What does it cost to buy a tavern?How are materials on DMs Guild classified?How much do people pay to have their miniatures painted?How much should NPCs charge to identify magic items?Pathfinder Downtime: Earning capital, Owning Buildings, in a small townWould a monk with the Tavern Brawler feat have improvised weapons count as monk weapons?How much gold would the construction of a forge cost?What are Tier appropriate gold awards for Adventurers League adventures?How does the Bargain skill interact with Wealth levels in BRP 4th Edition?How to determine the cost/value of commissioning a statue?How much does Plate Armor of Gleaming cost?How much does it cost to cast Raise Dead on a Zealot Barbarian in Adventure's League?
Should I hide continue button until tasks are completed?
Do French speakers not use the subjunctive informally?
Singing along to guitar chords (harmony)
How could mana leakage be dangerous to a elf?
Links to webpages in books
Why is Madam Hooch not a professor?
Is adding a new player (or players) a DM decision, or a group decision?
How to determine what is the correct level of detail when modelling?
Calculating the partial sum of a expl3 sequence
Cascading Repair Costs following Blown Head Gasket on a 2004 Subaru Outback
In the Marvel universe, can a human have a baby with any non-human?
Does Marvel have an equivalent of the Green Lantern?
Intuitively, why does putting capacitors in series decrease the equivalent capacitance?
Simple object validator with a new API
Going to get married soon, should I do it on Dec 31 or Jan 1?
Fitting a mixture of two normal distributions for a data set?
What do you call the action of someone tackling a stronger person?
How to perform Login Authentication at the client-side?
Using “sparkling” as a diminutive of “spark” in a poem
The use of "I" and "we" used in the same sentence and other questions
Are Finite Automata Turing Complete?
How can Charles Proxy change settings without admin rights after first time?
How well known and how commonly used was Huffman coding in 1979?
Does the Paladin's Aura of Protection affect only either her or ONE ally in range?
What does it cost to buy a tavern?
How are materials on DMs Guild classified?How much do people pay to have their miniatures painted?How much should NPCs charge to identify magic items?Pathfinder Downtime: Earning capital, Owning Buildings, in a small townWould a monk with the Tavern Brawler feat have improvised weapons count as monk weapons?How much gold would the construction of a forge cost?What are Tier appropriate gold awards for Adventurers League adventures?How does the Bargain skill interact with Wealth levels in BRP 4th Edition?How to determine the cost/value of commissioning a statue?How much does Plate Armor of Gleaming cost?How much does it cost to cast Raise Dead on a Zealot Barbarian in Adventure's League?
.everyoneloves__top-leaderboard:empty,.everyoneloves__mid-leaderboard:empty,.everyoneloves__bot-mid-leaderboard:empty margin-bottom:0;
$begingroup$
Suppose an adventurer retires and wants to buy a tavern.
Is there an official gold piece figure in D&D 5e for how much it would cost to buy a tavern or similar property in a town or city? If not, are there any guidelines?
dnd-5e pricing downtime
asked Jun 16 at 17:23
Quadratic WizardQuadratic Wizard
38.8k6 gold badges130 silver badges197 bronze badges
$endgroup$
|
show 5 more comments
$begingroup$
Suppose an adventurer retires and wants to buy a tavern.
Is there an official gold piece figure in D&D 5e for how much it would cost to buy a tavern or similar property in a town or city? If not, are there any guidelines?
dnd-5e pricing downtime
asked Jun 16 at 17:23
Quadratic WizardQuadratic Wizard
38.8k6 gold badges130 silver badges197 bronze badges
$endgroup$
$begingroup$
Are you also interested in unofficial gold piece figures, based on experience?
$endgroup$
– Akixkisu
Jun 17 at 6:57
$begingroup$
are you looking to open a dive, a fancy/upscale cocktail lounger, or a sports bar? This question (while IMO valid) is a bit broad.
$endgroup$
– KorvinStarmast
Jun 17 at 13:13
1
$begingroup$
@KorvinStarmast - Do you suggest if someone was interested in all three instances (and any in between) it would be better opened as a separate question for each? That seems counter intuitive to me and you are better having all the info in one question.
$endgroup$
– RyanfaeScotland
Jun 17 at 15:33
1
$begingroup$
I just want to know how many gold pieces a retired fighter has to spend in order to buy a tavern. I'm asking for an official figure from official sources. If there is none, I'm interested in reasonable approximations based on official sources (e.g. prices of similar buildings).
$endgroup$
– Quadratic Wizard
Jun 17 at 17:23
2
$begingroup$
@QuadraticWizard so what kind of tavern do you want to buy?
$endgroup$
– Akixkisu
Jun 17 at 18:36
|
show 5 more comments
$begingroup$
Suppose an adventurer retires and wants to buy a tavern.
Is there an official gold piece figure in D&D 5e for how much it would cost to buy a tavern or similar property in a town or city? If not, are there any guidelines?
dnd-5e pricing downtime
asked Jun 16 at 17:23
Quadratic WizardQuadratic Wizard
38.8k6 gold badges130 silver badges197 bronze badges
$endgroup$
Suppose an adventurer retires and wants to buy a tavern.
Is there an official gold piece figure in D&D 5e for how much it would cost to buy a tavern or similar property in a town or city? If not, are there any guidelines?
dnd-5e pricing downtime
dnd-5e pricing downtime
asked Jun 16 at 17:23
Quadratic WizardQuadratic Wizard
38.8k6 gold badges130 silver badges197 bronze badges
asked Jun 16 at 17:23
Quadratic WizardQuadratic Wizard
38.8k6 gold badges130 silver badges197 bronze badges
asked Jun 16 at 17:23
Quadratic WizardQuadratic Wizard
38.8k6 gold badges130 silver badges197 bronze badges
asked Jun 16 at 17:23
Quadratic WizardQuadratic Wizard
38.8k6 gold badges130 silver badges197 bronze badges
asked Jun 16 at 17:23
Quadratic WizardQuadratic Wizard
38.8k6 gold badges130 silver badges197 bronze badges
38.8k6 gold badges130 silver badges197 bronze badges
$begingroup$
Are you also interested in unofficial gold piece figures, based on experience?
