Lead Adventure Forum
Miniatures Adventure => Age of the Big Battalions => Topic started by: black hat miniatures on 06 January 2025, 05:41:57 PM
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A project that I have been working on slowly (very slowly!) over the last year is to reproduce the Siege of Dendermonde game run by Ron Miles in the 1970s and documented over 8 articles in Battle Magazine in 1977 and 1978.
I am hoping to get cracking with it this year so have been making some plans on how to tackle it. The game will be on an 8' x 6' board, half of it city and half of it siege lines.
I decided that if I really am going to crack on with the Dendermonde scenery I need to have it setup so I can tinker when I feel like it.
(https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDQEVdviqPiRz7gzvW-qAkk_4IkQsYtmRwEyyeZ6Dq-1jKzc202Isa2hqRjJwIIEGp7aGNx8vB5288t6aU0xClouhlnQY5959s7O7tlWVdoOzF3zKlwCn5XehwUSOu92eNUvGL9VKJ3xVrJeJP_NTL6VgR-i3rSuyAqRwvmUBymOGSIssgl0irANK6qBmE/s1046/wss1.jpg)
This is the city half of the board setup on a 4' x 6' at the end of the games room. I decided in the end to go with 6' wide and not compromise the size of the city walls.
I still have space for a 6'x 4' table for games when I need it.
I spent some time yesterday cutting 11 more hex board to complete the base board and I can start to spray the city boards grey and the ditch boards brown (they will eventually be textured) to give a better feel of how the areas split up.
I spent some time drawing up plans for the glacis and laying big bits of paper to get a feel for size and shape - a couple more revisions should have the base areas of the Glacis worked out.
I have also planned where the citadel and the ditch surrounding it will go and settled on a 75mm x 95mm footprint for the basic houses. I will also be adding a set of 1/4 depth houses along the back of the board to give the illusion of more housing, etc.
(https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqtrw2AUr7ozu4yBqrHtgrD66U8QSR-RxgBRCZ8VaXQ4dk0yk_tOJNhRmBSDUE9kbfAwdSnqmjM39pIv_hyXmpx2Uy-PnyLR1QXGMX39E0DgK5rqqNWRsKqP3gOMrWIxnNEPHUQ82r1PB_Jbiy_myr86d3dzVJDe4N6BgNbA9WPqQulnu7-3_A7ynKGu8T/s611/gabions.jpg)
I printed out some Gabions I had downloaded and resized them to 75% to get what seems to be about the right size. These will be combined with laser cut trench sides and either plaster or DAS to create siege lines.
(https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYo0MIdY4xg80Y8k8s7bvwa3LUyVLuIO6luO5TeJPib_9zj8xGriEQGYGjYtofAZBbtjBs3hAVKbNkvHKJntdDCRDkjyVpqHXTO-Au8USw_P5GFpDxigN_9C0ZhIglSoBxnTn8XmhBzg7wuQn2ReLc9hZsKBNYs_yX6xhylluEWcNvOjfLfd63xyT8JxeM/s994/french.jpg)
Finally I started sorting through the Minifigs French and British Grenadiers that I picked up on Facebook before Christmas for less then £1 each. I'll be adding French Grenadiers and some extra officers to bring the units up to 24 strength. The painter has picked units with all the same facing colours, so it will be easy to mix them, and I'll probably repaint some stockings, etc to distinguish the units.
Still lots to get on with....
There are a lot of details on how I built the Bastions and Ravelins, etc and design plans and thoughts on my blog here:
https://littlewars1913.blogspot.com/search/label/Dendermonde (https://littlewars1913.blogspot.com/search/label/Dendermonde)
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I recall bits of the original in Battle. I dodn't remember the finale as copies of the magazine were available sporadically where I lived.
This is a fabulous project, will be watching with great anticipation.
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Great project!
The scale of the bastions is huge - shows more in the blog photos - so worth a look there.
Interesting to see your construction techniques, with laser cut MDF as the base structures. Then more traditional modelling on top, but some 3d printing thrown in too!
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This is excellent! And brings back some memories of those articles. Shall be following the blog now.
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Thanks for the comments.
Finished cutting the first protoype house for the city of Dendermonde.
