Originally posted by electricdawn:

If you build a large base and don't even know the basics of proper ventilating a fire or that a house needs, you know, a roof and that the bed needs to be close to the fire...

Sorry. You shouldn't try an enormous build in the first place. Build something small to learn the ropes. Houses are not just there to look pretty. They have a function as well.

How does any of this comment help the OP? Seriously. Pull your head out of your backside and put the condescension away. OP is clearly new and learning what they can and cannot do.

OP, there are oodles of basic and advanced building tutorials on youtube which show you how to get a useful build down - if you haven't already figured it out by now, have a watch of those, I found them extremely helpful.

Basically for an effective quick shelter, you need four walls, a door, a roof make with actual roofing pieces (not flooring), ventilation for your fireplace and a bed placed within close enough proximity to the fire that you remain in a "resting" state and are able to sleep. Ventilation for your fireplace can simply be a hole in the roof with a 45 degree piece of roofing placed so that there's a hole in the roofline that will allow the smoke out and keep the rain off (spin it around to a different angle). Once you have this and have an idea of how the shelter and smoke mechanics work, you can then add more structure on and look into building defences around your home as you progress through the game.

Good luck!