$endgroup$
– Akixkisu
Jun 17 at 6:57
$begingroup$
are you looking to open a dive, a fancy/upscale cocktail lounger, or a sports bar? This question (while IMO valid) is a bit broad.
$endgroup$
– KorvinStarmast
Jun 17 at 13:13
1
$begingroup$
@KorvinStarmast - Do you suggest if someone was interested in all three instances (and any in between) it would be better opened as a separate question for each? That seems counter intuitive to me and you are better having all the info in one question.
$endgroup$
– RyanfaeScotland
Jun 17 at 15:33
1
$begingroup$
I just want to know how many gold pieces a retired fighter has to spend in order to buy a tavern. I'm asking for an official figure from official sources. If there is none, I'm interested in reasonable approximations based on official sources (e.g. prices of similar buildings).
$endgroup$
– Quadratic Wizard
Jun 17 at 17:23
2
$begingroup$
@QuadraticWizard so what kind of tavern do you want to buy?
$endgroup$
– Akixkisu
Jun 17 at 18:36
|
show 5 more comments
$begingroup$
Are you also interested in unofficial gold piece figures, based on experience?
$endgroup$
– Akixkisu
Jun 17 at 6:57
$begingroup$
are you looking to open a dive, a fancy/upscale cocktail lounger, or a sports bar? This question (while IMO valid) is a bit broad.
$endgroup$
– KorvinStarmast
Jun 17 at 13:13
1
$begingroup$
@KorvinStarmast - Do you suggest if someone was interested in all three instances (and any in between) it would be better opened as a separate question for each? That seems counter intuitive to me and you are better having all the info in one question.
$endgroup$
– RyanfaeScotland
Jun 17 at 15:33
1
$begingroup$
I just want to know how many gold pieces a retired fighter has to spend in order to buy a tavern. I'm asking for an official figure from official sources. If there is none, I'm interested in reasonable approximations based on official sources (e.g. prices of similar buildings).
$endgroup$
– Quadratic Wizard
Jun 17 at 17:23
2
$begingroup$
@QuadraticWizard so what kind of tavern do you want to buy?
$endgroup$
– Akixkisu
Jun 17 at 18:36
$begingroup$
Are you also interested in unofficial gold piece figures, based on experience?
$endgroup$
– Akixkisu
Jun 17 at 6:57
$begingroup$
Are you also interested in unofficial gold piece figures, based on experience?
$endgroup$
– Akixkisu
Jun 17 at 6:57
$begingroup$
are you looking to open a dive, a fancy/upscale cocktail lounger, or a sports bar? This question (while IMO valid) is a bit broad.
$endgroup$
– KorvinStarmast
Jun 17 at 13:13
$begingroup$
are you looking to open a dive, a fancy/upscale cocktail lounger, or a sports bar? This question (while IMO valid) is a bit broad.
$endgroup$
– KorvinStarmast
Jun 17 at 13:13
1
1
$begingroup$
@KorvinStarmast - Do you suggest if someone was interested in all three instances (and any in between) it would be better opened as a separate question for each? That seems counter intuitive to me and you are better having all the info in one question.
$endgroup$
– RyanfaeScotland
Jun 17 at 15:33
$begingroup$
@KorvinStarmast - Do you suggest if someone was interested in all three instances (and any in between) it would be better opened as a separate question for each? That seems counter intuitive to me and you are better having all the info in one question.
$endgroup$
– RyanfaeScotland
Jun 17 at 15:33
1
1
$begingroup$
I just want to know how many gold pieces a retired fighter has to spend in order to buy a tavern. I'm asking for an official figure from official sources. If there is none, I'm interested in reasonable approximations based on official sources (e.g. prices of similar buildings).
$endgroup$
– Quadratic Wizard
Jun 17 at 17:23
$begingroup$
I just want to know how many gold pieces a retired fighter has to spend in order to buy a tavern. I'm asking for an official figure from official sources. If there is none, I'm interested in reasonable approximations based on official sources (e.g. prices of similar buildings).
$endgroup$
– Quadratic Wizard
Jun 17 at 17:23
2
2
$begingroup$
@QuadraticWizard so what kind of tavern do you want to buy?
$endgroup$
– Akixkisu
Jun 17 at 18:36
$begingroup$
@QuadraticWizard so what kind of tavern do you want to buy?
$endgroup$
– Akixkisu
Jun 17 at 18:36
|
show 5 more comments
2 Answers
2
active
oldest
votes
$begingroup$
Waterdeep: Dragon Heist provides an option
Warning: possible spoilers of the adventure ahead.
In the Chapter 2 of Waterdeep:
Dragon Heist, the "Open for Business?" section (page 41) explains how
the characters can reopen a closed tavern located in Trollskull Alley.
Since the building is already there, the cost for maintenance is 1000
gp, plus 250 gp paid upfront for the guild licenses and contracts.
There's additional details involved, like the guilds you have to talk
to (Brewer's Guild, Fellowship of Innkeepers, etc), but the cost to
open is 1250 gp.
After opening, you have to pay an additional 60 gp
every tenday for maintenance costs and guild expenses, and you have to
roll a d100 + 10 and consult the Running a Business table in chapter 6
of the Dungeon Master's Guide to determine whether the tavern lost
money or earned profit.
Besides the option above, if you wanna build one from the ground up, your best guideline is to use the building cost of a Guildhall or Trading Post, presented in the page 128 of the Dungeon's Master Guide. Pages 126-127 of the DMG also provide guidelines for recurring expenses of an Inn (be it on rural roadside or within a town/city).
For additional help around taverns, the DMs Guild Adept supplement, Durnan's Guide to Tavernkeeping provides extra options on how to build and maintain taverns, but this supplement is not official.
answered Jun 16 at 19:06
KuertenKuerten
2,8722 gold badges10 silver badges44 bronze badges
$endgroup$
18
$begingroup$
The Trollskull Alley tavern, run as written, has a basically worthless expected return on investment. On average it loses money unless the party spends at least 4gp a tenday advertising, and the optimal profit point is spending 50gp/tenday promoting the business for an almighty net 15.75gp of expected profit - it'll take more than two years to pay itself off and the money it'll make after that is pitiful compared to adventuring revenue.