(https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/theoutpost/download/file.php?dt=display&id=8975)
Still need to make some changed to how the walls connect to make it easier to put them together. Next stage is to find some 1mm card and cut some shutters to go round the windows. And add a chimney.
It is deliberately downscaled against the 25mm figure so it has a smaller footprint.
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would the stepped brick eaves bits not be above the roof? I'm no expert on Dutch architecture, but a bit of it crops up in East Anglia from around that period due to the drainage.
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would the stepped brick eaves bits not be above the roof? I'm no expert on Dutch architecture, but a bit of it crops up in East Anglia from around that period due to the drainage.
Well spotted - it needs to be higher and I've adjusted that already - only realised it once the roof was on.
Mike
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This is a project I will follow with great interest. Can we see some more picks of those Vauban fortifications?
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This is a project I will follow with great interest. Can we see some more picks of those Vauban fortifications?
There are quite a few on the blog link in the first post. There will be more as I add the city gate, Citadel, Glacis, etc
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I found them thanks. Looking at your 3-d images it seems you still have a lot of ahead of you.
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Still working on the Dutch style houses.
(https://attachment.tapatalk-cdn.com/30/202501/138_be2a8395576e408766d0f0f044f6b731.jpg)
This is the prototype for the 1/3 relief houses that will sit on the back of the city board giving the illusion of more houses, etc behind. Still need to make a couple of tweaks - they will be in strips of 3 mainly. I have left the fronts separate so I can mix and match.
(https://attachment.tapatalk-cdn.com/30/202501/138_1f262de1c4f00cf51cd438db73088a41.jpg)
These are the 4 style of house front I've drawn up so far - will probably add a couple extra and also want to do a couple of shops and perhaps a couple with slightly different window arrangements.
Onto shutters next as my 1mm card has arrived.
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(https://attachment.tapatalk-cdn.com/30/202501/138_2568c73198a41da870823acbaa507f45.jpg)
Managed to finish the multiple low relief houses as well. Took a while to get the roof pieces right and I have rejigged the base to give 1mm space between the houses as the fronts were really tight to fit into the base.
Starting to get a feel for how the city might look.
Now the weather has brightened up I can get some baseboards sprayed and start undercoating some more figures...
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These look very nice
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I don't suppose you have shareable SVG files for the fortifications?
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I don't suppose you have shareable SVG files for the fortifications?
My laser files are dxfs not svgs and they are slightly bodged…
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My laser files are dxfs not svgs and they are slightly bodged…
cheers, not even heard of dxf
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Its for exchanging drawings between cad packages like Autocad.
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(https://attachment.tapatalk-cdn.com/30/202501/138_11aa22c949e7a68a11018499c33213c7.jpg)
Spent some time today finishing off the city walls and adding a gatehouse. It will have extras added to it, but this is the basic form.
(https://attachment.tapatalk-cdn.com/30/202501/138_12045869d673db57c66b8b98de67fd2e.jpg)
I have decided not to use the hex terrain for the city section - I am using it for the siege lines and just extended the area but I have now decided to use normal MDF boards. They have been primed with a base colour (on both sides to prevent warping). The city area will have cobblestone streets between the houses.
(https://attachment.tapatalk-cdn.com/30/202501/138_fc5c0f838fd54238b29791ed101759c9.jpg)
The MDF along the back will be a road running along the walls and bastions
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How do you intend to model the ditch and the glacis? Will the MDF be on raised foam sections?
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How do you intend to model the ditch and the glacis? Will the MDF be on raised foam sections?
I am thinking about it. Quick test pic of an experiment with some foam I have lying around here:
(https://attachment.tapatalk-cdn.com/30/202501/138_186f35fafe6fb19869a433869d001349.jpg)
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Spent some time today design the citadel for Dendermonde - or at least the small part of it that appears on the table. This is the edge of the citadel and one of its bastions. There will also be the corner of the main tower at the back of this piece.
