The Wayfarer's Inn

Stage 2:
Determine tax income.

- Every three adults pay one gold piece per month as taxes.
Note: The taxes are rarely gathered every month. Usually it is twice a year or every three months.

Example: The baron PC has 20000 loyal, tax paying peasants in his fief. He decides to collect them every three months, so the PC earns 20000 gp per three months.

Stage 3:
Determine resource income.
The dominion lord earns money from his fields, mines, animals, from trade routes, inns, blacksmiths he owns etc etc. Everything that the lord owns and rents to his vassals for a portion of the profit is considered resource income.

In order to fast an easily (if not entirely accurately) calculate that I suggest the following.

* Usually someone working the lord's property pays 30% of the profit. As I mentioned earlier a farmer/blacksmith etc usually makes 6 to 9 gold pieces per month. So 30% is 1.2 to 1.8 gold pieces per month (average 1.5 gold)

* So I insert a new unit here. The "monthly revenue from an average person" or for simplicity: n  :mymy: Yes I know, but I prefer "n" from "MRfAP"

- One n is a piece of land, a number of herds, a business etc that the liege owns and doesn't work himself. One n generates 1.2 to 1.8 gold pieces per month depending on how good the harvest was, how many piglets the pigs bore, how many people visited the blacksmith, how many merchants used the road or the ship etc etc.  

- Everything that the liege holds and generates money is valued in "n".

- Important: n corresponds to income! So it is tied on how profitable an activity is, not how many people work on the activity. For example, 6 people working the fabulous and safe merchant stop inn that the lord established may generate 100n of profit for their liege (120-180 gold, depending on how many merchants stopped by, season etc). On the other hand, 80 people working a non fertile land that belongs to the liege may generate just 50n (60-90 gold, depending on the season).

- Of course, you don't have to calculate every activity and it's profitability.

* Calculate the dominion's total resources.
- Rich and well developed lands usually have total resources of about 1.4n to 1.6n x adults. So a fertile land with 1000 adults could have a total of 1500n.
- Poor or not well developed lands usualy have total resources of about 1.2n to 1.3n x adults. A land may be have a gold mine, but if it's inhabited by monsters it's of little use.
- An averagely developed land has 1.3n to 1.5n x adults.

* Calculate how much of these resources belong to the PC.
- The liege doesn't own every single business and inch of land. Some of it held by the middle class or by minor lords (like village/town mayors etc). So you need to decide how much of the resources the PC owns.

Example:
Continuing the example of the previews post.
The barony has 20000 adults and the DM decides it's underdeveloped because of border skirmishes and monsters. So the DM decides that the total resources of this land are 20000 x 1.3n = 26000n.

The DM decides that the Duke, when granting the land to the PC sold him some of his farms in the area and a few shops. Also there is a road passing through the PC's land connecting the Duchy with a nearby kingdom. This constitutes to trade, but because of monster and bandit activity in the area, and because of the cold relations between the Duke and the neighborh king, it's not very profitable.

Also the DM secretly decides that some of the tax collectors are corrupted by the rich merchants and that bandits make the problem worse, limiting the actual profit.

So the DM decides that the PC at the time owns just 7000n, earning 8400 gp to 12600 gp/month. The DM also makes a note to his sheet that 300n are lost because of corruption and 300n are lost because of the bandits. If the player deals with these problems, his income will increase.

The PC decides he needs a bit more, so he decides to squeeze the merchants of his land that he knows they make a lot of profit. He puts in some special taxes on wine and furniture.
The DM decides to increase his resources from 7000n to 7300n. These 300n are actully taken out of the merchants pockets and they're not happy about it. (Don't pity them though, 300n is the taxes they avoid paying because they bribe tax collectors).
The PC now makes about 8800 to 13100 gp/month. The DM assume that these money come with different rate to the baron's pocket so he decides to use the three-month figure as with the tax income for a resource income of 26400 to 39600 (Or just 26000 - to 40000 for simplicity).

So the PC makes 46000 gp to 60000 gp per month from tax and resource income.
Some adventure/intrigue opportunities already surface. The merchants, the bandits, the relations with the nearby lands that spoils trade...

Stage 4: Salt tax income
Salt income from lesser nobles. As already mentioned, some of the land is owned by lesser nobles. In some parts of the Medevial Europe to legally own land one should be a noble. It is the DM's choice how much of the land and the total resources is owned by lesser nobles.

All of them though pay taxes!

* Unless the vassal lord is a baron or higher ranking noble, he doesn't get tax income. If he's a baron or higher ranking noble, then he doesn't only own the land, but he controls it as well so he pays his taxes to the liege and the liege has little else to do with that land.