$endgroup$
– Carcer
Jun 16 at 19:56
43
$begingroup$
@Carcer in the tavern's defense, almost any honest work is pitiful profit compared to going into intelligent monsters' lairs and taking their stuff.
$endgroup$
– nitsua60♦
Jun 17 at 1:56
5
$begingroup$
@Carcer and this is probably why so many formerly honest tavern-owners turn to crime. Some being a fence on the side, working with organized crime, selling information, hosting fugitives. You just can't raise a family on a tavern-owners salary otherwise
$endgroup$
– Falco
Jun 17 at 8:46
4
$begingroup$
@Carcer: if I understand you correctly, then 60gp for maintenance plus 50gp for advertising gets me an expected profit of 15.75gp? That's an expected return on investment of 15.75/(60+50) = 14.3%. Without orcs trying to kill me. Where do I sign up for this?
$endgroup$
– Stephan Kolassa
Jun 17 at 18:21
2
$begingroup$
Which does actually remind me that the premise here is that you just get given the property by someone else as a gift/reward, and so tells you nothing about how much this property would cost if you were actually trying to buy it yourself.
$endgroup$
– Carcer
Jun 17 at 19:15
|
show 3 more comments
$begingroup$
The rules provide no clear answer to the cost of purchasing a tavern.
Maintenance costs of a tavern are described in detail (DMG 127). The purchase of a tavern is not described in detail, but there are a few things that provide guidance.
Building A Stronghold (DMG 128) offers pricing for land and estate deeds which are the listed first step to building a stronghold, this would be the land on which your tavern is build or resides. Then you can compare the kind of tavern that you want to build with the listed strongholds, of which a tavern notably is none. A DM may choose the price at their discretion and could be advised by comparing your desired tavern to the most similar building on the Building a Stronghold-table (DMG 128).
The rules offer no further guidance on buying taverns. They do mention that retired adventures commonly own taverns (DMG 127, 129) and receive them as rewards (DMG 129).
answered Jun 16 at 17:55
AkixkisuAkixkisu
5,3182 gold badges18 silver badges53 bronze badges
$endgroup$
9
$begingroup$
My inclination would be to suggest that the "Guildhall" or "Trading Post" options from that section are the closest equivalent to a typical tavern, both suggesting a construction cost of 5,000gp and 60 days. I also have stuck in my head the general principle (from earlier editions, I think) that it costs half as much to build something from scratch as it does to buy outright, suggesting a reasonable price for purchasing an existing tavern might be ~10,000gp.
$endgroup$
– Carcer
Jun 16 at 18:06
3
$begingroup$
@Carcer "Ill Gotten Gains" (Dragon #268, February 2000) lists an inn at 10k gp. I think that the 5 to 10k gp is a good ballpark. The 5e GH and TP are listed at 5k gp (sans land/deeds), but I would be inclined to also compare it to the noble estate (25k gp) See hireling differences for rural or city Inns (DMG 127).
$endgroup$
– Akixkisu
Jun 16 at 18:08
12
$begingroup$
I would add these values to the answer. As it stands the answer is basically "I don't know, look here". These approximations are quite good.
$endgroup$
– Behacad
Jun 17 at 2:23
4
$begingroup$
@Behacad the answer is "I know that there is none (official gp number) in the rules. (Because there is none) Here is where you can find guidance" which precisely is what OP is asking for. If OP would ask us how we would price a tavern, then I would add numbers to the post based on what I have used in my games.
$endgroup$
– Akixkisu
Jun 17 at 5:56
6
$begingroup$
@Akixkisu come on man, the question is literally "What does it cost to buy a tavern?" and these comments include good estimates of what a tavern might cost in this universe. It's a great thing to include with some qualifiers.
$endgroup$
– Behacad
Jun 17 at 13:52
|
show 1 more comment
Your Answer
StackExchange.ready(function()
var channelOptions =
tags: "".split(" "),
id: "122"
;
initTagRenderer("".split(" "), "".split(" "), channelOptions);
StackExchange.using("externalEditor", function()
// Have to fire editor after snippets, if snippets enabled
if (StackExchange.settings.snippets.snippetsEnabled)
StackExchange.using("snippets", function()
createEditor();
);
else
createEditor();
);
function createEditor()
StackExchange.prepareEditor(
heartbeatType: 'answer',
autoActivateHeartbeat: false,
convertImagesToLinks: false,
noModals: true,
showLowRepImageUploadWarning: true,
reputationToPostImages: null,
bindNavPrevention: true,
postfix: "",
imageUploader:
brandingHtml: "Powered by u003ca class="icon-imgur-white" href="https://imgur.com/"u003eu003c/au003e",
contentPolicyHtml: "User contributions licensed under u003ca href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/"u003ecc by-sa 3.0 with attribution requiredu003c/au003e u003ca href="https://stackoverflow.com/legal/content-policy"u003e(content policy)u003c/au003e",
allowUrls: true
,
noCode: true, onDemand: true,
discardSelector: ".discard-answer"
,immediatelyShowMarkdownHelp:true
);
);
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function ()
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
);
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
StackExchange.ready(
function ()
StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2frpg.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f150040%2fwhat-does-it-cost-to-buy-a-tavern%23new-answer', 'question_page');
);
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
2 Answers
2
active
oldest
votes
2 Answers
2
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
$begingroup$
Waterdeep: Dragon Heist provides an option
Warning: possible spoilers of the adventure ahead.
In the Chapter 2 of Waterdeep:
Dragon Heist, the "Open for Business?" section (page 41) explains how
the characters can reopen a closed tavern located in Trollskull Alley.
Since the building is already there, the cost for maintenance is 1000
gp, plus 250 gp paid upfront for the guild licenses and contracts.
There's additional details involved, like the guilds you have to talk
to (Brewer's Guild, Fellowship of Innkeepers, etc), but the cost to
open is 1250 gp.