(https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAMgAOTdp4KFo1A3thYqU1JCFUPAYgX7kEUlsILqwk_Nt75jOBYD6Q4TOGHYZiRjrK_hbNoLoQCsjAUEeI7tdfOgo-Px4bmL4yLHcGMAe9rPAVH2gLfwGZdBkBt0eYru8y3h0I-zZ-XjwVCoq6cJ91UQghK16WqhuaKfZF-9Cd-Jx2zx03J-019yozfdq_/s911/cit2.jpg)
(https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisyq9wtq7dBHj1lJXD7UzFSiyjz1283xoCZWEQyUIJ4S0kQ5iny3jRX38YEtJ7DJ_OaB1VfHqY_jOJrAjiNGMZDJHSTBzdMaJDBTjAma2alBE8xOcUSUn61H2KtmpbLYfSt5jM76ui5Ii8knEAFKU3uuIA9ETuo-zvlusdEIaPlG0jJwDpCngVNe6fTMH6/s911/cit1.jpg)
Just playing with the first version of the outer walls and then need to design and cut the inner walls.
There will be a flooded ditch around the edge of the citadel with a small bank marking one side.
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That's going to be one impressive table!
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(https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRxwQNcOWSVE-iNE4nyuEGxfIEbUGZ3Bhhk31NIGPDj7zYO5sAYbwUW_Ps809wsmtzTnOWUjMOluumIAS6lrEA8eFOjHnX9gz-UAd8gNkMqCFftOGf3kqNmdI2PBZJPImiHsRTT8qWH9X89cjDjt3CEcuIoipbMwQ0oVHic4nANWHvd1mS5JevI8ajHmBn/s1041/ditch1.jpg)
(https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVVhdoMHDp0C6YyELnw1oR-G3d06XAvRB8fk1vy3tfvwOfzQj61fVJW0Gd5opzAJQozymWs4-zOLVhPSo56919v3poz1alJ-mUmUPVAhWw-yjVDEb2kU3lq_kFb-uqIYHRQSl689xh_tqE7OpsHY9lW-SPhYkjo1MUEIcaw6hGL-5WSXVwknGl9lGjiT14/s1041/ditch2.jpg)
I have bought a box of 600 x 400 x 25mm polystyrene packing sheets to use as the base of the table and give me a sunked ditch.
Spent some time today playing with how it might look. I need to work out the Glacis before I have an exact idea of the siege lines side of the ditch. But I think it looks deep enough. The Ravelins, etc will also be raised out of the ditch as well...
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That is an incredible fortress peice.
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That is an incredible fortress peice.
Thanks, getting there slowly - still a fair way to go with building and then texturing everything (wih tissue) and then painting...
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(https://attachment.tapatalk-cdn.com/30/202502/138_afa8ef6e6a09c2668e819c42da9a6e4e.jpg)
Finished the 2 Demi Lunes guarding the walls. There will be a bridge from the gate to the demi-lune in front of it and then a road running through the demi-lune onto a temporary wooden bridge to the Glacis.
Walls are a bit bodged but they will be covered up by texturing.
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(https://attachment.tapatalk-cdn.com/30/202502/138_815dca3e9eabbc80077234b19848e0b5.jpg)
(https://attachment.tapatalk-cdn.com/30/202502/138_d96bce5936693146a4da1108e9dadc47.jpg)
As I have been alone this afternoon I took advantage of my wife's absence to cut some very smelly polystyrene with a hot knife to see how the ditch will look.
Need to prime the polystyrene the same colour as the ditch and then decide how I'm going to texture it all....
Flocked terrain is just to mark edge of ditch - will eventually be slopes of a glacis down onto that terrain.
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Making great progress.
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Looks like you have the core structure sorted. This is going to look very impressive
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Making great progress.
Thanks - I'm enjoying the design and building.Whether covering everything in tissue paper will be as exciting we shall see!
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Looks like you have the core structure sorted. This is going to look very impressive
Thanks - the ditch side just needs:
Glacis
bridges for the road
The sluice gate structure on the river side
Then I can move onto the buildings in the town...
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(https://attachment.tapatalk-cdn.com/30/202502/138_f396e03619137f7cdcaea14ab87edaec.jpg)
Spent some time yesterday working out the Glacis and how it would fit around the ravelins and across the ditch.
Cut most of it, but have run out of 4mm MDF (more on order) to cut the side pieces and one more top.
