>>532537484
alternatively you could also investigate medieval european cities for castle-like architecture used in a more communal day-to-day setting. One of my favourites is Gubbio, in central Italy. Monterregioni is another example. There's a couple of cities in Europe that fit this bill as well.

It's a lot of google image diving.

My other advice is to avoid terraforming. Work with- not against the terrain. You can make some pretty neat builds by just going with the flow.
Use the materials local to where you've settled. It helps make your build feel part of the world.
Last but not least: texture variation. Use blocks of similar colours but varying texture to create a visually interesting surface. Old brick walls look nicer than new ones because they're not uniform. Limestone wall tiles hook your attention because of all the abnormalities like fossils in the stone. A wooden floor is nice because the grain is never the same. Apply that to your builds.

Pic related is the Pallazo in Gubbio.