After opening, you have to pay an additional 60 gp
every tenday for maintenance costs and guild expenses, and you have to
roll a d100 + 10 and consult the Running a Business table in chapter 6
of the Dungeon Master's Guide to determine whether the tavern lost
money or earned profit.
Besides the option above, if you wanna build one from the ground up, your best guideline is to use the building cost of a Guildhall or Trading Post, presented in the page 128 of the Dungeon's Master Guide. Pages 126-127 of the DMG also provide guidelines for recurring expenses of an Inn (be it on rural roadside or within a town/city).
For additional help around taverns, the DMs Guild Adept supplement, Durnan's Guide to Tavernkeeping provides extra options on how to build and maintain taverns, but this supplement is not official.
answered Jun 16 at 19:06
KuertenKuerten
2,8722 gold badges10 silver badges44 bronze badges
$endgroup$
18
$begingroup$
The Trollskull Alley tavern, run as written, has a basically worthless expected return on investment. On average it loses money unless the party spends at least 4gp a tenday advertising, and the optimal profit point is spending 50gp/tenday promoting the business for an almighty net 15.75gp of expected profit - it'll take more than two years to pay itself off and the money it'll make after that is pitiful compared to adventuring revenue.
$endgroup$
– Carcer
Jun 16 at 19:56
43
$begingroup$
@Carcer in the tavern's defense, almost any honest work is pitiful profit compared to going into intelligent monsters' lairs and taking their stuff.
$endgroup$
– nitsua60♦
Jun 17 at 1:56
5
$begingroup$
@Carcer and this is probably why so many formerly honest tavern-owners turn to crime. Some being a fence on the side, working with organized crime, selling information, hosting fugitives. You just can't raise a family on a tavern-owners salary otherwise
$endgroup$
– Falco
Jun 17 at 8:46
4
$begingroup$
@Carcer: if I understand you correctly, then 60gp for maintenance plus 50gp for advertising gets me an expected profit of 15.75gp? That's an expected return on investment of 15.75/(60+50) = 14.3%. Without orcs trying to kill me. Where do I sign up for this?
$endgroup$
– Stephan Kolassa
Jun 17 at 18:21
2
$begingroup$
Which does actually remind me that the premise here is that you just get given the property by someone else as a gift/reward, and so tells you nothing about how much this property would cost if you were actually trying to buy it yourself.
$endgroup$
– Carcer
Jun 17 at 19:15
|
show 3 more comments
$begingroup$
Waterdeep: Dragon Heist provides an option
Warning: possible spoilers of the adventure ahead.
In the Chapter 2 of Waterdeep:
Dragon Heist, the "Open for Business?" section (page 41) explains how
the characters can reopen a closed tavern located in Trollskull Alley.
Since the building is already there, the cost for maintenance is 1000
gp, plus 250 gp paid upfront for the guild licenses and contracts.
There's additional details involved, like the guilds you have to talk
to (Brewer's Guild, Fellowship of Innkeepers, etc), but the cost to
open is 1250 gp.
After opening, you have to pay an additional 60 gp
every tenday for maintenance costs and guild expenses, and you have to
roll a d100 + 10 and consult the Running a Business table in chapter 6
of the Dungeon Master's Guide to determine whether the tavern lost
money or earned profit.
Besides the option above, if you wanna build one from the ground up, your best guideline is to use the building cost of a Guildhall or Trading Post, presented in the page 128 of the Dungeon's Master Guide. Pages 126-127 of the DMG also provide guidelines for recurring expenses of an Inn (be it on rural roadside or within a town/city).
For additional help around taverns, the DMs Guild Adept supplement, Durnan's Guide to Tavernkeeping provides extra options on how to build and maintain taverns, but this supplement is not official.
answered Jun 16 at 19:06
KuertenKuerten
2,8722 gold badges10 silver badges44 bronze badges
$endgroup$
18
$begingroup$
The Trollskull Alley tavern, run as written, has a basically worthless expected return on investment. On average it loses money unless the party spends at least 4gp a tenday advertising, and the optimal profit point is spending 50gp/tenday promoting the business for an almighty net 15.75gp of expected profit - it'll take more than two years to pay itself off and the money it'll make after that is pitiful compared to adventuring revenue.
$endgroup$
– Carcer
Jun 16 at 19:56
43
$begingroup$
@Carcer in the tavern's defense, almost any honest work is pitiful profit compared to going into intelligent monsters' lairs and taking their stuff.
$endgroup$
– nitsua60♦
Jun 17 at 1:56
5
$begingroup$
@Carcer and this is probably why so many formerly honest tavern-owners turn to crime. Some being a fence on the side, working with organized crime, selling information, hosting fugitives. You just can't raise a family on a tavern-owners salary otherwise
$endgroup$
– Falco
Jun 17 at 8:46
4
$begingroup$
@Carcer: if I understand you correctly, then 60gp for maintenance plus 50gp for advertising gets me an expected profit of 15.75gp? That's an expected return on investment of 15.75/(60+50) = 14.3%. Without orcs trying to kill me. Where do I sign up for this?
$endgroup$
– Stephan Kolassa
Jun 17 at 18:21
2
$begingroup$
Which does actually remind me that the premise here is that you just get given the property by someone else as a gift/reward, and so tells you nothing about how much this property would cost if you were actually trying to buy it yourself.
$endgroup$
– Carcer
Jun 17 at 19:15
|
show 3 more comments
$begingroup$
Waterdeep: Dragon Heist provides an option
Warning: possible spoilers of the adventure ahead.
In the Chapter 2 of Waterdeep:
Dragon Heist, the "Open for Business?" section (page 41) explains how
the characters can reopen a closed tavern located in Trollskull Alley.
Since the building is already there, the cost for maintenance is 1000
gp, plus 250 gp paid upfront for the guild licenses and contracts.
There's additional details involved, like the guilds you have to talk
to (Brewer's Guild, Fellowship of Innkeepers, etc), but the cost to
open is 1250 gp.
After opening, you have to pay an additional 60 gp
every tenday for maintenance costs and guild expenses, and you have to
roll a d100 + 10 and consult the Running a Business table in chapter 6
of the Dungeon Master's Guide to determine whether the tavern lost
money or earned profit.