Next will be the back wall and walkway above the covered way.
Then cutting lots of 2mm slopes as triangles and trying to make them fit!
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Loving the look of that! :-* :-*
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This is going to be huge!
Just done a few mins searching on Dendermonde, and whilst there are some cool maps, I’m struggling to see any period paintings of the town and its defences.
There seems to be a couple of ravelins and some ditch still extant - but they looked to have largely been levelled or built over.
Quite a few prior LAF threads on this topic too (not sure why they don’t show on the related topics)?
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Here's my piece of a Vauban fortress. Some day I'll even manage to stage a siege. (forgot who made this. They are out of business, unfortunately)
(https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrFkuJHqbO-blfu1G4ToFlFKSH9U5hQX0kLVbHXA9RKM7JRkmWx8hu3obP1f68TThNznOX1nY-zGboLuzE1Xf-t7YT7ICO5G94nRXPMKCxl4Znv4WekHWnzOWdiwmWv_3-GNdZi4TDI0M/s320/fortress+002.JPG)
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This is going to be huge!
Just done a few mins searching on Dendermonde, and whilst there are some cool maps, I’m struggling to see any period paintings of the town and its defences.
There seems to be a couple of ravelins and some ditch still extant - but they looked to have largely been levelled or built over.
Quite a few prior LAF threads on this topic too (not sure why they don’t show on the related topics)?
My version of Dendermonde is based on the one Ron Miles built for his article in Battle magazine - it isn't a recreation of an actual town just the recreation of Ron's work now I can do it rather than dreaming about doing it when I was 14 and the article came out!
Dendermonde was besieged in 1706 and peacefully surrendered to the Allies.
Ron's article is based on a fictitious siege in 1708 after the battle of Oudenarde.
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Here's my piece of a Vauban fortress. Some day I'll even manage to stage a siege. (forgot who made this. They are out of business, unfortunately)
(https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrFkuJHqbO-blfu1G4ToFlFKSH9U5hQX0kLVbHXA9RKM7JRkmWx8hu3obP1f68TThNznOX1nY-zGboLuzE1Xf-t7YT7ICO5G94nRXPMKCxl4Znv4WekHWnzOWdiwmWv_3-GNdZi4TDI0M/s320/fortress+002.JPG)
That is the Gladiator Miniatures / Terrain Warehouse Vauban Fort, I think - I did have it at one point but it is for 15mm.
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(https://attachment.tapatalk-cdn.com/30/202502/138_900847c63771a66515e3f81b957816e9.jpg)
Fiddled with the covered way and retaining wall for the glacis bank yesterday and now everything fits. Wood arrived today so I can cut the remaining bases and work out the edge pieces.
Hoping to assemble everything over the weekend and finish the glacis completely...
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(https://attachment.tapatalk-cdn.com/30/202502/138_4231d6dbd7b661b389844417072b67c2.jpg)
(https://attachment.tapatalk-cdn.com/30/202502/138_9cb41c912f7a50274ebb4fe868a5eee7.jpg)
As I was on my own today I decided to try and finish off the Glacis so the fortifications are done.
Bit fiddly and I have fingers covered in superglue but it is done. I still want to cut a couple of end pieces to finish it off - but pretty happy with the build.
I am thinking of covering it with Railway grass paper initially and then adding some flock - that should hide the joins and strengthen it.
Next is cutting the polystyrene supporting the glacis and the painting all the ditch pieces.
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Marvelous! The grass paper and flock idea sounds like a good plan.
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Wow! Great progress.
I’m less sure about the railway grass paper - the following is based on using it a few years ago, so there is a chance it has improved, but given how long it has been around as a product, I doubt it. I’ve found the railway flock paper rather stiff, but also prone to tearing, and it tends to be very mono chrome. I’d perhaps suggest a paper mache layer to give some strength and hide the MDF joins, then sand and flock - as then you can then vary the colours and coverage.
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Wow! Great progress.
I’m less sure about the railway grass paper - the following is based on using it a few years ago, so there is a chance it has improved, but given how long it has been around as a product, I doubt it. I’ve found the railway flock paper rather stiff, but also prone to tearing, and it tends to be very mono chrome. I’d perhaps suggest a paper mache layer to give some strength and hide the MDF joins, then sand and flock - as then you can then vary the colours and coverage.
