2) and collect 112 GP 5SP, 150 GP or 225 GP respectively. The remainder is then divided among the manor population. With moderate taxation, 300 GP of value is returned to the community of 100 per season.

It follows that the family wage of an average rural dweller is about 3 copper pieces per day.

These wages are not completely out of step with the price list given in the 4e PHB. It helps to think of the value of a single copper piece as worth about 1 to 5 USD. One may think at first that the value of a longsword (15 GP) may be a bit steep (over 1500 USD) but its modern equivalent, an AR-15 assault rifle, costs about that much. Some items listed are off base, I think, like the longbow is probably far over-priced. Certainly player starting funds are far too high. Continued use of the existing treasure bundles listed in the 4e DMG is suggested. Characters who are actively adventuring are bound to get very rich, very quickly in comparison with manor bound landlords but the risks should offset the rewards. ;)

An important part of a manor lords obligation to his liege is his military service. It is in meeting this obligation that entire manor system exists. The wealth a manor generates in coin is not its only output; it provides the following military might for one season's worth of campaigning a year:

1 knight (manor lord) 10th level leader/soldier - Heavy Cavalry

2 knights bachelor 5th level soldiers - Heavy Cavalry

3 squires 3th level soldiers - Light Cavalry

1 cleric 3rd level leader/controllers - Medium Foot

10 Yeomen militia 1st level minions - Medium foot or Archers

17 total, 6 mounted, 11 foot

Can I get a stat box, please: Yikes, nevermind...

Manor, Low level law holding
A manor is a self-sufficient stationary estate, or fief that is under the control of a lord who enjoys a variety of rights over it and the peasants attached to it by means of serfdom.
Military
1 knight (manor lord) 10th level leader/soldier
2 knights bachelor 8th level soldiers
3 squires 3th level soldiers
1 cleric 3rd level leader/controllers
10 villein militia 1st level minions
17 total, 6 mounted, 11 foot
Buildings
1 manor house, fortified on 4, 5, 6 on d6
d4 manor out buildings
d4 craftsmen workshops
1 communal stockade
1 church, fortified on 5, 6 on d6
5d6 + 6 Small houses or huts
Goods Available
Food and drinks
Farm livestock
Clothing and material
Simple melee weapons
Military and simple ranged weapons
Leather armor
Simple tools
Population 100
Income per season 450 GP
GP Limit 225

Politics and Management below the Provincial Level

We will now build bigger political units such as baronies upon our manor base. First we should look at the limits of what a character can control directly and the political structure that has developed to extend the limits of power.

A character, PC or NPC, may only directly manage five (plus or minus the character’s int modifier) holdings or vassals directly. Vassals are limited by this rule as well. A manor lord at least holds the rank of knight. A manor lord granted more than one manor is usual also given the title of baron or baronet. Those with noble titles may invest lesser titles upon their own vassals. A vassal baron or baronet may control up to five manors. A viscount may control up to five barons or manors. A province is ruled by a count who may control up to five viscounts, barons or manors.

When a character grants holdings to vassals, the character loses the direct income on those holdings but may tax his vassals at 1/4, 1/3 or 1/2 of their incomes and can require the normal season of military service from them and any sub-vassals. If a vassal uses his sub-vassals' season of military obligations and is later called upon by his liege to provide all his military obligations, the vassal must pay his sub-vassals for their additional service or he risks angering his liege. Manors granted to a vassal may be scattered across the land, which may be desirable if the liege doesn't fully trust his underlings to concentrate their base of power.

For example, if a character, a viscount, controls 12 manors, he may directly manage 3 manors and must divide the remaining nine between two vassals as each vassal is also limited to five direct holdings. He invests two new barons and grants them five and four manors each. He loses the the direct income on the nine manors but my tax his new barons' income on those manors. The first baron provides 5 sub-vassal knights, 10 knights-bachelor, 15 light cavalry, and 55 footmen. The second baron provides 4 sub-vassal knights, 8 knights-bachelor, 12 light cavalry and 44 footmen. Both barons set moderate tax rates and earn incomes of 750 GP and 600 GP per season. The viscount taxes the first baron heavily for 375 GP and the second baron lightly for 150 GP and receives an income of 300 GP by moderately taxing his own manors. He receives a total of 825 GB this season and has 2 barons, 10 knights, 24 knights-bachelor, 36 light cavalry and 132 foot at his call. He may, in turn, be taxed by his liege, the count.

At this point, we have determined the average income of a lowly villein to that of a count!

Information at the Provincial Level

Let's review the Provincial population chart:

PROVINCE LEVEL

Level Population Largest Settlement

0 <> Thorp

1 1000 Hamlet

2 4000 Village

3 7000 Small Town

4 10000 Large Town

5 20000 Large Town

6 30000 Small City

7 40000 Large City

8 60000 Large City

9 80000 Metropolis

10 100000 Metropolis

Suppose we have a province with a population level of three ruled by a count. Of the 7000 able-bodied souls in that province we know that 2 in 3 are apart of the feudal economy. That gives us about 4620 people living on about 46 manors. With 46 manors, we know there is about 20,700 GP floating about in the local feudal economy of which only half one-tenth is in hard currency. (All those copper pennies...) There are probably nine barons in the province, and at least one viscount beneath the count.

I'm tempted to go into law holdings and domain play at this point but I think I'll save that for after the current series.

Thanks for reading!

Update (7/14/10):

I reduced the fraction of hard currency of the total wealth from one-half to one-tenth. I suspected one-half was a bit high and while doing the numbers for the next post I discovered a happy reinforcement between the one-tenth of total wealth number and a separate calculation for the total amount of actual gold in the system.