Besides the option above, if you wanna build one from the ground up, your best guideline is to use the building cost of a Guildhall or Trading Post, presented in the page 128 of the Dungeon's Master Guide. Pages 126-127 of the DMG also provide guidelines for recurring expenses of an Inn (be it on rural roadside or within a town/city).
For additional help around taverns, the DMs Guild Adept supplement, Durnan's Guide to Tavernkeeping provides extra options on how to build and maintain taverns, but this supplement is not official.
answered Jun 16 at 19:06
KuertenKuerten
2,8722 gold badges10 silver badges44 bronze badges
$endgroup$
Waterdeep: Dragon Heist provides an option
Warning: possible spoilers of the adventure ahead.
In the Chapter 2 of Waterdeep:
Dragon Heist, the "Open for Business?" section (page 41) explains how
the characters can reopen a closed tavern located in Trollskull Alley.
Since the building is already there, the cost for maintenance is 1000
gp, plus 250 gp paid upfront for the guild licenses and contracts.
There's additional details involved, like the guilds you have to talk
to (Brewer's Guild, Fellowship of Innkeepers, etc), but the cost to
open is 1250 gp.
After opening, you have to pay an additional 60 gp
every tenday for maintenance costs and guild expenses, and you have to
roll a d100 + 10 and consult the Running a Business table in chapter 6
of the Dungeon Master's Guide to determine whether the tavern lost
money or earned profit.
Besides the option above, if you wanna build one from the ground up, your best guideline is to use the building cost of a Guildhall or Trading Post, presented in the page 128 of the Dungeon's Master Guide. Pages 126-127 of the DMG also provide guidelines for recurring expenses of an Inn (be it on rural roadside or within a town/city).
For additional help around taverns, the DMs Guild Adept supplement, Durnan's Guide to Tavernkeeping provides extra options on how to build and maintain taverns, but this supplement is not official.
answered Jun 16 at 19:06
KuertenKuerten
2,8722 gold badges10 silver badges44 bronze badges
edited Jun 18 at 21:46
answered Jun 16 at 19:06
KuertenKuerten
2,8722 gold badges10 silver badges44 bronze badges
answered Jun 16 at 19:06
KuertenKuerten
2,8722 gold badges10 silver badges44 bronze badges
answered Jun 16 at 19:06
KuertenKuerten
2,8722 gold badges10 silver badges44 bronze badges
2,8722 gold badges10 silver badges44 bronze badges
18
$begingroup$
The Trollskull Alley tavern, run as written, has a basically worthless expected return on investment. On average it loses money unless the party spends at least 4gp a tenday advertising, and the optimal profit point is spending 50gp/tenday promoting the business for an almighty net 15.75gp of expected profit - it'll take more than two years to pay itself off and the money it'll make after that is pitiful compared to adventuring revenue.
$endgroup$
– Carcer
Jun 16 at 19:56
43
$begingroup$
@Carcer in the tavern's defense, almost any honest work is pitiful profit compared to going into intelligent monsters' lairs and taking their stuff.
$endgroup$
– nitsua60♦
Jun 17 at 1:56
5
$begingroup$
@Carcer and this is probably why so many formerly honest tavern-owners turn to crime. Some being a fence on the side, working with organized crime, selling information, hosting fugitives. You just can't raise a family on a tavern-owners salary otherwise
$endgroup$
– Falco
Jun 17 at 8:46
4
$begingroup$
@Carcer: if I understand you correctly, then 60gp for maintenance plus 50gp for advertising gets me an expected profit of 15.75gp? That's an expected return on investment of 15.75/(60+50) = 14.3%. Without orcs trying to kill me. Where do I sign up for this?
$endgroup$
– Stephan Kolassa
Jun 17 at 18:21
2
$begingroup$
Which does actually remind me that the premise here is that you just get given the property by someone else as a gift/reward, and so tells you nothing about how much this property would cost if you were actually trying to buy it yourself.
$endgroup$
– Carcer
Jun 17 at 19:15
|
show 3 more comments
18
$begingroup$
The Trollskull Alley tavern, run as written, has a basically worthless expected return on investment. On average it loses money unless the party spends at least 4gp a tenday advertising, and the optimal profit point is spending 50gp/tenday promoting the business for an almighty net 15.75gp of expected profit - it'll take more than two years to pay itself off and the money it'll make after that is pitiful compared to adventuring revenue.
$endgroup$
– Carcer
Jun 16 at 19:56
43
$begingroup$
@Carcer in the tavern's defense, almost any honest work is pitiful profit compared to going into intelligent monsters' lairs and taking their stuff.
$endgroup$
– nitsua60♦
Jun 17 at 1:56
5
$begingroup$
@Carcer and this is probably why so many formerly honest tavern-owners turn to crime. Some being a fence on the side, working with organized crime, selling information, hosting fugitives. You just can't raise a family on a tavern-owners salary otherwise
$endgroup$
– Falco
Jun 17 at 8:46
4
$begingroup$
@Carcer: if I understand you correctly, then 60gp for maintenance plus 50gp for advertising gets me an expected profit of 15.75gp? That's an expected return on investment of 15.75/(60+50) = 14.3%. Without orcs trying to kill me. Where do I sign up for this?
$endgroup$
– Stephan Kolassa
Jun 17 at 18:21
2
$begingroup$
Which does actually remind me that the premise here is that you just get given the property by someone else as a gift/reward, and so tells you nothing about how much this property would cost if you were actually trying to buy it yourself.
$endgroup$
– Carcer
Jun 17 at 19:15
18
18
$begingroup$
The Trollskull Alley tavern, run as written, has a basically worthless expected return on investment. On average it loses money unless the party spends at least 4gp a tenday advertising, and the optimal profit point is spending 50gp/tenday promoting the business for an almighty net 15.75gp of expected profit - it'll take more than two years to pay itself off and the money it'll make after that is pitiful compared to adventuring revenue.