Thanks I'll bear that in mind and have a look at other possibilities.
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Woodland Scenics do a range that's a fair bit better than the papers of yore. If you dress them witha little flock and some tufts, they look fine. Admittedly I've been using them for lawns, urban parks and the like.
Noch and Heki do ranges of flocked mats that are easy to cut up. These might actually be a better option as you can get larger sizes and overall are a cheaper option. There weren't many 18thC lawn movers save for sheep so a bit of irregularity won't hurt.
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I have started the long process of texturing and painting the Dendermonde walls. The tecinique is to coat the structure with a thinned coat of PVA glue and then to apply a single ply of tissue paper to it.
(https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1JkUwr8hH5wOh0kTyq687Mjnmn0O7peNIxpnO6jcxEfswyJTb2Po0t0H6YVes7gC4ssWpLlo2njcF0NuFMGvxYT_pZMjKvHiy_tPqXSpcnU-KQj8dSQNxpPZtDfbWWnQ3aVyG9w00cAVFMFqbUCSLimxYiN32LTNGr9IWBOhxwlq4we9OuzyK4ddqot7F/s1046/texture2.jpg)
(https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTcmktFGUYKdaJeCCEm21EK-_UgH2aPFrkTjfFcHlc-AvAk2tn5W7CcmcV8m28TzbamEAECwurIMi_sfN92qACSWWRcxIjZowxwavfiQKEGk5xa6coMTUK97w3GKv6-spEIpGfjQYJ479d0bPZB4AjIWjNXEkAij3FKwKUs50Ncybhtku0IwaVxm0MTsrF/s1046/texture1.jpg)
Then you paint another layer of PVA over the top. This produces a textured surface that can be sprayed grey and then dry brushed to highlight and bring out the texture.
I use cheap "Saxon" 2-ply tissues from Aldi which are large and easily separate.
The end result when dry is this:
(https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZv4RdD_VUz4RQR0PkHGHVb9WjfMSr77883UWouIAqdTozdb4Y0OkgoqZzM7lHnshyPjMaj5726_T-0oV1COvaMzkn-bNqMceOjLuUsWzk77F8-ukzL9g-T2D_9Z0u8NWih5aNxFA-m77EEbNbh09_LimaDEUXT1lnJaUMjN8V6cgEm6UI-X48_2J721_m/s1046/texture3.jpg)
City walls are done and most of the Ravelins. Next up are 2 Demilunes and then the 3 Bastions. I need to cut some window and door frames for the city gate before I can texture that and also need to tile the roof.
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wow that's an interesting way to texture walls
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This is a project on a truly heroic scale. I too was deeply moved by the series in Battle magazine. I use card stock and wood glue over blue insulation board for most of my projects. I add texture with latex wallboard compound from the builder's supply. Your choice of MDF gives the advantage of a hard surface to work over. I am excited to see how this project turns out. Keep up the good work! Most impressive!
(https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi0mdmQ3cznoqA38o1ESkDFUnYYQCsoGLpb8O-JpTViTd3GvJEW-KABUlAXrN6w7QuYRwGDJee-gre_1J995M3eNrIcukA88xrwveQV2oWM36pcetOI64rVa7v6SLmwyYnlhqNG8SGIWc/s1600/20180111_030010.jpg)
My 1/56th scale version of the Castillo de San Marcos
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That is a great model.
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Finally finished texturing and painting the main elements of the Dendermonde defenses. Still need to finish off the Gatehouse but getting there.
Next up is working out exactly how I am going to do the grass on the Glacis and designing and cutting the causeway from the gate to the glacis via the demi-lune.
Very rough setup to see how it looks...
(https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/theoutpost/download/file.php?dt=display&id=9672)
(https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/theoutpost/download/file.php?dt=display&id=9673)
(https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/theoutpost/download/file.php?dt=display&id=9674)
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Simply lovely! A truly titanic effort.
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Outstanding!
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:o :o :o :-* :-* :-*
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Looking Epic!
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This is just incredible. Massive props to you for making this, I'll eagerly await the next update!