* On average, a vassal lord pays 20% of all his income to his liege lord.
- That includes PCs BTW, but it is on the expenses (see bellow)
- that rate can be adjusted according to the PC's wishes. Increasing it though, usually provokes the nobles to increase the taxes they collect from their own vassals, and blame the Liege when the riot starts.
- Even if the nobles possess all of the land and herds, they usually do not control all of the shops, services etc. Some of that is in control of the middle class.

* The DM calculates how much of the remaining resources of the dominion is held by lesser nobles and how much by the middle class.

* The lesser nobles may seem as unessecary and just taking up resources, but they can't easily be avoided.
- While a PC baron or liege could "seize" a noble's fortune, he has to have a good reason to do it, or backing, because the noble may go to the PC's liege (or rebel)
- A lesser noble could be tasked with collecting taxes from his immediate area. While Reeves and tax collectors could visit every village and hamlet in the vicinity it is dangerous to bring back the taxes to the PC's castle. Add to this fact that some of the taxes aren't coins but wine, weapons, animals, sacks of grain etc. It is far more efficient and safer the noble in charge of those three hamlets or this village to collect the taxes, check they are right and send the money to the town and then the mayor of the town send the money to the PC's castle.
- Lesser nobles are also easier to check for corruption than tax collectors. Since they make more money they are far more difficult to bribe.
- vassal lords see to the day to day needs of the people they control as mayors, helping in administration and management.
- Last but not least, mayors can pay up for the town or village guard, saving a lot of money from the PC.
- In some cases, a PC could buy some of a noble's fortune, increasing his resource income. Perhaps the mayor's daughter is cursed and he needs money now. Perhaps the noble could be "persuaded" by a dagger next to his pillow to sell up some of his lands.

Example:

The PC baron's land has powerful noble presence. From the 26000n, 15000n are controled by the lesser nobles, be them mayors or just wealthy nobles without administrative power.

From these 15000n (18000-27000gp/month) the PC earns 3600 to 5400 gp/month. As usual, this is calculated for three months to a total of 10800 - 16200 gp. For simplicity, the DM makes it 11000 gp to 16000 gp.

So in total the PC has an income of 57000- 76000 gp.

Noticing that the bandits harm the economy, the PC decides to call in help. After he consults with advisors he estimates correctly that the income lost because of the bandits is 300n. At 9th level and not wanting to spend a month to chase around bandits on the hills and woods the PC takes another venue. The PC baron makes a declaration: Whoever deals successfully with the bandits, will be gain knighthood and the Baron's cattle and farms around of village Derm. The Baron's cattle and farms around that village are worth about 200n so the PC may even gain money from handing out land.

A couple of months pass and the bandits are dealt with. However the DM decides there are two heroes instead of one! Working indepandly these two killed the most bandits compared with the rest of the adventurers. The first one is a powerful fighter (5th level) and killed the most. The other one though is a cleric of the local church so he has powerful allies and his exploits are not bad either.
The PC decides to do the following. He keeps true to his word and knights the fighter, making him as a mayor of the village of Derm rewarding him with the 200n promised. However, he also rewards the cleric, awarding him 100n worth of vineguards and sheep in a nearby village. The local church is pleased with this and decides to build a small monastery near the village.

The PC didn't gain more money after all, but he earned a good name and some allies. Adventurers in and near his realm know that he gives bonuses to those that did well in the quests he sets. The merchants are now happier also, since the bandits have been dealt with.
It's not just about gaining money after all.

Phewwww....

Income part finished. I will put up the expenses part later. For those wondering, Standard income is deducted from expenses, not added to the income.

Quick Summury of the rules.

Here is a quick summury of the rules, for those not wanting to bother with the example and the explanations.

stage 1: Decide how many people live in the land the PC controls directly. Wilderness is less than 2 people/sq.km Borderland is 2-9 people/sq.km. and Civilized is more than 9 people/sq.km. Children are an extra 30-40%

Stage 2: Determine tax income.
It is usually 1 gold piece for every 3 adults/month.

Stage 3:
- Determine the dominion's total resources in n. Rich dominions have 1.5n to 1.6n x adults in total resources. Poor dominions have 1.2 to 1.3n x adults.
- Determine how much of these resources the PC owns.
- The PC earns 1.2 to 1.8 gp/month for every n.

Stage 4:
- Determine how much of the dominion's resources lesser nobles hold.
- Determine the resource income of the lesser nobles (1.2 to 1.8 gp/n)
- Determine how much of these the PC gets as tax (20% usually)
 OR:
- with the 20% tax on nobles the PC earns  0.24 - 0.36 gp/n owned by nobles.