$endgroup$
– Carcer
Jun 16 at 19:56
$begingroup$
The Trollskull Alley tavern, run as written, has a basically worthless expected return on investment. On average it loses money unless the party spends at least 4gp a tenday advertising, and the optimal profit point is spending 50gp/tenday promoting the business for an almighty net 15.75gp of expected profit - it'll take more than two years to pay itself off and the money it'll make after that is pitiful compared to adventuring revenue.
$endgroup$
– Carcer
Jun 16 at 19:56
43
43
$begingroup$
@Carcer in the tavern's defense, almost any honest work is pitiful profit compared to going into intelligent monsters' lairs and taking their stuff.
$endgroup$
– nitsua60♦
Jun 17 at 1:56
$begingroup$
@Carcer in the tavern's defense, almost any honest work is pitiful profit compared to going into intelligent monsters' lairs and taking their stuff.
$endgroup$
– nitsua60♦
Jun 17 at 1:56
5
5
$begingroup$
@Carcer and this is probably why so many formerly honest tavern-owners turn to crime. Some being a fence on the side, working with organized crime, selling information, hosting fugitives. You just can't raise a family on a tavern-owners salary otherwise
$endgroup$
– Falco
Jun 17 at 8:46
$begingroup$
@Carcer and this is probably why so many formerly honest tavern-owners turn to crime. Some being a fence on the side, working with organized crime, selling information, hosting fugitives. You just can't raise a family on a tavern-owners salary otherwise
$endgroup$
– Falco
Jun 17 at 8:46
4
4
$begingroup$
@Carcer: if I understand you correctly, then 60gp for maintenance plus 50gp for advertising gets me an expected profit of 15.75gp? That's an expected return on investment of 15.75/(60+50) = 14.3%. Without orcs trying to kill me. Where do I sign up for this?
$endgroup$
– Stephan Kolassa
Jun 17 at 18:21
$begingroup$
@Carcer: if I understand you correctly, then 60gp for maintenance plus 50gp for advertising gets me an expected profit of 15.75gp? That's an expected return on investment of 15.75/(60+50) = 14.3%. Without orcs trying to kill me. Where do I sign up for this?
$endgroup$
– Stephan Kolassa
Jun 17 at 18:21
2
2
$begingroup$
Which does actually remind me that the premise here is that you just get given the property by someone else as a gift/reward, and so tells you nothing about how much this property would cost if you were actually trying to buy it yourself.
$endgroup$
– Carcer
Jun 17 at 19:15
$begingroup$
Which does actually remind me that the premise here is that you just get given the property by someone else as a gift/reward, and so tells you nothing about how much this property would cost if you were actually trying to buy it yourself.
$endgroup$
– Carcer
Jun 17 at 19:15
|
show 3 more comments
$begingroup$
The rules provide no clear answer to the cost of purchasing a tavern.
Maintenance costs of a tavern are described in detail (DMG 127). The purchase of a tavern is not described in detail, but there are a few things that provide guidance.
Building A Stronghold (DMG 128) offers pricing for land and estate deeds which are the listed first step to building a stronghold, this would be the land on which your tavern is build or resides. Then you can compare the kind of tavern that you want to build with the listed strongholds, of which a tavern notably is none. A DM may choose the price at their discretion and could be advised by comparing your desired tavern to the most similar building on the Building a Stronghold-table (DMG 128).
The rules offer no further guidance on buying taverns. They do mention that retired adventures commonly own taverns (DMG 127, 129) and receive them as rewards (DMG 129).
answered Jun 16 at 17:55
AkixkisuAkixkisu
5,3182 gold badges18 silver badges53 bronze badges
$endgroup$
9
$begingroup$
My inclination would be to suggest that the "Guildhall" or "Trading Post" options from that section are the closest equivalent to a typical tavern, both suggesting a construction cost of 5,000gp and 60 days. I also have stuck in my head the general principle (from earlier editions, I think) that it costs half as much to build something from scratch as it does to buy outright, suggesting a reasonable price for purchasing an existing tavern might be ~10,000gp.
$endgroup$
– Carcer
Jun 16 at 18:06
3
$begingroup$
@Carcer "Ill Gotten Gains" (Dragon #268, February 2000) lists an inn at 10k gp. I think that the 5 to 10k gp is a good ballpark. The 5e GH and TP are listed at 5k gp (sans land/deeds), but I would be inclined to also compare it to the noble estate (25k gp) See hireling differences for rural or city Inns (DMG 127).
$endgroup$
– Akixkisu
Jun 16 at 18:08
12
$begingroup$
I would add these values to the answer. As it stands the answer is basically "I don't know, look here". These approximations are quite good.
$endgroup$
– Behacad
Jun 17 at 2:23
4
$begingroup$
@Behacad the answer is "I know that there is none (official gp number) in the rules. (Because there is none) Here is where you can find guidance" which precisely is what OP is asking for. If OP would ask us how we would price a tavern, then I would add numbers to the post based on what I have used in my games.
$endgroup$
– Akixkisu
Jun 17 at 5:56
6
$begingroup$
@Akixkisu come on man, the question is literally "What does it cost to buy a tavern?" and these comments include good estimates of what a tavern might cost in this universe. It's a great thing to include with some qualifiers.
$endgroup$
– Behacad
Jun 17 at 13:52
|
show 1 more comment
$begingroup$
The rules provide no clear answer to the cost of purchasing a tavern.
Maintenance costs of a tavern are described in detail (DMG 127). The purchase of a tavern is not described in detail, but there are a few things that provide guidance.
Building A Stronghold (DMG 128) offers pricing for land and estate deeds which are the listed first step to building a stronghold, this would be the land on which your tavern is build or resides. Then you can compare the kind of tavern that you want to build with the listed strongholds, of which a tavern notably is none. A DM may choose the price at their discretion and could be advised by comparing your desired tavern to the most similar building on the Building a Stronghold-table (DMG 128).
The rules offer no further guidance on buying taverns. They do mention that retired adventures commonly own taverns (DMG 127, 129) and receive them as rewards (DMG 129).
answered Jun 16 at 17:55
AkixkisuAkixkisu
5,3182 gold badges18 silver badges53 bronze badges
$endgroup$
9
$begingroup$
My inclination would be to suggest that the "Guildhall" or "Trading Post" options from that section are the closest equivalent to a typical tavern, both suggesting a construction cost of 5,000gp and 60 days. I also have stuck in my head the general principle (from earlier editions, I think) that it costs half as much to build something from scratch as it does to buy outright, suggesting a reasonable price for purchasing an existing tavern might be ~10,000gp.
$endgroup$
– Carcer
Jun 16 at 18:06
3
$begingroup$
@Carcer "Ill Gotten Gains" (Dragon #268, February 2000) lists an inn at 10k gp. I think that the 5 to 10k gp is a good ballpark. The 5e GH and TP are listed at 5k gp (sans land/deeds), but I would be inclined to also compare it to the noble estate (25k gp) See hireling differences for rural or city Inns (DMG 127).
$endgroup$
– Akixkisu
Jun 16 at 18:08
12
$begingroup$
I would add these values to the answer. As it stands the answer is basically "I don't know, look here". These approximations are quite good.
$endgroup$
– Behacad
Jun 17 at 2:23
4
$begingroup$
@Behacad the answer is "I know that there is none (official gp number) in the rules. (Because there is none) Here is where you can find guidance" which precisely is what OP is asking for. If OP would ask us how we would price a tavern, then I would add numbers to the post based on what I have used in my games.
$endgroup$
– Akixkisu
Jun 17 at 5:56
6
$begingroup$
@Akixkisu come on man, the question is literally "What does it cost to buy a tavern?" and these comments include good estimates of what a tavern might cost in this universe. It's a great thing to include with some qualifiers.
$endgroup$
– Behacad
Jun 17 at 13:52
|
show 1 more comment
$begingroup$
The rules provide no clear answer to the cost of purchasing a tavern.
Maintenance costs of a tavern are described in detail (DMG 127). The purchase of a tavern is not described in detail, but there are a few things that provide guidance.
Building A Stronghold (DMG 128) offers pricing for land and estate deeds which are the listed first step to building a stronghold, this would be the land on which your tavern is build or resides. Then you can compare the kind of tavern that you want to build with the listed strongholds, of which a tavern notably is none. A DM may choose the price at their discretion and could be advised by comparing your desired tavern to the most similar building on the Building a Stronghold-table (DMG 128).
The rules offer no further guidance on buying taverns. They do mention that retired adventures commonly own taverns (DMG 127, 129) and receive them as rewards (DMG 129).
answered Jun 16 at 17:55
AkixkisuAkixkisu
5,3182 gold badges18 silver badges53 bronze badges
$endgroup$
The rules provide no clear answer to the cost of purchasing a tavern.
Maintenance costs of a tavern are described in detail (DMG 127). The purchase of a tavern is not described in detail, but there are a few things that provide guidance.
Building A Stronghold (DMG 128) offers pricing for land and estate deeds which are the listed first step to building a stronghold, this would be the land on which your tavern is build or resides. Then you can compare the kind of tavern that you want to build with the listed strongholds, of which a tavern notably is none. A DM may choose the price at their discretion and could be advised by comparing your desired tavern to the most similar building on the Building a Stronghold-table (DMG 128).
The rules offer no further guidance on buying taverns. They do mention that retired adventures commonly own taverns (DMG 127, 129) and receive them as rewards (DMG 129).
answered Jun 16 at 17:55
AkixkisuAkixkisu
5,3182 gold badges18 silver badges53 bronze badges
answered Jun 16 at 17:55
AkixkisuAkixkisu
5,3182 gold badges18 silver badges53 bronze badges
answered Jun 16 at 17:55
AkixkisuAkixkisu
5,3182 gold badges18 silver badges53 bronze badges
answered Jun 16 at 17:55
AkixkisuAkixkisu
5,3182 gold badges18 silver badges53 bronze badges
5,3182 gold badges18 silver badges53 bronze badges
9
$begingroup$
My inclination would be to suggest that the "Guildhall" or "Trading Post" options from that section are the closest equivalent to a typical tavern, both suggesting a construction cost of 5,000gp and 60 days. I also have stuck in my head the general principle (from earlier editions, I think) that it costs half as much to build something from scratch as it does to buy outright, suggesting a reasonable price for purchasing an existing tavern might be ~10,000gp.
$endgroup$
– Carcer
Jun 16 at 18:06
3
$begingroup$
@Carcer "Ill Gotten Gains" (Dragon #268, February 2000) lists an inn at 10k gp. I think that the 5 to 10k gp is a good ballpark. The 5e GH and TP are listed at 5k gp (sans land/deeds), but I would be inclined to also compare it to the noble estate (25k gp) See hireling differences for rural or city Inns (DMG 127).
$endgroup$
– Akixkisu
Jun 16 at 18:08
12
$begingroup$
I would add these values to the answer. As it stands the answer is basically "I don't know, look here". These approximations are quite good.
$endgroup$
– Behacad
Jun 17 at 2:23
4
$begingroup$
@Behacad the answer is "I know that there is none (official gp number) in the rules. (Because there is none) Here is where you can find guidance" which precisely is what OP is asking for. If OP would ask us how we would price a tavern, then I would add numbers to the post based on what I have used in my games.
$endgroup$
– Akixkisu
Jun 17 at 5:56
6
$begingroup$
@Akixkisu come on man, the question is literally "What does it cost to buy a tavern?" and these comments include good estimates of what a tavern might cost in this universe. It's a great thing to include with some qualifiers.
$endgroup$
– Behacad
Jun 17 at 13:52
|
show 1 more comment
9
$begingroup$
My inclination would be to suggest that the "Guildhall" or "Trading Post" options from that section are the closest equivalent to a typical tavern, both suggesting a construction cost of 5,000gp and 60 days. I also have stuck in my head the general principle (from earlier editions, I think) that it costs half as much to build something from scratch as it does to buy outright, suggesting a reasonable price for purchasing an existing tavern might be ~10,000gp.
$endgroup$
– Carcer
Jun 16 at 18:06
3
$begingroup$
@Carcer "Ill Gotten Gains" (Dragon #268, February 2000) lists an inn at 10k gp. I think that the 5 to 10k gp is a good ballpark. The 5e GH and TP are listed at 5k gp (sans land/deeds), but I would be inclined to also compare it to the noble estate (25k gp) See hireling differences for rural or city Inns (DMG 127).
$endgroup$
– Akixkisu
Jun 16 at 18:08
12
$begingroup$
I would add these values to the answer. As it stands the answer is basically "I don't know, look here". These approximations are quite good.
$endgroup$
– Behacad
Jun 17 at 2:23
4
$begingroup$
@Behacad the answer is "I know that there is none (official gp number) in the rules. (Because there is none) Here is where you can find guidance" which precisely is what OP is asking for. If OP would ask us how we would price a tavern, then I would add numbers to the post based on what I have used in my games.
$endgroup$
– Akixkisu
Jun 17 at 5:56
6
$begingroup$
@Akixkisu come on man, the question is literally "What does it cost to buy a tavern?" and these comments include good estimates of what a tavern might cost in this universe. It's a great thing to include with some qualifiers.
$endgroup$
– Behacad
Jun 17 at 13:52
9
9
$begingroup$
My inclination would be to suggest that the "Guildhall" or "Trading Post" options from that section are the closest equivalent to a typical tavern, both suggesting a construction cost of 5,000gp and 60 days. I also have stuck in my head the general principle (from earlier editions, I think) that it costs half as much to build something from scratch as it does to buy outright, suggesting a reasonable price for purchasing an existing tavern might be ~10,000gp.
$endgroup$
– Carcer
Jun 16 at 18:06
$begingroup$
My inclination would be to suggest that the "Guildhall" or "Trading Post" options from that section are the closest equivalent to a typical tavern, both suggesting a construction cost of 5,000gp and 60 days. I also have stuck in my head the general principle (from earlier editions, I think) that it costs half as much to build something from scratch as it does to buy outright, suggesting a reasonable price for purchasing an existing tavern might be ~10,000gp.
$endgroup$
– Carcer
Jun 16 at 18:06
3
3
$begingroup$
@Carcer "Ill Gotten Gains" (Dragon #268, February 2000) lists an inn at 10k gp. I think that the 5 to 10k gp is a good ballpark. The 5e GH and TP are listed at 5k gp (sans land/deeds), but I would be inclined to also compare it to the noble estate (25k gp) See hireling differences for rural or city Inns (DMG 127).
$endgroup$
– Akixkisu
Jun 16 at 18:08
$begingroup$
@Carcer "Ill Gotten Gains" (Dragon #268, February 2000) lists an inn at 10k gp. I think that the 5 to 10k gp is a good ballpark. The 5e GH and TP are listed at 5k gp (sans land/deeds), but I would be inclined to also compare it to the noble estate (25k gp) See hireling differences for rural or city Inns (DMG 127).
$endgroup$
– Akixkisu
Jun 16 at 18:08
12
12
$begingroup$
I would add these values to the answer. As it stands the answer is basically "I don't know, look here". These approximations are quite good.
$endgroup$
– Behacad
Jun 17 at 2:23
$begingroup$
I would add these values to the answer. As it stands the answer is basically "I don't know, look here". These approximations are quite good.
$endgroup$
– Behacad
Jun 17 at 2:23
4
4
$begingroup$
@Behacad the answer is "I know that there is none (official gp number) in the rules. (Because there is none) Here is where you can find guidance" which precisely is what OP is asking for. If OP would ask us how we would price a tavern, then I would add numbers to the post based on what I have used in my games.
$endgroup$
– Akixkisu
Jun 17 at 5:56
$begingroup$
@Behacad the answer is "I know that there is none (official gp number) in the rules. (Because there is none) Here is where you can find guidance" which precisely is what OP is asking for. If OP would ask us how we would price a tavern, then I would add numbers to the post based on what I have used in my games.
$endgroup$
– Akixkisu
Jun 17 at 5:56
6
6
$begingroup$
@Akixkisu come on man, the question is literally "What does it cost to buy a tavern?" and these comments include good estimates of what a tavern might cost in this universe. It's a great thing to include with some qualifiers.
$endgroup$
– Behacad
Jun 17 at 13:52
$begingroup$
@Akixkisu come on man, the question is literally "What does it cost to buy a tavern?" and these comments include good estimates of what a tavern might cost in this universe. It's a great thing to include with some qualifiers.
$endgroup$
– Behacad
Jun 17 at 13:52
|
show 1 more comment
Thanks for contributing an answer to Role-playing Games Stack Exchange!
- Please be sure to answer the question. Provide details and share your research!
But avoid …
- Asking for help, clarification, or responding to other answers.
- Making statements based on opinion; back them up with references or personal experience.
Use MathJax to format equations. MathJax reference.
To learn more, see our tips on writing great answers.
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function ()
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
);
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
StackExchange.ready(
function ()
StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2frpg.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f150040%2fwhat-does-it-cost-to-buy-a-tavern%23new-answer', 'question_page');
);
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function ()
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
);
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function ()
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
);
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function ()
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
);
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
$begingroup$
Are you also interested in unofficial gold piece figures, based on experience?
$endgroup$
– Akixkisu
Jun 17 at 6:57
$begingroup$
are you looking to open a dive, a fancy/upscale cocktail lounger, or a sports bar? This question (while IMO valid) is a bit broad.
$endgroup$
– KorvinStarmast
Jun 17 at 13:13
1
$begingroup$
@KorvinStarmast - Do you suggest if someone was interested in all three instances (and any in between) it would be better opened as a separate question for each? That seems counter intuitive to me and you are better having all the info in one question.
$endgroup$
– RyanfaeScotland
Jun 17 at 15:33
1
$begingroup$
I just want to know how many gold pieces a retired fighter has to spend in order to buy a tavern. I'm asking for an official figure from official sources. If there is none, I'm interested in reasonable approximations based on official sources (e.g. prices of similar buildings).
$endgroup$
– Quadratic Wizard
Jun 17 at 17:23
2
$begingroup$
@QuadraticWizard so what kind of tavern do you want to buy?
$endgroup$
– Akixkisu
Jun 17 at 18:36